Story of American Freedom Chapter 7 PDF

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Professor Jane Junn...

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Story of American Freedom Chapter 7 “ Progressive Freedom”                         

In 1902, the Independent organized a forum on economic inequality On one side stood the defenders of social Darwinism and laizze faire and on the other, their opponents The precceeding next two decades would be known as the progressive era in the united states In this era, severe inequality remained the most visable feature of urban landscape “steady trend towards concentration had become a topic in the u.s. public” The word freedom had become tainted by its association with social Darwinism, so progressive supporters spoke of democracy instead Many americans feared that the rise of bureaucratic organizations eroded liberty and freedom as they had known it The era witnessed the use of political power to expand economic freedom Progressivism ranged from socialists to forward-looking businessmen, but its core stood middle class reformers linked to labor unions who wanted egalitarianism Industrial freedom and industrial democracy entered a place into the political discourse of the time Industrial freedom meant empowering workers to participate in economic decisions with unions and strikes Many americans in the progressive era still drew parallels to labor and slavery to describe working conditions and employers hostility to collective bargaining Even white collar workers that they suffered from personal autonomy Thus economic freedom was a rallying cry for American socialism which reached its peak in this time “Wage slavery” The idea that social and moral considerations, not the law of supply and demand, should determine the level of wages became the staple of progressive thought The clayton act of 1914 stated that labor is not a commodity In the 19th century, male workers had stigmatized working for labor as a form of servitude, but more and more women began to work By the 20th century, working women became the symbol of female emancipation People thought that americans needed to reduce working hours and have leisure time to enjoy goods And the market shifted from capital goods to consumer products- consumption was a central element of freedom, an entitlement even( mass consumption) And then people stopped voting in elections- due to mass consumption, and the consolidation of one party politics in the south Citizenship remained central to the progressive idea of freedom, and a bit of reform occurred Changes in voting requirements, regulation of corporations, and health conditions in factories FDA AND federal trade commission emerges

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To most progressives, the tradition of localism and states rights seemed an excuse for parochialism, an impediment to a renewed sense of national purpose “only energetic government could create the social conditions for freedom To Herbert Croly, to achieve “Jeffersonian ends” of democratic self determination and individual freedom meant using “Hamiltonian mean”- government directed economy What the 19th c. called autonomy appeared to progressives like dewy and croly like isolation Croly wanted a moral distribution of wealth, while dewy wanted to equip americans with intellect Many changes were made during the progressive era- within the electoral college The electorate was expanded and contracted, empowered and removed from direct influence on many government functions Women got the right to vote and blacks in the south were disenfranchised, initiatve referendum and recall It saw literacy tests and new ways of American exclusion Middle class women were also very important in making changes during this time A battle between Woodrow Wilson and Roosevelt- both believed in increased state action Wilson was a traditional democrat- anti-government( laizze faire, freedom is economic) New nationalism-teddy rooslvelt Modern liberalism would soon emerge having to deal with civil liberties and personal privacy...