Ken's Labor Book Reviews
From The Archives
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Ken's Labor Book Reviews |
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Books by Penny Colman. "A Woman Unafraid: The Achievements of Frances Perkins," Atheneum, 1993, 129p., $14.95.
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March is Women's History Month, and for the occasion Penny Colman offers a feast of women's labor history books. Written for students of varying age levels, these books also are of value to working adults whose time is at a premium and to parents who want to introduce their children to the labor and women's movements for social change.
Colman wrote "A Woman Unafraid" about Francis Perkins in 1993 for a high school audience. She probably did not realize then that in 1996 the Republican Congress would attempt to roll back many of the basic labor rights and protections Perkins fought so hard to help win. Perkins, the secretary of labor under President Roosevelt in the midst of the Great Depression, was the first woman Cabinet member. She helped formulate protections on wages, hours, child labor, the minimum wage and the right to organize. If Perkins was unafraid, Mother Jones was fearless, leading labor conflicts in an age when violent confrontations were commonplace. "Mother Jones and the March of the Mill Children" is a children's book about the fight against child labor at the turn of the century. "Rosie the Riveter" is a history, at the junior high school level, of women working on the home front during World War II. Again, rich illustrations and simple text serve to highlight these dramatic changes in women's work. In a short period of time, over 6 million women gained entry to jobs previously closed to them, such as welder. Other Colman books feature "Fannie Lou Hamer" and "Dorothea Dix." Penny Colman will be one of a panel of authors speaking at DC 37 on Tuesday, March 26, in Room 10 at 6 p.m. The event is sponsored by the DC 37 Education Fund and the DC 37 Women's Committee. Members are invited to attend and bring their sixth-grade and older children to learn about women's and labor history. -- Ken Nash, Ed Fund's Rifkin Library |
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