Goo-goos
Encyclopedia
The goo-goos, or good government guys, were political groups founded in an era when urban municipal governments in the United States
were dominated by machine politics. Goo-goos supported candidates who would fight for political reform. The term was first used in the 1890s by their detractors.
In New York, the exclusive City Club was the domain of "goo-goos," who sponsored "Good Government Clubs" in every assembly district. Their efforts led to the election of a reform mayor in 1894, a setback for the political machine known as Tammany Hall
.
Members of several political reform movements in the late 19th and early 20th centuries were often labeled as goo-goos, including the Mugwumps
and the Progressives. While old political labels like mugwump and progressive have been reinvented several times, and have shifted in meaning as a result, the term goo-goo still has political currency, and has changed little since it was first used in the late 19th century.
In American politics, the term is still used occasionally as a mildly derisive label for highminded citizens or reformers. Mike Royko
, a Chicago
political columnist of the late 20th century, revived the word without reinventing it. Royko was both a critic and an astute observer of Chicago's machine politics. When Royko wrote about the "goo-goos" along Lake Shore Drive
, he may even have agreed with them, but his heart and soul were with Slats Grobnik, his fictional Chicagoan who was very cynical about them.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
were dominated by machine politics. Goo-goos supported candidates who would fight for political reform. The term was first used in the 1890s by their detractors.
In New York, the exclusive City Club was the domain of "goo-goos," who sponsored "Good Government Clubs" in every assembly district. Their efforts led to the election of a reform mayor in 1894, a setback for the political machine known as Tammany Hall
Tammany Hall
Tammany Hall, also known as the Society of St. Tammany, the Sons of St. Tammany, or the Columbian Order, was a New York political organization founded in 1786 and incorporated on May 12, 1789 as the Tammany Society...
.
Members of several political reform movements in the late 19th and early 20th centuries were often labeled as goo-goos, including the Mugwumps
Mugwump
The Mugwumps were Republican political activists who bolted from the United States Republican Party by supporting Democratic candidate Grover Cleveland in the United States presidential election of 1884. They switched parties because they rejected the financial corruption associated with Republican...
and the Progressives. While old political labels like mugwump and progressive have been reinvented several times, and have shifted in meaning as a result, the term goo-goo still has political currency, and has changed little since it was first used in the late 19th century.
In American politics, the term is still used occasionally as a mildly derisive label for highminded citizens or reformers. Mike Royko
Mike Royko
Michael "Mike" Royko was a newspaper columnist in Chicago, who won the 1972 Pulitzer Prize for commentary...
, a Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
political columnist of the late 20th century, revived the word without reinventing it. Royko was both a critic and an astute observer of Chicago's machine politics. When Royko wrote about the "goo-goos" along Lake Shore Drive
Lake Shore Drive
Lake Shore Drive is a mostly freeway-standard expressway running parallel with and alongside the shoreline of Lake Michigan through Chicago, Illinois, USA. Except for the portion north of Foster Avenue , Lake Shore Drive is designated as part of U.S...
, he may even have agreed with them, but his heart and soul were with Slats Grobnik, his fictional Chicagoan who was very cynical about them.
Literary examples
- In John SteinbeckJohn SteinbeckJohn Ernst Steinbeck, Jr. was an American writer. He is widely known for the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel The Grapes of Wrath and East of Eden and the novella Of Mice and Men...
's novella, Of Mice and MenOf Mice and MenOf Mice and Men is a novella written by Nobel Prize-winning author John Steinbeck. Published in 1937, it tells the tragic story of George Milton and Lennie Small, two displaced migrant ranch workers during the Great Depression in California, USA....
, the worker Whit approves of a whore house that doesn't "let no goo-goos in neither."