Labor and Social Issues in the US, 1890-1917

Introduction

The US experienced a period of great industrial and territorial expansion during the years 1890-1917. Unfortunately, at the same, the country was also experiencing many serious labor and social problems. This essay will address some of these problems and the responses to them. In particular, it will examine the problems affecting labor, women and blacks in the US during the period.

Labor Issues

During this period labor was still largely unregulated and the peak influence of big labor organizations such as the AFL-CIO was still decades away. As a result, the US government permitted a number of labor practices to flourish which would be considered, at best, unethical by the middle part of the 20th century. Among the labor practices still legal around this time was the use of child labor, long work days and unsafe working conditions.

One of the key events in the area of unsafe working conditions was the March 1911 Triangle Shirtwaist Fire at the 10 story building owned by the Triangle Shirtwaist Company in New York City. As a consequence of the fire, 146 workers, most of whom were women, died. An investigation of the cause of the deaths found that the limited number of exits trapped many of the workers on the building's top three floors during the conflagration. The result of this tragedy was the passage of legislation that included more stringent building codes and provisions for factory inspection. Another outcome of the fire was its role in advancing workers’ compensation laws in certain jurisdictions. Thus, if an employee of a negligent work site could provide evidence of employer malfeasance, there could significant recompense involved as a result.

Women's Issues

One of the great social problems of the US was the total exclusion of women from both voting, and participation in the nation's political process, through the entire 19th century. An early response to this problem materialized prior to the Civil War in the form of the suffragette movement. But it would be several decades of political protest before the ratification of the 19th amendment in 1920 gave women the right to vote.

There were a number of obstacles to women's suffrage throughout the 19th century. The main obstacles to this right were based on the restrictions on women's freedom created by Victorian sexual attitudes. That is, during the Victorian era women, were conceived of primarily as caretakers of the home and family. The public sphere was held to be the exclusive preserve of mostly white men. There were also some erroneous interpretations of prevailing scientific ideas which held that women were fundamentally different from men and in some way deeply flawed.

Against these widespread cultural attitudes steady progress was made for women's right to vote. 1890 saw the formation of the National American Women’s Suffrage Association (NAWSA). This organization was formed from two previously competitive organizations, the American Woman Suffrage Association and the National Woman Suffrage Association. These groups found it pertinent to combine their resources to better achieve their common goals. NAWSA made achieving woman's suffrage its main objective and undertook a state-by-state strategy that managed some hard won victories in western states by 1900. For instance, when Wyoming was admitted to Union in 1890 it retained an already established female suffrage policy. Colorado extended suffrage to women in 1893 and this was followed three years later by Idaho.

Racial Issues

Racial issues were also a great and contentious social problem in the US during the period. The North's victory in the Civil War had led to the emancipation of the slaves and the ratification of the 15th amendment in 1869-70. This amendment to the Constitution eliminated race-based voting discrimination. However, the rollback of the Reconstruction era reforms by 1890, and the institution of highly discriminatory Black Codes throughout the South, ushered in a very difficult period for blacks in the US.

The Black Codes included such legislation as the poll tax, the literacy test and the grandfather clause. These laws established racist prerequisites for voting in many Southern states. The poll tax was usually set at rates too expensive for most black Americans to afford. The literacy test was particularly damaging at a time when most black Americans were not fully literate. The grandfather clause limited voting only to voters whose grandfathers had voted in an election which was held when most freedmen were still slaves. These laws all led to a precipitous decline in voting participation by black Americans by 1900. Between 1898 and 1915 southern states adopted the Democratic white primary which excluded political participation by black voters. There was also extreme violence against blacks in the form of the Ku Klux Klan that included lynchings.

Ultimately, the legal status of black Americans would remain undecided until the 1960s. However, there were a number of responses during the period which laid important foundations for future success against institutionalized racism. One of the most notable was when W.E.B. Du Bois joined with a number of black and white civil rights leaders to form the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). This organization had lawyers who were dedicated to fighting discrimination against blacks in the South and throughout the US.

Conclusion

In sum, the US experienced tremendous economic and industrial expansion during the indicated period. However, it also had serious social problems adversely affecting labor, women, and racial minorities. The response to these problems were in the form of protest and legal action. But their successes were a mixed bag, at least during the era under question. Of all three subject areas, women's rights is the one that achieved the most progress.