The Progressive Era: Reform in America

After 1900, Americans became fixated on reforming everything that could be reformed. This common strive for a better society was deemed progressivism and became popular with people of all different agendas. Progressivism was characterized by interest in intellectual pursuits and efficiency. In the end, this broad effort was responsible for empowering women, reforming the government, renewing the fight for black rights, and producing presidents who reformed corporate business and social services.

Progressivism commonly used scientific investigation to gather information about things that required reform. This methodical approach was also applied to the workplace through scientific management. Even the media picked up on the popularity of progressivism with the new type of journalism: mudraking. Mudraking publications exposed problems and injustices in America.

Another important group of people to join in the progressive movement were American women. Seeing an opportunity to increase their value to society, they began heading charitable programs like settlement houses. Empowered by the impact they made, women began gravitating towards feminism, a movement focused on equal rights and freedoms for women.

Meanwhile, politicians like Robert M. La Follette started realizing how corrupt the government had become and began the struggle to reform the government and political machines. Progressive politicians wanted a more democratic government and, therefore, put importance on initiatives and recalls. However, progressives made little progress with municipal reforms.

Working-class Americans also began to take up the progressive cause. Workers tried to unionize and solve problems without government aid, but could not make much progress. Courts rarely favored unions and did not hesitate to put court orders in place to prevent workers from striking or boycotting. Furthermore, workers could not make much progress in accident liability or other types of compensation.

Unfortunately, black Americans felt the pain of social injustices as much as the working-class. As they began migrating to cities, racism between the white residents and the new black residents erupted once again. The struggle for social rights was also renewed in the form of the Niagra Movement. This organization focused its efforts on encouraging black pride and achieving political and social equality.

The first progressive president in America was Theodore Roosevelt. Roosevelt was a devout Christian and an avid outdoorsman. More importantly, though, was that he consistently tried to control the power of corporate businesses. In his first attack, he established the Bureau of Corporations, a department of the Justice Department responsible for investigating business practices. This helped Roosevelt's cause, but the Supreme Court eventually pushed him back a step by deciding that any restraint on trade or monopolization of an industry would automatically violate the Sherman Act. Roosevelt persisted and began a program called the Square Deal. Through this program, the government started asserting power over corporate businesses for the first time since the Civil War.

Meanwhile, congress was occupied with the railroads. Congress passed the Hepburn Railway Act and gave power to the Interstate Commerce Commission power to set maximum shipping rates and reform bookkeeping practices. Congress also passed both the Pure Food and Drug Act and the Meat Inspection Act in order to improve the grotesque conditions in meatpacking plants and other food processing plants.

The next president of the United States was William Howard Taft, but the next president to benefit the progressive movement was really Woodrow Wilson, a democrat. The election was mostly between Roosevelt, who advocated a reform program called New Nationalism, and Wilson, who called his program New Freedom. Both aimed to limit the power of corporate businesses, but Wilson's plan was centered around reviving competition while Roosevelt's plan was all about government regulation.

Once he was actually in the White House, Wilson helped initiate the Federal Reserve Act of 1913. This act helped prevent the banking industry from collapsing under the pressure of financial panic by organizing twelve banks to act as reserves. Furthermore, the Clayton Antitrust Act of 1914 loosened the set definition of what qualified as illegal.

In the end, the Progressive Era made clear impacts on many aspects of American life. This may be because members of this movement came from all different agendas and backgrounds. Whatever the cause of progressive success, its influence reached women in the form of feminism, the working-class through urban liberalism, blacks through the Niagara movement, and corporate businesses through progressive presidents-namely President Roosevelt. Without the progressive movement, America would never have overcome the problems brought by industrialization.

Diner, Steven J. A Very Different Age: Americans of the Progressive Era Kennedy, David M. ed., Progressivism: The Critical Issues Buenker, John D. Urban Liberalism and Progressive Reform