Progressivism is a philosophy that posits the possibility of societal improvement through political action. As a political movement, progressivism aims to represent the interests of ordinary people by advocating for political change and supporting government actions. Throughout history, numerous political leaders have identified as progressives, including Republicans like Theodore Roosevelt, Robert M. La Follette, and Charles Evans Hughes, as well as Democrats such as William Jennings Bryan, Woodrow Wilson, and Al Smith. Influential reformers outside the government, like Jane Addams, Grace Abbott, Edith Abbott, and Sophonisba Breckinridge, have also embodied progressive ideals.
The Progressive movement emerged in the late 19th and early 20th centuries with a focus on social and political reform. Its objectives included curbing political corruption caused by political machines and limiting the influence of large corporations. Key aspects of the movement were efforts to eliminate waste and corruption, support worker compensation, improve child labor laws, establish minimum wage legislation, limit the workweek, implement a graduated income tax, and expand women’s suffrage and equal opportunities. Progressives sought to democratize society by removing money from politics, eliminating corruption, and ensuring broad access to voting, while addressing income inequality through economic and tax policies.
Conversely, conservatism emphasizes balancing federal government and states’ rights, with most American conservatives supporting strong governmental action in areas they consider legitimate, such as national defense and law enforcement. Core principles of conservatism include individual freedom, limited government, the rule of law, peace through strength, fiscal responsibility, free markets, and human dignity. Conservatives often value traditions and practices that ensure stability and have evolved gradually. They typically oppose modernism and seek to preserve traditional values, although these values may vary among different conservative groups.
Ideological groupings in modern politics can generally be divided into left-wing and right-wing perspectives. The left-wing emphasizes ideas such as freedom, equality, fraternity, rights, progress, reform, and internationalism. In contrast, the right-wing emphasizes authority, hierarchy, order, duty, tradition, reaction, and nationalism. Liberalism, another significant political philosophy, advocates for individual rights, liberty, consent of the governed, political equality, and equality before the law. The Labour Party in the UK, considered centre-left, is an alliance of social democrats, democratic socialists, and trade unionists, although its classification as a socialist party is debated. Power in politics can derive from various sources, including expertise, identification, rewards, and coercion, and today’s leaders often navigate these different forms of power to influence policy and governance effectively.
