The Effects of American Reform Movements in the 1900s

The Effects of American Reform Movements in the 1900s

Living in the United States of America is all about opportunity. The opportunity to get a good job, make money, and lead a life of good quality; in other words, the opportunity to Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness. However the opportunity for many people was not around through out the 1800s. Certain groups of people did not hold the basic rights that were guaranteed by the Constitution. In fact, most of the people that had opportunity were the wealthy white men, and few other people ever had any chances to lead a good life. For example, at the end of the 1800s African Americans had some rights, however a lot of their rights were severely limited by laws that were made by the wealthy white men. Also, Native Americans didn’t have any rights at all; they weren’t even considered United States citizens. So how did the United States go from a country that only benefited white men to a land of opportunity for everyone? The answer to this is through reform movements. The many reform movements through out United States History as shaped American Society and Culture to what it is today. For example, the Progressive movement saw many laws passed which are still in effect today. Also, without the Civil Rights movements we would still be living in a hypocritical, racist society.

In the late 1800’s a group of Americans decided that something needed to be done about the decline of moral and ethical values in most Americans. These people called themselves the progressives and started one of the most comprehensive reform movements in the United States to this day. Progressivism became so widespread that by the end of World War I, anyone who didn’t agree with Progressive ideals was labeled a communist. The Progressives had four major goals that they wished to accomplish. These four goals were to democratize America, to Americanize America, the humanization of capitalism and rationalization of the economy. Each goal dealt with a different aspect of America’s society that the Progressives thought needed help. The way these goals were accomplished was to get laws passed that would reform the practices of many Americans. Progressives held that in order to bring American back to its old time, rural values people would need to attend church more.