Rosie the Riveter
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Rosie the Riveter is a cultural icon of the United States, representing the six million women who manned the manufacturing plants which produced munitions and material during World War II while the men (who traditionally performed this work) were off fighting the war. This "character" is now considered a feminist icon in the US, and a herald of women's economic power to come.
Origin
When America entered World War II in December 1941, life changed for everyone. All the factories were begging for help. They desperately needed workers, and soon the meager reserve of men who had not gone to war was exhausted. The US Department of Labor declared a shortage of workers. To satisfy the demands, women were actively recruited for the work force. This change in the norms of society met opposition, so the government created the Rosie the Riveter propaganda campaign.
In 1940, only 10% of women who worked were employed by factories, but by 1944, the figure was up to 30%. Although pay was not always equal (the average man working in a wartime plant was paid $54.65 per week, while women on average were paid $31.21 per week), and conditions were sometimes very poor, women quickly responded to Rosie the Riveter, who convinced them they had a patriotic duty to enter the workforce. Some claim that she forever opened up the work force for women, but others dispute that point, noting that many women were discharged after the war and the jobs given to returning servicemen.
After the war the "Rosies" and the generations that followed them knew that working in the factories was in fact a possibility for women, even though they did not reenter the job market in such large proportions again until the 1970s, and by that time factory employment was in decline all over the country.
The image most iconically associated with Rosie is J. Howard Miller's famous poster for Westinghouse, entitled We Can Do It! (above right), which was modeled on Michigan factory worker Geraldine Doyle in 1942.
But the woman in the painting bore no name. It wasn't until early 1943 that a song by Redd Evans and John Jacob Loeb, Rosie the Riveter, was released. [link] The final connection between the name of Rosie and the character was made by Norman Rockwell for his eponymous cover for the May 29, 1943 Saturday Evening Post, which depicted a different Rosie (model Mary Doyle Keefe). See [the original painting] and the magazine cover. [link] Note the copy of Mein Kampf under her feet. It is not clear whether Rockwell had seen the Miller poster.
Statistics
- In 1942, just between the months of January and July, the estimates of the proportion of jobs that would be 'acceptable' for women was raised by employers from 29 to 55 percent.
- About half of the working women were married.
- By the end of the war the average income for women had risen by 38%.
- By 1945, one in every three workers was a woman.
See also
References
- [UAW Local 602 Newsletter] - March 24, 2003 (PDF file)
- [Michigan History for Kids] magazine - Spring 2003 (PDF file)[link]
- Bornstein, Anna 'Dolly' Gillan. Woman Welder/ Shipbuilder in World War II. Winnie the Welder Oral History Project. Schlesinger Library, Radcliffe College. February 16, 2005.
- Bourke-White, Margaret. "Women In Steel: They are Handling Tough Jobs In Heavy Industry". Life. August 9, 1943.
- Bowman, Constance. Slacks and Calluses - Our Summer in a Bomber Factory. Smithsonian Institution. Washington D.C. 1999.
- Cabanis, Helen. Woman Riveter in World War II. Rosie the Riveter Collection, Rose State College, Eastern Oklahoma Country Regional History. Center. [link] March 16, 2003.
- Hresko, Mary and Mary Vincher Shiner. Women Workers in World War II. [link] May 21, 2001.
- Meacham, Clarice. Woman Welder and Riveter during World War II. Personal Interview. December 13, 2004.
External links
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