The Progressive Movement in the USA - Essay Example

Due Progressive movement and the role that Muckraker Ray Stannard Baker Played Progressive movement in the United swas a very crucial period which involved a lot of social activism and a reform era in politics. This movement took place between the years 1890’s to the early 1920’s. It operated more in the local levels and later on advanced to the state and finally in national levels. The main goal of this movement was to purify the government through a direct democracy by eliminating corruption and exposing the political machines or bosses who practiced corruption. This movement had a crucial aim of promoting a fair competition for the customers’ benefits. This movement aimed at destroying the political power of the saloons’ based local bosses. It promoted suffrage of women to a more pure female voting in the arena. The activists involved in this movement came together to reform the local government. During that period, corruption during made politics a very dark activity and the nation responded by having a progressive movement. The cities were overcrowded with very many laborers who were very poor as a result of very poor working conditions. There were growing issues or challenges such as very fast economic changes and social changes which resulted from the revolution in industries in the entire America. This movement established itself outside the government and later on forced the whole entire government to take control and deal with the vital challenges facing America. This movement started in the year 1896 and this was before America entered into the World War 1 which commenced in the year 1917. The people in the middle class social ladder and supporters such the lawyers, business persons, teachers, ministers and physicians were the main people where the movement drew its support from. The people namely the progressives who were the activists supported scientific methods of operating the economy. These scientific methods involved applied economics, schooling, theology, education, finance, industry and the families also. The progressives felt that this way of operation was the best and more efficient and saved on time unlike the traditional way of operation which was a waste of time and a ground for inefficiency. The commitment of the progressives focused on changing the manner in which the state operated, changing the society’s lifestyle and finally improving the economy. Investigative journalists also referred to as Muckrakers type of journalists were among the people who helped in making the movement a success were. Muckrakers were those journalist who participated in an investigative type of journalism in reporting and journalist who had a very bid desire in reformation. Their main target was exposing all the ills occurring socially, politically and corruption. These journalists played a very important role during the progressive movement because they advocated for reform through publishing true reports which targeted reform. These journalists took it as a duty to enlighten the people about the underside of the life that Americans were living by providing details of the American’s underside. One of the Muckrakers’ journalists during the progressive movement was Ray Stannard Baker. Baker studied law and literature in the University of Michigan. In the university, he stated a rapid writing course which was the first class of newspaper writing in all the institutions in America during that time. In the year 1898, Baker joined the McClure magazine which was becoming extremely popular. He worked together with other muckrakers such as Lincoln Steffens and Ida Tarbell. He impressed his audience including President Theodore Roosevelt who praised the write r for his work. The president praised Baker for his desire to promote fairness and his entire anxiety in telling the truth instead of writing something sensational. Later on, Baker started giving more attention to the reforms in politics and relationships between different race groups. The president attacked Baker and his fellow muckrakers for putting their focus on the negatives of the life of the Americans. However, no matter how much the president attacked the muckrakers, they continued to work extra hard for the progressive reform. Baker and his colleagues managed to buy the American Magazine. After buying the magazine, Baker began evaluating extensively on the African-Americans position politically and socially. His articles drew a lot positive feedback which motivated him to turn the articles into a book by the name Following the Color Line which was produced in the year 1908. Through his writing, Baker exposed all the problems in the society, identified the controlling agents, and indicated an action preferred, incited his readers to respond and maintained an authorial type of autonomy in his work. His work educate the people on what was going on in America and incited the progressives to call for changes in their social and economic parts of their life. The progressive movement had a very strong believe that the foundation stone of the American society was the family. Bakers work exposed the social problems in America and this incited the progressives to ensure that the municipal government to work closely and enhance the family. In the year 1903, Baker published the Right to Work which was about the work conditions in the coal mines coal strike and the situation of the workers who did not strike. The workers who did not strike did not have any special training or any knowledge in the coal mining. These were just famers who were so desperate searching for work. This portrayed the dangerous conditions that the workers in the coal mines experienced. This article helped the progressives understand the poor working conditions that they went through and how dangerous the jobs were during the period. This incited progressives to work extra hard in reforming and modernizing the schools at the local level during the period, there was a dramatic type of expansion in several schools. It was after the year 1910 that the smaller type of cities began building high schools. The article about coal mining led to an increased use of technology and standard working hours created for the employees and this helped the employees to have some time in their families. The president made responses by coming up with initiatives which would help in solving the problems which this journalist illustrated in his work. This work by Baker made the reformers of the progressive movement come up with a standardized attendance in schools and a law that indicated that it was compulsory for all the children to attend school. More teachers were employed, facilities in schools expanded and higher grades introduced in the schools. It is during this progressive era that African-Americans who were very poor could attend same schools as the whites. An initiative of increasing leadership by women and black and white came into existence. This was to enhance democracy to ensure that women did not just stick in their domestic role only but participated in leadership too. The same case applied to the African-Americans who faced discrimination by the whites. They were not allowed to participate in any power related decision making. This movement ensured that no exclusion of any citizen in leadership as a result of racial discrimination which was a very major social problem in America. Racial reforms took place during the progressive movement. Baker, in his work brought out the issue of racial discrimination in America very clearly and informed the progressives about it through his work. The progressives felt motivated to solve the problem through racial reforms. This reform was to ensure that all different races of people faced equal and fair treatment. He informed about the challenge in race relationships through his book called Following the Color Line. This book addressed problems that African-Americans went through. These problems were poverty, discrimination and lack of education. In conclusion, it is very clear that this journalist played an informative role in his writing work which to very vital reforms that caused success in the social, political and economic sectors in America. Work Cited McNeese, Tim. The Progressive Movement: Advocating Social Change. New York: Chelsea House, 2007. Print. Read More