The Progressive Era and U.S. Imperialism (1890-1920)

Progressivism

Movement addressing social and political issues (1890-1920)

Industrialization

Poor working conditions, monopolies, unsafe workplaces, and low wages

Effect: Led to labor reforms, trust-busting, and regulation (e.g., Sherman Antitrust Act)

Urbanization

Overcrowding, poor sanitation, housing crises

Effect: New city planning efforts, sanitation reforms, and housing regulations

Political Corruption

Dishonest practices in politics, e.g., patronage

Immigration

Rise of nativism, labor exploitation

Effect: Calls for immigration restrictions

Economic Inequality

Gap between rich & poor, labor exploitation

Effect: Rise of labor unions and social welfare programs

Muckrakers

Journalists exposing societal corruption and injustices

Effect: Public awareness led to government action (e.g., Meat Inspection Act)

Upton Sinclair

Author of 'The Jungle', led to food safety laws

Ida Tarbell

Investigative journalist exposing Standard Oil's monopoly, led to anti-trust laws

Jacob Riis

Author of "How the Other Half Lives", led to tenement housing reforms

Direct Primaries

Voters select party candidates directly

Effect: Reduced influence of political machines

Initiative

Voters propose legislation directly to ballot

Effect: Increased voter participation and reduced corruption

Referendum

Voters approve or reject proposed laws

Effect: Increased voter participation and reduced corruption

Recall

Voters remove elected officials from office

Effect: Increased voter participation and reduced corruption

17th Amendment

Established direct election of U.S. senators

Effect: Reduced power of party bosses and business interests in politics

19th Amendment

Granted women the right to vote in 1920

Effect: Expanded democracy and women’s role in politics

Trust-busting (Roosevelt, Taft)

Government actions to break up monopolies and increase market competition (Sherman & Clayton Antitrust Acts)

Federal Reserve Act

Established central banking system for financial stability and prevent bank failures

Clayton Antitrust Act

Strengthened anti-monopoly laws, protected unions

Settlement Houses

Community centers aiding immigrant assimilation and services

Jane Addams

Created the Hull House

Temperance Movement

Campaign against alcohol, led to Prohibition, Increased organized crime (bootlegging, speakeasies)

Prohibition

18th Amendment banning alcohol, increased crime rates

Theodore Roosevelt

Progressive president known for 'Square Deal' policies and conservation (national parks and forests), Big Stick Diplomacy

William Howard Taft

Broke more trusts than Roosevelt, split Republican Party [Payne-Aldrick Tariff], Dollar Diplomacy

Woodrow Wilson

Promoted 'New Freedom', focused on economic reforms, Moral Diplomacy, Fed. Reserve and Clayton Antitrust Acts

NAWSA

Advocated for women's voting rights, influenced 19th Amendment

Plessy v. Ferguson

Supreme Court case legalizing racial segregation

Jim Crow Laws

State laws enforcing racial segregation in the South

Great Migration

Movement of African Americans to Northern cities for better opportunities

Effect: Increased racial tensions and urban growth

Booker T. Washington

Advocated for economic progress before civil rights

W.E.B. Du Bois

Promoted immediate civil rights, co-founded NAACP

Ida B. Wells

Anti-lynching activist

Effect: Raised awareness but little immediate policy change

Spanish-American War

Conflict leading to U.S. imperial expansion in 1898

Yellow Journalism, De Lôme Letter, & USS Maine explosion

Increased public support for war and U.S. declared war on Spain

Treaty of Paris (1898)

Ended Spanish-American War, U.S. gained Guam, Puerto Rico, and the Philippines [became a world power]

Platt Amendment

US gained control over Cuba

Desire for Neutrality

- Wilsonian idealism and his "Peace without victory" speech (January 1917)

- American weapons merchants and financiers were thriving sending assistance to Allies

- Woodrow Wilson was a progressive president that went against corporations and did a lot for the people

- Facing a lot of criticism about how Wilson wanted to be neutral in World War I

Unrestricted Submarine Warfare from Germany (Breaking the Sussex Pledge) Jan. 31st, 1917

The US was trading with allied powers by putting weapons for trade on the passenger ship, so the civilian ship was attacked

Effect: Increased anti-German sentiment

Zimmerman Telegram

Germany's proposal to Mexico, prompting U.S. entry into WWI

Russian Revolution (1917)

Axis Powers were winning with a war on 2 sides and once Russia fell out, 100% of their power could go towards fighting the west, giving them a higher chance of winning

Effect: Made it easier for U.S. to support Allies

Committee on Public Information

- Headed by George Creel to use propaganda to sell the war and increase support

- Demonized Germans and dramatizing the casualties and mistreatment of citizens from Central Powers, especially in Germany

Selective Service Act

1917 law establishing military draft for WWI

The National War Labor Board

settled labor disputes that could potentially hamper war effort

AFL

A labor union formed in 1886 by Samuel Gompers in order to voice the working class (only highly skilled laborers). It fought against labor forces and debated work conditions for skilled workers. Utilized Strikes.

Espionage Act

1917 law limiting criticism of U.S. involvement in WWI

Sedition Act of 1918

No harsh language used to talk about the U.S. government (1918)

Schenck v. U.S.

Supreme Court case on limits of free speech during war

League of Nations

U.S. did not join League (opposed by isolationists)

Effect: League was weak without U.S. support