Untitled Flashcards Set

Labor:

• Large gap between wealthy and poor

• Wealthy business owners surpassed previous generations in terms of wealth

• Conspicuous consumption: spending money very obviously to show wealth

  • Biltmore house, vanderbilt's vacation home

• Panic of 1873 and panic of 1893: wealthy people's wages stayed mostly the same, the poor's wages dropped a lot.

• Mass production of goods led to many prices of goods decreasing, wages for working class slowly increasing, standards of living did rise.

• Labor unions: large group of workers united to make their voices heard. Political actions, slowdowns, strikes

• Great railroad strike of 1877: in 1877 railroad companies cut wages to save money during recession. Railroad unions strike in response. Spread to 11 states, shut down 60% of american railroads. Over 100 dead after military action.

• Pullman strike: during panic of 1893, george pullman cut worker wages. When union workers came to bargain, pullman fired them. Rest of workers went on strike. Union leader Eugene V. Debs told members of his union to not work on any trains with pullman cars. Eventually jailed for hindering rail traffic of federal trains.

• Knights of labor: went public in 1881. nation union open to anyone who wanted to join. Main goal was to destroy trusts and monopolies and abolition of child labor. At peak had over 700,000 members. Fell apart after haymarket square riot in 1886.

• Haymarket square riot: members gathered in chicago to celebrate may day labor movement. Protested peacefully until bomb exploded by anarchists. Knights of labor received blame. Caused labor unions to be viewed as violent and radical

• Kids as young as 10 part of industrial workforce.

• American federation of labor: association of craft workers led by Samuel Gompers. Over a million members. Similar to knights of labor, wanted higher wages and safer working conditions.

Immigration and migration:

• In the last part of the 19th century, US population grew by 3x, large portion from immigrants coming from Europe who left because of growing poverty and to flee religious prosecution. Others from russia, italy, and balkans.

• Settled in industrial cities such as chicago pittsburgh and new york.

• Mostly on east coast, in the west there was a large influx of Asian (mostly chinese immigrants).

• During gilded age, middle and upper class migrated to moved away from cities. Meant that industrial cities were mostly working class and the urban poor.

• Tenements: hastily built, poorly constructed and ventilated spaces where immigrants and poor working class lived. Frequent outbreaks of disease.

• Ethnic enclaves: places where immigrants of similar background gathered and found a sense of community and solidarity.

• Irish immigrants made catholic churches, Eastern European Jews made synagogues.

• Mostly worked dangerous industrial jobs for low wages.

Responses to immigration:

• Nativists: policy of protecting interests of native born people over immigrants.

• Protestant minister Henry Cabot Lodge argued that americans were committing "race suicide" by allowing so many immigrants to mingle with "pure americans"

• American Protective Association: powerful organization against catholics. Most irish immigrants were catholic. Didn't like that many irish catholics being elected to office.

• Labor unions didn't like immigrants because they were desperate for work and would tolerate bad working conditions. Worried that immigrants would undermine negotiations between unions and manufacturers.

• Social Darwinism: only the strongest survive.

• Chinese immigrants did majority of work on transcontinental railroad. Also took bad jobs. Yet still faced same issues as eastern immigrants.

• Chinese exclusion act of 1882: banned any further chinese immigration to the united states. Only law to target a specific nationality to be excluded from immigration.

• Settlement houses: made to help immigrants assimilate into american society. Immigrants taught english and children were given educaiton. Taught democratic ideals and given opportunities to build community. Jane Addams big proponent for settlement houses.

  • Hull house: opened in 1889, most famous settlement house

Red Scare:

• Took place during world war 1.

• After the Bolshevik revolution during world war 1, fear of communism increased.

• Red-baiting: practice of identifying and attempting to uncover suspected communists within the united states government

• HUAC (house unamerican activities community): one of the main proponents for "uncovering" communists:

• Southern politicians often labeled competitors as communists.

• In alabama and mississipi, NAACP (civil rights organization) banned after being labeled a communist organization

• Labor strikes such as Seattle General Strike and Boston Police Strike seen as evidence of communist influence

• Immigrants heavily criticized

• Sedition act of 1918: criminalized speech deemed disloyal, profane, or abusive toward the US government.