Innholdsfortegnelse for April 2017 i Cobblestone American History and Current Events for Kids and Children

While Jane Addams was on a trip abroad in the 1880s, she was horrified to watch the sale of decaying fruits and vegetables to the poor. After visiting Toynbee Hall, the world’s first settlement house located in an impoverished section of London, England, she was inspired by the progressive work being done there. Addams realized that America had its share of poverty-stricken areas. In her home state of Illinois, the city of Chicago had grown quickly in the second half of the 1800s. Its rapid industrial growth had attracted large numbers of immigrants. Many of the newcomers lived in overcrowded conditions. With her friend Ellen Gates Starr, Addams decided to establish a residence in which privileged young women like her would get to know and assist working-class immigrants by living…

During a speech in 1906, President Theodore Roosevelt recalled the words of the 17th-century English writer John Bunyan in his novel The Pilgrim’s Progress. The president compared Bunyan’s “Man with the Muck Rake, the man who could look no way but downward, . . . to rake to himself the filth of the floor” to journalists of that time. He felt that reporters relied on sensationalist and irresponsible writing to sell newspapers. His use of the term “muckrakers” to describe the era’s journalists was not meant as a compliment. Some reporters of that era certainly used yellow journalism, but other stories that appeared in print were well researched, accurate, and shone a spotlight on issues. They also educated and informed the public. They described the poverty that existed in the…

The 1912 election for president was chaotic. In the Republican party, a former president, Theodore Roosevelt (TR), challenged the sitting president, William H. Taft. Taft had served as TR’s vice president for four years (1905–1909) and had been his handpicked successor. But their once-friendly relationship had turned hostile. Roosevelt, a proud Progressive, expected Taft to follow in his footsteps and build on his legacy. Taft, however, had alienated reformers within the Republican party. “I do not care for Taft, indeed I think less of him as time goes on,” TR told his son. “He does not even know what the problems are that confront our civilization, not to speak of realizing their seriousness.” He claimed that Taft had “hurt the party and the country” and called him the candidate of…

The Progressive Era The Progressive Era helped answer economic and political questions, from the 1880s to the 1920s in America. The Progressives, as the people who wanted change called themselves, wanted to make America a better and safer place to live. They also worried about the environment, conservation, and workers’ rights. One of the most important movements that happened during this period was women’s rights. Before 1920, women could not vote. Throughout the Progressive Era, women protested for the right to vote. The 19th Amendment was passed on August 18, 1920, granting all women the right to vote. Another important issue was child labor. Children were valuable as workers because they could fit into smaller spaces than adults could. Also, they were paid less than the other workers. In the…

At this moment,” declared President Theodore Roosevelt in April 1906, “we are passing through a period of great unrest—social, political, and industrial unrest.” Few Americans would disagree. Since the end of the Civil War (1861–1865) just four decades before, the nation had experienced enormous changes. It faced rapid industrial growth. It accepted large numbers of immigrants into the country. It saw the rise of huge corporations. It grappled with corruption scandals and waves of labor unrest. All these things made Americans uneasy about the future. But what could be done to address the nation’s many problems? And was it the government’s responsibility take action? On the answers to those questions, Americans disagreed. Roosevelt had no doubts about the matter—and for a national politician, his views were unusual. He insisted that…

By the mid-1800s, Americans were consuming alcohol and hard liquor at alarming rates—at least according to some people. Also around that time, a religious revival swept across the nation. Its supporters, who hoped to define correct moral behavior, saw intoxicating liquor as the major root of the country’s many social problems. In response, many communities started temperance societies. At first, members signed pledges agreeing to limit the amount of alcohol they drank. As the reform movement grew in the 1840s, society members promised not to drink any alcohol at all. At the time, husbands and fathers were often a family’s sole wage earner. When men began to spend more time and money consuming alcohol, it created hardships for their families. A wife had no legal protection for herself or her…

Although the Progressive Era may be over, groups continue to push for change. They hope to help people who struggle with poverty or face harm from violence, greed, or discrimination. To learn more, COBBLESTONE talked with Maggie Thompson. She’s the executive director of the Generation Progress program at the Center for American Progress in Washington, D.C. WHAT DOES GENERATION PROGRESS DO? We work with young people who are working for progressive change in their communities—whether that’s on gun violence prevention, criminal justice reform, getting rid of student debt, or any of the other issues that are so important to young people. WHAT DO YOU SEE AS THE MOST IMPORTANT PRIORITIES RIGHT NOW? Young people in America today have a few pivotal fights that will shape the direction of our country.…

When Theodore Roosevelt became president of the United States in 1901, he used the power of the federal government to support an important movement in the Progressive Era: the protection of America’s natural resources. For most of the 1800s, moving westward and settling the nation’s western territory had been important to the growth of the United States. In that century, the nation seemed to have a limitless supply of natural resources. Large industries in lumber, mining, and hunting were established. Those businesses benefited from unchecked access to those resources. By the late 1800s, however, wasteful practices threatened to destroy the nation’s unique places and the wildlife and plants native to them. Environmentalists worried that the country’s natural spaces were disappearing. As a sportsman who appreciated the wilderness, Roosevelt was…

In the New York City garment industry, tens of thousands of Jewish and Italian immigrant women labored in crowded and often dangerous factories and sweatshops. A number of small strikes broke out in October 1909. One young strike leader—Clara Lemlich—made history. She had been advised by male labor leaders to proceed cautiously. Instead, at a mass meeting the following month, she turned the struggle into something much larger. “I am a working girl, one of those who are on strike against intolerable conditions,” she declared, “I offer a resolution that a general strike be declared—now!” The crowd went wild, and a general strike of women garment workers began. From November 1909 to February 1910, between 20,000 and 40,000 women—many of them teenagers—struck their employers. They demanded higher wages, shorter working…

Pope Francis When Pope Francis became the new pope in 2013, he announced that he wouldn’t live in the Apostolic Palace, where previous popes had lived. He chose to live instead in a small guest suite in the Vatican. He also dresses in modest robes. He believes that dialogue between different faiths is important, and he has forged relationships with Jewish and Muslim leaders, as well as with representatives of other faiths. He has urged world leaders to fight climate change. He has spoken out against greed and consumerism. He is passionate about helping the poor and believes extreme poverty is a violation of human rights. Justin Trudeau When Justin Trudeau was elected prime minister of Canada in 2015, he made sure his Cabinet had an equal number of men…