Populist and Progressives free essay sample

Populists tended to be poor and uneducated. They had ideas such as government ownership of major industries. The Populists supported labors demand for an eight hour work day. The most controversial Populist demand concerned the money supply. Farmers being both sellers and debtors, saw inflation as a way to improve their standard of living but they wanted to expand the money supply. Farmers convinced the government to use silver as well as gold to back the money supply. The congress passed the Bland-Allison Act and the Sherman Silver Purchase.Populist platform urged congress to authorize free and unlimited minting of silver. The Populists were united in favoring the minting of silver to expand the money supply. Democrats agreed with the Populist, but most Republicans favored the gold standard and a smaller money supply. Democrats agreed on a presidential candidate that was with the mint silver, which was William Jennings Bryan. Having joined the Democrats in a losing cause, their party collapsed. We will write a custom essay sample on Populist and Progressives or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page The attempt to unite urban workers and farmers into a mass movement for economic reform had failed.Progressivism began in the early 1 sass. It had roots in several earlier movements such as the Liberal Republican and the Mumps. Progressivism centered in cities. Progressives were middle class and well educated. Progressives stayed in the political mainstream. They aimed not to remake American society, but to merely make the existing system work better and to do this they were willing to make compromises. Progressivism offered the middle class, business leader, and farmers a safe reform. By 1900 the American economy was strong.As a result people of all classes felt more confident and more willing to compromise. Progressives made city and state governments more democratic. They also tightened regulations on business. For Progressives, honest and efficient government was an important goal, but not the ultimate one. They saw government as a tool to be used to promote the welfare of all citizens. Regulating business was, for both city and state governments, a major part of that task. Progressives passed more laws aiming at protecting various groups, especially children.The Populist and Progressives had many similarities. What the Populist fought for the progressives continued on fighting. They fought for many similar things for example, they fought for the eight hour work day. The Populist and Progressives were for the people. They wanted to improve their chances for success, a better economy, improve the American society. As you can conclude, the Populist and Progressives had differences, but they also have similarities. They had different ideas, but were fighting for the same things. What one started the other continued to pursue.