Reforms In The Progressive Era And The New Deal Era
The Progressive reforms from the Progressive Era and the New Deal reforms were both enacted in response to the tumultuous environment of the United States at the time. These reforms were established to improve the situation in the nation. The goals of both reforms included developing the economy, protecting the interests of the people, and maintaining order in society. As the New Deal occurred after the Progressive movement, it could be considered as a continuation of Progressivism. However, though both reforms shared similar goals, the ways and process of achieving these goals differed greatly. Progressive reforms focused on improving the conditions of the people in a relatively prosperous economy and New Deal reforms focused on recovery and providing relief in a declining economy.
The Progressive Era occurred after the Gilded Age. The Gilded Age refers to the era that occurred at the end of the 19th century following the Civil War and the Reconstruction Era, from the 1870s to 1900. The Gilded Age was an era of technological innovations, urbanization, and industrialization. The era gets its name from Mark Twain who used it ironically in his book - The Gilded Age: A Tale of Today to describe the underbelly of the seemingly prosperous period. Although the Gilded Age was characterized by economic growth, wealth was concentrated in the hands of a few. The wealthy influenced the government and continued to line their pockets. The poor worked harder but received no benefits. This difference contributed to class conflict and dissatisfaction of working individuals. Greed, financial excess, illegal acts, social injustices, and corruption were prevalent in the era. The Progressives came together to combat these issues. The economic depression of 1893 also inspired the Progressive movement. The laissez-faire government failed to solve the concerns of the victims and make adequate changes. Progressives like Theodore Roosevelt and Woodrow Wilson were against the old ways of governing - championing individualism and the free market which did not consider modern conditions. They endeavored to rein in businesses and hold them accountable for their actions, conserve and preserve the environment, and ameliorate the working and living conditions of the lower class.
The New Deal program of the 1930s was enacted by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt to bring relief and stabilize the nation after the Great Depression which began in 1929. After 1920, Americans wanted a change from the Progressive movement and elected Warren G. Harding as president. By doing so, they could “return to normalcy”. Return to normalcy was important for Americans because of the devastating effects of World War 1, the impact of the 1918 pandemic, and the subsequent social disorder present in the nation. Harding and his vice-president, Calvin Coolidge (who later became president after Harding’s death in 1923) lead America into the roaring 20s. The roaring 20s was a decade of social, cultural, and economic advancement. Coolidge restricted immigration, reduced federal spending, decreased taxes, and minimally interfered with the business and commercial sectors. After his presidency ended, Herbert Hoover became president in 1929 and was faced with the Great Depression after the stock market crash a few months later. Unfortunately, Hoover was unwilling to take action, change the standard economic approaches, and was unable to effectively deal with the consequences of the depression (Hewitt & Lawson, 2019, p. 740). The Great Depression negatively impacted many Americans. By 1933, the unemployment rate had reached a record of 25%. There was an increase in poverty and general insecurity. Millions of Americans found it difficult to make ends meet and keep their homes, farms, and small businesses. Large families crowded into tiny apartments, the homeless lived in makeshift shacks called Hoovervilles, and the masses depended on charity to survive. The next president, Franklin Roosevelt made it his mission to lessen the struggles of the depression through the New deal reforms.
The New Deal reforms resembled the Progressive era reforms as they both placed importance on government intervention. Both reforms also considered democratic foundations to be important. A major similarity between the two reforms is that they were stimulated by economic instability and depression. The depression of 1893 was inspirational to the Progressive era reforms and the Great Depression was inspirational to the New Deal reforms. New Dealers found the Progressive era reforms to be a good example of government intervention in establishing order and security. However, the reforms of the Progressive era had not been comprehensive enough to prevent further economic decline. Government intervention in both periods included regulating capitalism and the creation of new government agencies, programs, and institutions.
Progressive era reforms and New Deal reforms were concerned with regulating business, industrial, and commercial sectors. During the Progressive Era, agencies like the Department of Commerce and Labor were established. The Department of Commerce and Labor was created in 1903 to promote fair business practices. In 1912, the Children’s Bureau was added to the organization to enforce restrictions on child labor and prevent the exploitation of children. The Federal Trade Commission created the Clayton Antitrust Act in 1914 to prevent businesses from engaging in unfair modes of competition. Some states passed laws that limited the time women were able to work in a week and allowed them to receive a pension under certain circumstances. In 1916, the Adamson Act, the Keating-Owen Act, and Workmen’s Act were passed to improve the working environment of laborers. Railway reforms such as the Elkins Act of 1903 that forced railroads to uphold their published rates and imposed fines for rebates and rate cutting, and the Hepburn Act of 1906 that standardized shipping rates and limited the consumption of public lands were also passed. Sanitary laws involving food like the Pure Food and Drug Act and Meat Inspection Act of 1906 held companies accountable for the conditions of the food they sold. Reforms of the New Deal era that regulated industry and enforced fair labor practices included the National Industrial Recovery Act of 1933 that allowed the president to set wages and prices to improve the economy, the Agricultural Adjustment Act of 1933 that paid farmers to lower production, the Glass-Steagall Act of 1933 that separated investment banking from commercial banking, the Wagner Act of 1835 that allowed workers to join unions, the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 that established a minimum wage and maximum working hours in a week, and the creation of the Securities and Exchange Commission in 1934 to regulate the stock market. The reforms of the New Deal were passed faster and were more detailed than the Progressive Era reforms. While the Progressives sought change but did not want to radically alter the capitalist system, the New Dealers made significant changes to legislature and governance which greatly affected capitalism.
Reforms of the Progressive Era and the New Deal Era also targeted the social improvement of the people. Both eras had a large part of the population living in squalor and poverty. During the Progressive era, there was an influx of immigrants. Due to corruption, local governments failed to provide for these immigrants and the way they lived was deplorable (Hewitt & Lawson, 2019, p. 619). Women were able to work in the Progressive Era but many had to settle for jobs with unsafe conditions, long hours, and low wages to earn money; children were also exploited for labor. Settlement Houses like the Hull House founded by Jane Addams and Ellen Starr in Chicago helped poor individuals by providing social services like educational lessons, health services, and job workshops (Hewitt & Lawson, 2019, pp. 620, 634). Unlike the Progressive era reforms that were focused on providing help to women and children, New Deal reforms focused on employing men as they were seen as breadwinners who needed jobs to support their families. The Public Works Administration of 1933, the Civilian Conservation Corps of 1933, the Works Progress Administration of 1935, and the Civil Works Administration of 1933, in contrast to Progressive era policies like the Keating-Owen Act of 1916 were all geared towards supplying men with job opportunities (Hewitt & Lawson, 2019, p. 760). Morality and social control were important aspects of Progressive era reforms to improve society. Acts like the Harrison Narcotics Control Act of 1914 and the White Slave Trade Act of 1910 were passed to control social behavior. Social control also extended to immigration. Progressives embraced the assimilation idea. They blocked “undesirables” from entering the country and wanted immigrants to speak English and adopt American culture. The New Deal Era was not characterized by policies aimed at refining social behavior. New Dealers were more open to diversity. There was higher tolerance for different ethnicities and minorities - all citizens would be equal under the law and should be united. This can be seen through responsive New Deal policies like the Indian Reorganization Act of 1934 (Hewitt & Lawson, 2019, p. 762). Although both reform movements were interested in social improvement, the scale involved was different. Progressives had imperialistic beliefs and wanted to expand the influence of America. They were concerned about the conditions of citizens in other countries. New Dealers were concerned with the improvement within the borders of the United States and cared about the welfare of its citizens.
Although the Progressive era reforms and the New Deal reforms have many similarities, they had just as many differences. While the New Deal reforms may seem to be a continuation of the Progressive era reforms, the historical background and goals of both reform movements were inherently dissimilar. Progressive era reforms were primarily about improving the situation of the people and New Deal reforms were primarily about providing for the people.
