Why Did The Progressives Become Successful?

The progressives became successful in their goals in many ways. The Progressive Era was an effort to get rid of the political, social, and economic problems during the Industrial Revolution. It took place from 1900 to 1917. The year 1917 was a significant end date for the Progressive Era because that was when World War I started. The idea of ¨social darwinism¨ had a big impact on these problems. The theory of Social Darwinism basically stated that the wealthy would grow in power, while the poor would weaken. It was used to justify immoral business practices, colonization, imperialism, and military actions of the day. Some of these problems had relations to unsanitary living conditions, low wages, long hours, unsafe working conditions, child labor, no access to education, racism, discrimination, segregations, female suffrage, etc. Theodore …show more content…
He was one of the youngest presidents in history. He is one of the many reasons why the progressives ended up being so successful. He addressed the economic problems such as monopolies and trust eliminating competition and taking advantage of the workers/consumers. This included dishonest businesses and an uneven distribution of wealth. He soon became known as the ¨trust buster¨. Roosevelt enforced the Sherman Antitrust Act, which made any trust that limited competition illegal. He then decided to take further action by making a domestic policy called ¨the Square Deal¨. It created acts such as ¨Pure Food and Drug Act¨ of 1906, which required truthful labels, and banned the use of harmful preservatives, chemicals, and drugs. Also the ¨Meat Packing Act¨ of 1906 enforced sanitary regulations and required government inspections. During the Anthracite Coal Strike Roosevelt sent out negotiators to settle the argument between mine owners and workers. President Theodore Roosevelt was successful in his goal by addressing the economical problems of the progressive