On this day on labor history the year was 1860.
That was the day Charlotte Perkins Gilman was born in Hartford, Connecticut.
Her father abandoned the family when Charlotte was an infant leaving them in poverty.
This forced them to move around frequently.
Charlotte’s education suffered as a consequence as she attended seven schools in four years.
Charlotte often found escape from the chaos of her home life at the library.
She drew on these personal experiences of financial instability at home to become a leading voice for women’s economic independence.
She was best known for her works of fiction.
Charlotte’s most famous work was a short story called “The Yellow Wallpaper.”
It drew from her own experiences with postpartum depression.
She wrote prolifically about women and work.
In 1898, she published Women and Economics.
The book made the case for women’s economic and social rights.
It was translated into seven languages.
Some called it the “Bible” of the early twentieth century woman’s movement.
Along with writing books, Charlotte founded the magazine The Forerunner in 1909.
Until 1916 the magazine served as a platform for her thoughts on important women's issues of the day.
As an accomplished writer she delivered speeches across the country.
While Charlotte was a leading voice for woman’s rights, she was much less progressive on racial justice.
She gave speeches on Nationalism and called for white racial purity.
Much of her writings and speeches focused on the role of mothers, and a call for increased economic independence for housewives.
Her ideas on women were considered radical for her time.
In 1935, Charlotte learned she had inoperable breast cancer and she took her own life.
After her death, many of her writings were forgotten. In the 1960s and 1970s, as the women’s rights movement gained momentum her writings were rediscovered by another generation looking to advance women’s rights.
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Labor History in 2:00 brought to you by the Illinois Labor History Society and The Rick Smith Show