November 3, 1933
Harold L. Ickes, Secretary of the Interior, criticized the ideology of “rugged individualism” as a “doctrine of the devil” and “dog eat dog” in a speech at Philadelphia Board of Trade. He said: “Rugged individualism means exploitation of the weak by the strong and it secures unconscionable profits out of overburdened women working in sweatshops, and from little children toiling at the machines. . . . Rugged individualism has become a museum piece. Cooperation is now the watchword. We acknowledge our interdependence on each other. We realize that we will either go up or down together.”
