Was Progressivism a movement for democratic ideals or an attempt at social control?

There can be little doubt that Progressivism was generally a force for good that achieved much-needed progress in many areas of American public life. From tackling corruption in municipal and state politics to improving food safety standards, Progressives undoubtedly made life better for millions of Americans, then and in the decades to follow.

At the same time, Progressivism was more than just a political movement; it was something of a moral crusade. Progressives took themselves very seriously—a little too seriously, in their opponents’ eyes—seeing themselves as pioneers in a great conflict against the evils of the age.

The air of sanctimony and self-righteousness that often surrounded the Progressive movement was hard to shake off and gave its opponents much ammunition. Progressives were regularly dismissed as do-gooding busybodies who sought to interfere in other people’s lives. According to such critics, Progressives weren’t so much concerned with achieving political change as imposing their social and political beliefs on others.

The Progressives’ attitude towards immigration certainly adds credence to this criticism. Progressives were generally hostile towards immigration, seeing it as undermining what they regarded as the traditional American way of life. Progressivism was an overwhelmingly White Protestant movement, and the members of this movement were no less concerned than nativists to protect the values they associated with pure Americanism.

Throughout the 1920s, Progressives helped to enact a series of harsh restrictions on immigration. Furthermore, they also tried to force immigrants to adopt what they saw as American ideals, such as temperance.

Many of the newcomers came from countries like Germany and Ireland, where there was no real tradition of temperance and where the consumption of alcohol was seen as perfectly normal. Yet Progressives often railed against the evils of “demon drink” and sought to change immigrants’ attitudes towards alcohol.

This was done partly through the establishment of so-called settlement houses, where immigrants would receive food, clothing, job training, and classes in which they would be taught how to come up to the moral standards of White Protestant America, which included abstention from alcohol.

The settlement houses can be seen as a microcosm of the Progressive movement, and they show us both its good and bad sides; the high-minded, noble ideals as well as the patronizing contempt for those deemed not to be pure American.