The Welfare Of Society During The 1920 ' S

During the 1920s, the United States witnessed substantial changes in society and government that challenged conventions. Many Americans, however, also tried to lessen the effects of these changes through emphasizing the importance of customs and long held beliefs. This era consisted of conflicting progressive and traditional ideas, which influenced American government at the time.

After World War One, the United States went through a decade full of industrial, economical, and social growth. This decade is known as the Roaring 20s. The 1920s was a time of important historical events and technological advancement. The development of consumer goods, such as fridges, typewriters, radios, and cars, created jobs and helped the American economy grow. However, not everyone was able to enjoy the advancement that the boom had assured. Although there were many wealthy people, there were still many people who could not afford to live luxurious lives. Many immigrants were not welcome into to United Stats. Prejudice and racism were spread throughout the country. In spite of the prosperity of the 1920s, the

From the time of 1890- 1920 was the progressive era. In this time the American people experienced a very rapid industrialization in their major cities, where it grew not only with industrializing but economically as well. In this time we adopted many laws about working conditions that we still have today. For example, the government adopted laws about Jacob Riis and the photos he took, child labor, and women's suffrage movements. In the next few paragraphs I will explain to you why these three subjects are some of the most important things that happened in this time period.

The Roaring Twenties started in North America and spread to Europe as the effects of World War I diminished. In Europe, the years following the First World War (1919-1923) were marked by a deep recession. Europe spent these years in rebuilding and coming to terms with the vast human cost of the conflict. Unlike in the aftermath of World War II, the United States did little to try to rebuild Europe. Instead, it took an increasingly isolationist stance (Answers, 2006).

Written by Justice Holmes, the infamous Buck v Bell opinion, gives a summary and an analysis of how the court reached the decision to uphold Virginia’s sterilization statute. The case involved Carrie Buck, an 18 year old women in a Virginia institution for “feeble-minded” individuals, she was to be sterilized after being found to be feeble-minded. In addition to the summary of the case, Holmes raises his concerns with having more “feeble-minded” individuals and criminals parading the streets which justifies coerced sterilization.

The United States and Nazi Germany, an unlikely pair. The disparity of values and beliefs of the two has set them as polar opposites in many people’s minds. However, when Eugenics and the 1927 Supreme Court come to mind the distance between the two seem to diminish. Yes, today’s topic is the infamous Supreme Court case of Buck v. Bell; a 1927 case which upheld a Virginia statute that permitted the compulsory sterilization Carrie Buck and other intellectually disabled individuals for the purpose of improving the genepool . This shocking 8-1 ruling is no doubt one of the Supreme Court’s greatest errors as it failed to acknowledge that the statute in question aside from being immoral and cruel, was a clear violation

During the time period in between the 1890s to the 1920s, also known as the Progressive Era, was a time period that social activism and political reform within the United States flourished. A main goal throughout this era was eradicate corruption in the government by uncovering and undermining political machines and their bosses. This was meant to form a better and more direct democracy. Also, Progressives sought out to regulate monopolistic trust corporations through various antitrust laws, which aimed to promote fair competition for the benefit of the consumer. Although the Progressive Era brought about many reforms and public figures for the greater good of the American people like muckraking journalism, Presidents Theodore Roosevelt and Woodrow Wilson, Susan B. Anthony and Jane Addams and significant policy changes, the era, however, did end when America because our nation entered World War 1 and the Great Depression following several years afterwards.

The progressive era during the 1890’s and 1920’s in the Unites States saw an economic expansion with the aid of the industrial capitalists, a growing population with immigrants coming to the United States seeking a better life through labor with American industrialization, and government corruption being eliminated progressively by political reforms like the Sherman Antitrust Act. This era also had complications such as racial tension between immigrants, poor working and living conditions amongst the American public, society division based on different characteristics such as ethnicity and average working revenue. As the works of Howard Zinn, Thomas C. Leonard, and David Montgomery specify the endeavor America as a society underwent during the Progressive Era. Through the economic expansion during the Progressive Era companies wanted to keep costs down while maintaining profits high with low wages, poor working conditions, and long hours at the expense of immigrants. The underrepresented individuals faced with these problematic issues consisted of blacks, whites, Chinese, Europeans, and female labors. Wages in America during the Progressive Era had been based on race, sex, and social class. Mary Stovall author of the article “The Chicago Defender” further expands on the issue of class favoritism by elaborating in his work how “blacks were charged higher rents than whites for comparable housing” . These problematic matters often caused a heated argument and in some instances

The Progressive Era was a time period that ran from the 1890’s through the 1920’s. It started as a social movement but turned into a political movement. Progressivism really gained a strong voice in 1901 with the election of Teddy Roosevelt as President. He believed that strong corporations were good for America, but believed they should be watched and monitored so that corporate greed did not get out of hand. The main goal of Progressivism was to eliminate corruption in the government.

The 1920’s was a great and important decade for the United States. After World War I, the United States went through events and changes that, overall, made the United States a much better place to live. New advances in technology and industry improved American life in more ways than just one. Americans had better wages during this time, more leisure time, and overall, had a better life than ever before. In addition, the 1920’s advocated social and cultural change as well. During this time period, the United States did not return to Normalcy, and instead developed attitudes that changed the life of the people of the United States forever thanks to social changes, cultural changes and changes in technology.

In contrast to the "negative" eugenics position of the state of Virginia, involuntary sterilization laws emphasizing breeding restrictions for society's "unfit" neither benefit the welfare of the individual nor that of society for several moral and legal reasons. The legal validity of these involuntary sterilization laws would be challenged within the Supreme Court case of Buck v. Bell. In September of 1924, at the age of eighteen, Carrie Buck, an illegitimate daughter of an allegedly feebleminded woman, was admitted to the Virginia's State Colony for Epileptics and the Feebleminded. Six months earlier, the Virginia State Legislature decisively passed their involuntary sterilization bill authorizing the Superintendents of five state institutions to petition for the permission to sterilize inmates. Buck, who had a mental age of nine and an I.Q. of about fifty, had already given birth to an illegitimate child herself, who was allegedly feebleminded as well. At the time, the Superintendent of the State Colony, Dr. A. S. Priddy, petitioned for permission to sterilize this woman for fear that Buck would have more mentally defective children. The statute had provided that each Superintendent needed to receive permission from a special Board of Directors of that institution, who would hear the grounds for sterilization and determine whether or not to follow through on the operation. Priddy faced immense pressure from state officials to petition for sterilization, as

Many people have heard of the case Buck versus Bell. This was a land mark supreme court case in 1927. This case basis is eugenics, which is the science of improving a human population by controlled breeding. Most people today would disagree with this on premise alone. In the case Buck versus Bell the decision being heard was can doctors sterilize patients that were feeble minded or have epilepsy. As Carrie’s story unfolds you will see not only is feeble minded a broad term She was wronged not only on the merits of the case, but in the process of justice.

Upon entering the legal battle that would decide who had the right to preside over her reproductive decision, Carrie Buck knew that the outcome of the case would not only have an effect on her future but that of thousands of others who were having their rights brought into question as well. Beyond merely giving the go ahead for her own sterilization, the loss of the case would bring about a new set of legal justifications for the systematic, controlled extinction of those who were not considered of the ideal genetic makeup. This wasnt just a fight for an individuals freedom, it was a fight for equality as promised by legislature that even then threatened to strip away what it had promised in its governing documents.

The 1920s was a huge time period for the United States. Modern technology such as automobiles, radios, and advertisement had taken America by storm. Rural areas were on the decline. American cities had attracted not only rural and urban citizens, but also people from all over the world. In America during the 1920s, citizens struggled with accepting other races and ethnicities into their widely populated country.

One reason that there is so much government regulation involving social responsibility issues, is due to the public putting pressure on them to do something about all the bad social conditions occurring to people back in the 1930’s. The government involvement prior to that was centered more on the American business. People had to endure poor working conditions and low wages, without much hope of things improving. There were no advocates for the working class. The change did not come until pressure was put on the government to do something.