Urban Challenges
How the growth of cities affected ideas of social
welfare
Industrial Progress
“In our arts, labors and victories, we find scope for all
our energies, rewards for all our ambitions, renown
enough for all our love of fame.”
Speech at Exposition opening of Centennial Exposition,
July 4, 1876
Living Like Kings
“Breakers,” the enormous
Vanderbilt summer house,
designed from an Italian palace
and built with imported marble
by craftsmen brought over from
Europe.
The industrial millionaires lived lavishly, building homes like
European palaces and spending enormous sums for parties, while
their employees worked 10-12 hour days, 6 or 7 days each week.
Many industries employed children as young as seven years old;
factories made few provisions for safety.
Immigration
The massive numbers of immigrants, particularly from
eastern and southern Europe, provided industry with a
large labor force, but made wages even lower and unions
difficult to organize. Immigration restrictions began in the
1870s with the “Chinese Exclusion Acts.”
The challenges of crisis
A sudden crisis could quickly underscore the limits of public assistance.
In the 1870s, billions of locusts emerged by the western mountains and
proceeded to destroy crops across the Midwest.
Devastation in Minnesota
The locusts overwhelmed fields in
Minnesota, doing serious damage in
almost every area. In the western and
southwestern counties, nearly half of the
wheat crops were destroyed and over half
of the oat crops (largely used for feeding
horse and cows). Many families were
completely destitute, and farmers who
were unable to pay taxes on their lands
were in danger of losing their farms.
Government response
John Pillsbury, governor of Minnesota from
1876 to 1878, was part of the famous and
wealthy Pillsbury family. He refused to
recommend extensive aid programs to the state
legislature, arguing that “hand-outs” would
“undermine the moral fiber of the poor.” The
legislature agreed on providing limited aid by
delaying the collection of property taxes and
providing grain seed to farmers for new
planting. Farmers had to agree to pay for the
seed (at the rate of $1 a bushel of seed) – the
cost of seed to be a “lien upon my crop of grain,
raised each year,” until the loan was repaid.
Ten bushels of seed would raise (at most) 135
bushels of wheat, worth about $135.
Documenting need
Farmers applying for county aid under the poor laws had to swear a
“pauper's oath” that they were “deserving of relief.” Four witnesses had
to sign a note attesting to the applicants “character.” Several farmers
stated that they were “made to feel like unsavory miscreants” during the
process.
Case Work
Extent of direct aid
Most counties granted applicants for assistance about $2 to
buy about 10 pounds of pork, some molasses, baking soda,
and matches. In 1875 it cost about $200 to maintain a family of
four.
Farmers organize
The hard times for farmers stimulated an era of
rural organization. The Granger movement,
the Farmers’ Alliances, and the Populist
movement were all influenced by the high
costs that farmers paid to grow and ship their
grain, and the low prices they received for their
harvests. Farmers’ Alliances called for
regulation of railroad shipping costs, reduction
of loan interests, and the formation of “rural
cooperatives” that could allow farmers to
operate their own grain elevators, creameries,
and banks.
Critics called the farmers’ movements
“socialistic” threats to “American freedoms,”
but the farmers said they were simply
protecting their own interests.
Populism and politics
In 1896, the Democratic Party (largely out of
power since the Civil War) picked William
Jennings Bryan, a Nebraska populist, as its
presidential candidate. This temporary
unification of the populist movement and the
Democratic Party did not lead to victory –
Bryan was defeated by William McKinley.
The 1896 election, however, was a turning
point in the Democratic Party’s identity. As
the 20th century began, Democratic
candidates were increasingly identified with
reform movements and a growing
philosophy of having government actively
intervening in social issues.
Labor and Industry
According to statistics
gathered at Princeton
University, wages for
industrial workers rose
31% from 1860 to 1881,
while prices rose 41%. This
meant that workers had a
harder time paying for
things as time went on.
Strikes in 1877
A major collapse of credit in 1872
brought on a financial “panic” – a
depression that slowed the pace of
growth (the Northern Pacific
Railroad stopped work on its route
through Dakota Territory to the
west). Many businesses began to
cut wages in order to save money.
This sparked strikes and violence in
American industries.
“Year of Violence”
Workers struck for higher wages on many of the railroads
and violent clashes ensued between strikers and “scab
labor.” By sending Federal troops into one strike (to make
certain that mail was delivered), President Hayes brought
the Federal government into the labor-management
dispute.
Labor and Political Issues
Both the strikers and business
owners referred to the “Paris
Commune” of 1871, when French
workers called for a revolution
against the state.
Owners warned that unions would
“bring communism” to American
society. Some strikers hoped that
this would happen, but most union
leaders condemned the idea of
revolution.
Political Machines
Many cities had long been
controlled by political machines that
delivered votes to selected
candidates in return for special
favors. But reform groups (and some
labor groups who wanted higher
wages) blamed immigrant voters as
the source of the machines’ power,
and so sought to restrict
immigration. The only result of this
was in the 1870s, when the Congress
yielded to public pressure and
banned Chinese immigration for a
number of years.
Power of the Press
The Press had become powerful in its own right – major
newspapers and popular magazines (like Harper’s Weekly
and Frank Leslie’s Illustrated News) could change national
policies. Much as the politicians disliked the press, they also
patronized it, to obtain public recognition and support.
Social Cooperation
The influence of Darwin had grown
after 1870, to the point that the
“survival of the fittest” idea was being
used to celebrate the power held by the
great industrial leaders (Carnegie,
Rockefeller, etc.
In Illinois (a state that saw much laborindustry violence), the botanist Lester
Ward argued in his book Dynamic
Sociology (1883) that society could
“guide” the development of peoples,
rather than just permit them to
compete.
The Legacy of Scientific Charity
In the first half of the 19th century, cities had begun
to transform charity work, through
1) The creation of asylums, the idea of “scientific
charity” and the “charity organization societies.”
2) The need to develop greater urban efforts in
public health.
3) The (reluctant) recognition of labor unions
4) After 1865, the need to integrate the former
slaves with the Freedman’s Bureau, etc.
Jacob Riis
A talented writer , German
immigrant Jacob Riis was a
police reporter for a major
NYC newspaper. Throughout
the 1880s, he travelled the
slums of NYC, recoding
evidence of the effects of
overcrowding, poverty, and
the impact of rapid urban
growth without any real
government regulation. The
sheds in this photo served as
temporary homes, costing $1 a
month.
Lack of Space
A street seller in New York could sleep in a tenement cellar for
5 cents a night, while seven cents rented a “cot” in a “lodging
house”
Lack of Light and Space
Eastern Europeans (“Bohemians” or “bohunks”) worked and lived in
the same, crowded, poorly lit tenement apartment as cigar makers.
Thousands of widows did the same as seamstresses for the clothing
trade – and kept their children out of school to work with them.
Education as Secondary
Some NYC reformers attempted to run “night schools” in tenement
basements, church basements, or other sites, to provide education for
children (especially the homeless ‘street arabs’) who worked 10-12 hours
during the day. The city provided little, or no, assistance. Crime rates
among young men (age 10-18) were high. Similar problems were found in
Chicago, Boston, Philadelphia, etc.
Progressive Movement
The Progressive movement rose
from the efforts of several middleclass groups who had tried in the
late 1800s to “better society” by
pushing through limitations on
saloons (the WCTU), educate
immigrant children (the settlement
houses) or aid the poor (the
Salvation Army). At first these
groups accepted the American
tradition of seeking these reforms
through voluntary action, but
increasingly they began to expect
government to help push through
reforms.
The Salvation army chapter of Brainerd
Minnesota in 1891.
The Social Gospel
American churches became more and more
involved in providing aid to the poor. Walter
Rauschenbusch (left), a Baptist theologian,
began to help German immigrants in the
Hell’s Kitchen neighborhood of New York.
Drawing on the writings of socialists, he
argued that church and government should
become active in “reforming society” to
provide aid to those who were in need.
Child Labor
The labor movement had made “child labor” a major issue. Children as young as
six worked as many as 12 hours a day in a number of major industries.
Continued problems with child labor and health prompted reformers like S.
Josephine Baker to develop advances in nutrition and health care.
Settlement Houses
Jane Addams, a young woman from
middle-class origins, helped create Hull
House in Chicago in 1889. This settlement
house was designed at first to help “new
immigrants” learn English and “American
ways,” but Addams and her associates
quickly realized they had to provide help
on child care, nutrition, employment, and
other things to really help the poor.
Eventually, they began to press for
legislation to help the poor “get a fair
chance” in society.
Hull House
Where the institutional movement of 1820-1860 tried to segregate the “failures”
away from the rest of society, the settlement house movement aimed to create a
site within the heart of urban poverty where reformers would live, work and try to
better urban conditions. Copying ideas from Toynbee Hall in England, Hull
House became famous . Its programs were copied in other parts of Chicago, and
other cities.
Addam’s Talented Aides
Addams became the best known of the Hull
House staff (largely because she wrote over
two dozen books). But among the many
others (including Julia Lathrop and Ellen
Gates Starr) was Edith Abbott, who was like so
many others a product of the rural Midwest
(Nebraska) who wanted to help “reform”
urban America. Abbott (with her sister
Grace) worked at Hull House and wrote
major studies of juvenile delinquency and
women in the eary-20th century work force.
Birth Control
As a nurse, Margaret Sanger defied
state and Federal laws to provide
women with information on birth
control (even churches that agreed
with the ‘social gospel’ movement
opposed birth control). Forced to
flee to Europe in 1914, Sanger
returned in two years to create the
first birth control clinic in the U.S.
The Children’s Bureau
Originally part of the Department of
Commerce, the Children’s Bureau was
moved by Wilson to the Department of
Labor in 1913. It’s director, Julia Lathrop,
was a veteran of the Hull House reform
movement and fought vigorously to obtain
stronger child labor laws.
By 1918, most states had child labor laws, but hundreds of thousands of children were little
affected by these laws because they worked in areas (small businesses, agriculture, etc.) that
were not covered by the provisions for maximum hours or minimum wages. Wilson decided
to push for more stringent child labor laws.
Psychology
G. Stanley Hall was one of the
founders of American psychology
practices and specialized in
developed the “stages of
development” theories in relation
to children.
Florence Kelley
Florence Kelley, another associate of Hull
House, became so frustrated in the effort to
find a lawyer to argue cases for child labor
regulations that she studied law herself, got
a license to practice law in Illinois, and
argued cases.
Illinois became one of the model states for
laws that put limits on how children could
be employed and how long they could
work in a day.
Kelley also played a role in a key U.S.
Supreme Court decision in 1908 to place 10hour limit on a work day for women.
Sophonisba Breckinridge
One of the few “proto-social workers” who
became involved in civil rights for minorities
was Sophonisba Breckinridge, yet another
Midwest reformer (Kentucky) who was the
first woman to get a law degree from the
University of Chicago. Active at Hull House,
Breckinridge was one of the founders of the
NAACP. She argued that every major city and
every state should establish a bureau of
“public welfare.”
The “Bully Pulpit”
Progressive reformers saw the Theodore
Roosevelt as the one person who
“represented all the people” (an idea that
went back to the 1830s). Theodore
Roosevelt accepted a number of the
reform ideas of the progressive movement
and used his office as a “bully pulpit” to
urge reduction of child labor, regulation
of trusts, conservation of natural
resources, and efforts to reduce
corruption in government. Only after he
was elected in his own right in 1904 did he
push for some of these reforms.
Narcotics in America
Jane Addams of Hull House wrote that opium addiction was widespread in
Chicago. Teenaged children “stole from their parents, pawned their clothes
and shoes, did any desperate thing to get ‘the dope’ as they called it.”
Meanwhile, other narcotics were used in patent medicines and sold openly.
A Federal Narcotics Act in 1909 was the first major attempt to stem this
practice.
Cures for Addiction
Several dubious cures for drug addiction
were available from mail order businesses or
from traveling salesmen who claimed to be
physicians. Many of the cures contained
other narcotics, and the user simply
substituted one addiction for another.
It was estimated in 1900 that over 300,000
Americans were regular users of heroin, and
at least twice that used opium.
Of course, Kopp’s Baby Friend cough syrup
contained morphine – “for that good night’s
sleep.”
Public Health
Upton Sinclair’s book, The Jungle, shocked the
public with its details about the lack of sanitation in
the processing of food – the book led several cities
to establish offices for food and restaurant
inspection, and public health services to offer
classes on sanitation in the preparation of food.
Other cities spent money to improve the quality of
drinking water.
The Federal Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906
helped – in one example, Coca Cola had to remove
cocaine from its product.
Crusading Journalism
The worst aspects of the industrial trusts became
the subjects of book-length studies by journalists
like Ida Tarbell, who wrote about Standard Oil,
calling it the “octopus” that controlled the nation
through its dominance of the drilling and
distribution of oil.
Urban Corruption
In 1904, Lincoln Steffens, who had written a
number of articles for McClure’s magazine,
published The Shame of the Cities – an exposure of
machine government and corrupt ties between
elected officials and local crime. Many of the
nation’s greatest cities – including Minneapolis –
were embarrassed by the revelations.
Providing “Social Insurance”
Isaac Rubinow, a rather unique statistician for the
Metropolitan Life Insurance Co. (having both an
MD and a PhD in economics) argued that a
“healthy society” needed some form of “social
insurance” to guarantee order and peace,
especially in the crowded cities.
His ideas were studied by Theodore Roosevelt,
who used some of Rubinow’s language when he
wrote the Progressive Party platform statement for
the 1912 presidential election.
Triangle Fire Tragedy
One example of a progressive reform
was the reaction to the fire at the
Triangle Shirtwaist Co. factory in
New York in 1911 – 146 employees,
mostly women, as young as 15, died
in the fire because little had been done
to provide fire escapes, etc. New York
passed better fire regulation laws,
some proposed by a social worker,
Francis Perkins, who later became to
first woman in a presidential cabinet.
Labor and the Women’s Vote
One way for women in settlement houses to have greater influence was by expanding the electorate, and
so pushed for votes for women.
Contents of a leaflet for votes for women, about 1912, in New York:
•Why are you paid less than a man?
•Why do you work in a fire trap?
•Why are your hours so long?
•Why do you pay the most rent for the worst houses?
•Why do your children go into factories [to work]?
•Why don’t you get a square deal in the courts?
Because you are a woman and have no vote
Votes make the law.
Votes enforce the law.
The law controls conditions. Women who want better conditions MUST vote.
“Mental Hygiene”
The Swiss born psychiatrist Adolf Meyer altered
the way mental patients (inmates, really) were
treated at the Illinois Mental facility in
Kankakee. He later took his ideas to the New
York state hospital and then helped create a
model clinic at Johns Hopkins.
Rejecting many of the ideas of Freud, Meyer
believed that most problems were related to
“social and environmental background” – he
advocated therapy to help patients through
“psychobiology.” He urged states to create
offices devoted to “mental hygiene” in education
and society.
Dollars for Child Care
In 1921, the U.S. Congress voted to provide some small amounts of matching
funds for maternity health care and early childhood health care – this to
lower the infant and child mortality rate.
The funding continued until 1929, when pressure from the AMA persuaded
Congressional leaders to not renew the funding.
By that time, immigration was being severely curtailed – Congress had
mandated a “quota system” keyed the 1890 census results. By 1924, the high
tide of immigration to America had passed.
Emergence of the Profession
In 1898, 25 students attended a “Summer
School Course in Philanthropic Work” in
New York City. The courses, sponsored by
the Charity Organization Society of NY,
provided classes on urban poverty,
industrial labor, and practical issues dealing
with health, education, and home
economics. The courses were repeated the
following summer and then expanded. By
1920s, this first school of social work was
closely affiliated with Columbia University.
With instructors like John Dewey (left)
Franz Boas, and Jane Addams, the
program’s reputation grew, and idea of a
social work education was taken up by
other cities and schools.
Announcing the Profession
In 1915, Abraham Flexner, a prominent
leader in medical education, gave a paper,
“Is Social Work a Profession,” in which he
noted: “The unselfish devotion of those
who have chosen to give themselves to
making the world a fitter place to live in
can fill social work with the professional
spirit.” Flexner believed that social work
was destined to play a major role in the
modern industrial state that the United
States was rapidly becoming.
Social Work as a Profession
Slowly, social work emerged as a profession. This was encouraged by several things:
•The increasing complexity of society, especially the economy as prosperity was
followed by hard times. Government’s role grows
•The growth of cities and urban problems, tied to increased immigration, “boss
government,” slums, crime, and education.
•The tendency of Americans to create special “task forces” to deal with problems –
the “can do” attitude for organization.
•The success of energetic and determined volunteers (like Jane Addams, etc.) and
professionals (Meyer, etc.) who dominated “public welfare” issues of the progressive
era.
•For an interesting web site related to this,
seehttp://www.idbsu.edu/socwork/dhuff/history/central/core.htm