BLOG POST #10 The Progressive Era

    

    The Progressive Era, also known as the "Roaring 20s", was a time period characterized by social activism and political reform in the United States. The Progressive Era spanned from the 1890s to the 1920s. This time period came as a response to immigration and industrialization in the time period before. The Progressive Era was launched by World War One, and people that did not want America to get involved. Many where persecuted for their antiwar views and some were even thrown in jail for simply voicing their opinions. 

    Most of the individuals that expressed dissent during World War One were pacificsts, anarchists, and socialists. Many of these people were also either Irish, German, or Russian immigrants to America, which led people to question their loyalty to the country they resided in. One of the most major events that marked this time period was the women's fight for their right to vote. Women were finally granted the right to vote under the 19th amendment in 1920, which inspired others to further their activism efforts. 

    Looking at todays world, where the United States government has military operations everywhere, it is important to look at websites that possess strong antiwar voices. Two websites that we may never have hear about (I know I haven't myself) are Antiwar.com and The American Conservative. On both of these sites, writers have a very obvious antiwar point of view, but we never hear about in the news we watch day to day. This is because in todays society, certain perspectives like these can be hidden. This is because of government and institutional biases. Our government likes to shape the narrative about wars in order to shape the publics opinion on them. It is especially a problem because many news sources rely on information from official sources, which often is government websites, so it is easy for the government to put out whatever narrative they want the population to see. The government sees antiwar voices as unpatriotic or controversial in todays society.

    The bottom line is that we have to go out of our way in order to seek out these antiwar perspectives and voices, because today, the government has the ability to shape what we see. The most read articles, or most credible articles are going to be the first that come up when you search things. This is because the government is intentionally making antiwar voices, or even other perspectives they do not agree with, harder to find. They cannot simply ban these stories, because that would be a violation of the first amendment and would be a prime example of prior restraint, but it is clear that they will still do anything they can in order to get their way.