News & Blog

November 2013 Newsletter

 

 


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This Month in History

Franklin D. Roosevelt was elected President of the United States four times: 1932, 1936, 1940, and on November 7, 1944.

Secretary of Labor during the New Deal era, Frances Perkins held that office from 1933-45 through the entire presidency of Franklin D. Roosevelt.

 

A Promise to all Generations
You can visit our website to purchase this collection of essays by well-known authorities and stories by Americans about Frances Perkins and the impact of Social Security on their lives.
 

The mission of the Frances Perkins Center is to fulfill the legacy of Frances Perkins, principal architect of the New Deal, by continuing her work for social and economic justice and preserving for future generations her nationally significant family homestead.

Social Security and Labor Links

Here are some stories from our Facebook and Twitter feeds. Follow us for regular reports on working conditions for Americans today:

Democratic Senator Sherrod Brown comes out for a proposal to boost Social Security benefits rather than cut them

FPC Advisory Board member Robert Reich discusses Income Inequality with Stephen Colbert

A great Infographic from Democracy for America on the current state of Social Security

Make No Mistake – There is a Crisis: Senator Elizabeth Warren on Social Security

Walmart workers strike in Chicago

Executive Director Search

The Frances Perkins Center is searching for a new Executive Director. Click here to  download a PDF of the job description.

Rediscovering Government Forum and our Annual Awards Event at USM Portland

This past October the Frances Perkins Center honored Ai-jen Poo, Director of the National Domestic Workers Alliance with our Intelligence and Courage Award and Sally Greenberg, Executive Director, National Consumers League with our Steadfast Award. They were joined by Jeff Madrick of the Roosevelt Institute who reminded the audience “Damning facts are more powerful than fiery rhetoric,” quoting Florence Kelley, National Consumers League founder and inspiration to Frances Perkins.

New Members Join Our Board of Directors!

We are excited to announce several additions to our Board of Directors:

Reverend Charles Hoffacker – An Episcopal priest since 1982, Charles is interim rector of the Parish of St. Monica and St. James (formerly St. James), Capitol Hill, where Frances Perkins belonged during her years in Washington. Charles has taught Introduction to Philosophy and Religions of the World at the college level and is the author of A Matter of Life and Death: Preaching at Funerals.  His sermons appear on the official Episcopal Church website and on Lectionary.Org. One of his longtime interests is the recognition of saints, including Frances Perkins.

Neil Rolde – An American historian and author of 16 books including Breckinridge Long: American Eichmann??? He represented York, Maine in the Maine House of Representatives from 1974-1990. Neil Rolde has won book awards from the Maine Historical Society, the Maine Humanities Council, and the Maine Writers & Publishers Alliance. Most of Neil’s books involve the history of his beloved Maine and its people. With a wealth of historical knowledge about politics, the author has recently turned his skill and wit to blogging current political incidents in a historical context.

Margaret Rotundo – Director of Strategic and Policy Initiatives for the Bates College Harward Center for Community Partnerships. She has represented Lewiston in the Maine Legislature for the past thirteen years, currently serving as the House Chair of the Appropriations and Financial Affairs Committee. She is a graduate of Mount Holyoke College and has a niece who is currently a Frances Perkins Scholar at the College.

Charles M. Wyzanski – A cum laude graduate of Harvard College and of Columbia Law School, Charles practiced law many years including fourteen years as an Assistant Attorney General for Massachusetts. He has also been an adjunct faculty member at Boston University, Brandeis and Tufts. Charles is writing a book on his father, the late Hon. Charles E. Wyzanski, Jr. Judge Wyzanski had an illustrious career as United States District Court Judge from 1941 to 1986.  He was Frances Perkin’s first Solicitor of the United States Department of Labor from 1933-35, and, later, in the Solicitor General’s Office, he successfully defended the constitutionality of the National Labor Relations Act and the Social Security Act in the United States Supreme Court.

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