Meeting of the Minds: Debate
Captains of Industry vs. Labor Organizers
Objective: To gain a better understanding of the differences between the captains of industry (robber barons) and the labor organizers of the late 19th-century.
Assignment: Research an individual (see list below) and be prepared to debate with the characters who oppose your point of view. Each student will be responsible for researching and compiling information for the debate.
Characters:
Captains of Industry: John D. Rockefeller, J. Pierpoint Morgan, Andrew Carnegie, Jay Gould, Cornelius Vanderbilt
Brief Descriptions:
Andrew Carnegie author of Wealth - wealthy were given extra responsibility in society - use their wealth for good; philanthropist. Also ran U.S. Steel.
Jay Gould - big businessman “enemy” of the laborer.
J. Pierpoint Morgan financier (banker) who was pro-business, represents what labor opposed.
John D. Rockefeller founder of Standard Oil Company, business tycoon.
Cornelius Vanderbilt railroad tycoon, the railroads were the enemy of the farmer and labor by charging high prices, especially on short hauls.
Labor Organizers: Eugene V. Debs, Mother Jones, Samuel Gompers, Terrence V. Powderly, William Haywood
Brief Descriptions:
Eugene V. Debs labor organizer who was president of the American Railway Union during the Pullman Strike - in prison he read socialist tracts and became a leader in the American Socialist movement (ran for president five times - lost every time).
Samuel Gompers prominent labor organizer who founded the American Federation of Labor.
William “Big Bill” Haywood prominent figure in the American labor movement; he was a leader of the Western Federation of Miners, a founding member and leader of the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW), and a member of the Executive Committee of the Socialist Party of America.
Mother Jones - Mary Harris Jones was a prominent labor and community organizer, member of the International Workers of the Worlds (Wobblies) - helped to build the United Mine Workers and American Socialist Party.
Terrence V. Powderly - leader of the Knights of Labor before their collapse after the Haymarket Square riot.
The students representing the “captains of industry” need to research their particular individual and answer the following questions:
1) What is “your” opinion on the role of factories/industry in the United States?
2) What is the role of the worker? How much should the worker be compensated?
3) What benefits does the worker deserve?
4) What is “your” opinion on labor unions?
Remember: This is the late 19th-century and many of the “captains of industry” had different views on the role of the workers. Students need to understand attitudes that were prevalent in this time period are not necessarily acceptable in the modern era.
Those students representing the labor leaders of the day need to research their particular individual and answer the following:
1) What is “your” opinion on the role of factories/industry in the United States?
2) What is the role of the “robber baron” (captain of industry)? How much should the business owner compensate his workers?
3) What benefits does the worker deserve?
4) What is “your” opinion on “robber barons”?
Also required are THREE DISCUSSION questions. One question should be addressed to the entire group and should be a general discussion question regarding labor and industry. The second question should be asked to the characters from the group that opposes “your” character’s position. The third question should be specifically addressed to one other character and it can be any question relevant to the discussion.
Students should answer each question of the above questions relevant to their character and be prepared to discuss their answers in the format of an informal debate.