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The Progressives vs. Today

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The Progressives vs. Today
The Progressives vs. Today

The Progressive Era was a time of reform taking place from the 1890s to the 1920s. During the Progressive Era, women's rights, African American's rights, and child labor were key issues dealt with. This Era had an overall attitude of toughness, and a parent might tell their child something along the lines of, "Man up and deal with it." But how would someone from the Progressives view our society today? During the Progressive Era, efforts were focused on land conservation and improving the environment. No one from this time could have foreseen what was to come in the 21st century. Global warming and people's total disregard for protecting our environment would surely shock or upset someone from the time. Teddy Roosevelt worked hard to conserve land for later generations. Today, pollution and overpopulation seem to have ruined what Roosevelt set out to do. This definitely would anger a supporter of Roosevelt, or someone living in the Progressive Period. Our country had no problem intervening in foreign affairs a hundred years ago. Today, this seems to have not changed at all. Look at the war in Iraq – America intervened when some believe it was not our place. Someone from the Progressive Era could relate to this, however, today most realize when it is not America's place as a country to step in, while back during the Progressives most people did not think like this. Someone from the Progressive Era would be happy to see this tradition still carried on, making America seem dominating. Media-wise, muckrakers and other writers exposed corruption in society. Upton Sinclair's novel The Jungle had countless effects on America. Roosevelt called for immediate action and organized an investigation into the packinghouses in Chicago and other cities. From this came the production of the Meat Inspection Bill and later the creation of the Food and Drug Administration. This is still an active group today, and anyone from the

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