Question

Which statement most accurately describes the Progressive Movement? It was a period of social activism and political reform that flourished from the 1890s to the 1920s. It was a rhetorical style employed by members of various political or social movements. It was a system of domination and subordination organized with an imperial center and a dominated periphery. It was a revolutionary socialist movement intended to create a classless, moneyless, and stateless society.

Answer 1

Answer:

The answer is: It was a period of social activism and political reform that flourished from the 1890s to the 1920s.

Explanation:

The Progressive Movement was a period between the 1890s and 1920s, in which there were prevalent activities and demonstrations supporting social and political reforms. The aims of the Progressive Movement were targeted at preventing problems due to political corruption, urbanization of cities, immigration of people, technological advancements, and industrialization.

Answer 2

Answer:

A rich history of social movements shaped progressive thought throughout the 19th and 20th centuries. Historian Sidney Milkis characterizes the accomplishments of the original Progressive Era as “momentous reconstructions of politics,” a description that equally applies to the numerous social movements that aimed to better align America’s political and social order with its ideals of liberty, equality, and opportunity for all.

Progressivism as a reform tradition has always focused its moral energy against societal injustice, corruption, and inequality. Progressivism was built on a vibrant grassroots foundation, from the Social Gospel and labor movements to women’s suffrage and civil rights to environmentalism, antiwar activism, and gay rights. The activists and leaders of these movements believed deeply in the empowerment and equality of the less privileged in society, the primacy of democracy in American life, and the notion that government should safeguard the common good from unchecked individual and commercial greed. They challenged government to eliminate its own legal injustices and also harnessed the force of government as a vital tool for advancing human freedom and establishing the “more perfect union” envisioned by the Founding Fathers.

Central to all progressive social movements is the belief that the people do not have to wait for change from the top down—that people themselves can be catalysts for change from the bottom up. Many social movement activists came from middle- or working-class backgrounds and possessed the courage and skill to organize others, risking great personal sacrifice and danger. Nonviolent themselves, many of these activists faced ridicule, violence, and other hardships in their efforts to push their fellow citizens toward more enlightened positions in line with the country’s stated values.

Mainstream political parties often ignored social movement activists who engaged in public education and took to the streets to demand justice and political equality. Through direct action campaigns and political organizing they asked other Americans to join their cause as a matter of conscience and duty to their fellow human beings. As Martin Luther King Jr. famously stated in his “Letter from Birmingham Jail”:

Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. We are caught in an inescapable net- work of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly. Never again can we afford to live with the narrow, provincial “outside agita- tor” idea. Anyone who lives inside the United States can never be considered an outsider anywhere within its bounds.

Explanation: