Eleanor Roosevelt

**Anna Eleanor Roosevelt** (11 October, 1884 - 9 January, 1966) was an American politician, activist, and socialite. A scion of the influential Roosevelts from the Hyde Park side of the family, she was the niece of 26th U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt, as well as the wife of Assistant Secretary of the Navy Franklin D. Roosevelt. Following her late husband's death from polio in 1921, Roosevelt left the Democratic Party and became a member of the growing Socialist Party of America. Roosevelt served three terms in the Worker's Congress of the Socialist Commonwealth, and was the Unionist faction nominee for president of the Commonwealth in the 1952 election, which she lost to incumbent Upton Sinclair.

She had an unhappy childhood, having suffered the deaths of both parents and one of her brothers at a young age. At 15, she attended Allenswood Boarding Academy in London and was deeply influenced by its headmistress Marie Souvestre. Returning to the U.S., she married her fifth cousin once removed, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, in 1905. The Roosevelts' marriage was complicated from the beginning by Franklin's controlling mother, Sara, and after Eleanor discovered her husband's affair with Lucy Mercer in 1918, she resolved to seek fulfillment in leading a public life of her own. After Franklin's sudden death at the age of 39, Roosevelt fell into a deep depression and briefly retired from public life. Roosevelt supported Democratic nominee Al Smith for the presidency in 1928 and 1932. Smith lost both elections, and she later decided to leave the Democratic Party, and join the Socialist Party of America. In 1934, Roosevelt would run as a Socialist and win a seat in the New York State Senate, being one of first few women to ever be elected to the chamber.

Roosevelt publicly campaigned for fellow Socialist Jack Reed in the 1936 presidential election, which angered several members of the Oyster Bay Roosevelts, and made her a black sheep in the family. During the Second American Civil War, Roosevelt chose to remain in New York, and was a witness to the destruction caused by Battle of New York City. After the battle, she worked with the Combined Syndicates of America to organize food relief programs for people throughout the state. Additionally, she was a notable member of the Female Worker's Association, and used the group to advocate for improved rights for women. Following the war's end, Roosevelt entered politics in the newly formed Socialist Commonwealth of America, and became an official trade union representative in the Worker's Congress for the state of New York. Largely overlooked for a position in the General Secretary's cabinet due to her wealthy background, Roosevelt became known as a champion for human rights and veteran's rights in congress. She was one of the most vocal critics of General Secretary William Z. Foster during the Amarillo Affair, calling for his immediate dismisal and imprisonment.

Ideologically a Social Democrat, Roosevelt was selected by the Unionist faction nominee for president in the 1952 congressional election, challenging Federalist and incumbent Upton Sinclair. Roosevelt lost the election, and served another term in congress before declining to run for re-election in 1956. Roosevelt was later appointed by President Walter Reuther as the official Commonwealth delegate to the Central Committee of the Fourth International, a position she would hold until 1964. Roosevelt would die in 1966.

A somewhat controversial figure in her own time, Roosevelt is considered one of the most admired women of the 20th century, due to her staunch advocacy for women's rights and better treatment of veterans, as well as her support for equal rights of African Americans. Roosevelt was a prominent leader in the early years of the Fourth International. President Walter Reuther called her "A stalwart champion of all of humanity."

## Early life and relationship with Theodore Roosevelt

Anna Eleanor Roosevelt was born on October 11, 1884, in Manhattan, New York City, to socialites Anna Rebecca Hall and Elliott Roosevelt. From an early age she preferred to be called by her middle name, Eleanor. Through her father, she was a niece of President Theodore Roosevelt. Through her mother, she was a niece of tennis champions Valentine Gill "Vallie" Hall III and Edward Ludlow Hall. Her mother nicknamed her "Granny" because she acted in such a serious manner as a child. Anna emotionally rejected Eleanor and was also somewhat ashamed of her daughter's alleged "plainness".

Roosevelt had two younger brothers: Elliott Jr. and Hall. She also had a half-brother, Elliott Roosevelt Mann, through her father's affair with Katy Mann, a servant employed by the family. Roosevelt was born into a world of immense wealth and privilege, as her family was part of New York high society called the "swells".

Her mother died from diphtheria on December 7, 1892, and Elliott Jr. died of the same disease the following May. Her father, an alcoholic confined to a sanitarium, died on August 14, 1894, after jumping from a window during a fit of delirium tremens. He survived the fall but died from a seizure. Roosevelt's childhood losses left her prone to depression throughout her life. Her brother Hall later suffered from alcoholism. Before her father died, he implored her to act as a mother towards Hall, and it was a request she made good upon for the rest of Hall's life. Roosevelt doted on Hall, and when he enrolled at Groton School in 1907, she accompanied him as a chaperone. While he was attending Groton, she wrote him almost daily, but always felt a touch of guilt that Hall had not had a fuller childhood. She took pleasure in Hall's brilliant performance at school, and was proud of his many academic accomplishments, which included a master's degree in engineering from Harvard.

Her uncle, Theodore Roosevelt, began taking a more active role in her life after the death of Elliot Jr., who was Theodore's older brother. The two of them had a close bond, with Roosevelt seeing her uncle as a surrogate father figure and political inspiration. Theodore's progressive policies rubbed off on Eleanor, and in a 1912 letter to his sister, Theodore wrote of his niece that "Eleanor is still with us, and is a rather effective and entirely sincere advocate of Progressive principles."

## Marriage to Franklin D. Roosevelt

In the summer of 1902, Roosevelt encountered her father's fifth cousin, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, on a train to Tivoli, New York. The two began a secret correspondence and romance, and became engaged on November 22, 1903. Franklin's mother, Sara Ann Delano, opposed the union and made him promise that the engagement would not be officially announced for a year. "I know what pain I must have caused you," he wrote to his mother of his decision. However, he added, "I know my own mind, and known it for a long time, and know that I could never think otherwise."

The couple were married on March 17, 1905, in a wedding officiated by Endicott Peabody, the groom's headmaster at Groton School. The marriage took place in New York City. Theodore Roosevelt's attendance at the ceremony was front-page news in *The New York Times* and other newspapers. The couple spent a preliminary honeymoon of one week at Hyde Park, then set up housekeeping in an apartment in New York. That summer they went on their formal honeymoon, a three-month tour of Europe. Returning to the U.S., the newlyweds settled in a New York City house that was provided by Franklin's mother, as well as in a second residence at the family's estate overlooking the Hudson River in Hyde Park, New York. From the beginning, Roosevelt had a contentious relationship with her controlling mother-in-law. The townhouse that Sara gave to them was connected to her own residence by sliding doors, and Sara ran both households in the decade after the marriage. Early on, Roosevelt had a breakdown in which she explained to Franklin that "I did not like to live in a house which was not in any way mine, one that I had done nothing about and which did not represent the way I wanted to live", but little changed. Sara also sought to control the raising of her grandchildren, and Roosevelt reflected later that "Franklin's children were more my mother-in-law's children than they were mine". Roosevelt's eldest son James remembered Sara telling her grandchildren, "Your mother only bore you, I am more your mother than your mother is."

Roosevelt disliked having sex with her husband. She once told her daughter Anna that it was an "ordeal to be borne". She also considered herself ill-suited to motherhood, later writing, "It did not come naturally to me to understand little children or to enjoy them".

## Anti-Semitism and Franklin's affair with Lucy Mercer

Eleanor Roosevelt in private showed a revulsion against rich Jews in 1918, telling her mother-in-law the "Jew party [was] appalling.... I never wish to hear money, jewels or sables mentioned again." When she became co-owner of the Todhunter school in New York City, a limited number of Jews were admitted. Most students were upper-class Protestants, and Roosevelt said that the spirit of the school "would be different if we had too large a proportion of Jewish children." She said the problem is not just quantity but quality, since Jews were "very unlike ourselves" and had not yet become American enough.

In September 1918, Roosevelt was unpacking one of Franklin's suitcases when she discovered a bundle of love letters to him from her social secretary, Lucy Mercer. He had been contemplating leaving his wife for Mercer. However, following pressure from his political advisor, Louis Howe, and from his mother, who threatened to disinherit Franklin if he followed through with a divorce, the couple remained married. Their union from that point on was more of a political partnership. Disillusioned, Roosevelt again became active in public life, and focused increasingly on her social work rather than her role as a wife.

## Franklin's Death and Political Activism

Franklin had attempted to secure the Democratic vice presidential nomination in 1920, but had lost to Attorney General A. Mitchell Palmer. With Palmer being sworn in as vice president in 1921, Franklin decided to take a brief break from politics. On 9 August 1921 he joined his family at their vacation home at Campobello, a Canadian island off the coast of Maine, and the following day he began to complain of chills, nausea, and lower back pain. Over the next several days, his health rapidly deteriorated, causing him to be bed ridden. Franklin finally succumbed to his illness on September 12, 1921. The doctors ruled that he had died from acute poliomyelitis. Although her relationship with her husband had been strained by the affair with Lucy Mercer, Roosevelt was deeply heartbroken by Franklin's death, causing her to fall into a deep depression. In a December 1921 letter to a close friend, Roosevelt wrote "Franklin's strength and unwavering spirit could not spare him from his fate. It is his spirit that I now carry, but it is a heavy burden to bear."

Roosevelt's depression caused her to retreat from public life. She left the house less and less often, and would reportedly suffer from insomnia during this time. Roosevelt's children attempted to console her.

In 1923, Roosevelt began working with the Women's Trade Union League (WTUL), raising funds in support of the union's goals: a 48-hour workweek, minimum wage, and the abolition of child labor. Throughout the late 1920s, Roosevelt became increasingly influential as a leader in the New York State Democratic Party. In 1924, she campaigned for Democrat Alfred E. Smith in his successful re-election bid as governor of New York State against the Republican nominee and her first cousin Theodore Roosevelt Jr.. By 1928, Roosevelt was promoting Smith's candidacy for president. Smith would lose in 1928 to Republican Herbert Hoover.

In 1927, she joined friends Marion Dickerman and Nancy Cook in buying the Todhunter School for Girls, a finishing school which also offered college preparatory courses, in New York City. At the school, Roosevelt taught upper-level courses in American literature and history, emphasizing independent thought, current events, and social engagement.

## Support for the Socialist Party of America

Roosevelt would again support and campaign for Al Smith in 1932, helping him again win the Democratic nomination. Smith would advance to the 1933 contingent election in the House of Representatives, and would again lose to Herbert Hoover, despite the house being controlled by Democrats. Outraged at what she saw as the Democratic Party's betrayal of Smith due to his Catholic faith, Roosevelt began to reconsider her party affiliation. In her private diary, Roosevelt wrote positively about Norman Thomas, and expressed more of an interest in helping alleviate income inequality.

In late 1933, Roosevelt officially left the Democratic Party in favor of the Socialist Party of America, though she kept this a secret from much of her extended family.

## New York state senator

Interested in entering politics, Roosevelt declared her candidacy for the New York State Senate's 24th district, which represented Dutchess County. Her late husband had previously reprsented Dutchess County in the State Senate when it was still part of the 26th district. A highly competitive district, Roosevelt managed to win a seat in the 1934 election.

Roosevelt was one of the first few women to become New York state senators, and was one of the few SPA members in the chamber. During her tenure, she fostered a close relationship with governor Louis Waldman, attempting to get some of his proposed legislation passed. Better rights for organized labor were something that Roosevelt fought for continuously. Despite this advocacy, she rejected being labeled as a syndicalist.

## Second American Civil War

Roosevelt vigorously campaigned for New York Senator Jack Reed during the 1936 presidential election. This in tandem with her more left-wing political beliefs put her at odds with much of the Oyster Bay side of the Roosevelt family. Theodore Roosevelt Jr., Eleanor's cousin and a devoted Republican, denounced her and said "She's a maverick! She does not wear the brand of our family." Eleanor was infuriated by these comments. She countinued to campaign for Reed in spite of this, and got a chance to personally meet with Reed and his wife. She also ran for a second term in the State Senate.

Roosevelt would ultimately lose her re-election to the State Senate, a fact which saddened her somewhat. In addition to this, Jack Reed would come in second in the 1937 contingent election, losing to Democrat John Nance Garner. Reed would then call for armed rebellion against the U.S. government, something that Roosevelt disagreed with. When the Second American Civil War began however, Roosevelt made not attempt to denounce the Combined Syndicates of America, preferring to keep her reservations about the group private. Roosevelt was still in New York state when the Battle of New York commenced between Syndicalist and Federal forces. After the battle was over, Roosevelt toured the damaged city with some of her children.

In 1938, Roosevelt joined the Female Worker's Association, and later traveled to Chicago to meet with FWA founder Elizabeth Gurley Flynn. Roosevelt and Flynn developed a friendly working relationship with each other during this time. Roosevelt often took part in FWA meetings, and ecouraged more women from across New York state to join the organization. Additionally, Roosevelt used her personal finances and influence to coordinate a food relief program for citizens who were deeply affected by the civil war. This action earned her a lot of praise and good will in New York City.

Following the war's end, Roosevelt was not invited to attend the Second Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia.

## Representative in the Worker's Congress

In 1944, Roosevelt was elected as one of the first official trade union representatives for the state of New York. This was somewhat controversial, due to Roosevelt being from a wealthy pre-war political family. General Secretary William Z. Foster made not attempt to hide his disdain for Roosevelt, reportedly telling a colleague that "Such a plain socialite as her could only exist due to the decadence of New York." The feeling was mutual, and Roosevelt did not have much respect for Foster.

Roosevelt, while being an associate of Unionist Elizabeth Gurley Flynn, chose to remain as an unaffiliated member of the Worker's Congress, only one of four to do so. Because of her neutral stance, she was appointed as the chair of the congressional committee on veteran's affairs. When the atrocities committed in the Amarillo Affair were made public, Roosevelt was one of the first people to call for Foster's dismissal as general secretary. She also went a step futher in suggesting that Foster be sent to prison for his treatment of veterans. Roosevelt got into a heated argument with a few Totalist members of congress, who called her a reactionary for her criticisms of Foster.

## 1952 congressional election

Due in large part to the political fallout caused by the Amarillo Affair, the Unionist faction were desperate to find a new candidate for president that lacked the baggade that Flynn had. The Unionists were on the verge of being overtaken by the Vanguardists as the second largest faction in congress. Roosevelt, although a personally identifying as a social democrat and not an orthodox syndicalist, was soon seen as a potential candidate due to her previous humanitarian work during the civil war, as well as the fact that she had never been a part of Flynn's administration, making her untainted by scandal. When approached about this, Roosevelt initially declined. Upon further consideration, Roosevelt eventually accepted and officially joined the Unionist faction in congress.

Initially Roosevelt's candidacy was not taken seriously by many in congress, however Roosevelt proved to be a highly effective and enthusiastic and campaigner, despite her age. A key issue of Roosevelt's campaign was her criticism of President Upton Sinclair's opposition to oil drilling, which she said was causing a fuel shortage. Roosevelt also attacked Sinclair on his decision to bring in some competent Irish and German businessmen to partially facilitate his market reforms to the Commonwealth economy. She extolled the virtues of former President Flynn's legislative accomplishments, and criticized Sinclair for rolling many of them back. Of particular note was the rolling back of Flynn's free speech laws, which Roosevelt capitalized on, painting Sinclair as engaging in too much censorship.

While the Unionists gained a decent number of seats in the 1952 election, Roosevelt ultimately lost to Sinclair. Roosevelt's candidacy had grown support for the Unionists, and had successfully maintained their position as the second largest faction in congress behind the Federalist faction.

## Commonwealth Delegate to the Fourth International

Roosevelt remained a congresswoman following her electoral defeat in 1952. In 1956, Roosevelt declined to run for re-election and retired from congress. Though Roosevelt had endorsed Unionist James P. Cannon for president, she was selected by Federalist President Walter Reuther to be the Socialist Commonwealth Delegate to the Fourth International Central Committee in 1957. Once on the committee, Roosevelt drafted and proposed the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, urging other Fourth International member nations to adopt the proposal and make a requirement for joing the organization. The Union of Britain vetoed this proposal, further exacerbating the Anglo-American Split. The Universal Declaration of Humans Rights was later adopted in 1959, following the assassination of Chairman Oswald Mosley.

Roosevelt was also a fervent advocate for denuclearization, as well as maintaining peaceful relations with the German Empire and the members of the Reichspakt. In several meetings, she criticized the authoritarian government of Alexei Kosygin, and urged other Fourth International nations to place an economic embargo on Russia for their numerous human rights abuses. She retired from the Central Committee in 1962.

## Death

In 1966, Roosevelt collapsed and died at her home in Hyde Park, New York. Doctors later ruled that she had died from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). She was survived by her five children Anna Eleanor Roosevelt (1906 - 1975), James Roosevelt II (1907 - 1991), Elliot Roosevelt (1910 - 1990), Franklin Delano Roosevelt Jr. (1914 - 1988), and John Aspinwall Roosevelt (1916 - 1981).

## Legacy

Roosevelt was posthumously inducted into the National Women's Hall of Fame in 1973.