The Progressive Era: Reform and Social Change

The Progressive Era, spanning from 1890 to 1918, emerged as a response to the Gilded Age economic and social challenges. This period was characterized by widespread reforms aimed at addressing the problems that had arisen during the rapid industrialization and urbanization of the late 19th century.

The goals of the Progressive movement included:

1. Preventing unfair business practices
2. Giving people greater control in government
3. Promoting general welfare through economic, social, and political reforms

Highlight: The Progressive Era saw significant efforts to improve the lives of American workers, regulate big business, and expand democratic participation.

One of the key issues addressed during this period was the aftermath of the Civil War and the ongoing struggle for African American rights. While the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments had abolished slavery and granted citizenship and voting rights to African American men, discriminatory practices continued:

• Grandfather clauses, poll taxes, and literacy tests were used to disenfranchise African American voters.
• Jim Crow laws enforced racial segregation, particularly in the South.
• The Plessy v. Ferguson Supreme Court case upheld the "separate but equal" doctrine, legitimizing segregation.

Definition: Jim Crow laws - A system of state and local statutes that enforced racial segregation in the Southern United States.

Progressive reformers sought to address these and other social issues:

• W.E.B. Du Bois advocated for full equality and founded the NAACP.
• Booker T. Washington promoted a gradual approach to progress, focusing on education and job training for African Americans.
• Ida B. Wells raised awareness about lynching through her investigative journalism.

The Progressive movement also challenged the concept of Social Darwinism, which had been used to justify economic inequality. Instead, reformers promoted the idea of the Social Gospel, emphasizing social responsibility and the need to address societal problems.

Example: Jane Addams' Hull House in Chicago exemplified the settlement house movement, providing services such as childcare, job training, and education to urban immigrants and the poor.

These efforts laid the groundwork for significant reforms that would shape American society in the early 20th century.

Transcontinental Railroad and Gilded Age Politics

The completion of the transcontinental railroad in the post-Civil War era had far-reaching consequences for the United States. It facilitated rapid westward expansion, driven by economic opportunities and government policies. However, this expansion came at a great cost to Native American populations.

Highlight: The impact of transcontinental railroad on Native Americans was severe, leading to the violation of their rights, violent conflicts with settlers and Mexican Americans, and attempts to erase Native identities through forced assimilation policies.

The U.S. government employed military force to subjugate Native American tribes and implemented policies like the Dawes Act to promote assimilation. This act aimed to break up tribal lands and encourage individual land ownership among Native Americans, often resulting in the loss of their traditional lands and way of life.

Gilded Age politics were primarily focused on economic issues such as tariffs, the debate between gold and silver standards, and laissez-faire policies. Government corruption was rampant at local, state, and national levels, leading to calls for reform through measures like referendums, initiatives, and recall elections.

Example: The Interstate Commerce Act of 1887 was one of the first attempts to regulate big business, specifically targeting railroad companies and their pricing practices.

This period also saw a rise in nativism and racism, resulting in discriminatory legislation:

1. Plessy v. Ferguson: This Supreme Court case upheld the constitutionality of racial segregation under the "separate but equal" doctrine.
2. Chinese Exclusion Act: This 1882 law prohibited the immigration of Chinese laborers, marking the first time the United States had barred a specific ethnic group from entering the country.

Intellectual movements of the Gilded Age included:

• Gospel of Wealth: Promoted by Andrew Carnegie, this philosophy encouraged the wealthy to donate their fortunes to philanthropic causes.
• Social Darwinism: Herbert Spencer applied Darwin's evolutionary theories to society, arguing that the rich deserved their wealth due to natural selection.
• Social Gospel: A movement aimed at improving urban conditions and the lives of the poor through the application of Christian ethics to social problems.

Quote: "The man who dies rich, dies disgraced." - Andrew Carnegie, advocating for the wealthy to use their fortunes for the betterment of society.

African American leaders and women's rights advocates challenged societal norms during this period:

• Booker T. Washington encouraged vocational training for African Americans.
• Ida B. Wells spoke out against lynching in the South.
• Elizabeth Cady Stanton advocated for women's suffrage.

These movements and figures laid the groundwork for the more comprehensive reforms of the Progressive Era that would follow.