1 00:00:01,840 --> 00:00:08,360 Speaker 1: Welcome to Brainstuff, a production of iHeartRadio, Hey Brainstuff, Lauren Volebaum. 2 00:00:08,440 --> 00:00:13,200 Speaker 1: Here there is a single person in American history who 3 00:00:13,240 --> 00:00:17,840 Speaker 1: is primarily responsible for creating the Social Security Program, along 4 00:00:17,840 --> 00:00:21,000 Speaker 1: with government protection of workers' rights like a minimum wage 5 00:00:21,000 --> 00:00:24,799 Speaker 1: and maximum work hours. But for a long time, most 6 00:00:24,840 --> 00:00:29,360 Speaker 1: of the American public had never heard her name. Francis 7 00:00:29,400 --> 00:00:32,239 Speaker 1: Perkins was the first woman to become a member of 8 00:00:32,280 --> 00:00:36,280 Speaker 1: a president's cabinet, as Franklin D. Roosevelt's Secretary of Labor 9 00:00:36,600 --> 00:00:41,599 Speaker 1: in nineteen thirty three. Her name and story have sometimes 10 00:00:41,680 --> 00:00:46,160 Speaker 1: been downplayed for a number of possible reasons. She herself 11 00:00:46,280 --> 00:00:48,680 Speaker 1: was not an in the spotlight sort of person and 12 00:00:48,840 --> 00:00:52,120 Speaker 1: often deferred credit to FDR and some of the men 13 00:00:52,120 --> 00:00:54,680 Speaker 1: who later wrote about the New Deal may have neglected 14 00:00:54,680 --> 00:00:59,200 Speaker 1: to research her contributions. But the Department of Labor National 15 00:00:59,200 --> 00:01:02,720 Speaker 1: Office bears her name. Two of her residences are now 16 00:01:02,800 --> 00:01:07,319 Speaker 1: preserved as historic landmarks. A biography and separately, a novel 17 00:01:07,440 --> 00:01:11,319 Speaker 1: tell the story of her life. Today, let's talk about 18 00:01:11,400 --> 00:01:15,360 Speaker 1: how Perkins came to be a quiet force of advocacy 19 00:01:15,520 --> 00:01:22,120 Speaker 1: who helped create our social safety net. Francis Perkins was 20 00:01:22,160 --> 00:01:25,679 Speaker 1: born as Fanny Coraley Perkins in Boston in eighteen eighty, 21 00:01:25,840 --> 00:01:30,200 Speaker 1: with family roots in Maine. After graduating from Mount Holyoke 22 00:01:30,240 --> 00:01:33,000 Speaker 1: College in nineteen oh two, she pursued a career as 23 00:01:33,040 --> 00:01:35,920 Speaker 1: a social worker, and later continued her education at the 24 00:01:35,920 --> 00:01:38,520 Speaker 1: Wharton School of Finance and Commerce of the University of 25 00:01:38,520 --> 00:01:41,680 Speaker 1: Pennsylvania and then at Columbia University, where she earned an 26 00:01:41,800 --> 00:01:45,480 Speaker 1: MA in social economics in nineteen ten. For the next 27 00:01:45,520 --> 00:01:48,000 Speaker 1: two years, she served as the executive secretary of the 28 00:01:48,000 --> 00:01:51,320 Speaker 1: Consumers League of New York, where she successfully lobbied for 29 00:01:51,360 --> 00:01:56,640 Speaker 1: improved wages and working conditions, particularly for women and children. 30 00:01:57,040 --> 00:01:59,440 Speaker 1: It was during that time that Perkins witnessed a life 31 00:01:59,520 --> 00:02:01,960 Speaker 1: changing event that would shift the course of her own 32 00:02:02,000 --> 00:02:05,960 Speaker 1: professional life, as well as the future of American labor conditions. 33 00:02:07,160 --> 00:02:10,320 Speaker 1: On March twenty fifth of nineteen eleven, Perkins was having 34 00:02:10,400 --> 00:02:13,000 Speaker 1: tea with a friend in Manhattan when a commotion broke 35 00:02:13,040 --> 00:02:16,160 Speaker 1: out nearby. It turned out to be what's now known 36 00:02:16,240 --> 00:02:19,919 Speaker 1: as the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire, one of the deadliest 37 00:02:20,040 --> 00:02:25,000 Speaker 1: US workplace disasters in history. The fire broke out on 38 00:02:25,000 --> 00:02:27,440 Speaker 1: the upper floors of the ten story building that housed 39 00:02:27,440 --> 00:02:30,079 Speaker 1: the factory and claimed the lives of one hundred and 40 00:02:30,160 --> 00:02:33,760 Speaker 1: forty six garment workers, most of whom were young women immigrants, 41 00:02:34,000 --> 00:02:37,960 Speaker 1: some as young as fourteen years. They were blocked from 42 00:02:38,080 --> 00:02:41,760 Speaker 1: escaping because stairways and exit doors had been locked intentionally 43 00:02:41,800 --> 00:02:45,400 Speaker 1: by management in attempts to prevent unauthorized break time and 44 00:02:45,520 --> 00:02:51,520 Speaker 1: potential theft. There were no sprinkler systems installed. The fire 45 00:02:51,600 --> 00:02:54,200 Speaker 1: escape stairs that were available didn't lead to the ground, 46 00:02:54,639 --> 00:02:58,440 Speaker 1: and when firefighters arrived, their ladders and hoses couldn't reach 47 00:02:58,480 --> 00:03:02,040 Speaker 1: the top floors. Some women jumped to their debts rather 48 00:03:02,080 --> 00:03:08,799 Speaker 1: than burn. This tragic and preventable incident spurred worker safety 49 00:03:08,880 --> 00:03:13,079 Speaker 1: legislation and union involvement with the help of people like Perkins. 50 00:03:15,000 --> 00:03:17,600 Speaker 1: Before the article. This episode is based on how Stuff Work. 51 00:03:17,680 --> 00:03:20,960 Speaker 1: Spoke with Kirsten Downey, an award winning journalist and author 52 00:03:21,040 --> 00:03:24,240 Speaker 1: of the biography of Perkins called The Woman Behind the 53 00:03:24,280 --> 00:03:27,639 Speaker 1: New Deal, The Life of Francis Perkins, FDR's Secretary of 54 00:03:27,720 --> 00:03:32,880 Speaker 1: Labor and His Moral Conscience. Downey said Perkins had already 55 00:03:32,880 --> 00:03:36,600 Speaker 1: been investigating workplace problems as a young social worker in Manhattan, 56 00:03:36,800 --> 00:03:38,880 Speaker 1: but was in the neighborhood when the fire broke out. 57 00:03:39,840 --> 00:03:42,800 Speaker 1: They ran across Washington Square Park and got there just 58 00:03:42,840 --> 00:03:45,200 Speaker 1: as the first people started jumping out of the windows 59 00:03:45,200 --> 00:03:49,200 Speaker 1: and hitting the ground. She was already thinking about workplace abuses, 60 00:03:49,440 --> 00:03:52,400 Speaker 1: and because she was the key person administering the New 61 00:03:52,480 --> 00:03:56,200 Speaker 1: York State Factory Investigating Commission that led to the creation 62 00:03:56,520 --> 00:03:59,440 Speaker 1: of all our fire codes. By the time she was 63 00:03:59,480 --> 00:04:02,200 Speaker 1: in her early thirties, she had crafted legislation in New 64 00:04:02,280 --> 00:04:06,280 Speaker 1: York that led to exit signs, occupancy limits on rooms, sprinklers, 65 00:04:06,400 --> 00:04:09,200 Speaker 1: buyer escapes, and how wide doors had to be to 66 00:04:09,360 --> 00:04:15,880 Speaker 1: escape safely. Following the horrific fire, Perkins grew even more 67 00:04:15,920 --> 00:04:21,040 Speaker 1: resolute about revolutionizing the country's dysfunctional labor system. She moved 68 00:04:21,080 --> 00:04:23,560 Speaker 1: up through several roles in New York civil services in 69 00:04:23,600 --> 00:04:27,000 Speaker 1: the nineteen teens and twenties, during which time she also 70 00:04:27,160 --> 00:04:29,640 Speaker 1: married an economist by the name of Paul Wilson, with 71 00:04:29,720 --> 00:04:34,360 Speaker 1: whom she had a daughter. Newspapers from the nineteen thirties 72 00:04:34,440 --> 00:04:37,360 Speaker 1: report that she kept her maiden name because at the time, A. 73 00:04:37,440 --> 00:04:40,480 Speaker 1: Wilson was secretary to New York's mayor and she didn't 74 00:04:40,480 --> 00:04:46,560 Speaker 1: want her career to interfere with his. Perkins was appointed 75 00:04:46,600 --> 00:04:49,479 Speaker 1: by then New York Governor Franklin D. Roosevelt as the 76 00:04:49,560 --> 00:04:52,159 Speaker 1: Industrial Commissioner of the State of New York in nineteen 77 00:04:52,200 --> 00:04:56,719 Speaker 1: twenty nine. When the stock market crashed that year, Perkins 78 00:04:56,760 --> 00:04:59,440 Speaker 1: was the one who encouraged FDR to take swift and 79 00:04:59,560 --> 00:05:03,719 Speaker 1: serious action. When he created a committee on Employment, he 80 00:05:03,760 --> 00:05:07,080 Speaker 1: appointed Perkins to head up the efforts, and when he 81 00:05:07,160 --> 00:05:10,320 Speaker 1: was first elected president in nineteen thirty three, he tapped 82 00:05:10,360 --> 00:05:13,359 Speaker 1: Perkins to be his Secretary of Labor, making her the 83 00:05:13,480 --> 00:05:17,360 Speaker 1: first woman to become a cabinet member. After all, that 84 00:05:17,520 --> 00:05:20,240 Speaker 1: worked with each other for about twenty years, and she 85 00:05:20,400 --> 00:05:26,640 Speaker 1: was a trusted friend. However, despite Perkins's impressive achievements over 86 00:05:26,640 --> 00:05:29,239 Speaker 1: the course of her career to that point, the American 87 00:05:29,320 --> 00:05:32,560 Speaker 1: public was less than welcoming when she arrived in Washington. 88 00:05:34,080 --> 00:05:38,440 Speaker 1: Downey said when FDR picked her, there was a huge backlash. 89 00:05:38,640 --> 00:05:40,640 Speaker 1: A lot of people were appalled that he named a 90 00:05:40,640 --> 00:05:43,760 Speaker 1: woman to his cabinet. Remember, women didn't get the right 91 00:05:43,800 --> 00:05:46,640 Speaker 1: to vote until nineteen twenty, when Francis Perkins was forty 92 00:05:46,720 --> 00:05:49,360 Speaker 1: years old, So she had a whole career to age 93 00:05:49,400 --> 00:05:52,200 Speaker 1: forty doing all these important things and didn't even have 94 00:05:52,240 --> 00:05:55,400 Speaker 1: the right to vote. When FDR was elected president. It 95 00:05:55,440 --> 00:05:57,719 Speaker 1: was only twelve years after women got the right to vote, 96 00:05:57,760 --> 00:06:02,600 Speaker 1: so you can see why people were shocked about it. Ironically, 97 00:06:02,720 --> 00:06:06,719 Speaker 1: even unions opposed her appointment. Downey said a lot of 98 00:06:06,839 --> 00:06:10,800 Speaker 1: unions didn't permit female members and were particularly insulted because 99 00:06:10,800 --> 00:06:13,920 Speaker 1: they wanted a good union man to be Secretary of Labor. 100 00:06:14,279 --> 00:06:17,279 Speaker 1: Francis Perkins had a background as a government administrator and 101 00:06:17,360 --> 00:06:20,839 Speaker 1: a social worker, and they were suspicious. But in fact, 102 00:06:20,920 --> 00:06:22,880 Speaker 1: because of the things she did, she was able to 103 00:06:22,960 --> 00:06:26,240 Speaker 1: essentially reshape the labor movement, which was dying when she 104 00:06:26,279 --> 00:06:29,760 Speaker 1: became Secretary of Labor. By the time she died, unionized 105 00:06:29,800 --> 00:06:35,520 Speaker 1: employees made up one third of the American workforce. Perkins 106 00:06:35,600 --> 00:06:37,520 Speaker 1: had a lot on her agenda when she made the 107 00:06:37,560 --> 00:06:40,479 Speaker 1: move to DC, and some of her biggest ideas have 108 00:06:40,600 --> 00:06:43,480 Speaker 1: proven to have a lasting impact on Americans to this day. 109 00:06:44,600 --> 00:06:47,440 Speaker 1: The Social Security Act was enacted in nineteen thirty five, 110 00:06:47,680 --> 00:06:51,039 Speaker 1: after just two years of Perkins being in office. It 111 00:06:51,160 --> 00:06:54,520 Speaker 1: created a system of transfer payments that relies on working 112 00:06:54,560 --> 00:06:57,680 Speaker 1: people supporting people who have retired or who are out 113 00:06:57,720 --> 00:07:02,640 Speaker 1: of work for other reasons. Provides unemployment insurance plus aid 114 00:07:02,720 --> 00:07:06,520 Speaker 1: for dependent mothers and children, victims of work related accidents, 115 00:07:06,720 --> 00:07:10,840 Speaker 1: and people with blindness and other physical issues. The law 116 00:07:10,920 --> 00:07:14,120 Speaker 1: was part of FDR's Second New Deal initiatives to help 117 00:07:14,160 --> 00:07:17,320 Speaker 1: Americans cope with social and economic changes in the wake 118 00:07:17,360 --> 00:07:23,280 Speaker 1: of the Great Depression. Downey said FDR didn't run saying 119 00:07:23,360 --> 00:07:25,920 Speaker 1: he'd do that, and it wasn't anything he really cared 120 00:07:25,920 --> 00:07:28,240 Speaker 1: about hugely, as he had a bunch of things on 121 00:07:28,240 --> 00:07:33,160 Speaker 1: his plate. Basically, Francis Perkins created the lifeline we're using today, 122 00:07:34,760 --> 00:07:38,760 Speaker 1: she continued. Unemployment Insurance is a national network of state 123 00:07:38,840 --> 00:07:42,040 Speaker 1: unemployment systems and is the mechanism we're using to get 124 00:07:42,040 --> 00:07:44,880 Speaker 1: money to people across America who've lost their jobs through 125 00:07:44,880 --> 00:07:47,960 Speaker 1: no fault of their own. We've got fifty states and 126 00:07:48,080 --> 00:07:52,240 Speaker 1: some territories using the same basic mechanism, so almost all 127 00:07:52,320 --> 00:07:56,000 Speaker 1: of the existing social safety network has her imprint. She 128 00:07:56,080 --> 00:07:59,280 Speaker 1: set up all these programs that spun off into other departments, 129 00:07:59,520 --> 00:08:05,640 Speaker 1: but were there because of her handiwork. Perkins also helped 130 00:08:05,720 --> 00:08:08,640 Speaker 1: craft the Fair Labor Standards Act of nineteen thirty eight, 131 00:08:09,080 --> 00:08:11,800 Speaker 1: the law that established a minimum wage and maximum work 132 00:08:11,840 --> 00:08:15,880 Speaker 1: hours and banned child labor. The Department of Labor was 133 00:08:15,920 --> 00:08:19,800 Speaker 1: also tasked with overseeing the Immigration and Naturalization Service i 134 00:08:19,920 --> 00:08:25,040 Speaker 1: INS until nineteen forty during the growing persecution of Nazi Germany, 135 00:08:25,400 --> 00:08:28,800 Speaker 1: Perkins worked for expanded immigration rights and increased aid to 136 00:08:28,840 --> 00:08:33,480 Speaker 1: European refugees, especially Jewish children, despite pushback from other sectors 137 00:08:33,520 --> 00:08:39,280 Speaker 1: of the American government. When FDR died in nineteen forty five, 138 00:08:39,679 --> 00:08:43,200 Speaker 1: Perkins was the longest serving Labor Secretary and one of 139 00:08:43,280 --> 00:08:46,680 Speaker 1: only two Cabinet secretaries to serve the entire twelve years 140 00:08:46,679 --> 00:08:50,520 Speaker 1: of its presidency. Of all the things on the agenda 141 00:08:50,640 --> 00:08:53,000 Speaker 1: she brought with her to Washington in nineteen thirty three, 142 00:08:53,600 --> 00:09:00,600 Speaker 1: only one remained unaccomplished, universal access to healthcare. Biins wrote 143 00:09:00,640 --> 00:09:04,680 Speaker 1: in nineteen forty five, these social and economic reforms of 144 00:09:04,720 --> 00:09:07,160 Speaker 1: the past twelve years will be regarded in the future 145 00:09:07,280 --> 00:09:10,600 Speaker 1: as a turning point in our national life, a turning 146 00:09:10,720 --> 00:09:14,320 Speaker 1: from careless neglect of human values and toward an order 147 00:09:14,760 --> 00:09:22,400 Speaker 1: of mutual and practical benevolence within a free, competitive industrial economy. 148 00:09:23,240 --> 00:09:26,160 Speaker 1: The next year, Perkins published a best selling biography of 149 00:09:26,240 --> 00:09:29,840 Speaker 1: FDR titled The Roosevelt I Knew, and served as the 150 00:09:29,840 --> 00:09:33,000 Speaker 1: head of the American delegation to the International Labor Organization 151 00:09:33,120 --> 00:09:37,320 Speaker 1: in Paris. President Harry Truman that appointed her to the 152 00:09:37,480 --> 00:09:40,920 Speaker 1: United States Civil Service Commission, a position she held until 153 00:09:41,000 --> 00:09:45,959 Speaker 1: nineteen fifty three. After leaving government service, Perkins was active 154 00:09:46,000 --> 00:09:48,560 Speaker 1: as a teacher and lecturer at the New York State 155 00:09:48,600 --> 00:09:52,400 Speaker 1: School of Industrial and Labor Relations at Cornell University until 156 00:09:52,440 --> 00:09:55,720 Speaker 1: her death in nineteen sixty five at age eighty five. 157 00:09:58,520 --> 00:10:01,600 Speaker 1: In her personal life, Perkins had often spent time at 158 00:10:01,600 --> 00:10:06,080 Speaker 1: her family's homestead in Newcastle, Maine, a sweeping riverfront property 159 00:10:06,120 --> 00:10:09,440 Speaker 1: where the family farm fished and killed bricks of local clay. 160 00:10:10,600 --> 00:10:13,520 Speaker 1: She was buried nearby and next to her husband, who 161 00:10:13,520 --> 00:10:17,440 Speaker 1: had passed in nineteen fifty two, that often lived apart 162 00:10:17,520 --> 00:10:19,880 Speaker 1: during the last twenty years of his life, as had 163 00:10:19,920 --> 00:10:22,440 Speaker 1: struggled with mental health issues and been in and out 164 00:10:22,440 --> 00:10:27,719 Speaker 1: of various facilities. Today it's thot. Perkins also had a 165 00:10:27,760 --> 00:10:32,600 Speaker 1: long term romantic relationship with fellow social activist Mary Harriman Romsey. 166 00:10:33,320 --> 00:10:37,800 Speaker 1: The two women lived together in Washington, albeit briefly. The 167 00:10:37,880 --> 00:10:40,880 Speaker 1: National Park Service included their story in its twenty sixteen 168 00:10:40,960 --> 00:10:45,000 Speaker 1: study of the Recognition and Preservation of Sites with Queer Heritage, 169 00:10:45,480 --> 00:10:48,240 Speaker 1: though the current administration has removed that study from the 170 00:10:48,360 --> 00:10:53,120 Speaker 1: NPS website. It's really interesting if you're into landmarks in 171 00:10:53,200 --> 00:10:55,880 Speaker 1: queer history, and you can still find it by googling 172 00:10:56,240 --> 00:11:03,440 Speaker 1: LGBTQ America NPS. The National Park Service was writing about 173 00:11:03,480 --> 00:11:06,520 Speaker 1: Perkins because the Perkins family Homestead had been listed on 174 00:11:06,559 --> 00:11:09,120 Speaker 1: the National Register of Historic Places in two thousand and 175 00:11:09,200 --> 00:11:12,520 Speaker 1: nine and became the Francis Perkins National Monument in twenty 176 00:11:12,520 --> 00:11:16,000 Speaker 1: twenty four. Its grounds and trails are open to the 177 00:11:16,040 --> 00:11:19,200 Speaker 1: public year round from dawn till dusk, and the buildings 178 00:11:19,200 --> 00:11:22,040 Speaker 1: are open in the summer. They're run by the Francis 179 00:11:22,080 --> 00:11:26,199 Speaker 1: Perkins Center, which works to preserve her legacy by inspiring 180 00:11:26,240 --> 00:11:29,840 Speaker 1: women to go into public service and by educating about 181 00:11:29,840 --> 00:11:32,800 Speaker 1: the lasting effects of the New Deal and how our 182 00:11:32,840 --> 00:11:36,600 Speaker 1: government can provide economic security and social justice to its 183 00:11:36,640 --> 00:11:42,600 Speaker 1: citizens through policies like it. Downey said, the bottom line 184 00:11:42,640 --> 00:11:46,080 Speaker 1: is that Francis perkins life's work was recognizing that in 185 00:11:46,120 --> 00:11:49,440 Speaker 1: the course of human events, bad stuff happens, and it's 186 00:11:49,520 --> 00:11:52,320 Speaker 1: predictable that it happens, and what you want to do 187 00:11:52,480 --> 00:11:55,760 Speaker 1: is create a system of elasticity that helps you have 188 00:11:55,800 --> 00:12:03,520 Speaker 1: a solution to fix it. Today's episode is based on 189 00:12:03,559 --> 00:12:07,040 Speaker 1: the article Francis Perkins, the Unsung Creator of US Social 190 00:12:07,080 --> 00:12:11,360 Speaker 1: Security on HowStuffWorks dot Com. Written by Michelle Constantinofsky. Brain 191 00:12:11,360 --> 00:12:14,160 Speaker 1: Stuff is production of iHeartRadio in partnership of how stuffworks 192 00:12:14,160 --> 00:12:17,079 Speaker 1: dot com. It is produced by Tyler Klang. Four more 193 00:12:17,080 --> 00:12:21,000 Speaker 1: podcasts my heart Radio, visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, 194 00:12:21,080 --> 00:12:23,000 Speaker 1: or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.