Political Response to Industrialization

Was a political response to industrialization and its social by-pioducts: immigration, urban growth, the concentration of corporate power. and widening of class divisions. It was in most cases distinct from populism, the reform movement that preceded it. Whereas populism attracted aggrieved farmers, s strength lay in the cities. enlisted far more iournalists, academics. and social theorists than did populism. The progressives were reformers, not radicals or revolutionaries. They wanted to remedy the social evils spawned by capitalism, not destroy the system Itself.

never constituted a cohesive movement With a unified program but rather a diverse array of reform actIVities that sometimes overclapped and sometimes diverged. Many reformers insrsted that restoring democracy required stricter regulation of business, from local transrt companies to the almighty trusts.

Other reformers, emphasizing the humanitarian theme, called for laws to protect workers and the urban poor. Other progressives concentrated on schemes for reforming the structure of government, especially at the municipal level. Some reformers, Viewmg immigration, urban immortality, and incipient social disorder as the central problems.

fought for immigration restriction. the abolition of prostitution and saloons, and other social»control strategies, Like the movement itself. the progressives comprised a diverse lot, aligned in shifting coalitions that might unite on one issue, then divide on another. The nativerborn Protestant middle class, including the new whitercollar professionals, was certainly central, but on issues affecting the welfare ol factory workers and slum dwellers, the urbanrimmigrant political machinesrand workers themselvesrprovided critical support.

Even corporate leaders at times helped to shape business regulation measures, especially when the pressure for such regulation became irresistible.

Get quality help now

writer-Charlotte

Verified

Proficient in: Economics

4.7 (348)

“ Amazing as always, gave her a week to finish a big assignment and came through way ahead of time. ”

+84 relevant experts are online

Hire writer

The impetus for reform came at first not from the political parties but from private groups with names like the Playground Association ofAmerica and the organizations, all the maior progressive reforms. form woman suffrage and the abolition of child labor to antiprostitution and prohibition. drew strength from organized interest groups. Scientific and technological expertise underlay the new industrial order, and progressives tended to believe that such expertise would also solve the social problems spawned by industrialism, Progressives marshaled social research, expert opinion, and statistical data to support their various causes. Eloquent leaders, gifted iournalists. earnest ministers, and energetic organizers all played a role in .