Thing to Do

Reflect at the Vietnam Women’s Memorial

National Mall and Memorial Parks , Vietnam Veterans Memorial

Statue of two women caring for fallen soldier.

National Mall and Memorial Parks , Vietnam Veterans Memorial

Photo of the statue of an older Eleanor Roosevelt with the United Nations seal in the background.
The statue of Eleanor Roosevelt, located near the Tidal Basin, includes the United Nations seal as a tribute to her contributions.

Photo taken by Carol Highsmith. Courtesy of the Library of Congress.

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Another “must see” memorial is the tribute to Franklin Delano Roosevelt, the 32nd president, located around the Tidal Basin. Included in the memorial is a statue of Roosevelt's wife, Eleanor Roosevelt. She helped shape some of the reform programs of the Great Depression Era and she often sat in for her husband at political meetings.

Eleanor supported rights for women and African Americans and she befriended activists such as Mary McLeod Bethune. She also served as First Lady her husband's four terms in office, which included the Great Depression and World War II.

After her husband’s death, Eleanor was appointed to serve as the U.S. representative to the newly-created United Nations. She wrote the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which was passed in 1948. She died in 1962 and is buried in New York.


Sources:

http://www.vietnamwomensmemorial.org/vwmf.php
https://www.nps.gov/vive/index.htm
http://www.firstladies.org/biographies/firstladies.aspx?biography=33

Last updated: May 10, 2021