The Progressive Movement: Problems and Solutions

A period focused on fixing societal problems.
Goals: Reform society, curb economic corruption, expand democracy.
Key Progressive Presidents: Theodore Roosevelt, William Howard Taft, Woodrow Wilson.

Problem (Cities): Mayors appointed unqualified political supporters; political machines controlled power and votes.
Solution (Cities): Commission Plan - divided city government into departments led by expert commissioners.
Problem (States): Political machines controlled candidate selection; state legislatures chose U.S. Senators.
Solution (States): Direct Primary (party members vote for candidates), Initiative (citizens propose laws by petition), $17$ th Amendment (direct election of U.S. Senators).

Problem: Women (comprising $49\%$ of the population) lacked voting rights.
Solution: Suffrage movement (led by figures like Elizabeth Stanton and Susan B. Anthony) culminated in the $19$ th Amendment, granting women the right to vote.

Problem: No health/safety codes, no workers' compensation; dangerous conditions (e.g., Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire killing $150$ women).
Solution: Workers' compensation for injuries, building codes (minimum standards for safety, air, light, fire escapes), health codes (restaurant sanitation).

Problem: Over $1.7$ million children under $16$ worked in $1900$ under harsh conditions (documented by John Spargo in "The Bitter Cry of the Children").
Solution: National Child Labor Committee established (1904); state laws limited child work hours and set age limits; compulsory education laws required school attendance.

Problem: Seen as a major cause of societal issues.
Solution: Temperance Movement (led by organizations like the Women's Christian Temperance Union); the $18$ th Amendment prohibited the production, transport, and sale of alcohol. (mostly ineffective)

Problem: Anti-monopoly laws were unenforced, leading to lack of competition and abuse of power.
Solution: Progressives debated between breaking up large companies or regulating them. President Theodore Roosevelt (