America's First Lady: Eleanor Roosevelt

Eleanor Roosevelt has been criticized all her life for everything she did or said but she never gave up. She set the path of change for the role of the president’s wife, from being a simple public figure to activists in the country. Eleanor Roosevelt transformed the position of First Lady through a program focused on social equality. Eleanor Roosevelt’s parents were Elliot Roosevelt, President Theodore Roosevelt’s younger brother, and Anna Hall (“Eleanor Roosevelt Biography”). Her father was a drunk and her mother used to call her “Granny” for her "very plain," "old-fashioned," and serious deportment (“About Eleanor Roosevelt”). Both of her parents died when she was a child. After her parent’s deaths, she was sent to live with her grandmother,

Eleanor was active in both the Red Cross and Navy Hospitals during World War I. In 1921, Franklin Roosevelt was stricken with polio, which made her more active in politics. She nursed Franklin and took over the role as the athletic role model for their children. By doing this, she learned how to drive a car, swim, and ride a horse. She also encouraged Franklin to go through therapeutic exercised. Eleanor participated in League of Women Voters, Women’s Trade Union League, and the Women’s Division of the New York State Democratic Committee. She also established Val-Kill Industries, a furniture factory, and Todhunter School, a school for girls (“Eleanor Roosevelt Biography”). In 1924, she served under her friend Esther Lape on the committee to choose the winner of the American Peace Award, which offered $100,000 to the author of the “Best practicable plan by which the United States may co-operate with other nations for world peace” (Ward and Burns, 243). Eleanor supported Franklin’s campaign for President but she had no wish to be First Lady. Eleanor stated, “I never wanted it even though some people said that my ambitions for myself drove him on…I never wanted to be a president’s wife” (“About Eleanor Roosevelt”). Before Eleanor revolutionized the role of First Lady, the First Ladies had very few expectations and jobs to do. First Ladies were expected to be the hosts for all parties, gatherings, and events. They were to be in charge of all things domestic (“The First Lady and Her Role”). They were expected to be seen but rarely ever heard. One example of this is Mrs. Hoover, President Hoover’s wife, who had confined herself to public remarks largely to her enthusiasm for the Girl Scouts (Ward and Burns,