Late 1800’s - Early 1900’s. Immigration Why would anyone want to come here?

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Late 1800’s - Early 1900’s

Transcript of Late 1800’s - Early 1900’s. Immigration Why would anyone want to come here?

Late 1800’s - Early 1900’s

Immigration

Why would anyone want to come here?

Immigration: why did people come to America?

Many immigrants were small farmers, and farm workers.– These farmers

couldn’t support their families

– They moved to America in search of jobs or any way to support their family.

Countries push out many.

In Russia: if anyone criticized the government - they faced jail or exile (getting kicked out of the country)

Russian government supported Pogroms, or organized massacres of the Jews.

The potato famine swept through Ireland. Many families came to America to avoid starvation.

The draw of America

The thought of freedom drew many to the U.S.

Many people would send back stories of finding riches in the United States.

“The Streets Are Lined With Gold”

Jobs also drew people to the U.S. Industry jobs were prevelent.

Factory owners sent agents to Europe and Asia to hire workers at low wages.

Ellis Island

This was the final hurdle.

All had to pass an inspection before they could enter the U.S.

http://teacher.scholastic.com/activities/immigration/tour/stop8.htm

The voyage

The trip to the U.S. was horrific

Ship owners jammed up to 2,000 people in airless rooms below deck.(cattle)

Diseases spread rapidly Seasickness was

prevelent For most Europeans, the

voyage ended in New York where they saw the statue of liberty.

Immigration

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Opposition to Immigration

Nativists come back: favored native born americans over immigrants

Labor unions opposed immigration because of fear immigrants would take lower paying jobs.

Violent riots in cities organized by unions

Chinese Exclusion Act: 1882 banned Chinese immigrants for 10 years

Immigration Restriction League: tried to pass a law requiring literacy of all immigrants

Progressives Sought to solve problems created by industrial and urban growth

Many were part of a growing middle class (had time and money)

Looked to solve social problems and injustices.

Muckrakers Journalists who wrote or photographed problems in society

Wanted to “stir the muck” so people noticed it

Muckrakers Jacob Riis Took pictures of tenements

- broken down apartment buildings

How the Other Half Lives -Focused on poor families living conditions

Changes to cities

Settlement houses: neighborhood centers in poor areas. Offered schooling and rec centers

Addams Hull House: located in poorest section of Chicago.

Started first Kindergarten and public playground in Chicago.

Staffed by professional. Served as model for settlement houses throughout the country

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Muckrakers Lewis Hine Took photographs of

child labor

Lewis Hine's Photographs of Workers and Immigrants

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Triangle Shirtwaist Company

These problems come to the national spotlight here at the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory in NYC

It is here that they made the fabric and for many clothing items

Every day women like the ones in this photo went to work for 10 - 12 hours a day.

When they got to their work room a manager locked the door behind them.

The door would only be open at lunch and at leaving times

One of the rooms in this building caught on fire.

The cloth items withing this building caught on fire and spread quickly

Many women had no choice.

Many women

decided to jump

instead of

attempting to escape

the fire.

The people and the media decided to do something about this.

Photos like this enraged people all over the U.S.

What would you do?

Unions

To improve working conditions workers formed labor unions.

Knights of Labor: secret society, included all workers: skilled and unskilled.– Fought for eight hour

workday, equal pay for men and women, end child labor

– Used strikes and

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Unions cont.

American Federation of Labor: Only skilled workers aloud (harder to fire)– Worked for shorter

hours higher wages– Samuel Gompers was

founding member.

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Homestead and Pullman Strikes

Homestead: Carnegie steel refused to deal with unions and only individuals caused a strike. Locked out unions from factories. – Private inv., gunfire

deaths due to strike. Pullman: RR workers

docked pay. Nation wide strike. Fed gov’t sides with RR owners and forces workers back

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Muckrakers Upton Sinclair Wrote a novel called

The Jungle Exposed what

conditions were like in meat packing industry

Grossed people out

Muckrakers

Ida Tarbell Wrote articles attacking Rockfeller’s Standard Oil Company

Complained of ruthless business tactics

“Very often people who admit facts, who are willing to see that Mr. Rockefeller has employed force and fraud to secure his ends, justify him by declaring, ‘it’s business’. That is, ‘it’s business’ has come to be a legitimate excuse for hard dealing, sly tricks, and special privileges.”

- Ida Tarbell, The History of the Standard Oil

Company

Corrupt City officials

Political Machines: used legal and illegal methods to get people elected.– Bribe voters, pay vote

counters Tammany Hall, political

machine ran NYC Bosses traded favors for

votes. City jobs, neighborhood improvements.

William Tweed stole 200 million from NYC

Civil Service Commission works to fix this by forcing government employees to take an exam for jobs

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Progressive Presidents

Theodore Roosevelt Square Deal: The

interests of businesspeople, workers and consumers should be balanced.

Known as the trust buster. Made it a top priority to get rid of bad trusts.

Wanted to encourage competition

Also fought for conservation of natural resources. Doubled amount of national parks.– 150 million more acres

William Howard Taft

Worked to protect businesses. Raised taxes to protect trusts.

Sold public lands to businesses.

Got stuck in presidential bath tub.

Woodrow Wilson

Won because Roosevelt ran against Taft and split the party

Lowered taxes, pushed for the Clayton AntiTrust Act.

Made The Sherman Antitrust Act and the Federal Trade Commission stronger.

Legislation to fix problems

Meat inspection Act: Forced meat packing plants to open doors to inspectors

Pure Food and Drug Act: put ingredients on food and medicines

16th Amendment: Income Tax

17th Amendment: Direct Election of Senators

18th Prohibition of Sale of alcohol

19th: Women’s right to vote

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Legislation Continued

Initiative: allows voters to propose a new law by getting signatures on a petition. Voted on in next election

Referendum: allows voters to approve or disapprove a law that has already been proposed by state or local gov’ts.

Recall: Voters can demand a special vote to remove an elected official.

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Labor Reform

Most Child labor reform failed during Progressive Era– 2 laws passed deemed

unconstitutional by Sup court

– Many groups formed to stop child labor

1898 Supreme Court ruled that States could limit the hours of workers in dangerous jobs.

Muller v. Oregon: Sup Court upheld laws limiting the hours of women in workforce. Big win for Progressives.

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Women’s Suffrage

Gaining the Women’s right to vote.

Starts with the Temperance movement: banning the sale of alcohol

Led by Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Susan B. Anthony, and Lucrecia Mott.

Formed the National Women’s Party (NWP)

19th Amendment: gave women right to vote.

African Americans in the Progressive Era

Booker T. Washington encouraged African Americans to improve their own situation instead of fighting segregation. Founded Tuskegee Institute for African Americans.

W.E.B Dubois: disagreed with Washington. Said to fight discrimination head on. Founded the NAACP.