Rights

Progressive Era

A period in U.S. history from 1890 to 1920 marked by social activism and political reform to address issues caused by industrialization, urbanization, and political corruption, challenging the laissez-faire approach of the government.

Laissez-faire

An economic system where the government minimizes intervention, allowing businesses to operate with little regulation, assuming the market will self-regulate through competition and the laws of supply and demand.

Carnegie

A Scottish-American industrialist who led the expansion of the American steel industry in the late 19th century and became one of the wealthiest Americans in history. He later became a major philanthropist.

Rockefeller

An American oil industry business magnate, philanthropist, and one of the wealthiest Americans of all time. He co-founded the Standard Oil Company.

Vanderbilt

An American business magnate and philanthropist who built his wealth in shipping and railroads and was a patriarch of his family.

Muckrakers

Investigative journalists during the Progressive Era who exposed corruption, unethical practices, and social injustices in industries and politics, raising public awareness and pushing for reforms.

Ida Tarbell

An American writer and investigative journalist who was one of the leading muckrakers of the Progressive Era. She is best known for her 1904 book 'The History of the Standard Oil Company,' which exposed the monopolistic practices of Standard Oil.

Jacob Riis

A Danish-American social reformer, muckraking journalist, and social documentary photographer. He is known for using his photographic and journalistic talents to help the impoverished in New York City. He is known for his book 'How The Other Half Lives'.

Upton Sinclair

An American writer and muckraker known for his novel 'The Jungle,' which exposed unsanitary and unsafe conditions in the meatpacking industry, leading to public outcry and significant reforms in food safety regulations.

Tenements

Urban dwellings, often overcrowded and poorly maintained, that housed large numbers of immigrants and working-class families during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. They were often characterized by unsanitary conditions, lack of ventilation, and high rates of disease.

Child Labor

The employment of children in labor-intensive jobs under hazardous conditions, often due to family economic necessity. This exploitation was a major concern during the Progressive Era, leading to efforts to regulate and abolish it.

The Jungle

A novel written by Upton Sinclair that exposed the unsanitary conditions in the meatpacking industry, leading to the passage of the Pure Food and Drug Act.

Food and Drug Administration (FDA)

A federal agency responsible for regulating and supervising the safety of foods, drugs, medical devices, cosmetics, and other products.

Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA)

A U.S. labor law passed in 1938 creating the right to a national minimum wage, guaranteed overtime pay, and prohibited most employment of minors in 'oppressive child labor,' especially in industries like manufacturing.

Carrie Chapman Catt

An American women's suffrage leader who campaigned for the 19th Amendment, granting women the right to vote. She served as president of the National American Woman Suffrage Association and advocated for a state-by-state approach to achieve suffrage.

Alice Paul

An American suffragist, feminist, and women's rights activist, and one of the main leaders of the campaign for the 19th Amendment. She led the National Woman's Party (NWP) and advocated for more radical tactics, including protests and picketing.

President Wilson

The 28th President of the United States from 1913 to 1921 and led America through World War I. He was a leading Progressive, advocating for a 'New Freedom' platform of reforms.

Gloria Steinem

An American feminist, journalist, and social and political activist who became nationally recognized as a leader and spokeswoman for the feminist movement in the late 1960s and early 1970s.

Betty Friedan

An American feminist writer and activist. A leading figure in the women's movement in the United States, her 1963 book 'The Feminine Mystique' is often credited with sparking the second wave of American feminism in the 20th century.

National Women’s Party (NWP)

An American women's organization formed in 1916 that fought for women's suffrage, primarily through militant tactics such as protests and picketing, led by Alice Paul.

National Organization for Women (NOW)

An American feminist organization founded in 1966. The organization consists of 550 chapters in all 50 U.S. states and in Washington, D.C. It is the largest feminist organization in the United States.

19th Amendment

Granted American women the right to vote, prohibiting any United States citizen from being denied the right to vote on the basis of sex.

Equal Rights Amendment (ERA)

Proposed amendment to the United States Constitution designed to guarantee equal legal rights for all American citizens regardless of sex. It seeks to end the legal distinctions between men and women in terms of divorce, property, employment, and other matters.

Hunger strikes

Form of protest where individuals refuse to eat to bring attention to their cause, often used by suffragists and other activists.

Roe v. Wade (then and now)

A landmark 1973 Supreme Court decision that protected a woman's right to have an abortion. Overturned in 2022 by Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization, which returned the power to regulate abortion to individual states.

Title IX

A federal civil rights law passed in 1972 that prohibits sex-based discrimination in any educational institution that receives federal funding.

Intersectionality

The interconnected nature of social categorizations such as race, class, and gender, creating overlapping systems of discrimination or disadvantage.

Cesar Chavez

An American labor leader and civil rights activist who co-founded the United Farm Workers (UFW).

United Farm Workers (UFW)

A labor union formed from the merging of the Agricultural Workers Organizing Committee (AWOC) and the National Farm Workers Association (NFWA) in 1966, led by Cesar Chavez and Dolores Huerta.

Community Service Organization (CSO)

A Latino civil rights organization founded in 1947 in Los Angeles, California, that worked to promote political empowerment and fight discrimination.

La Raza Party

A political party that advocated for the rights and empowerment of Mexican-Americans and other Latino communities.

Dolores Huerta

An American labor leader, civil rights activist, and feminist who co-founded the United Farm Workers (UFW) with Cesar Chavez.

Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA)

A United States immigration policy established in 2012 that allows some individuals who entered the country as minors to receive a renewable two-year period of deferred action from deportation and become eligible for a work permit.

Native Americans

The indigenous peoples of the United States, with diverse cultures, languages, and histories, who have faced historical and contemporary challenges.

American Indian Movement (AIM)

A Native American civil rights organization founded in 1968 to address systemic issues of poverty, discrimination, and police brutality against Native Americans.

Native American Rights Fund (NARF)

A non-profit legal organization dedicated to protecting the rights of Native Americans through litigation, legal advocacy, and policy development.

The Trail of Tears

A series of forced displacements of approximately 60,000 Native Americans by the United States government between 1830 and 1850.

Issues on Reservations

A range of socio-economic, health, and legal challenges faced by Native Americans living on reservations, including poverty, unemployment, inadequate housing, and limited access to healthcare and education.

Mascots

The use of Native American names, logos, and imagery for sports teams and other organizations, viewed by many as offensive and disrespectful to Native American culture and heritage.

The Dakota Pipeline

A controversial oil pipeline project that sparked widespread protests due to concerns over environmental impact and threats to indigenous sacred sites and water sources.

Madonna Thunder Hawk

A Native American activist and elder who has been involved in numerous Native American rights movements, including the American Indian Movement and protests against the Dakota Access Pipeline.

Stonewall Riots

A series of spontaneous, violent demonstrations by members of the LGBTQ+ community in response to a police raid that took place in the early morning hours of June 28, 1969, at the Stonewall Inn in Greenwich Village, New York City.

Don’t Ask Don’t Tell (DADT)

The common name for the policy prohibiting homosexuals from serving openly in the military. Instituted by the Clinton Administration, it was meant as a compromise but was controversial and eventually repealed in 2011.

President Clinton

The 42nd President of the United States, whose administration saw economic prosperity but also controversies, including the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy.

(Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome) AIDS

A chronic, potentially life-threatening condition caused by the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). By damaging the immune system, HIV interferes with the body's ability to fight organisms that cause disease.

(Defense of Marriage Act) DOMA

A United States federal law signed into law by President Bill Clinton that, among other things, defined marriage for federal purposes as the union of one man and one woman, and allowed states to refuse to recognize same-sex marriages performed in other states. It was later ruled unconstitutional.

President Obama

The 44th President of the United States, the first African American president, who oversaw the end of the Iraq War, the passage of the Affordable Care Act, and the legalization of same-sex marriage by the Supreme Court.

Obergefell v. Hodges

A landmark civil rights case in which the Supreme Court of the United States ruled that the fundamental right to marry is guaranteed to same-sex couples by both the Due Process Clause and the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution.

Bostock v. Clayton County

A landmark United States Supreme Court case that held that Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 protects employees against discrimination because of their sexual orientation or gender identity.

Human Rights Campaign (HRC)

The largest LGBTQ advocacy group and political lobbying organization in the United States. The organization focuses on protecting and expanding rights for LGBTQ individuals, including marriage equality, non-discrimination, and transgender rights.

Buck vs. Bell

A 1927 decision by the United States Supreme Court, in which the Court held that a state statute permitting compulsory sterilization of the unfit, including the intellectually disabled, "for the protection and health of the state" did not violate the Due Process clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

Sterilization

A permanent form of birth control that prevents someone from reproducing, commonly achieved through surgical procedures.

Capitol Crawl

A 1990 protest in Washington, D.C., organized by the disability rights group ADAPT, in which over 1,000 activists abandoned their wheelchairs and other assistive devices and crawled up the U.S. Capitol steps to protest the lack of funding for the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

(Individuals with Disabilities Education Act) IDEA

A United States federal law that governs how states and public agencies provide early intervention, special education, and related services to children with disabilities.

(Americans with Disabilities Act) ADA

A civil rights law that prohibits discrimination based on disability. It affords similar protections against discrimination to Americans with disabilities as the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which made it illegal to discriminate based on race, religion, sex, national origin, and other characteristics.

The Arc

A national organization that advocates for and serves people with intellectual and developmental disabilities.