Masterful history of a time of great upheaval
Review of Standing at Armageddon: A Grassroots History of the Progressive Era by Nell Irvin Painter
If you think that the present era is bad, all you need to do is read about the Reconstruction to see America at its absolute worst. This book covers the close of Reconstruction, into what has long been portrayed as an era of explosive "progressivism". It is a kind of people's history as well as covering the actions of leaders. The result is a brilliant and dense tableau by a first rate historian and writer.
At the beginning of the era, the government has been thoroughly corrupted by the "robber barons", who have turned the Republicans into defenders of capital over labor: they essentially made it illegal, in some cases even treasonous, to strike or even speak out, followed by executions on trumped up charges after violent confrontations. To the 1880s, as the industrial revolution was gaining momentum and resulting in the accumulations of vast fortunes and power, the conditions of work were often of an unimaginable brutality: 7-day work weeks, hazardous child labor, virtual imprisonment of laborers in shabby industrial complexes at dirt-low pay, etc. Unions were not recognized as legitimate representatives of labor and hence not allowed to negotiate collectively, workers could not feed their families, and education was largely unavailable. With all three branches of the government completely in the pocket of the "capitalists", the working class felt as if it was disenfranchised and without any means of effecting change. Then there were horrific economic downturns that threw millions into the streets without any government social safety net.
The result was a build-up of anger that reached revolutionary proportions, ready to burst forth in the most violent confrontations – industrial, racially motivated, etc. – that America had seen since the Civil War. While there were many anarchists (later tainted by terrorist association) and socialists, many of their demands were pragmatic, including an 8-hour work day, the end of child labor, the legalization of union representation, and higher pay. The author tells all of the principal stories associated with these incidents, such as the Haymarket bombing or the Railroad Strike of 1877.
Add to this the emergence of a cadre of reformers – suffragettes, muckraking journalists, union and social activists engaging in fundamental experiments, even some radical politicians – and the mix became extremely volatile. What is so interesting about this book is the modest assessment of the end results that the author portrays. In other words, beyond some pretty basic accomplishments, the progressive era's political momentum in her view was dissipated first by the Great War and then by the prosperity that followed until the Great Depression began in 1927. These meager results were a great surprise to me, though it was apparently enough to ward off violent revolution as the middle class expanded to enjoy the fruits of the American dream.
The book is written in a beautifully fluid and elegant style, honing in on details and mini-biographies. At times, it is a bit pedantic at an undergraduate level (I did not need to be informed, for example, that the Ottomans were Turks), but this is a minor criticism. This is a splendid introduction with a strong point of view and many delightful surprises. Personally, I was fascinated by Frances Willard, who gave the name to a nearby school in my conservative home town: a suffragette and advocate of prohibition (they were intimately linked), she was also a lover of women at a time when such things were never discussed and even lacked an adequate vocabulary to describe it.
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