The Populist Movement

The Industrial Revolution

New Technology

The Industrial Revolution started in Great Britain in the mid-1700s, and spread quickly to other parts of the world. The steam engine developed by the Scottish inventor James Watt in the 1760s led to a period of innovation and rapid development of new technology and machines. Watt’s steam engine made it possible to efficiently power machines to do work that had previously required human or animal power. This led to the widespread development of factories and a shift in the ways that people lived and worked. It also led to an increased demand for coal, as it was used to power steam-driven machinery.

A Shift to Cities

Although cities had long existed, the rise of factories meant that great waves of people migrated from rural areas to cities where factory jobs were available. Mining also contributed to this shift, as workers flocked to areas where mining jobs were located. With the increase in urban population came a corresponding increase in urban social problems, such as poverty, homelessness, child labor, and crime.

Capitalism

Capitalism is based on the private ownership of property, with private individuals making choices about buying, selling, hiring, and working. This economic system existed prior to the Industrial Revolution. But as factory work and mining rose in importance, capitalist endeavors such as investing in business or industry to gain a profit increased. Adam Smith’s The Wealth of Nations, published in 1776, was an influential work that helped spread such ideas as the law of supply and demand and laissez-faire economic policy (minimal interference or regulation by the government). The capitalists of the 1800s generally embraced the notion that government regulation was unwanted and unnecessary. During the Industrial Revolution, new ways of making money arose. Production also became more efficient, meaning that producers could sell more, and many goods became less expensive. New work and investment opportunities, along with the sharp increase in worker productivity, allowed some people to become wealthy and others to rise into the middle class. The lack of regulation, however, often led to the exploitation of workers, and to the rise of income inequality.

Socialism

During the 1800s and 1900s, however, some people began to question and criticize capitalism. Socialists advanced the idea that the government should own or regulate the production, distribution, and sale of goods. They called for more rights for workers. In particular, socialists advocated for unions that would let workers join together to work for better pay and conditions. Eventually, Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels developed the concept of communism. Their idea centered on communal (shared) ownership of property and industry, with the goal of ensuring a just and fair society. They also argued

1 that the “haves” (the wealthy and powerful) would never give up their privileged place willingly; the “have-nots” (workers, the poor, all those without wealth and power) would have to stage a revolution and take away the power and privilege of the “haves” in order to achieve a just society.

Populism

Populism, or the populist movement, arose in the United States in the late 1800s. The movement was made up primarily of farmers. The Industrial Revolution had brought changes to agriculture as well as industry, and new machines increased agricultural productivity. However, these machines cost money, and farmers often had to take out loans to buy them. Economic troubles, natural disasters, and debt led farmers and others to call for change. Groups of farmers in the Midwest and the South formed Farmers’ Alliances in the late 1800s, with the hope that political action would help solve the challenges they faced from crop failures, low prices, and other financial troubles. These local groups were active regionally but did not have much national influence. To gain greater power, farmers joined with workers’ unions to form the Populist Party in 1892.

Free Silver Versus the Gold Standard

Populists first set their sights on monetary policy. Suspecting that banks and other powers were contributing to their troubles by keeping the country’s money supply limited, farmers and others worried about how paper money was valued and guaranteed. Farmers were also frequently in debt to banks, having taken out mortgages to buy land or machinery. They worried that monetary policy would increase their debt burden. Bankers, on the other hand, looked to make as much as they could from these loans. A debate arose about whether paper money should be backed by gold (as bankers wanted) or silver (as farmers wanted). The farmers, suffering from lower prices for their goods during a period of deflation, believed that “free silver” would lead to an increase in the money supply, thereby causing inflation and a rise in prices for their crops. The issue came to a head in the 1890s. William Jennings Bryan, a gifted orator and a Populist, ran for president on a platform featuring support for free silver. His fiery “Cross of Gold” speech, with its passionate defense of common people, farmers, and free silver, was well received.

Later Populism

Bryan lost the presidential election of 1896, but later politicians adopted many populist ideas. The debate over gold and silver faded away as the economy improved. Since that time, various forms of populism have waxed and waned in American politics. Populism is sometimes considered a double- edged sword: it can help spark needed change, but it can also be used to whip up anger against a group wrongly viewed or targeted as the source of a problem. Politicians from every part of the political spectrum have styled themselves as being on the side of “the people.” Scholars of populism note that the goals of populist groups can vary widely, but populist language and approaches typically include an appeal to a group defined as “ordinary” and non-privileged, set in opposition to another group defined as elite or dangerous.

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