Horace Mann's Reform Movements In The Mid-1800s

Many of the rights we are given today are because of the various reform movements that took place in the mid-1800s. Some of these reform movements are the women’s suffrage movement, the abolition of slavery, the prison reform, and the educational reform. The Seneca Falls Convention, which was organized by Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Lucretia Mott, and the Declaration of Sentiments, began the women’s rights movement. Women gained their right to vote through the 19th Amendment which was passed by congress and ratified in 1920. They wanted to be treated as individuals, not just servants of men. They wanted more opportunities for employment and education. They wanted the option to run for office, speak in front of Congress, and vote. And that's

Massachusetts reformer Horace Mann led the charge for the country's first statewide public school. Mann wrote that education “is the great equalizer of the conditions of men—the balance-wheel of the social machinery.” He also said that universal education would allow the United States to maintain a democracy of all Americans, he thought, “must, if citizens of a Republic, understand something of the true nature and functions of the government under which they live.” The public school system became a reality and they were free too. Most young citizens can now go to school poverty free. Horace Mann led the movement to make education freely available to all, encouraging many Northern states to establish public schools. However it did not improve opportunities for most girls, women, and African Americans. Mann also worked to make many changes to his state's criminal justice

Dorothea Dix developed the reform of prisons and the treatment of people with mental illness. Her attempts led to corrections in state prison systems and the creation of public institutions and hospitals for the mentally ill. Many prisoners were locked in cages and bound in cages, children accused of minor thefts were jailed with adult criminals, Dix was horrified. Dix gathered information about the horrors she had seen for two years. She prepared a detailed report for the Massachusetts state legislature. She said, ““I proceed . . . to call your attention to the present state of insane persons, confined . . . in cages, closets, cellars, stalls, pens! Chained, naked, beaten with rods, and lashed into obedience!” Dix continued campaigning for prison reform for the rest of her life. By the time she died in 1887, most state governments no longer put debtors in prison, had outlawed cruel punishments like branding people with hot irons, and had created special justice systems for children in trouble. Dix set a perfect example on how reformers could lead society to make beneficial changes. Inmates were rewarded for good behavior and could be released once they had been reformed. This led to letting inmates out early on