African American Suffrage, And The Progressive Era

After breaking away from the British in July of 1776, the colonist knew that they would have to create a government or social structure that would cope with the needs of the settlers. The colonists chose a republic government as their means of controlling the nation. A republic state is a governing system in which supreme power is held by the people through their elected representatives, whom have an elected or nominated president rather than a monarch. During this expansion many obstacles were overcome to increase the rights colonist were entitled to, such as equality no matter the race or gender. To go along with this women held multiple strikes and rallies to get men and the government to see that women should have the right to vote and
to be seen as equals. This movement was known as the Women Suffrage Movement. Along with expanding democracy so that everyone had equal rights and participation in the government, there were also many altercations over the fact that monopolists, such as the iron and oil trusts, were running the government.
Thus, African American equality, women suffrage, and the Progressive Era were all major contributing elements to the expansion of democracy that occurred during this time period.
One major contributing factor that helped the development of a democracy in the United States between 1776-1920 is the increasing rights of African Americans. In 1776 the Declaration of Independence was signed and ensured that all men had equal rights, “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness”. Despite this declaration of the rights for all, this statement was meant primarily for white land owners which meant that they were the only ones who were seen as equal and who were allowed to vote. Benjamin Quarles states
in “Antebellum Free Blacks and the ‘Spirit of ‘76’” “…Blacks bent on remaining in America would naturally seek the right to vote and, equally as a matter of course, would base their claim in part in the Declaration”. This excerpt shows that the African Americans did want the right to vote and to be seen as equals. Once they began to fight the government for their rights they used the Declaration of Independence as a source that “all men are created equal.” As predicted by Quarles in an effort to appease the African American’s demands Congress passed the XIII Amendment in 1865 which abolished slavery. This meant that congress shall enforce the rule that slavery is not allowed in any state or territory under the government of the United States. Only a short three years later congress passed the XIV amendment which states “All persons born or naturalized in the United States are subject to its laws and cannot be denied any of the rights and privileges contained in the Constitution.” The XV amendment was the last amendment to be passed in 1870 which gave African Americans the rights that they were entitled to. The combination of these amendments helped start the process towards equality for all, including African Americans. Women’s suffrage was another movement that helped expand democracy in the United States. Women's suffrage is the right of women to vote and to stand for electoral office. It wasn’t until around the 1840’s that women’s suffrage ignited in the United States which created many movements for women’s rights. One event that played a key role in helping women gain the right to vote was the spread of the idea of a Jacksonian Democracy through the nation. This ideal refers to the spreading of political power to the people, ensuring majority rule, and supporting the "common man." When looking at “Chronology of Property Requirement for Suffrage: 1790-1855” the number of states increased throughout this time while the number of states with property requirements to vote steadily decreased until the sudden drop around the 1840’s when the women’s suffrage gathered strength. At the end there was a 70% decrease in property requirement to be allowed to vote, in 1855 the only remaining states from the ten were Rhode Island, New York, and South Carolina. Rhode Island did not require “native-born citizens” to have land whereas New York only required African Americans to own land. In “President Woodrow Wilson Speaks in Favor of Female Suffrage” President Woodrow Wilson states “’we have made partners of the women in this war...Shall we admit them only to a partnership of suffering and sacrifice and toil and not to a partnership of privilege and right?’” What President Wilson meant is that the nation depended on women during the war because there were very important in the factories. Democracy expanded during this time because women’s voice, opinions, and suggestions began to be heard by the states and government for the first time. The last contributing factor that lead to the expansion of democracy was the abolishment of monopolies. A monopoly is the exclusive possession or control of the supply or trade in a commodity or service. Many monopolist such as Andrew Carnegie and John D. Rockefeller likely believed in policies that favored monopolies since it gave them greater power. A monopolist has little motivation to improve their product because customers have no substitutes. Instead, their drive is focused on protecting their monopoly. In the image “The Bosses of the Senate,” illustrated by Joseph Keppler, one can see many signs that show that monopolists controlled the United States. There is a sign that states “This is the Senate of the Monopolists by the Monopolists and for the Monopolists!" This represents that our congress was run by large companies and not by the people. With a locked door and a sign above saying “Peoples Entrance” shows that common and regular people had no say or input on what was going on with their nation. The overall meaning of this illustration is that the monopolists dominated the senators, therefor the government doesn’t represent the common people and show a limited democracy. It was not until 1890 when the Sherman Antitrust Act was passed that it became illegal to create monopolies or trusts that restrained free trade. By passing the Antitrust Act, democracy was once again expanded due to the fact that congress was now run by common people and everyone was allowed to participate equally in the growth and development of their nation. From 1770-1920 the expansion of democracy was driven by the desire for equal participation in the government.
By giving African American’s the right to vote from the XIII, XIV, and XV amendments, democracy was expanded in the United States by giving African Americans a voice. This would help mold how the nation would become in later years. Another way democracy spread was women suffrage which allowed women’s voice, opinions, and suggestions to be heard for the first time. Lastly the abolishment of creating a monopoly extended democracy because it stopped monopolist from controlling congress and gave it back to the people to run. By learning all the ways that democracy grew throughout the United States gives a new meaning on how much this nation has changed and integrated new things to better the people. With the expansion of democracy it gave power to the people to create their own nation and create new paths that could not have been achievable without
it.