The Progressive Movement was made up by many different types of people from all different backgrounds.
The Progressives were driven by industrialization, immigration and urbanization and sought ways to improve life for the average person at work and in private lives.
The Muckrakers were journalists, writers, artists and photographers who investigated and exposed corruption and injustice through their medium.
People lived in tenements plagued by poverty, crime, congestion, and poor sanitation.
Muckraker | Book/Article/Work | Subject of Expose |
| The Jungle | Dangerous conditions in meatpacking industry |
| How The Other Half Lives | Life in New York’s tenements |
| The Shame of the Cities | Urban political corruption |
| The Octopus | Monopolistic railroad practices in California |
| History of the Standard Oil Company | Ruthless practices of Standard Oil |
Upton Sinclair
Jacob Riis
Lincoln Steffens
Frank Norris
Ida Tarbell
Their work resulted in the Pure Food and Drug Act & the Meat Inspection Act. These were the first two acts of consumer protection. These protected the American consumer against unsafe or unsanitary practices.
Amendment 16: Progressive Income Tax
Amendment 17: Direct Election of Senators
Amendment 18: Prohibition of alcoholic beverages
Amendment 19: Women’s suffrage (voting rights)
Roosevelt and the Square Deal, Taft, and Wilson’s New Freedom are all progressive presidents and initiatives.
Imperialism: when a stronger nation takes over a weaker nation.
Reasons for Imperialism:
China was originally carved into spheres of influence that would provide exclusive trade rights to the U.S.
The “Boxers” tried to rebel against American imperialism, but were overcome by military force. China was now open to trade with the U.S. through the Open Door Policy that would ensure U.S. access to the Chinese market.
During the Spanish American War, the U.S. helped Cuba gain their independence from Spain.
“We don’t want to fight But by Jingo, if we do, We’ve got the men, We’ve got the ships, We’ve got the money too”
The trigger to the Spanish American War was the sinking of the Maine in Havana Harbor. This was glorified through propaganda known as yellow journalism.
The
This made Americans want to go to war. The DeLome letter was another cause of the war.
The war only lasted 4 months. At the end John Hay sent a letter to Roosevelt that stated the war had been “a splendid little war”. This showed that the United States thought themselves to be powerful.
Through the Treaty of Paris, the United States gained Puerto Rico, Guam and the Philippines in the Pacific and the Caribbean.
Puerto
Rico
Panama
Canal Zone
Hawaii
Islands
Johnston
Islands
Palmyra
Island
Midway
Island
Wake
Island
Guam
Philippine
Islands
Howland/Baker
Islands
American Samoa
Jarvis
Island
The U.S. was an imperial power after this event. Some were for imperialism, some were against.
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Economy
Naval Bases - Defense
American Destiny / spread our way of life
People will not assimilate
More wars
Financial burden
Roosevelt expanded the Monroe Doctrine with the Roosevelt Corollary that made the U.S. a world police power as the U.S. became more involved in Latin American affairs.
Taft’s policy in Latin America was known as dollar diplomacy in which the U.S. would send money to maintain orderly societies and protect American investments.
In 1901 the U.S. gained sole right to build and control the Panama Canal as long as it would be open to all nations. This made it much quicker and easier to mover supplies by ship from coast to coast.
Unrestricted German submarine warfare and the Zimmerman Telegram triggered US involvement in WWI.
The
The Selective Service Act was passed in order to increase troop levels for the war. This made all males between the ages 18-45 to register for the draft.
Schenk v. U.S.: Stated that freedoms could be limited during wartime and that if your words/actions presents a “clear and present danger” to other Americans
Sedition Act: made it illegal to speak or publish anything disloyal or profane about the government
Espionage Act: made it a crime to interfere with the draft and “treasonous” materials were barred from the mail.
WWI ended with the Treaty of Versailles and punished Germany.
This set the stage for WWII.
Wilson argued with his 14 points and believed that a League of Nations could prevent another world war from occurring.
This Treaty of Versailles failed to pass due to it being seen as an alliance or end to isolation that might involve the US in future wars.