Description:

Roosevelt Eleanor 1884 - 1962 Eleanor Roosevelt writes an emotionally charged letter about the Military : "A mother's rebellion would certainly be a novel and interesting undertaking"



Two page TLS on light grey paper stock, with Val-Kill Cottage / Hyde Park / New York letterhead, 7.25" x 10.25". Dated "February 27, 1951", and signed by Eleanor Roosevelt in full signature as "Eleanor Roosevelt". Near fine.


Eleanor Roosevelt write to Mrs. Shirah addressing the purposes and attributes of the proposed Universal Military Training Bill. It becomes quite obvious to the reader that the bill was controversial and Mrs. Shirah was extremely upset by the proposition that it may pass. Roosevelt's letter noted first some of the basic guidelines for the bill emphasizing that "the Bill which is now being considered will mean that eighteen year olds will enter Universal Military training because most boys will be finishing their high school and there will be less upset if they do their military service than whether they are going to work of whether they are going to college." And continues to note "If they are college material they will probably be sent for college training since great care will be taken no to deplete our essential leadership either for skilled people in medicine, engineering, etc." Her defined premise for this bill was the need due to acceptance of the fact that "we were going to have, for a number of years, a situation in which we would have to be constantly prepared unless the USSR was to feel free to attack us. Since that is the case, we must now have Universal Military Training"

It is readily apparent that her letter is written to someone angry and upset about this proposed program, no doubt a mother of a child who will be impacted by the bill, and is equally dismayed about forcing 18 year olds to comply, as Roosevelt continues to comment "I think you are a trifle emotional when you call 18 year old men, children" ... and " I am sorry if you feel you can not trust your government". At this point it is clear to the reader that this bill was very controversial and not well received.

Eleanor placed in a position of being on the defensive with her writings and is trying to both appease the recipient but strongly make her point "You cannot expect always to have one man who will carry the burdens of the whole democracy and express their thinking for them ... we were spared during the last war from war in our own country and therefor today we are the strongest nation in the world ... A mother's rebellion would certainly be a novel and interesting undertaking because there would be a division even among the mothers. ... I do not know, nor could I tell you exactly how you could find out how many men in Congress have eighteen year old songs but I am sure there are a great many who have ..."

An exemplary example of a highly charged response to what must have been an equally highly charged letter. And not unlike other periods in our nations history such as instituting the draft, or putting Americans into war "off our native soil" thus fighting other country's wars - this letter must deal with the raw emotions of a parent, imaging their own child at risk for the betterment of the greater good of the country. One may want to intellectualize this need forever, but raw primal emotion and fear usually trumps any intellectual debate. Composed by one of the most involved and dedicated first lady's, Eleanor Roosevelt, this letter is rich is content and fascinating to read.

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