Why Was The Progressive Era Successful

“There is no higher religion than human service. To work for the common good is the greatest creed.” (Woodrow Wilson) This quote from one of the most progressive presidents of all time, really represents what the progressives were after during their movement; during the Progressive Era, American citizens were looking for change socially, politically, and economically due to urbanization and industrialization. Although all 3 of the early 20th century presidents were progressive in their reforms, Theodore Roosevelt was the most progressive out of these because he regulated business, fought for labor reform, and conserved natural resources.

The Progressive movement was very influential in many ways to early twentieth century America. Businesses became safer, and much more respectful towards their employees. Society accepted moral changes, and became safer communities. The government was affected by the Progressive movement becoming much more democratic, and caring more for the needs of its people. The Progressive movement was successful in reforming American business, society and its government policies in many different instances.

During the Progressive Era, reformers and the federal government had limited success in establishing national reforms, specifically concerning trusts, women's rights, and labor issues. Although there were a plethora of reforms established, some areas did not fair as well as others. There were reasonable reforms on issues concerning labor disputes, moderate reforms dealing with women's rights, and substantial reforms regarding movements for antimonopoly. Overall, Progressives had limited effect in bringing national reform.

Back in the 1900?s, the food was not the healthiest or cleanest you would see nowadays. From Upton Sinclair?s book entitled ?The Jungle? written in the 1906, had called the nation?s concentration to abuses by the meat-packing industry. Sinclair disguised himself as a worker in a Chicago meat-packing plant to observe harmful and unsanitary practices. In the factory, to kill rats, Sinclair wrote, ?the packers would put poisoned bread out for them, they would die, and then rats, bread, and meat would go into the hoppers together.? Hence, that would be the meat made for the public to eat. Many people did not consider that the meat industries actually did this, for example, former President Roosevelt doubted Sinclair?s viewpoints, and however, he ordered an investigation of meatpacking practices. The investigation report shocked him that he demanded more health and sanitary laws. In June 1906,

The Meat Inspection Act of 1906 was an attempt to regulate the meatpacking industry and to assure consumers that the meat they were eating was safe. In brief, this act made compulsory the careful inspection of meat before its consummation, established sanitary standards for slaughterhouses and processing plants, and required continuous U.S. Department of Agriculture inspection of meat processing and packaging. Yet, the most important objectives set by the law are the prevention of adulterated or misbranded livestock and products from being commercialized and sold as food, and the making sure that meat and all its products are processed and prepared in the adequate sanitary and hygienic conditions (Reeves 35). Imported meat and its various

Not everyone welcomed the reforms that Progressive era brought. As people who believed in Constitution of United States is the best political charter yet created by mankind, “conserve” it and handed it down to the next generation as it is the best practice to guarantee the free exercise of the inherent rights of individual through strictly limiting the power of the government, Elihu Root, William Howard Taft and Henry Cabot Lodge, Sr., leading members of the Republican Party, faced challenging time during the Progressive era. They strove to “conserve” the core principles of the American constitutionalism from reformist of Progressivism. As people trust that our (Americans) liberties can remain secure only if government is so limited that it cannot infringe upon inherent rights, they resisted the Progressive ambitions for direct, unrestrained democracy and the resulting the attacks on the courts, representative government, and the traditional limits of the presidency.

Social and labor conditions changed for the better with the hard work and dedication of female reformers. The Progressive Era was a time of change due to many reform groups many being focused on better lives for women and women’s suffrage. Before women were able to get a quality education they usually married because they needed a husband to support them. However, when women were given a better education they tended not to marry because they were independent and did not need a husband to support them. In addition, women before the Progressive Era were expected to wear dresses and corsets which restricted them. Though, after the Progressive Era women gained the right to wear trousers just like any man would wear. Therefore, women’s lives changed

Progressive Era Reform Essay Through the years 1890 and 1920, many changes occurred. This time was called the Progressive Era, and during the time period, there were new political and social changes. New laws that the public wanted were enforced, and new opportunities came to a rise. Many of the changes that took place affected a lot of people.

During the Progressive Era from 1890-1920, America saw three new presidents: Theodore Roosevelt, William Howard Taft, and Woodrow Wilson. This period of time is known as the Progressive Era due to the political and social changes made to move away from a laissez-faire government to a more active government by the administrations of these presidents. Prior to this period, Americans had to suffer through poor working conditions, low wages, social and class inequality and become victims to large corporations that took advantage of the people. In particular, the administrations of Theodore Roosevelt and Woodrow Wilson established the key principles and ideas of economic reform and social reform, which would end up returning the power from the manipulative corporations back to the government, establishing a model for a more active role for the federal government, and improve the lives of Americans. However, even though Roosevelt and Wilson had similar intentions of reforming America, they both had different means of achieving it.

During the Industrial Revolution, America became industrial, machinery, factories, and mass production, and shortly after, progressivism (1890-1920) began. Progressivism was a period of social activism and political reforms across the United States of America. Progressivism purpose was to eliminate the corruption in the government that the Industrial Revolution had caused. A lot of change, reforms, and laws were made during this period. Food regulations, prohibition laws, labor laws, and women suffrage was huge issues during the Progressive Era. The pictures support progressivism because progressivism was all about changing the United States, and some ways they did that was with child labor laws and women suffrage and the pictures show that

The Progressive Era was a time when many Americans tried to improve their society. Progressives aimed to solve social problems that arose as the United States became an urban, industrialized nation. Americans tried to make their government honest, efficient, and more democratic. The movement for women’s suffrage gained more support as well as efforts to limit child labor and reduce alcohol abuse. The Prohibition Movement occurred to create laws that would ban the manufacture, sale, and consumption of alcohol. Many progressives believed that some social problems were a significant issue and needed more improving.

During the years of nineteen hundred and nineteen-forty American experienced two great domestic reforms. The first one happened between the years of nineteen hundred and nineteen twenty-nine. During the first of the twentieth century, Americans felt the newness of their place in history. In the coming years after the 1890s depression, the pioneers took on the responsibility to supplant the unstable partnership and credit systems of the past with the forms of the modern corporation. By the nineteen twenties, corporate giants in production, communications, finance, life insurance, and entertainment dominated the economy.

The interest of workers were advanced by boycotts, strikes, and unions. Books like “The Jungle” exposed the horrible practices done by the meat packing plants in Chicago which then led to the Pure Food and Drug Act. The Pure Food and Drug Act made the working conditions at the meat packing plants better for the workers and for the public.

The emergence of the Industrial Revolution during the 19th century, inherently influencing the initiation of the Progressive Era, introduced a transformative age founded on the basis of reform and advancement in technology at the expense and detriment of civilians who had not only lost homes and land, but were subjected to disease and ailment as a direct consequence in the surge of urbanization. Growth in popularity of the cities as migration continued to ensue indicated the potential threat to the security of these overpopulated cities due to poor sanitation and a lack of ventilation and overcrowding within tenant housing. This enabled the development and spread of diseases like cholera which could only be worsened by the proliferation of crime rate. These distinctions assisted in establishing a visible separation relative to a civilian’s social status as it highlighted the quality of life for the wealthy elite as well as those ruminating in poverty.

The term consumer protection means that the consumer will be safe from things like misleading and unfair business practices, and mislabeled, damaged, or faulty products. To advance consumer protection, Roosevelt enacted two acts. The first of these was the Meat Inspection Act of 1906 which put a stop to the appalling conditions as described in The Jungle by Upton Sinclair in many meat processing and packing plants. After this was passed, Roosevelt moved on to to the Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906 which banned and prevented the mislabeling of food and drugs and laid the foundation for the Food and Drug Administration, or FDA (Alchin, Linda; “The Pure Food and Drug