Following the rapid spread of urbanization and industrialism in the US after the Civil War, people began to respond to the growing slums and poor communities, the exploitation of labor, and the breakdown of city and state governments. The people began to feel their democratic government and free economic opportunities were undermined by significant economic and political powers. But what did they do to fight these powers? And did they succeed in making any real change? Let's review the successes and failures of progressivism.
Summary of the Successes and Failures of Progressivism
The Progressive Era lasting from about 1860 to 1820, was a time in the U.S. that focused heavily on social and political reform to create a better society. While it saw considerable success in areas such as regulating business practices and granting women their right to vote, it failed in civil rights and the overall treatment of people of color.
Overview of the Successes and Failures of Progressivism
As the Industrial Revolution progressed through the 1800s, corporate bosses, often called "robber barons," began to use unfair and unethical business practices to gain more profits at the expense of their employees. Many of these employees were immigrants, as well as young children, who were exposed to hazardous working conditions. The gap between the workers who could barely make ends meet and the rich who ran the factories was rapidly growing. The Progressives wished to regulate business practices and saw unions as a way to create real change. The National Municipal League was organized in 1894 and united reform groups across the country.
In the political arena, the Progressives aimed to corrupt political machines in major cities. This was spurred on by the Panic of 1893, which led to a movement to remove local governments from political machines' power. Corrupt governments were overthrown in cities like New York in 1894, Baltimore in 1895, and Chicago in 1896-7.
Panic of 1893
an economic recession in the United States that led to political upheaval
Fig. 1 - political cartoon depicting Boss Tweed, leader of the New York political machine Tammany Hall
Reformers created two different systems to reform city governments, from those easily influenced by corruption to those that would benefit the people of the lower classes. One put all responsibility on a group of commissioners responsible for a single department. The second was an administration established by an expert responsible for the elected council created by the people. This reformation movement began at the state level and continuously went up to the national level. It is important to remember there was not only one movement during the Progressive Era; multiple movements took place at different times, with different goals and outcomes, on different levels (city, state, and national). But despite the original differences between reformers, the early 1900s brought them closer to being on the same page; most wanted more equitable taxation (of railroads and other corporate property), better education for their children, housing reform, and better social services for the poor.
Tenement Housing
Seeing the significant demand for housing in urban areas, apartment owners converted abandoned single-family residences into multiple small apartments. When these residences ran out, they began constructing tenement and apartment buildings with the same concept. The rapid rate of industrialization meant that the city government had not yet addressed building codes and regulations, so these tenement buildings were often cheaply constructed without any attention paid to actual living conditions. Renters were essentially free to take advantage of desperate working-class families.
Often the apartments were no larger than a single room but meant to house entire families. Windows, electricity, and running water were rare luxuries, and disease ran rampant in the poorly ventilated and cramped conditions. Generally, these buildings were housed together in the slums, with highly unsanitary conditions in the streets.
Fig. 2 - photograph of the interior of a tenement apartment, taken by Jacob Riis
In the late 19th century, the Progressives began to look towards tenement housing as a significant problem facing the working class, thanks partly to the photo-investigative work of Jacob Riis, a Danish immigrant. Settlement houses, built as an alternative and centered around community improvement, popped up nationwide. In 1901, New York City, the home of Jacob Riis, passed the Tenement House Act to address the housing issue and implement building regulations.
Overview of the Successes and Failures of Progressivism: The Federal Level
The elections of Theodore Roosevelt (1901 - 1909) and Woodrow Wilson (1913 - 1921) brought changes to the country on the national level. Both men worked to expand the federal government's power to regulate the private industry and create protections for workers and consumers.
Fig. 3 - Theodore Roosevelt
Many of the Progressive Era's successes can be seen in the implementation of multiple new Amendments, for example:
- The 16th Amendment established a federal income tax.
- The 17th Amendment allowed citizens to elect Senators directly.
- The 18th Amendment prohibited the manufacturing, selling, and transporting of alcohol.
- The 19th Amendment finally granted and guaranteed women their right to vote.
The period also saw massive improvements in workplace reform and consumer health and safety, with some examples being
- The National Child Labor Committee was created in 1904 and fought for laws and regulations against child labor/exploitation in the workplace.
- The Pure Food and Drug Act was passed in 1906 and ensured that food and pharmaceuticals were safe for consumption and that the packaging labels listed all ingredients.
- The Clayton Antitrust Act of 1914 fought against the growth of monopolies, price discrimination, and all things that could be considered abusive business practices.
The Failure of the Progressive Party
Although the Progressives had many successes at the federal level, The Progressive Party never managed to find its footing. Much of this was because the Progressives were such a heterogeneous group. It was hard for the Progressive Party to establish a robust platform because different Progressives wanted different things and sometimes vehemently opposed the work of other Progressives.
Despite protests and the clear will of many movements to fight the discrimination of people of color during this period, both Woodrow Wilson and Theodore Roosevelt openly ignored the issues. As Roosevelt stated himself during his "New Nationalism" speech in Osawatomie, Kansas:
The government should not be influenced by special interest groups."
- President Theodore Roosevelt, 19101
This was essentially the President's polite way of saying he had no interest in focusing on the issue of discrimination in the United States.
The Successes and Failures of Progressivism: The Key Problems
The Progressives made many positive changes but supported many discriminatory policies. During Woodrow Wilson's Presidency, he put forth a racial agenda that peaked with segregation of the federal government.
Fig. 4 - Woodrow Wilson
This was also when the US saw a revival of the Ku Klux Klan, an American white supremacist, and terrorist group. Their primary targets are African Americans, Jews, Catholics, Latinos, and Asian Americans.
In the country's history, the Ku Klux Klan has had 3 periods of revival.
The Civil Rights of black Americans would not be granted until decades later, in the 1950s - 1960s, due to the influence of leaders such as Martin Luther King Jr.
It is also important to remember that despite eugenics being a focal point of studies in Nazi Germany, Americans were the first country (during the Progressive Era) to pass a sterilization law in 1907. By the end of Nazi Germany and the discrediting of the idea of eugenics, 60,000 Americans had been forcefully sterilized.
Eugenics
a pseudoscience that promotes the reproduction of those with "desirable" features and discourages or prevents the reproduction of those with "undesirable" features --- this was often based on racial and class hierarchies targeting the lower classes, ethnic minorities, immigrants, the mentally ill, and the developmentally disabled
Successes and Failures of Progressivism: The Conclusion
Despite significant advancements toward equality, education, and workplace safety for white Americans, people of color faced severe abuse during this period. As white women were granted their right to vote through the 19th Amendment, Native American women were being forcefully sterilized. As white children came out of the factories and went back to school, black children were being segregated and living under Jim Crow laws, with a growing fear of the revived KKK. Progressivism's successes and failures would inspire new movements, such as the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s and 1960s, Second Wave feminism in the 1970s, and Black Lives Matter in the 2010s to present. Successes and Failures of Progressivism - Key takeaways
- The Progressive Era began in response to the negative changes seen across society due to the industrialization and urbanization of towns after the end of the Civil War.
- There was more than one "Progressive" movement, each with different goals, outcomes, and levels (city, state, nation).
- Despite the differences between movements, the Progressive Era focused on creating a better society centered around social and political reform.
- Though the Progressive Era brought many influential changes to the lives of white Americans, people of color were often left out.
References
- Theodore Roosevelt, 'New Nationalism', Osawatomie, Kansas (August 31, 1910)
Explanations 
Exams 
Magazine 
