Now turning the page from the Gilded Age to the next chapter in American history would be that of the Progressive Era. This period is generally defined as the turn of the 20th century to the conclusion of WWI (1900-1920). It was a time of economic reform and political activism throughout the nation. It began with one of our greatest presidents, Theodore Roosevelt who introduced a new dogmatic approach to the nation. He was not to be intimidated by the industrial titans from the Gilded Age such as Rockefeller or JP Morgan. Rather he re-instituted the strength of the American government and ushered in an era of industrial reform and regulation.
Another thing that stands out for me when I consider this historical period is the political activism that occurred during this time. It was an era of public upheaval no doubt in response to the major difference in wealth distribution that occurred during the Gilded Age. Quite frankly the majority of the nation felt it was time for the few wealthy industrialists, known as the "robber barons" to share their spoils. It was during this time that new anti-capitalist ideals began to spread from Russia, such as communism, socialism, and anarchism.
Ultimately during this time America was able to find a middle ground between extreme capitalism and extreme communism. In doing so the government put stricter regulations on major businesses, and ushered in new principles against monopolies and promoting fair trade. It was a compromise that continued to spur the American free-market economy while also establishing a new middle class society. It's a balance that still stands to this day in which the wealthy pay more taxes than the poor.
One of the most significant political reforms that occurred during this era was brought on by the women's suffragette movement. The movement was many years in the making, however began to gain steam at the turn of the century thanks to new progressive ideals. Throughout the early 1900's the nation saw many women taking to the streets and protesting for the right to vote as well as receive better work wages. By 1920 they finally got their wish with the passing of the 19th amendment which guaranteed women the right to vote.
Political and Economic Reform
During the Gilded Age the country was run by wealthy business moguls such as JP Morgan and Rockefeller. These powerful capitalists were able to influence the political nature of the government by paying for their candidates. From the end of the Civil War to the end of the 19th century there was a string of presidents often referred to as the "forgettable presidents' because they did not offer any effective policy changes. During this time it was the industrial titans who were able to dictate the country's affairs based on their personal business interests.
This all changed however after the Panic of 1893 where the government had to change their laissez-faire economic attitude to intercede on failing businesses. The election of William McKinley in 1896 is often considered the most significant president since Abraham Lincoln. While he was still backed by the wealthy elite, he represented a new stronger leadership and the re-emergence of the Republican Party. His 2nd term was cut short by assassination in 1901, however he was seceded by an even more imposing figure in Theodore Roosevelt.
Theodore Roosevelt was not to be intimidated by the wealthy elite, and for this reason he is considered the leader of the Progressive movement. Throughout his presidency he became a charismatic populist leader of the people instituting new economic and social reforms. He introduced a system of "Square Deal" policies that favored the working class citizen. Through new regulations on big businesses and breaking of bad trusts he was able to promote the middle class.
Roosevelt also made conservation one of his top priorities overseeing various developments of natural parks and monuments. He pushed for the construction of the Panama Canal to expedite travel and shipments from the east coast to the west coast. This monumental project began in 1904 and was completed after his presidency in 1914. Thru his progressive ideals he was able to completely shift the dynamic of America's social structure. For this he is often considered the fifth greatest president of all time (after Washington, Jefferson, Lincoln, and FDR).
The progressive ideals demonstrated by Roosevelt carried over after his presidency continuing to strengthen the government over capital influence. By 1911 the Supreme Court ruled against Rockefeller's Monopoly and broke up his company. There was also major bank transformations during this time that introduced new practices of cooperative banking and credit union. In 1913 the Federal Reserve System was established in response to the Panic of 1907, as the nation's central bank.
William Howard Taft's presidency could be considered a conservative counter to the growing progressive sentiment. For this reason his predecessor Roosevelt chose to break away from his Republican Party and run against Taft in the 1912 presidential election. (Roosevelt was permitted one more presidential term, since his first term was filling in for McKinley after his assassination). Roosevelt established a new political party known as the Bull Moose Party, which was a progressive faction of the Republicans. This division in the Republican Party however lead the Democratic candidate Woodrow Wilson to win the election.
Similar to Roosevelt, Wilson ushered in even further progressive agenda thru his own program called the "New Freedom". This agenda broke up bank trusts, lowered tariffs, and implemented a federal income tax. Wilson was influential in establishing the Federal Reserve System, keeping America neutral for the first three years of WWI, and establishing the League of Nations in 1918. For all this Woodrow Wilson is also considered a father of the Progressive Movement and one of the top 10 greatest American presidents of all time.
Women's Suffrage Movement
Perhaps the most definitive historical event of the Progressive Era was the Women's Suffragette Movement. The movement was many years in the making however established stronger organization at the turn of the 19th century. American women were ultimately protesting for better rights, specifically the right to vote. The movement's culmination came with the victorious passing of the 19th amendment in 1920 which finally gave women the right to vote.
The women's suffragette movement began to first take shape in the 1850s with the first ever National Women's Rights Convention organized by Lucy Stone. Popular activists Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B Anthony helped grow the effort thru the establishment of the Women's National Loyal League in 1863. This group was against slavery and in support of the union's passage of the 13th amendment. It lead to further organization and demonstrations of women's suffragette activism.
Perhaps the key event in the history of the women's suffragette movement was the merging of the NSWA (led by Stanton and Susan B. Anthony) and the AWSA organization (led by Lucy Stone) into one central organization known as the National American Womens Suffragete Association (NAWSA) in 1890. The key dominant leader of the new organization was Susan B. Anthony, and it's membership quickly grew from 7 thousand to 2 million. Several other prominent groups came from this organization such as the National Woman's Party and the League of Women Voters which both still operate today. Here is a list of some of the influential leaders of the suffragette movement;
Muckraker Journalism
By the turn of the century newspaper publications began to grow in popularity thanks to the new format of "yellow journalism". The general concept was to increase circulation thru sensationalizing news stories especially in topics of scandal, crime, or entertainment. This method was introduced by popular newspaper publishers Joseph Pulitzer and William Randolph Hearst as a means to increase sales. The headlines were much more dramatic while the stories were full of juicy details that exposed wealthy politicians or business leaders. In 1906 Theodore Roosevelt described this investigate journalists as "muckrakers" and the term stuck.
Instances of muckraking journalism could be dated back to the 1870s with notable journalism exposing the political corruption of William Tweed. One of the first notable muckrakers, often considered the original muckraker, was Julius Chambers who wrote for the New York Tribune. He exposed the maltreatment of inmates at the Bloomingdale Asylum in 1872. This publication was very popular with readers and demonstrated the value of investigative journalism.
Magazine publications such as the Collier's Weekly, Munseys, and McClure's Magazine became popular features during the Progressive Era. These magazines specialized in investigative deep reports on business or political scandals. Lincoln Steffens was one of the first notable muckrakers from the magazine. In 1902 he released a groundbreaking article in 1902, known as the Tweed Days in St. Louis, in which he exposed a corrupt ring of leaders in St. Louis. Perhaps one of the most famous muckrakers of all time was Ida M. Tarbell who also got her start with Mclure's Magazine.
In 1904 Tarbell released a series of investigative articles exposing the inner-workings of Rockefeller's Standard Oil empire. Her articles were later published in a book, The History of the Standard Oil Company, which to this day is considered a masterpiece of investigative journalism. Her investigation brought on the eventual dissolution of the Standard Oil monopoly as well as paved the way for various anti-trust legislation such as the Hepburn Act, Mann-Elkins Act, Clayton Anti-Trust Act, and the Federal Trade Commission.
Another significant muckraker was Upton Sinclair, who was not a journalist yet rather an author. His 1906 novel The Jungle gave an in-depth account of the meat-packing industry and demonstrated the very hazardous work conditions of the industry. Sinclair spent 7 weeks in Chicago collecting investigative research on the industry, and for this reason his book is considered a definitive muckraking example. The popularity of the book brought on the establishment of the Pure Food and Drug Act as well as the Meat Inspection Act.
Muckrakers thrived during the Progressive Era for various reasons. Thru their investigative accounts they were able to significantly rise the sales of newspaper publications. Their articles also brought about progressive reform in the nations industrial and political sectors. By 1915 their influence began to fade a bit due to corporate backdoor dealings and many of the magazines went bankrupt. However by this point the muckrakers had more-or-less exposed all the major industrial flaws and were ultimately a positive thing for society. While the term muckraker could be considered outdated today the practice of investigative journalism is still an effective way to sale publications and encourage political change.
Here is a list of some of the most iconic muckrakers during the Progressive Era;
Emma Goldman and First Red Scare
Perhaps one of the most interesting aspects of the Progressive Era (in my opinion) was the rise of leftism politics. This age brought on the development of communism, socialism, and anarchism, based out of Russia and the writings of Karl Marx. This anti-capitalist, anti-industrialist sentiment was no doubt a global response to the Industrial Revolution and the Gilded Age. Workers began to unite and demand better pay for what they considered a very unfair system of wealth distribution. In 1917 the Bolshevik Communist Uprising in Russia, brought on a global spread of communism. The leftist ideals of the Bolshevik Party began to spread throughout the streets of the USA, in which the government considered a Red Scare.
Most of my fascination with the Progressive Era and especially the First Red Scare is derived from one of my all time favorite movies, Reds. The film tells the true story of journalist John Jack Reed, and his dealings with notable anarchists, suffragettes, and Bolsheviks during this era. He was married to Louis Bryant and together they witnessed the October Revolution in Russia in 1917. This historical event inspired Reed to publish his famous Ten Days that Shook the World. Reed later came back to his home country to establish the first Communist Political Party of US, however he did not live long enough to see the party take flight. The movie does a great job at demonstrating the tense political setting of the time and also portrays Emma Goldman as one of the leading figures of the leftist movement.
Emma Goldman could be considered one of the definitive leaders of the progressive era. She was a Jewish Russian immigrant who came to New York City in 1885 in search of political freedom. Emma was a very well educated Nihilist meaning she did not believe in any religion and that life was meaningless. She was however very intrigued by left-wing politics and quickly established a network in New York City. She met notable anarchists in the city such as Johann Most and Alexander Berkman. Goldman was inspired by the speeches of Most, and eventually became a public speaker herself. She also began a romantic relationship with Alexander Berkman and together they established the roots of the American Anarchist movement.
Goldman became an advocate for worker strikes and supported the Homestead Strike of 1892. After the strike was put down by Pinkerton guards she plotted with her lover Berkman to assassinate the manager of Carnegie's Steel Company, Henry Clay Frick. The assassination attempt was however unsuccessful and Berkman was sentenced to 22 years in prison for attempted murder. Goldman thus took on the leadership of the anarchist movement, using Berkman's deed as a means of propaganda.
During the economic Panic of 1893 she gave public speeches in the streets of New York City encouraging unemployed workers to rise up and riot. She was eventually arrested for inciting riots, and spent a year in prison in which she studied famous activist writers such as Emerson, Thoreau, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Walt Whitman, and John Stuart Mill. After her prison sentence she began touring giving public speeches of anarchist ideology. By this point she was a well known social activist published and glorified by the news media and feared by the government.
Her movement took serious ramifications when one of Goldman's followers, Leon Czolgosz, assassinated president William McKinley at the 1901 Pan Am Expo in Buffalo. Goldman was tried for third degree murder however she claimed she had no contact or knowledge of Czolgosz plot to assassinate the president. Although Goldman was found innocent of the murder she was vilified by the press and received heavy scorn as the priestess of anarchy.
Goldman briefly left the movement for a couple years, however when the Anarchist Exclusion Act of 1903 was passed she returned to the forefront of the cause. She began a magazine publication in 1906 named Mother Earth speaking out against unfair regulations, trials, and deportations of anarchists. Her lover Berkman, was released from prison in 1907 and after contemplating suicide he took the helm of Goldman's magazine publication while she toured the world giving speeches on anarchism.
She continued to write and give speeches on topics ranging from anarchism, feminism, immigration, sexuality, and birth control. She was highly regarded for her passionate oratory and drew mass gatherings at many of her speeches. During WWI she began a new campaign in her magazine as well as thru speeches against US involvement in the war. When the US entered the war in 1917 a draft was passed and Goldman started the No Conscription League as a protest group against the draft. She and Berkman were eventually arrested, tried, and found guilty of conspiracy. She was sentenced to two years in prison.
During her time in prison two major political events happened. First was the Bolshevik Uprising of 1917, in which the people of Russia lead by Vladmir Putin and Leon Trotsky overthrew the Russia Monarchy to establish a new Communist government. 2nd was the Anarchist Bombings of 1919 coordinated by Italian anarchist Luigi Galleani. This plot involved 36 booby trap bombs at the residence of prominent business and political figures such as JP Morgan Jr, Mitchell Palmer, and John D. Rockefeller. As a result of these bombings attorney general Mitchell Palmer and his young associate John Edgar Hoover coordinated the Palmer Raids. This was a series of political arrests and deportations of known anarchist agitators. Upon Emma Goldman's release in Sept of 1919 she and her lover Berkman were also deported back to Russia. This marked the demise of the First Red Scare.
Another thing that stands out for me when I consider this historical period is the political activism that occurred during this time. It was an era of public upheaval no doubt in response to the major difference in wealth distribution that occurred during the Gilded Age. Quite frankly the majority of the nation felt it was time for the few wealthy industrialists, known as the "robber barons" to share their spoils. It was during this time that new anti-capitalist ideals began to spread from Russia, such as communism, socialism, and anarchism.Ultimately during this time America was able to find a middle ground between extreme capitalism and extreme communism. In doing so the government put stricter regulations on major businesses, and ushered in new principles against monopolies and promoting fair trade. It was a compromise that continued to spur the American free-market economy while also establishing a new middle class society. It's a balance that still stands to this day in which the wealthy pay more taxes than the poor.
One of the most significant political reforms that occurred during this era was brought on by the women's suffragette movement. The movement was many years in the making, however began to gain steam at the turn of the century thanks to new progressive ideals. Throughout the early 1900's the nation saw many women taking to the streets and protesting for the right to vote as well as receive better work wages. By 1920 they finally got their wish with the passing of the 19th amendment which guaranteed women the right to vote.
Political and Economic Reform
During the Gilded Age the country was run by wealthy business moguls such as JP Morgan and Rockefeller. These powerful capitalists were able to influence the political nature of the government by paying for their candidates. From the end of the Civil War to the end of the 19th century there was a string of presidents often referred to as the "forgettable presidents' because they did not offer any effective policy changes. During this time it was the industrial titans who were able to dictate the country's affairs based on their personal business interests.
Theodore Roosevelt was not to be intimidated by the wealthy elite, and for this reason he is considered the leader of the Progressive movement. Throughout his presidency he became a charismatic populist leader of the people instituting new economic and social reforms. He introduced a system of "Square Deal" policies that favored the working class citizen. Through new regulations on big businesses and breaking of bad trusts he was able to promote the middle class.
Roosevelt also made conservation one of his top priorities overseeing various developments of natural parks and monuments. He pushed for the construction of the Panama Canal to expedite travel and shipments from the east coast to the west coast. This monumental project began in 1904 and was completed after his presidency in 1914. Thru his progressive ideals he was able to completely shift the dynamic of America's social structure. For this he is often considered the fifth greatest president of all time (after Washington, Jefferson, Lincoln, and FDR).
The progressive ideals demonstrated by Roosevelt carried over after his presidency continuing to strengthen the government over capital influence. By 1911 the Supreme Court ruled against Rockefeller's Monopoly and broke up his company. There was also major bank transformations during this time that introduced new practices of cooperative banking and credit union. In 1913 the Federal Reserve System was established in response to the Panic of 1907, as the nation's central bank.William Howard Taft's presidency could be considered a conservative counter to the growing progressive sentiment. For this reason his predecessor Roosevelt chose to break away from his Republican Party and run against Taft in the 1912 presidential election. (Roosevelt was permitted one more presidential term, since his first term was filling in for McKinley after his assassination). Roosevelt established a new political party known as the Bull Moose Party, which was a progressive faction of the Republicans. This division in the Republican Party however lead the Democratic candidate Woodrow Wilson to win the election.
Similar to Roosevelt, Wilson ushered in even further progressive agenda thru his own program called the "New Freedom". This agenda broke up bank trusts, lowered tariffs, and implemented a federal income tax. Wilson was influential in establishing the Federal Reserve System, keeping America neutral for the first three years of WWI, and establishing the League of Nations in 1918. For all this Woodrow Wilson is also considered a father of the Progressive Movement and one of the top 10 greatest American presidents of all time.
Women's Suffrage Movement
Perhaps the most definitive historical event of the Progressive Era was the Women's Suffragette Movement. The movement was many years in the making however established stronger organization at the turn of the 19th century. American women were ultimately protesting for better rights, specifically the right to vote. The movement's culmination came with the victorious passing of the 19th amendment in 1920 which finally gave women the right to vote.
Perhaps the key event in the history of the women's suffragette movement was the merging of the NSWA (led by Stanton and Susan B. Anthony) and the AWSA organization (led by Lucy Stone) into one central organization known as the National American Womens Suffragete Association (NAWSA) in 1890. The key dominant leader of the new organization was Susan B. Anthony, and it's membership quickly grew from 7 thousand to 2 million. Several other prominent groups came from this organization such as the National Woman's Party and the League of Women Voters which both still operate today. Here is a list of some of the influential leaders of the suffragette movement;
- Susan B Anthony: One of the key leaders of the suffragette movement and founder of the NSWA and NAWSA organizations
- Elizabeth Cady Stanton: 1st president of NAWSA
- Lucy Stone: Helped organize the first 8 national women's conventions as well as establish the American Womens Suffrage Association
- Alice Paul: Formed the National Women's Party in 1916
- Carrie Chapman Catt: 2nd president of NAWSA and founder of League of Women Voters
Muckraker Journalism
By the turn of the century newspaper publications began to grow in popularity thanks to the new format of "yellow journalism". The general concept was to increase circulation thru sensationalizing news stories especially in topics of scandal, crime, or entertainment. This method was introduced by popular newspaper publishers Joseph Pulitzer and William Randolph Hearst as a means to increase sales. The headlines were much more dramatic while the stories were full of juicy details that exposed wealthy politicians or business leaders. In 1906 Theodore Roosevelt described this investigate journalists as "muckrakers" and the term stuck.
Magazine publications such as the Collier's Weekly, Munseys, and McClure's Magazine became popular features during the Progressive Era. These magazines specialized in investigative deep reports on business or political scandals. Lincoln Steffens was one of the first notable muckrakers from the magazine. In 1902 he released a groundbreaking article in 1902, known as the Tweed Days in St. Louis, in which he exposed a corrupt ring of leaders in St. Louis. Perhaps one of the most famous muckrakers of all time was Ida M. Tarbell who also got her start with Mclure's Magazine.
In 1904 Tarbell released a series of investigative articles exposing the inner-workings of Rockefeller's Standard Oil empire. Her articles were later published in a book, The History of the Standard Oil Company, which to this day is considered a masterpiece of investigative journalism. Her investigation brought on the eventual dissolution of the Standard Oil monopoly as well as paved the way for various anti-trust legislation such as the Hepburn Act, Mann-Elkins Act, Clayton Anti-Trust Act, and the Federal Trade Commission.
Another significant muckraker was Upton Sinclair, who was not a journalist yet rather an author. His 1906 novel The Jungle gave an in-depth account of the meat-packing industry and demonstrated the very hazardous work conditions of the industry. Sinclair spent 7 weeks in Chicago collecting investigative research on the industry, and for this reason his book is considered a definitive muckraking example. The popularity of the book brought on the establishment of the Pure Food and Drug Act as well as the Meat Inspection Act.
Muckrakers thrived during the Progressive Era for various reasons. Thru their investigative accounts they were able to significantly rise the sales of newspaper publications. Their articles also brought about progressive reform in the nations industrial and political sectors. By 1915 their influence began to fade a bit due to corporate backdoor dealings and many of the magazines went bankrupt. However by this point the muckrakers had more-or-less exposed all the major industrial flaws and were ultimately a positive thing for society. While the term muckraker could be considered outdated today the practice of investigative journalism is still an effective way to sale publications and encourage political change.
Here is a list of some of the most iconic muckrakers during the Progressive Era;
- Julius Chambers: Wrote for New York Tribune; exposed psychiatric abuse
- Nellie Bly: Wrote for the New York World; published Ten Days in a Mad-House to expose patient abuse in a mental hospital
- Ray Stannard Baker: Wrote for McClures Magazine and The American Magazine exposed racial injustices
- Lincoln Steffens: Wrote for McClures Magazine; published Tweed Days in St. Louis, to expose political corruption in the city of St. Louis.
- Ida M. Tarbell: Wrote for McClures Magazine; published The History of Standard Oil Company which exposed John D. Rockefeller's unfair monopoly
- Upton Sinclair: Author whose released of the novel, The Jungle, completely exposed the harsh and unsanitary work environment of the meat packing industry
- William Irwin: Wrote for the San Francisco Chronicle, McClures, and Colliers Magazine; exposed San Francisco's corrupt dealings and Japanese racism
- David Graham Phillips: Wrote for the Cosmopolitan; published the Treason of Senate which exposed corruption and bribes in the senate
- Jacob Riis: Photojournalists who published How the Other Half Lives, which was a portfolio of photographs demonstrating the slums and impoverish of New York City
- Ida B. Wells: Wrote The Free Speech which exposed lynchings of African-Americans as well injustices for women's rights
- Gustavus Myers: Published the History of Tammany Hall which exposed the corruption of business and politics in New York City
- John Spargo: Published the Bitter Cry of Children which exposed the unfair conditions of child labor
- Florence Kelley: She was an activist who published numerous investigative articles demonstrating the unfair conditions of sweatshops and working rights for women and children
Emma Goldman and First Red Scare
Perhaps one of the most interesting aspects of the Progressive Era (in my opinion) was the rise of leftism politics. This age brought on the development of communism, socialism, and anarchism, based out of Russia and the writings of Karl Marx. This anti-capitalist, anti-industrialist sentiment was no doubt a global response to the Industrial Revolution and the Gilded Age. Workers began to unite and demand better pay for what they considered a very unfair system of wealth distribution. In 1917 the Bolshevik Communist Uprising in Russia, brought on a global spread of communism. The leftist ideals of the Bolshevik Party began to spread throughout the streets of the USA, in which the government considered a Red Scare.Most of my fascination with the Progressive Era and especially the First Red Scare is derived from one of my all time favorite movies, Reds. The film tells the true story of journalist John Jack Reed, and his dealings with notable anarchists, suffragettes, and Bolsheviks during this era. He was married to Louis Bryant and together they witnessed the October Revolution in Russia in 1917. This historical event inspired Reed to publish his famous Ten Days that Shook the World. Reed later came back to his home country to establish the first Communist Political Party of US, however he did not live long enough to see the party take flight. The movie does a great job at demonstrating the tense political setting of the time and also portrays Emma Goldman as one of the leading figures of the leftist movement.
Emma Goldman could be considered one of the definitive leaders of the progressive era. She was a Jewish Russian immigrant who came to New York City in 1885 in search of political freedom. Emma was a very well educated Nihilist meaning she did not believe in any religion and that life was meaningless. She was however very intrigued by left-wing politics and quickly established a network in New York City. She met notable anarchists in the city such as Johann Most and Alexander Berkman. Goldman was inspired by the speeches of Most, and eventually became a public speaker herself. She also began a romantic relationship with Alexander Berkman and together they established the roots of the American Anarchist movement.Goldman became an advocate for worker strikes and supported the Homestead Strike of 1892. After the strike was put down by Pinkerton guards she plotted with her lover Berkman to assassinate the manager of Carnegie's Steel Company, Henry Clay Frick. The assassination attempt was however unsuccessful and Berkman was sentenced to 22 years in prison for attempted murder. Goldman thus took on the leadership of the anarchist movement, using Berkman's deed as a means of propaganda.
During the economic Panic of 1893 she gave public speeches in the streets of New York City encouraging unemployed workers to rise up and riot. She was eventually arrested for inciting riots, and spent a year in prison in which she studied famous activist writers such as Emerson, Thoreau, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Walt Whitman, and John Stuart Mill. After her prison sentence she began touring giving public speeches of anarchist ideology. By this point she was a well known social activist published and glorified by the news media and feared by the government.
Her movement took serious ramifications when one of Goldman's followers, Leon Czolgosz, assassinated president William McKinley at the 1901 Pan Am Expo in Buffalo. Goldman was tried for third degree murder however she claimed she had no contact or knowledge of Czolgosz plot to assassinate the president. Although Goldman was found innocent of the murder she was vilified by the press and received heavy scorn as the priestess of anarchy.
Goldman briefly left the movement for a couple years, however when the Anarchist Exclusion Act of 1903 was passed she returned to the forefront of the cause. She began a magazine publication in 1906 named Mother Earth speaking out against unfair regulations, trials, and deportations of anarchists. Her lover Berkman, was released from prison in 1907 and after contemplating suicide he took the helm of Goldman's magazine publication while she toured the world giving speeches on anarchism.
She continued to write and give speeches on topics ranging from anarchism, feminism, immigration, sexuality, and birth control. She was highly regarded for her passionate oratory and drew mass gatherings at many of her speeches. During WWI she began a new campaign in her magazine as well as thru speeches against US involvement in the war. When the US entered the war in 1917 a draft was passed and Goldman started the No Conscription League as a protest group against the draft. She and Berkman were eventually arrested, tried, and found guilty of conspiracy. She was sentenced to two years in prison.During her time in prison two major political events happened. First was the Bolshevik Uprising of 1917, in which the people of Russia lead by Vladmir Putin and Leon Trotsky overthrew the Russia Monarchy to establish a new Communist government. 2nd was the Anarchist Bombings of 1919 coordinated by Italian anarchist Luigi Galleani. This plot involved 36 booby trap bombs at the residence of prominent business and political figures such as JP Morgan Jr, Mitchell Palmer, and John D. Rockefeller. As a result of these bombings attorney general Mitchell Palmer and his young associate John Edgar Hoover coordinated the Palmer Raids. This was a series of political arrests and deportations of known anarchist agitators. Upon Emma Goldman's release in Sept of 1919 she and her lover Berkman were also deported back to Russia. This marked the demise of the First Red Scare.
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