Gender Dynamics in Urban America: Late 19th to Early 20th Century

Gender played a critical and consequential role for urban dwellers in the late 19th century and early 20th century. During this time, increased immigration created an inclination among majority male and upper class communities that there as a need for selective policies and actions to ensure the purity of the American race (Ward, p. 543-544). Though rooted in racism and classism, sexism comes to play in unforgiving and detrimental ways. In the late 19th century, the progressive movement’s eugenic influences and male dominance led to an increase in criticism and oppression of sexually active and lower class women and omitted the contributions of hard working women advocates. Within the progressive movement of the late 19th century, there were

This was done by labeling women who were poor, sexually active without being married, or both as being degenerate (Kennedy, p. 22). This did not only effect women within select poor urban communities, but the broader population of women who exercised basic human rights to themselves and their bodies. The culture of shaming spread to more women than originally intended and had a domino effect of consequences on the broader communities of immigrants and children. For example, in Crane’s Novella, Maggie, the protagonist is found to be a victim of sex trafficking and ultimately death. Her actions were not necessarily moral or congenial to the progressive movement, but the rhetoric being spewed from the progressive elitist of the time leaned towards harsh judgement and ostracizing of women like Maggie (). Support was not suggested as a way of solving the problem. It was suggested that women in Maggie’s situation were degenerate and undesirable. They should not be allowed to procreate and their untimely deaths were disregarded and, in some circles,

This group of women fought hard to change the social, political, and economic forces that strained urban communities of that time. Using a white label to brand goods that were desirable for purchase, a group called the NCL led by Florence Kelley mobilized women to put a social conscience to an untethered capitalism that threatened women and children in urban communities (Sklar, p. 267). These women were able to effectively put in place labor restrictions and force companies to adopt more socially conscious business models. This narrative was retold and ultimately forgotten because it awarded an inconceivable amount of favor to women in the struggle development of fairer labor and social