notes 7 progressive era Flashcards
(12 cards)
progressivism
an era in north america resulting from large economic growth after the end of civil war (late 1800s)
attempts to deal with growing inequality from industrial expansion
concerned about long hours, low wages, dangerous working conditions, challenges to family, substance abuse
advocated for worker protection and also individual restrictions:
limit both economic freedom of employers and individual freedom of employees
social darwinism became a large part
rise of unions of workers, which faced opposition from gov and big businesses (because they violated principles of free market)
some employers paid workers more but also used threats of violence and issued social checks (church attendance, if you are drunk in public, if your family behaves) to ensure employees behave “up to standard”
social darwinism
aka eugenics
intervening in human population to prevent “substandard people” from reproducing (people wit disabilities, black people, etc.)
uses pseudoscience to justify (sounds like evidence but isn’t actually true or scientific)
sherman anti-trust act
1890
part of progressivism in US, as the economy was becoming dominated by a few powerful corporations
elimination of monopolies, enforcing competition
regulations to prevent small companies from being bought up by larger ones or not being able to compete with low prices
4 principles of progressivism
- conservation of human resources (via workers rights, public education, etc.)
- equal suffrage to men and women (though at the time it meant white middle class men and women..)
- creation of public services to improve well-being (gov-run services, no private gain, ex. water systems, consumer protection aka warranties, national health services)
- professionalization (people having actual education and specialization in their career)
theodore roosevelt
US president 1901-1909
SQUARE DEAL (important to move forward the progressive era)
- reasonable worker accomodation
- pay by the hour
- good working conditions
- companies to be given the means to do above
supported:
- trust(monopoly)-busting
- national parks (preserving resources)
he was very popular and politically successful
woodrow wilson
US president 1913-1921
first president from former confederate (slave) states
continued square deal (roosevelt)
protected unions + worker protections, introduced first national income tax
but supported segregation in the civil service, fires most black people in civil service, before this they could make a successful living there
pros of progressive era
led to system of modern state:
- gov services like IT and transportation introduced
- general public acceptance for gov intervention when needed (water, electricity, phone, etc; not just for wealthy)
US gov increased a lot in size (~tripled economically)
US gov shifted from judicial being the most influential to executive
suffrage for women in US and canada by 1920
cons of progressive era
sometimes people wanted to overcontrol behaviour to manage perceived social problems:
prohibition - ban/limit consumption of alcohol and drugs (only a social problem if used by people who were not wealthy white men)
fordism/taylorism - over monitoring workers to see if they were doing enough (monitoring their movements and production rate, if they didn’t meet the rate they were fired)
eugenics - belief of “engineering” society by getting rid of “unwanted” social and biological elements (based on disabilities, skin colour, etc.)
pros roaring 20s
after 1918 US is economic leader of the world, investment skyrocketed
- result of mechanization (technology over labour) and urbanization
great migration - most black people lived in the south, had no money to move away from plantations until now
strong belief in laissez faire
republican presidents –> supported policies of the business class –> lower taxes + reduce power of unions + lower wages
era of consumption:
- new machines to buy (toasters, hair driers, etc.)
- ⬆️things = ⬆️spending = ⬆️jobs = ⬆️things….
- more money to spend on leisure activities
end of 1920s, US producing 40% of the world’s manufacturing
wages rose by 25% (because of lack of immigrants who are generally paid less)
cons roaring 20s
unequal distribution of wealth (40% still in poverty)
farmers struggled with lower incomes and higher demand/production
debt is important way of purchase for many (credit, “buy now pay later”)
non-white americans saw very little change in economic and social position
what does a bull and a bear represent in a cartoon
bull - economic growth
bear - economic decline
end of roaring 20s
by 1928, individuals’ standard of living had stopped growing
inventories were increasing (demand ⬇️)
1929 a series of surprise drops and gains in the stock market (unstable, unpredictable)
stock market crash october 1929 (important but economically the US could handle that one)
