President Joe Biden on Monday established a national monument honoring the late FDR-era Labor Secretary Frances Perkins, the first woman to serve in a presidential Cabinet and a driving force behind Franklin D. Roosevelt's New Deal programs after the Great Depression.
Perkins is “one of America’s greatest labor leaders, and that’s not hyperbole,” Biden said. Perkins “cemented the idea” that “if you're working a full-time job, you shouldn't have to live in poverty,” Biden said.
WATCH ANYTIME FOR FREE
 |
>Stream NBC10 Boston news for free, 24/7, wherever you are. |
The outgoing Democratic president signed the proclamation establishing the monument in Newcastle, Maine, after a speech at the Department of Labor as he seeks to burnish his legacy as a champion of women's and labor rights with just over five weeks left in his term.
The department's building is named after Perkins, who helped President Roosevelt formulate policies behind the 1930s New Deal agenda and create safeguards in the national economy following the Great Depression that began in 1929. Perkins was the longest-serving labor secretary in U.S. history and is credited with helping establish the Social Security Act, the Fair Labor Standards Act and the National Labor Relations Act, establishing workers' rights to organize and bargain collectively.
Get updates on what's happening in Boston to your inbox. Sign up for our >News Headlines newsletter.
“Frances Perkins accepted the position as the first female Cabinet member only after President Franklin D. Roosevelt agreed to support her goals to improve working conditions for all people,” Interior Secretary Deb Haaland said in a statement. “She worked tirelessly to see them to fruition, and she set a standard of excellence that is a beacon for all of us who serve.”
Perkins and her family had deep roots in Newcastle, where she was buried after her death in 1965. The monument would be established on her family homestead and managed by the National Park Service, an arm of the Interior Department.
Maine Gov. Janet Mills released a statement Monday praising Biden's designation of the Frances Perkins National Historic Landmark in Newcastle as a national monument.
Local
In-depth news coverage of the Greater Boston Area.
“President Biden’s designation is a tremendous tribute to Frances Perkins’ extraordinary work and a recognition of Maine’s special place in her life and in our history," she said. "With this historic designation, the life and legacy one of Maine’s most accomplished public servants and one of our nation’s strongest champions for working people will be forever preserved for the benefit of all future generations.”
Mills has long been a strong supporter of efforts to honor Perkins' legacy. She wrote to Biden in July urging him to designate the Newcastle landmark as a national monument. She also signed legislation in 2021 allocating $100,000 to help the Frances Perkins Center located at the National Historic Landmark make structural repairs and ensure accessibility to the site.
