The article in this discussion was written by Laurie C. Hillstrom who is an author and editor with interest in history and biology. In her book titled, ‘The muckrakers and the Progressive Era’, she outlines the thoughts of President Theodore Roosevelt on the growing power of large corporations. The main idea in this particular chapter is to show how the president promised to use his power to regulate the power and influence of large business corporations in America to create an environment that ensured equal distribution of resources from the rich person to the low-income earners. The reason why this chapter was authored is to show the role journalism had during the progressive era that was marred by social problems such as inequality and to expose how large industries were taking advantage of their workers. It explains how the Roosevelt administration was determined to fight over-capitalization by pushing for progressive reforms in business policies.
The first step that was to be undertaken to facilitate this reforms was to ensure adequate publicity from the government. This was to be undertaken by the social movements which insisted that knowledge was important to ensure that the great corporations would stop hurting the economy. The government, therefore, was to have a say in how the businesses conducted their affairs and the same information was to be availed to the general public for scrutiny.
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Another major event that occurred during the Progressive Era was the introduction of the Square Deal Policy that supported political reforms such as the heavy regulation of businesses that raked in huge profits especially by conducting business with the state. This ensured conservation and the money earned by the government from taxing such corporations was used for the growth of the state.
The major characteristics of the article by Jacob Riis that highlighted the plight of the poor people in overcrowded urban slums within America. It is because of his work that the government and the middle-class income earners worked together to improve the designs of the houses and sanitary conditions of the people living in the slums. The government felt the pressure and established the Tenement House Commission that was tasked with making sure that such citizens had a better life. His article was characterized by photographs of the slums, and they reflected the hardships the poor people in urban centres faced. His articles showed disgust for the rich and middle-class citizens who failed to recognize the hardships that the poor people were going through. His work and ideologies, therefore, supported the equal distribution of wealth from the rich to the poor people through social programs and building of better houses.
Moreover, his work reflects the events of the Progressive Era because his work entailed social reforms that were in line with uplifting the life of every America citizen. It was during this period that the economy of the country flourished and the rich took advantage of the poor people by dividing their houses into smaller rooms with poor living conditions such as inadequate lighting and space. This was done to increase profits but it was at the expense of the poor who could not speak against such evils due to desperation. It was at this point that the Society for the Improvement of the Condition of the Poor expressed their concerns on the issue and the government had to intervene by putting in place the Tenement House Commission that alleviated the plight of the poor residents (Montgomery, 2008) .
The two sources relate with each other since they both focus on the changes that put in place to fight urban poverty for the sake of a better America ("What We Can Learn from the Progressives Is What Not to Do", 2018) . President Theodore used his policies to effect the change by regulating businesses and ensuring that there was an equal distribution of resources while Jacob Riis used his articles and photography to inspire change in the society. By doing this, most of the objectives of the Progressive Era were achieved with ease.
References
What We Can Learn from the Progressives Is What Not to Do . (2018). Historynewsnetwork.org . Retrieved 28 March 2018, from https://historynewsnetwork.org/article/155583
Montgomery, D. (2008). Workers' Movements in the United States Confront Imperialism: The Progressive Era Experience. The Journal Of The Gilded Age And Progressive Era , 7 (01), 7-42. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s1537781400001717
