WHY?
Millions of visitors come to Washington, DC annually to visit the memorials telling stories of our nation’s past, yet only one small plaque on the WWII Memorial mentions the nearly 19 million women who stepped up, rolled up their sleeves, and worked jobs which, until then, had only been held by men. According to many experts, these women were instrumental in the Allied victory. Eisenhower himself said, “The contribution of the women of America, whether on the farm or in the factory or in uniform, to D-Day was a sine qua non [or necessary for]…the invasion effort.”
Countries around the world have memorials dedicated to women who worked on their homefront. The United States is remiss in not doing the same. The collection of women was vastly diverse in ethnicity (Black, Latina, Native American, Asian American, among others), socioeconomic status, education, marital status, etc., yet they all made contributions to the war effort.
Rosie the Riveter is an iconic symbol of the women on the homefront during WWII. Yet, many of the “Rosies” themselves who held jobs that were not factory jobs are unaware that they are included in the Rosie the Riveter narrative; sadly then, their descendants likely don’t know either, and nor do the tens of thousands of children who come to Washington, DC to learn about our country’s history through memorials and museums. The occupations of the women on the home front were vast: Pilots, code breakers, electricians, engineers, farmers, bus drivers… the list goes on.
Memorials are a starting place to tell a story and the women on the homefront during WWII need their story to be front and center in our nation’s capital. Not only did they help win the war, but they also opened the doors for future generations of women, forever changing the course of the economy and strength of our nation.
We have a female Vice President, the largest number of females in Congress, and females leading Fortune 500 Companies than we’ve ever had before. Without the women on the homefront, we would not be where we are today. And where would would the likes of Boeing, Ford, and Lockheed Martin – among many others – be without the contribution of the women during WWII? Let’s get these women the honor they deserve and make sure none of them are forgotten in the story of our nation’s past.