Eleanor Roosevelt

A detailed Summary of Eleanor Roosevelt

Although she won much respect as the first lady Eleanor Roosevelt gained a lot of her international esteem as a civil rights activist long before that. Eleanor's interest in politics did not begin when her husband began his career in politics. Once he was named to the Democratic ticket, as Vice President Eleanor became interested in politics. While Franklin was becoming governor of New York she was campaigning for him unknowing that she was advancing her political career as well. Once Eleanor became first lady it was already done she had made a name for herself politically.

Eleanor's background in politics goes back to her Uncle Teddy who was once the President of the U.S. Eleanor married a young amiable Harvard student by the name of Franklin Roosevelt. But soon Franklin became bored with Business Law and Eleanor pushed him to go into politics. Aided by a Democratic landslide and his mom's money he won State Senator from the Hyde Park District. But Eleanor hated Albany and was soon very happy to leave. Franklin liked his newfound success in politics and his career prospered swiftly. He soon became an early backer of Woodrow Wilson as he ran for president, for his efforts he was

It soon became clear that Franklin was ready to take the next step and run for president, as he was the leading candidate for the Democratic Party. When the dust had settled Franklin had won the election and Eleanor was heading for the White House. Just before her husband's inauguration Eleanor published the book It's up to the Women and also accepted an offer to edit a magazine called Babies-Just Babies.

Eleanor had always backed unions in fact her interest in the Women's Trade Union League is what had swayed her to the side of the workers against management. She tried to stay neutral but her bias in favor of such unions as the New York based International Ladies Garment Workers Union could easily be seen. Eleanor would not cross a picket line no matter what the circumstances. She once cancelled a meeting with a very esteemed dressmaker because his workers were on strike. " I will have to wait before coming to see you again," she explained to the owner of the store, "until you have made some agreement with your people which is satisfactory to both sides (Weinstein 762)."

Eleanor's personal sense of accomplishment with the finished Declaration was unparalleled in her life. Her speech to the General Assembly demonstrates this:

Shortly after Franklin's inauguration in March 1933 an army of unemployed set up camp in Washington and flooded it. When Eleanor asked Howe what to do he answered, " I'm going to take a nap, and you are going out there to talk to them." Eleanor walked into the tent city all alone to talk to them she told the of her volunteer work during World War I and promising to do whatever she could to help them. The unemployed veterans cheered as she left. Said one, in words that would become famous, " Hoover sent the Army. Roosevelt sent his wife."(Weinstein 760)

Weinstein, Allen, and Frank Otto Gattell, Freedom and Crisis: An American

Once she became First Lady Eleanor became better known to Americans. She held press conferences in the White House that were for women only, she said, " So few women reporters, many of whom are just as capable of handling the big stories as the men, get a chance to be front page writers."(Weinstein 760) At first male White House correspondents disliked the idea but soon they wanted to go as well. Eleanor never allowed them. Eleanor followed this policy in almost every possible way. The Gridiron often gave an all-male dinner and invited most Washington officials and visiting politicos. So Eleanor held the Gridiron Widows Dinner for all the women reporters, cabinet wives, and women bureaucrats. Eleanor took special interest into increasing women's role in the U.S. government and in the Democratic Party. She often invited the few females who held an office to the White House. Seeing the first woman alternate chosen for the Resolutions Committee at the 1936 Democratic co!

Eleanor also took interest into another powerless group whisch was the National Youth Administration. She would sit in the front row and knit placidly. One friend said at a meeting to her that she voted for the Socialist candidate, Eleanor sadi she would have to had her husband not been Democrat. I nher column she warned that if such witch hunting continued, "It is going to be hard to take quite a strong-minded person with a great indifferenceto what mya be said about him to join an organization even one with whose principles he is in agreement (Weinstein 766)."

In early 1939 Mrs. Roosevelt was allowed to show how serious she was when the DAR barred the use of Washington's Constitutional Hall to Maria

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Category: History