Over 75 years ago our country was in a fight for freedom. Millions of women entered the workforce to take on jobs in traditionally male-dominated industries. These women were our mothers, sisters, grandmothers and they were the real Rosie the Riveters. The image of Rosie represented the work and sacrifices made by women on the home front.
Rosie the Riveter was the star of an American propaganda campaign with the aim of recruiting women to take on jobs that helped with the war effort. By 1943, 310,000 women worked in the American aircraft industry, representing 65% of the total workforce — a huge increase compared to the 1% of the workforce they represented pre-war. At the end of the war more than 2.2 million women were working on the war effort; one in every four married women worked outside the home. These women built ships, aircrafts, tanks, vehicles, weapons, and ammunition. They also played a huge logistical support role by working on farms, driving trucks, and even providing nursing support on the front line.
Continue reading “The Real Rosie the Riveter, the Women who helped us win World War II”