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Frances Perkins And The Women Reformers Behind The New Deal, Judy D. Whipps

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Frances Perkins, the first female Cabinet member, was the creative force behind most New Deal legislation. She was responsible for Social Security and the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938. These bills instituted federal policies that had been the focus of women social reformers starting in the 1890s. The forty-year struggle for the abolition of child labor, labor safety standards, minimum wage, and eight-hour workdays had been led by current and former Hull House residents, such as Jane Addams and Florence Kelley. Perkins was a former Hull House resident and was mentored and supported by Kelley and a network of …