Transcript Chapter 22, Section 2 - Union Endicott High School

Chapter 22, Section 2:
The Progressives
Main Idea: Progressive
reformers worked to end
political corruption and
give voters greater power.
A. Reforming City Governments
 Cities became corrupt because, as they grew, politicians
accepted money to give away service jobs. Bribes &
corruption became common & widespread.
Political Bosses
 Powerful politicians that controlled many local governments.
 They ran political machines that controlled services in cities in
exchange for payoffs from businesses.
 They were popular with poor immigrants because they provided
jobs & charity, which allowed them to continuously get reelected.
Boss Tweed
 Ran NYC in the 1860/70s and cheated the city out of over $100
million.
 He was eventually exposed by journalists such as Thomas Nast
(political cartoonist) & fled to Spain, but was apprehended & sent
to jail because he was recognized (cartoons).
Good Government Leagues
 goal was to replace corrupt officials with honest leaders.
Thomas Nast’s cartoons in Harper’s Weekly led to Tweed’s arrest
“Let’s stop them damned pictures. I don’t care so much what the papers write about –
my constituents can’t read – but they can see pictures.” – Boss Tweed
Nast was 1st to use Donkey &
Elephant symbols for pol. parties
Nast’s version of Santa is now widely
accepted as the only version (many before)
Problem: Corrupt city bosses, such as Boss (William)
Tweed in NYC.
With his 1873 conviction behind
him, Tweed was sued by New York
State for $6 million. Held in debtor's
prison until he could post half that
amount as bail, he had few options.
Still wealthy, his prison cell was
fairly luxurious. Yet Tweed was
determined to escape. Fleeing to
Spain, he worked as a common
sailor on a Spanish ship until
recognized from a Nast cartoon &
captured. Extradited to New York,
Tweed-le-dee and Tilden-dum,
William Marcy Tweed died in
Thomas Nast, Artist, Illustration in
Harper's Weekly, July 1, 1876.
debtor's prison on April 12, 1878.
B. The Muckrakers
 Reformers used the press to turn public opinion
against corruption. Reporters described how
corruption led to poor city services.
 Muckrakers – crusading journalists who “raked
the dirt” to expose wrong-doing. They helped
change public opinion to demand change & reform.
 Jacob Riis - photographed slum life & Child Labor
(How the Other Half Lives)
 Ida Tarbell - wrote articles about big business
(particularly Rockefeller’s Standard Oil Co.)
 Upton Sinclair – wrote The Jungle, a novel that
depicted the terrible conditions in the meat packing
industry
 Lincoln Steffens – wrote The Shame of the
Cities, about corruption in city governments
Jacob Riis immigrated to the U.S. from Denmark in
1870. He found work as a reporter & eventually
became a reformer in order to help fix the poor
living conditions in urban areas. The following
photographs were taken by Riis and published in
his book, “How the Other Half Lives.”
By writing and taking photographs of the
tenements, Riis was able to bring these problems
to people’s attention. His book helped lead to the
development of housing codes to improve poor
living conditions.
Jacob Riis
Home of an Italian Rag Picker, 1888
Women's Lodging Room in the West
47th Street Station, c. 1892
Five Cents Lodging, Bayard Street, c. 1889
Men's Lodging Room in the West 47th
Street Station, c. 1892
Dens of Death
Sleeping Quarters, Rivington Street Dump
It Costs $1 a Month to Sleep in These Sheds
Poverty Gap, an English Coal-Heaver's Home
Flat in the Pauper's Barracks w/ All Its Furniture
Bohemian Cigar Makers at Work in their Tenement
A Seven-Cent Lodging House, Pell Street
Old Mrs. Benoit in Her Hudson Street Attic
President Roosevelt proposed
legislation to clean up the meatpacking
industry after reading The Jungle.
Food and Drug Act
Meat Inspection Act
C. The Progressives
 Progressives was the term that reformers
called themselves (forward-thinking people
who wanted to improve American life)
 1898-1917 is known as the Progressive Era
 They were never a single, united group with
one goal. They were many groups &
individuals with many causes & goals that
believed that society’s problems could be
solved. They fought for public interest (good
of the people)
 Progressives valued education. They wanted
schools to promote reform & teach
democratic values by example (ask questions
& work together to solve problems)
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D. Political Reforms
The Wisconsin Idea
 Gov. Robert “Battling Bob” La Follette :
“The will of the people shall be the law of the land.”
Empowering Voters (give more power):
 Primary – voters of a party choose their
party’s candidate for the general election
 Initiative – gave voters right to put a bill
before a state legislature (propose a new law)
 Referendum – allowed voters to vote directly on a bill
(instead of the elected officials who normally would)
 Recall – allowed voters to remove an elected official from
office due to incompetence (not same as impeachment)
Two New Amendments
16th – gave Congress power to levy an income tax
(graduated – tax people @ diff. rates based on ability to pay)
17th – allowed for direct election of senators (used to be
elected by state legislatures, who were controlled by special
interests)
Progressive Political Reforms
Before
Party leaders pick
candidates for state and
local offices
Only members of state
legislatures can
introduce bills
Only legislators pass
laws
Only courts or
legislature can remove
corrupt officials
After
PRIMARY
Voters select their
party’s candidates
INITIATIVE
Voters can propose bills
to the legislature
REFERENDUM
Voters can vote on bills
directly
RECALL
Voters can remove
elected officials from
office
RECALL
Political
Reforms
16th
Amendment
(1913) – gave
Congress the
power to
impose an
income tax