Populism Movement

During the late 19th century and early 20th century the progressive movement and populist movement were groups and organizations getting together to resolve social, economic, and political problems occurring in the United States. Both movements had different approaches to what was more important and how to deal with problems. Progressivism was mainly for the betterment of cities while populism is for agrarian section of farmers.

Farmers united to protect their interests, even creating a major political party. The party was called the peoples party which became known as the populist party. Populists drew its strength from rural areas. Populists tended to be poor and uneducated. They had ideas such as government ownership of major industries. The Populists supported labors demand for an eight

The period between 1870 and 1900 was a time to change politics. The country was for once free from war and was united as one nation. However, as these decades passed by, the American farmer found it harder to live comfortably. Crops such as cotton and wheat, once the cash crop of agriculture, were selling at prices so low that it was nearly impossible for farmers to make a profit. Improvements in transportation allowed larger competitors to sell more easily and more cheaply, making it harder for American yeoman farmers to sell their crops. Finally, years of drought in the Midwest and the fall of business in the 1890s devastated the farming community. Most notably, the Populist Party arose to fight what farmers saw as the issues affecting

Throughout the 1880s and 1890s America was going through many changes and many of these were fought by the Populists. Silver being demonetized was another major problem for the Populists and they fought it along with asking for a national government regulated currency as well. The Populist Party also fought against the harsh taxes that were in place at the time in the United States. The biggest concern for many of the Populists was how to handle crop failures and how prices were to be controlled. All in all, the Populist movement was centered on helping out the farmers and improving the ever changing economy.

Populism was a major thing in the 19th century. The populist was formed by farmers who believed that the government was treating them bad. Populism is usually most common in Democracy nations. In this Presidential election Bernie and Trump were seen being using the idea of populism. Both candidates both seemed to be anti-establishing platforms. Both candidates seemed to want to criticize free trade deals as the North American free Trade Agreement

Why did farmers express discontent during 1870-1900 and what impact did their attitudes and actions have on national politics. Manufacturing hit a huge growth rate during this period which cause agriculture to decline, and cause farmers to struggle to make a living. The farmers were now being abused by the railroad companies and banks. The documents in DBQ 8 show rationality for the farmer’s protests, exclusively on bank mortgage tariffs and the gold standard. Two particular groups became popular during this period and that would be the Grangers and the Populist Party. Farmers fought against the Gold Standard, railroads, and industrialist during this period causing lots of confrontation.

* Populism – This was a popular movement with farmers. Especially among poor farmers that lived in the South.

Due to “…falling agricultural prices and growing economic dependency” (Foner 636) in the mid-nineteenth century, farmers in the South began to face inevitable economic uncertainty. Farmers, both white and black alike, were thrown into poverty due to sharecropping and the fall of the price of cotton, and many faced the fear of losing everything they had due the inability to pay bank loans. Believing that their situation was caused by “…high freight rates…excessive interest rates for loans…and the fiscal policies of the government” (Foner 636), disgruntled farmers hoped to better their lives and conditions through the founding of the Farmers’ Alliance in the 1870s. However, by the 1890s, the Alliance transformed into what became known as the Populist Party. Keeping their roots in mind, the Populists sought to end what they considered political corruption and economic inequality that arose during the Reconstruction. In order to do so, they proposed “…the direct election of U.S. senators, government control of currency, a graduated income tax, a system of low-class public financing…the right of workers to form labor unions…[and a] public ownership of the railroads” (Foner 638). In addition to their propositions, the Populists were considered radical due to their embracement of science and technology, their belief that the

One significant leader of the Populist movement was Daniel Russell of North Carolina, the Populist/Fusion governor who was elected in 1896. The Farmer’s Alliance had been fighting for years to build up large grain stores and land banks to help farmers dig themselves out of debt. These farmers slowly coalesced into the Populist Party and noticed that they had class issues in common with the mostly black Republicans in the state, particularly in the district known as the Black Second. Beginning in the early 1890s, the Republican and Populist parties came together on a fusion ticket to fight for the rights of poor farmers who had been gouged by the white, conservative landowners and the tenant farming system. They aligned their politics on the axis of class instead of the axis of race, and won substantial majorities in the elections of 1894 and 1896. Russell was elected governor and immediately began campaigns that succeeded in extending the franchise, helping poor farmers with their loans and aiding illiterate farmers with illustrated color ballots. Although he was not the most headstrong or powerful governor, perhaps the greatest reason

The Populist party was so popular in the 1800s of the because efforts to reform and aid farmers. The party promised to fight economic deflation and secure increased rights for workers, this was in response to industrial workers, farmers, and other Americans struggling. At the time farmers were struggling to survive the “economic instability, rapid industrialization, long-term reductions in crop prices, and rising debt burdens.” The party said they would fight the decline in crop prices and stabilize the rights for workers. During the Civil War, the price of crops was raised because of the farmer crop growing instability and the number of resources that the military wanted. After the war, the price main crops like wheat and cotton declined dramatically. This was due

The Populist Party was started by a massive grassroots movement that wanted political reform. The supporters of the Populist Party were usually laborers who were sick of the government supporting big businesses. Because of this support, there were many violent strikes, such as Pullman, Homestead, and Haymarket, where strikers were killed, and the government did nothing. Eventually, the Populist Party combined with the Democratic Party because the Populist Party was limited because of its regional location.

In order to better appreciate Trump’s surprise victory in the 2016 Presidential election, we must first understand the populist impulse among the American citizens. The word populist is regularly applied to president Donald Trump. It is because his politics, and policy, tend to be crude and crowd-pleasing and because he built a political base on division and resentment. The term “Populist” dates to the late nineteenth century. Populists view themselves as the champions of ordinary people and pit the people against corrupt elites. They are angry at a corrupt establishment and government’s indifference and unresponsive. In the contemporary society, Americans’ populist impulse can be reflected from several aspects. Firstly, the economic anxiety,

The Populists and Progressive were two major movements that occurred during the outbreaks of the workers union after the civil war. The populists began during the late 1800s and the progressives began during the 1900s. There are many differences between these two movements, but yet both of these movements have many things in common. During this time, farmers united to protect their interests by creating a major political party. This party was known as the Peoples Party, which became known as the Populist Party. Populists drew their strength from rural areas as many Populists tended to mostly be poor and uneducated. They had ideas such as government ownership of major industries. Progressives, also affected by industrialization, began their movements in order to reestablish their society.

Similar to labor movements organized to protest unfair wages and conditions, farmers in the Midwest have formed the Granger movement. Founded in 1867 by an employee of the Department of Agriculture, the Granger Movement has been growing rapidly throughout the Midwest. The movement was started by Oliver Hudson Kelley after a visit to the south showed that agriculture practices weren’t being done correctly. His goal was to create groups or “Granges” which would educate and inform farmers throughout his home state of Minnesota on proper farming practices. This goal was more than achieved. Three years after the movement was started, nine states had Granges. Many farmers joined and wanted to do more for the movement. They wanted

The trend towards populism is a critical developing trade/policy/transportation issue for global transportation and supply. Populism increases the importance of domestic considerations as opposed to a more global approach. In the recent U.S. presidential election, populism became a significant factor in the minds of the electorate and resulted in the election of a candidate that reflects the views consistent with this mind set. This sentiment appears to be growing in importance in other democratic nations as well, signaling a major shift away from an era of general international cooperation.