The government decided to start a propaganda campaign to get women working to help with the war. They promoted “Rosie the Riveter” as the ideal woman worker: loyal, efficient, patriotic, and pretty. (Sorensen 3) The campaign was a success because the women stepped in to take the factory jobs that the men left behind when they went off to war. The women took jobs such as making ammunition, uniforms, and air planes. They were also doing jobs such as welding, riveting and engine repair.
Some women “felt they were needed at home to raise families, crops for food and to fill the jobs that the men had vacated in order to serve their country.”(Suite101) Women’s lives on the home front during World War II were a significant part of the war effort for all participants and had a major impact on the outcome of the war. Once the men went off to war and left their jobs, the women that were single had a great advantage because job opportunities were everywhere. In the other hand married women had a tough time, especially if they had children. Hundreds of women worked in machine shops, welding shops, manufacturing plants, and also worked in war industries to make equipment for the war. New industries, naval, and army bases were being built during the home front.
How did some women try to force to government to employ more women? Emmeline Pankhurst, a leading suffragette, campaigned vigorously with one of her daughters, Christabel, to have women more involved in the war effort. The Pankhursts organised “The Right to Serve” procession in 1915 in which 60,000 women took part. The government was soon forced to change its mind and allow women into industry and other traditionally “male” jobs. It was the only way to keep up production.
Women of all color, during World War II, were able to have tons of freedom expansion and were able to create a new place in society for themselves. When the males of the families had to leave overseas to fight in the military, women were expected to take over the male jobs in factories and perform work other than household duties. These duties in the factories consisted of making munitions and war supplies. Women not only did jobs meant for men in factories, they also performed jobs outside of the factories. According to Sarah Killngsworth, “The war started and jobs kinda opened up for women that men had.
Women helped cure many troops during the war. Because of the numerous amounts of soldiers being wounded in the trenches everyday, women were brought to the front line to help and cure the injured by joining the humanitarian organization, the American Red Cross. It was surely not an easy task, for the women ran the risk of being hit by a stray bullet, or even shelled during the enemy’s bombardment. Women without any medical knowledge usually served as drivers in ambulances, also
The women went from running the house to running the factory. Men went from running the factory to running the army and fighting. French Field Marshal Joffre emphasizes, “If the women in the factories stopped work for twenty minutes, the Allies would lose the war.” I believe that the women were the main driving force behind the war and helped the United States win with the Allies. Without them, I believe, the men fighting would not have had much power to continue to fight since the women provided them with necessities to win. The women of the early 20th century helped by filling in the jobs that men used, volunteering as nurses, and giving hope to the soldiers to fight back with.
Women felt they were treated equally prior to the war; however, that changed after US’ occupation in Iraq. Not only in the aspect of the work force but daily activities as well. Riverbend comments on how most women lost their jobs or risked their lives if they worked. Also, men carried guns, giving them a sense of power, and that they were dominant over women. Additionally, women could not leave the house after the war without being accompanied by a male.
* During the war, women started to be employed in different types of jobs eg factory work, replacing the men who had gone to fight in the war in Europe. * Organisations such as the National American Woman Suffrage Association (NAWSA) had been fighting for decades to get the vote for women. As women had contributed so much to the war effort, it was difficult to refuse their demands for
With the majority of the men gone that usually worked the factories and welding plants the United States needed to keep producing arms, ammunition, and other various equipment for the troops to continue they efforts. Thus women were encouraged by posters such as these showing that they too could help the country in this time of need. Needless to say, a great deal of women stepped up, were trained, and filled jobs that had, until this time, only been filled by men. Rosie the Riveter has made a mark on the American people and most of all the way in which the American woman is seen. Women were once only seen in homes cleaning and cooking and the era of Rosie was the first step in women’s rights.
Coming from all walks of life, there were those already working who switched to higher-paying defense jobs, those who had lost their jobs due to the Depression, and then there were the women who worked at home. Rosie the Riveter was the idol for these working women also she was known as the cover girl for the recruiting campaign. By 1944, 16 percent of all working women held jobs in war industries. While an estimated 18 million women worked during the war, there was growing concern among them that when the war was over, it would never be the same again. That new venture for American women would soon come to an end.