The Populist and Progressive reformers of the late 19th and early 20th centuries brought about widespread changes to American politics, economics, and society. In this essay, we want you to consider the ethics and civics of the reformers. Who were these re
Must be in Rule of Three format with a introduction and strong thesis statement, 3 paragraphs of the body (each with their own thesis statement – one for each of the three key points of your overall thesis), and conclusion. So a minimum of 5 paragraphs.
This is a fact based essay, you must provide specific and detailed evidence for your hypotheses.
You must utilize a minimum of three primary sources from the assigned materials (primary sources posted in the Blackboard course module OR found under the primary source section of each chapter in American Yawp only; you may not utilize sources linked to in the reference section of American Yawp) as evidence in your essay
You must utilize a minimum of three secondary sources from the assigned materials as evidence in your essay
You may only use materials assigned in this course for your essay (we have vetted all the materials utilized in this course, other materials may not be appropriate or accurate). If you use outside sources your grade will be docked.
DO NOT QUOTE sources, paraphrase in your own words and cite
You must consider ethics/ethical decision making in this essay
Don\’t forget about historical geography, where something takes place matters and it may be important to your argument.
You must use Turabian citation style in this essay; all citations must be footnote style citations (no parenthetical cites allowed, no endnotes/works cited at the end, you need footnotes). Be sure to review how to properly cite a primary source that may be contained in another work and be sure to use page numbers where possible.
12 pt type, 1 inch margins, double-space
Academic Institution
Populist and Progressive Reformers
The paper discusses the ethics and civics of both populist and progressive reformers and who they were
Populist and Progressive Reformers
Introduction
The populist and progressive reformers movements emerged between the 1890s and early 1900s. The two movements had various similarities since they both advocated for radical reforms. The movements became powerful that they started pushing for political reforms such as secret ballots, direct elections and women suffrage. The populist movement was established by farmers who have created peoples party with an intention to protect their interests. Progressive reformers movement was based in urban areas and was geared towards eliminating corruption, and problems caused by industrialization and urbanization. They were both based on the dissatisfaction that the government could not address the problems citizens were facing.
Populist versus Progressive Reformers Movement
The two reformers movements had various ethical and civic issues. The populists who were advocating for the rights of the farmers were pushing against the unethical practices that oppressed farmers. The unethical practices they were fighting against included government control over railroads, telegraph, and telephones . On the other hand, the progressive movement was fighting for the civil rights of the people in the city to be provided with equal opportunities to create wealth. They believed that a few elites were amassing wealth thus creating an unequal distribution of power . The unequal distribution of power of unhealthy for the municipals or the cities since it could lead to manipulation and oppression of the weak by the rich and powerful.
The populist reformers movement comprised of farmers and the poor whites who were agitated by the government’s inability to address their problems such as railroads and banks. They also pushed for government intervention to create a flourishing middle class. Populists also pushed for the abolition of government control over railroads, telegraph, and telephones . It was also in their demands to abolish the graduated tax, direct election of senators and a national bank. The movement had created a party called Populist Party in 1800 to advocate for various interests of the farmers . The interest of the populist movement was to replace the Democrats as the second most powerful party by creating an alliance that would advocate for the rights of farmers from the West and South.
The progressive movement comprised of educated middle-class people who pushed for judicial and legislative reforms. The intention was to eliminate corruption in government business dealings. They also pushed for social reforms including the right for women to vote, better working conditions, education, child labor, bribery and reducing the power of Robber Barons . Progressive reformers viewed themselves as the principled reformers who would change the course of American history . Progressive reformers believed that the concentration of power among the top elites was unfair since it would deny equal opportunities for people to progress economically.
Conclusion
Populist and progressive reformers movements shaped American history in various ways. They advocated for the rights of the farmers and the urban-educated whites. They also pushed against corrupt government practices. The two movements created a necessary awareness that the government was needed to do more for the people. The ethics and civics of the reformers were focused on the rights of women to vote and the concentration of wealth among a few people. Therefore, the two reformist movements gained popularity since they addressed the specific problems common people in the rural or urban areas were going through.
Bibliography
Keeler, Clinton. “Children of Innocence: The Agrarian Crusade in Fiction.” Western Humanities Review 6, no. 4, 1952: 363.
Locke, Joseph L., and Ben Wright, eds. The American Yawp: A Massively Collaborative Open US History Textbook, Vol. 1: To 1877. Stanford University Press, 2019.
Phelan, James D. “Why the Chinese Should Be Excluded.” The North American Review 173, no. 540, 1901: 663-676.
Riis, Jacob. “How the Other Half Lives. 1890.” Reprint, Mineola, NY: Dover Publications 1971.
Szefel, Lisa. The Gospel of Beauty in the Progressive Era: Reforming American Verse and Values. Springer, 2011.
Wells-Barnett, Ida. “Lynch law in America.” The Arena 23, no. 1, 1900: 15-24.
