Post your initial response by Thursday, February 16 at 11:59pm (35 points)
Post at least one substantive reply to one of your classmates by Sunday, February 19 at 11:59 pm (15 points).
(Each reply to your classmates should be 3-5 quality sentences and serve to further our engagement with the topic. For example, just saying “Good point; I agree” is insufficient).
The Progressive Era in American history (~1890 – 1920) was a period of major economic, social, and political reforms in the United States. Largely a response to a political system that seemed to serve only the interests of the wealthy and the excesses of unregulated capitalism, the Progressive movement pushed for new consumer rights, enfranchisement for women and African Americans, accountability for political corruption, expansion of public education, and programs to help the poor and sick.
For this discussion, we will be working with two primary sources (they are available in the “Outside Sources” section of this week’s Canvas module) from two different leaders of the labor movement at the turn of the century. Both of these individuals are strongly associated with Progressive era historiography.
Constance Leupp, author of the essay “The Shirt Waist Makers Strike� (1909), was a Progressive activist who was especially concerned with the plight of young women in urban garment factories. The essay details her role in helping the union at the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory in New York City stage a strike (for those of you wondering, yes, this is the same factory in which an enormous fire broke out and killed almost 150 factory workers over a year after the strike. Public outrage over the lack of safety measures and regulations led to numerous pieces of legislation to improve these problems).
The second document is a copy of a speech that Eugene Debs gave at the first National Convention of the American Railway Union (ARU), held in Chicago in 1894. Debs, a former railroad worker, was a leader in the ARU and organized a national railroad strike to support employees at the Pullman Factory (which manufactured sleeping cars for trains), outside of Chicago, who alleged they were being exploited by the owner, George Pullman. The strike resulted in considerable violence, as Army and National Guard troops were deployed to scatter striking rail workers in major cities across the country. Debs would later run for President five times as a Socialist (he ran from a prison cell in 1920, having been sentenced to ten years for violating the Espionage and Sedition Acts by speaking out against World War I).
Please read both of these sources, ideally more than once, and then respond to the following prompts:
In your own words, what is the primary goal for each strike?
In what ways do each of the sources represent the Progressive movement? Please include at least one direct quote from each source to support your response.
In your own words, what are the most important differences between each source? (do not worry about superficial details – “the people in one strike made dresses, but the people in the other strike worked on trainsâ€� is unimportant)
[A complete, 35-point response will address each component of the prompt, demonstrate critical thinking and application of the material, and should be at least ~450 words. Please note that you must post your own response before you can see your classmates’ replies.]