The Progressive Manifesto Part 1

The 1930's ushered in a new era of economics. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, with the help of his fellow Democrats and millions of Americans' cheering this new reign of control on, passed hundreds of different measures known as the New Deal. Increasing the federal government's role in a host of issues that were once a part of the 50 states' governments' sovereignty, Roosevelt was able to assure the stability of the United States. Riding on this popularity for both him and his policies, the president was able to avert a national disaster, win the war, and defeat Republicans an unprecedented four times.

It is in this spirit that the Progressive Manifesto can be found. This is the inspiration of our belief system, and should be the model for our current times.

Progressivism, as I interpret it, is deeply rooted in a few distinct elements. The first is compassion. As living beings, we have been blessed with the ultimate power: the power to love our fellow beings, to feel empathy and sympathy for the common plights we all have the possibility of experiencing. It is with this idea, the idea of compassion, that we can find many of the origins for our policy stances. It is compassion that allows us to see that a girl who finds herself in poor circumstances and cannot support a child, for whatever reason, should have the choice to have that child or not. It is sympathy that gives us the vision to see that a person making a bed out of clothes and a bench is both our fellow brother or sister and someone who needs some help. This is why Progressives are truly on the side of the poor and the working people of the US.