Progressive Era: Important Reforms Affecting Children

Figure 1.--This looks like some sort of school group, although thre are children of different ages, perhaps a Sunday school group. We don't understand the girls headwear. They look like 18th century mob cap bonnest. The group is protesting child labor. The dealer notices sashes and cap bands that say 'Infant Labor' . We see Little Labor". This was a cabinet card rrtrait probably taken in the 1890s. The boys wearwhat looks like mortar boards or period saucer sailor caps.

The Progressive Movement rung up quite an few imprtant reforms. This was primarily because the Reublicans Theodire Roosevelt) and Democratrs (Presisent Wilson) adopted progressive refoms as part of their program. The Democrats in particular after the Roosevelt Presidency becme the primry suppoter of progressibe reforms. Roosevelt enentered the 1912 election primarly because he was disappoinjted with Taft's performance. They had been personal friends. It is likely that he was just bored and disliked being out of 'the arena'. Yhe turning point was when Taft relieved Gifford Pinchot as head of the Bureau of Forestry. Pinchot was a friend of Roosevelt and an ardent conservationist and progressive reformer. Of all the progressive reforms, it was probably conservation that was cloest to his heart. The two key reforms that affected children were child labor laws and compulsory school attendance. The two were related because if the children were in school they could not hold full-time jobs. States began passing these laws, but a Federalm child labor law was a major aschievement. Roosevelt's failed Bull Moose campaign (1912) meant that it was primaarily the Democrats that would take up the mantle of Progressive reform. And this would be continued Frankklin Roosecelt and the New Deal.

Child Labor Laws

The first tenative steps toward restricting child labor in the United Sttes began in the mid-19th century. After the Civil War, corporations used the 14th Amendment to block social legislation at the Federal level. Only in the late-19th century, however, did child labor begin to become an important national issue. It was pursued by the Progressive Movement that became increasingly influential after the turn-of-the 20th century. Socially conscious photographers took heart-breaking photographs of children whose childhood was ruined because they had to work, often in horendous conditions. One of the most important of these photographers was Lewis Wickes Hine. Mjor journals carried the work of muckraking journalists who high-lighted this and other social issues. Two especially important magazines were McClure's Magazine and The American Magazine. Addressing the issue of child labor proved very difficult because of the Federal system. It was considered a responsibility of the states. Here considerble progress was made in the northern states, especially as labor unions gained in strength. The Southern states were more reluctant to move to limit child labor. Finally Congressed passed the Fair Labor Standards Act which included proisions on child labor (1938). This was the last major piece of New Deal legislation. Given the fact that Republicans and conservtive Southern Democrats gained in the 1938 Congressional By-election, this was a major achievement of President Roosevelt. And althouh he failed in his effort to pack the Supreme Court, by 1938 he had made enough appointments to the Court that the Act was not overturned by the Courts.

Compulsory Education

Strongly associated with the fight for child labor laws is the struggle for compulsurty school attendance laws. Even before the foundation of the United States, the colonies, especially the northern colonies, had begun to found public schools. The Protestant foundtion of America was a factor here. While public education had an early start, compulsory education was a very different matter. The first such law we know of the Massachusetts Bay Colony mandating that parents provide religious instruction for their children. The inintial impulse for compulsory attebance laws was distrust of the parents. The various states went on to found an excellent public school system. Compulsory education was different. It was not until the late-19th century that compulsory education began to become standard. Again it was the northern states that led the way. At and this tim a different issue drive the enactment of compulsory attendance laws -- child labor. Child labor laws bcame a major goal of the progressive movemnt, both as a child welfare issue and also to reduce competition with adult workers. Child labor laws proved controvrsial in many states. And the courts struck them down. Compulsory school attendance laws proved less controversial and the courts did not take issue with them like child labor laws. As a result, compulsory attendance laws often precceded child labor laws. They were a way of getting at the problem. Obviously if a child was in school during the day, it limited employment posibilities. Some states like Oregon enacted very strict compulsory public school attendance laws that would have outlawed private schools. The Supreme Court struck this down with the Pierce v. Society of Sisters decision (1925). The Court held unconstitutional an Oregon compulsory attendance law that required children to only attend public schools. Long after the child labor issues had been settled, other issues about school attendance laws emrged. The Supreme Court found in Wisconsin v. Yoder (1972) that parents had the right to opt out of compulsory attendance for religious reasons.

Created: 8:21 PM 4/12/2024
Last updated: 8:22 PM 4/12/2024