Born in New York City in 1884, Eleanor Roosevelt was an awkward and shy child. After her mother died when she was only eight, she went to live with her grandmother, and her father died two years later. She was deprived of a typical girl’s childhood at the years, as she had little social interaction with other girls her age. At age fifteen, she was finally given a chance to develop her confidence and get rid of her shyness when she was enrolled in school in England.
When she returned to America, she met Franklin Delano Roosevelt, a distant cousin, and she soon fell in love with him. They were married in 1905, when Eleanor was twenty-one, and within eleven years, she had six children. During this time, she was active in the Red Cross and worked during WWI. Later, in her autobiography, she wrote “I suppose I was fitting pretty well into the pattern of a fairly conventional, quiet, young society matron.”
This all changed in 1921 when FDR contracted polio and eventually confined to a wheelchair that he would be in for the rest of his life. Extremely devoted to her husband, Eleanor was determined to be a reporter for him, recounting current events and changes in the political situation for him until the day he died. She was active in the State Democratic Committee, gained knowledge of Washington while FDR was Assistant Secretary of the Navy, and worked to understand politics in order to help her husband. When he won the presidency, Eleanor completely transformed the role of the first lady in American society. She was the first to step away from background roles and show that she could competently handle politics. She worked tirelessly to support women’s rights, especially in her support of the League of Women Voters in their quest for equality. Travelling the country, giving radio broadcasts and lectures, and even writing her own newspaper column, called “My Day,” Eleanor stood up for her beliefs. Even when targeted by political enemies, she remained calm and gracious, her personality winning her support from all over the country.
When FDR died in 1945, she said that she was finished with politics, but soon, she began a career as a spokesman in the UN, a position she maintained until 1953. She then became the chair of the UN’s Human Rights Commission and contributed to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, continuing her career until 1962. While she received criticism from some people, she was also praised for her important role in civil and women’s rights and she is still regarded today as a major contributor towards revolutionizing the role of women in American society.
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She really went above and beyond the typical duties of a First Lady. She is one of the only First Ladies that I have heard about, probably because she did so much for this country. Her work on women's rights, amongst many other things, was incredibly influential.
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http://www.biography.com/people/eleanor-roosevelt-9463366#us-first-lady
I think this is a great post! It is commendable what she had done and what she accomplished, I think she performed all the duties that she had very well and overall I think she was a great person!
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