Fola La Follette
Encyclopedia
Flora Dodge 'Fola' La Follette (September 10, 1882 – February 17, 1970) was a women's suffrage
and labor activist from Madison, Wisconsin
, USA. At the time of her death in 1970, the New York Times highlighted her quotation: "A good husband is not a substitute for the ballot." She was the daughter of progressive politician Robert “Fighting Bob” La Follette
and lawyer and women's suffrage leader Belle Case La Follette
, wife of playwright George Middleton
, a contributing editor to La Follette’s Weekly Magazine, an actress and, with her mother, a chronicler of her father's life.
and progressive politician Robert La Follette
in Madison, Wisconsin
. Her early education was at Wisconsin Academy in Madison.
She went on to graduate from the University of Wisconsin.
in 1911 while retaining her maiden name.
She appeared on Broadway
in such plays as Leo Ditrichstein
's Bluffs (1908), Percy MacKaye
's The Scarecrow
(1911) and the Broadway production of her husband's Tradition.
But it was in the merger of La Follette's women's suffrage and acting careers where she made her greatest impact. She performed numerous times in the one-woman play How the Vote was Won, first in 1910, and, in 1912, she appeared in Vaudeville
to give a well-received suffragist speech. Anna Shaw, president of the National American Woman Suffrage Association
, wrote La Follette, praising the 1910 play: "I had the pleasure of being present at the benefit performance of 'How the Vote was Won' ... and I have wanted ever since to express to you and the others who took part with you, my appreciation for the splendid help that play was to our cause." For suffragists, La Follette became the embodiment of how they wished to be portrayed. Her wry, gracious performances stood as contradiction to the cliché of the "conventional traditional 'suffragists' who are the butt of the comic-joke maker."
In 1913, La Follette played a role in gaining her father's promise to intercede in the United States Senate
on behalf of striking
workers in the garment industry in New York City
. She spent time as a strike picket and used the prominence of her voice as a member of an influential family and as a well-known actress to denounce the arrests and treatment of striking workers. It was a significant time in both the labor movement and women's movement, and the public's attention was caught by the concept of women picketing for their rights, and La Follette and other activists showed their support. In addition to picketing, La Follette gave a speech to the workers, went to court to testify on behalf of arrested workers and raised the issue of police brutality. Together with other society and college women, La Follette was part of what was referred to in this and other strikes as the "mink brigade", women whose dress and social status would give police pause in arresting them.
Together with other actors, La Follette helped found the actors' union Actors' Equity.
La Follette's mother had begun a biography of Fola's famous father but died about one quarter of the way into the project. La Follette labored over the next 16 years to finish the biography, published in 1953, which the chief of the Manuscript Division of the Library of Congress called "brilliant" and of which the New York Times reviewer wrote: "What we have here, in sum, is a wonderfully rich and detailed personal account that goes far to restore to us one of the giants of the past generation."
Women's suffrage
Women's suffrage or woman suffrage is the right of women to vote and to run for office. The expression is also used for the economic and political reform movement aimed at extending these rights to women and without any restrictions or qualifications such as property ownership, payment of tax, or...
and labor activist from Madison, Wisconsin
Madison, Wisconsin
Madison is the capital of the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Dane County. It is also home to the University of Wisconsin–Madison....
, USA. At the time of her death in 1970, the New York Times highlighted her quotation: "A good husband is not a substitute for the ballot." She was the daughter of progressive politician Robert “Fighting Bob” La Follette
Robert M. La Follette, Sr.
Robert Marion "Fighting Bob" La Follette, Sr. , was an American Republican politician. He served as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives, was the Governor of Wisconsin, and was also a U.S. Senator from Wisconsin...
and lawyer and women's suffrage leader Belle Case La Follette
Belle Case La Follette
Belle Case La Follette was a lawyer and a women's suffrage activist in Wisconsin, USA. La Follette worked with the women's peace party during World War I...
, wife of playwright George Middleton
George Middleton (playwright)
George Middleton was an American playwright, director, and producer.-Career:He was famous for his plays The Failures and Adam and Eva...
, a contributing editor to La Follette’s Weekly Magazine, an actress and, with her mother, a chronicler of her father's life.
Early life
On September 10, 1882, Fola La Follette was born the first child to lawyer and women's suffrage leader Belle Case La FolletteBelle Case La Follette
Belle Case La Follette was a lawyer and a women's suffrage activist in Wisconsin, USA. La Follette worked with the women's peace party during World War I...
and progressive politician Robert La Follette
Robert M. La Follette, Sr.
Robert Marion "Fighting Bob" La Follette, Sr. , was an American Republican politician. He served as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives, was the Governor of Wisconsin, and was also a U.S. Senator from Wisconsin...
in Madison, Wisconsin
Madison, Wisconsin
Madison is the capital of the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Dane County. It is also home to the University of Wisconsin–Madison....
. Her early education was at Wisconsin Academy in Madison.
She went on to graduate from the University of Wisconsin.
Actress
After graduating, La Follette acted on the stage for ten years, marrying playwright George MiddletonGeorge Middleton (playwright)
George Middleton was an American playwright, director, and producer.-Career:He was famous for his plays The Failures and Adam and Eva...
in 1911 while retaining her maiden name.
She appeared on Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
in such plays as Leo Ditrichstein
Leo Ditrichstein
Leo Ditrichstein was an American actor and playwright of Austrian-Hungarian birth, born in Temesvár, Austria-Hungary. He was educated in Vienna and was naturalized as an American citizen in 1897. He made his New York début in Die Ehre, . This was followed by: Mr. Wilkinson's Widows, Trilby,...
's Bluffs (1908), Percy MacKaye
Percy MacKaye
Percy MacKaye was an American dramatist and poet.-Biography:MacKaye was born in New York City, New York. After graduating from Harvard in 1897, he traveled in Europe for three years, residing in Rome, Switzerland and London, studying at the University of Leipzig in 1899–1900...
's The Scarecrow
The Scarecrow (play)
The Scarecrow is a play written by Percy MacKaye in 1908, and first presented on Broadway in 1911. It is based on Nathaniel Hawthorne's short story, "Feathertop", but greatly expands upon the tale...
(1911) and the Broadway production of her husband's Tradition.
Women's suffrage and labor activist
La Follette wrote for periodicals in the cause of women's suffrage (see below) and was active in helping her mother in the cause from an early age.But it was in the merger of La Follette's women's suffrage and acting careers where she made her greatest impact. She performed numerous times in the one-woman play How the Vote was Won, first in 1910, and, in 1912, she appeared in Vaudeville
Vaudeville
Vaudeville was a theatrical genre of variety entertainment in the United States and Canada from the early 1880s until the early 1930s. Each performance was made up of a series of separate, unrelated acts grouped together on a common bill...
to give a well-received suffragist speech. Anna Shaw, president of the National American Woman Suffrage Association
National American Woman Suffrage Association
The National American Woman Suffrage Association was an American women's rights organization formed in May 1890 as a unification of the National Woman Suffrage Association and the American Woman Suffrage Association...
, wrote La Follette, praising the 1910 play: "I had the pleasure of being present at the benefit performance of 'How the Vote was Won' ... and I have wanted ever since to express to you and the others who took part with you, my appreciation for the splendid help that play was to our cause." For suffragists, La Follette became the embodiment of how they wished to be portrayed. Her wry, gracious performances stood as contradiction to the cliché of the "conventional traditional 'suffragists' who are the butt of the comic-joke maker."
In 1913, La Follette played a role in gaining her father's promise to intercede in the United States Senate
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
on behalf of striking
Strike action
Strike action, also called labour strike, on strike, greve , or simply strike, is a work stoppage caused by the mass refusal of employees to work. A strike usually takes place in response to employee grievances. Strikes became important during the industrial revolution, when mass labour became...
workers in the garment industry in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. She spent time as a strike picket and used the prominence of her voice as a member of an influential family and as a well-known actress to denounce the arrests and treatment of striking workers. It was a significant time in both the labor movement and women's movement, and the public's attention was caught by the concept of women picketing for their rights, and La Follette and other activists showed their support. In addition to picketing, La Follette gave a speech to the workers, went to court to testify on behalf of arrested workers and raised the issue of police brutality. Together with other society and college women, La Follette was part of what was referred to in this and other strikes as the "mink brigade", women whose dress and social status would give police pause in arresting them.
Together with other actors, La Follette helped found the actors' union Actors' Equity.
Political campaigner
In 1924, La Follette took the place of her mother Belle, who had become ill, in the presidential campaign of her father, Robert M. La Follette, Sr.Teacher
From 1926 to 1930, La Follette taught at City and Country School in New York City, New York.Author
La Follette served as a contributing editor to the family's eponymous progressive magazine and contributed to other periodicals.La Follette's mother had begun a biography of Fola's famous father but died about one quarter of the way into the project. La Follette labored over the next 16 years to finish the biography, published in 1953, which the chief of the Manuscript Division of the Library of Congress called "brilliant" and of which the New York Times reviewer wrote: "What we have here, in sum, is a wonderfully rich and detailed personal account that goes far to restore to us one of the giants of the past generation."
Death
La Follette died at the age of 87, of pneumonia, in a hospital in Arlington, Virginia on February 17, 1970.Further reading
External links
- American Women, Manuscript Division - Library of CongressLibrary of CongressThe Library of Congress is the research library of the United States Congress, de facto national library of the United States, and the oldest federal cultural institution in the United States. Located in three buildings in Washington, D.C., it is the largest library in the world by shelf space and...