Progressives Accomplishments

One of the issues that the Progressives failed to address was the racial issues that were faced. The success of the progressive movement was owed to the publicity that was generated by the muckrakers, writers who detailed the horrors of poverty, urban slums, the dangerous factory conditions, and child labor to name a few. (p. 602) The Interstate Commerce Act in 1887 was one of the successes. This act was designed to address the issues of railroad abuse and discrimination. The act required shipping rates had to be “reasonable and just”. The railroads had to publish the rates they charged. There were no longer to be secret rebates. The price discrimination against mall markets was illegal. The Sherman Antitrust Act was also adopted. The Sherman Antitrust Act prohibited contract, conspiracy, or combination of business interests in restraint of foreign or interstate trade. The Progressives differed sharply over the way to deal with the wickedness that was generated by the trusts. Some of the Progressives preferred an activist role to the trust-busting. There were others that felt the regulatory approach would work. The more vocal minority sought socialism with the government ownership of the means of production. There were other progressive reforms that followed. There were other reforms that would rise up. There were new amendments added to the constitution. These amendments pertained to conservation, railroad legislation, and food and drug laws. There were also changes in that would affect the means to elect senators. These were instituted to protect society through prohibition and extend suffrage to women. Some of the new major laws and constitutional amendments were the New York Tenement House Law. The New York Tenement House Law would set construction regulations. Many of the tenement housing in New York were poorly constructed. They didn’t even have indoor plumbing in most of them. This was one item addressed by the New York Tenement House Law. The building had...