Thanks to Frances Perkins
Fighter for Workers’ Rights
by Deborah Hopkinson
illustrated by Kristy Caldwell
Peachtree, 2020. 40 pages.
Review written September 17, 2020, from a library book
Starred Review
I love the way this book starts, making the book personal and rousing curiosity:
Let’s start with two math questions, especially for you younger readers.
1. How many years will it be until you turn sixty-two?
2. What year will that be?
Now, hold onto your answers until the end, when you’ll find out why this is important.
And why (when you get there) you’ll want to thank Frances Perkins.
The book goes on as a vivid picture book biography showing key events in Frances Perkins’ life. It shows Frances helping with her mother in a soup kitchen and tells about conditions for workers at that time. Frances herself witnessed the Triangle Waist Company fire on March 25, 1911, when she’d been having tea with a friend nearby. After that, she went to a memorial gathering and was inspired to fight for justice.
The book shows the good work she did and the various ways she helped workers, first in New York State, and then as the Secretary of Labor, the first female cabinet member, under Franklin Roosevelt.
Frances Perkins contributed many ideas to FDR’s New Deal, and this book mentions them and focuses in on Social Security. I love this description of Social Security:
Today, Social Security provides help for survivors: the children or spouse of a worker who has passed away. It supports children and adults with disabilities. The program also benefits older people who’ve paid Social Security taxes during their working lives.
Through Social Security, we’ve built a society where we help one another. An idea that began as a slip of paper in Frances Perkins’s desk has become a vital part of our democracy.
Now back to those math questions. Although it might well change in the future, right now most people can begin receiving Social Security benefits as early as – you guessed it – age sixty-two.
So whether you benefit from Social Security now or on some far-off day, think of this dedicated public servant and remember to say, “Thanks, Frances!”
The book also shows how hard she worked and the obstacles she faced to bring this to fruition. It’s lovely to realize how much the vision and dedication of one woman contributes to our well-being today.
deborahhopkinson.com
kristycaldwell.com
peachtree-online.com
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Disclaimer: I am a professional librarian, but the views expressed are solely my own, and in no way represent the official views of my employer or of any committee or group of which I am part.
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