Folk Hero Rosie The Riveter and Women's Labor

By Megan Garrett

'"Rosie the Riveter" was a classic folk hero who helped mobilize the popular image of women in the work force during World War II. The emergence of women doing predominately men's jobs led indirectly to the issue of the Women's Movement. There were huge campaigns of propaganda posters and flyers that went around supporting the idea of women entering the work place while men were away in the war. The well-known poster with the women in a bandanna shouting, "We Can Do It!" was created before "Rosie The Riveter" was shown in the film promoting the war effort. Once Rose Monroe, or "Rosie The Riveter" as she become known, became popular, she was used in several other films and posters as well. She fit into the character of the "Rosie the Riveter" song that was created to support women involvement in the work force. In the future, Rosie's image was to further the issue on women's rights as a whole. It only took a few years after World War II for women to take action to finally spur on the Women's Movement.

 The United States government launched a huge nationwide propaganda campaign to help encourage people at home to do anything they could to help in the war effort. Anything from buying war bonds to actually joining the military. The propaganda included songs, films, flyers, and many posters. All these things emphasized the importance to be patriotic and be optimistic in the thoughts of the war. Even though the images emphasized the importance of being supportive of the war effort, there were many posters and flyers with images, which instilled quite opposite feelings. People developed feelings of hate, fear, and many others toward the enemy forces. While the government was sending messages of patriotism as well as suspicion, they were also sending messages for women to join the work force to take the place of the men who had left to help fight the war.

 Many famous artists, like Norman Rockwell, helped makes these posters and flyers for the war effort, and they created many images displaying women working. These women were showed doing jobs such as farming and typing, in the army or navy, and in manufacturing industry. From these posters and flyers came the famous, "Rosie The Riveter". She first appeared on the well-known propaganda poster, "We Can Do It!" with her hair in a bandanna and in an industrial worker's uniform, rolling up her sleeve and showing her muscles. In the 1940's being a "feminine woman" was important, and it was unusual for a women to do heavy industrial jobs such as riveting, train work, welding or other jobs where men predominated. Luckily, "Rosie" was pictured beautiful as well as skillful and patriotic, making it socially acceptable for women to be industrial workers without giving up their femininity. Then came the song "Rosie The Riveter", in 1942, written by Redd Evans and John Jacob Loeb. The lyrics were meant to glorify the idea of women in the work force during World War II:

Rosie the Riveter

 

All the day long,

Whether rain or shine,

She's a part of the assembly line.

She's making history,

Working for victory,

Rosie the Riveter.

Keeps a sharp lookout for sabotage,

Sitting up there on the fuselage.

That little girl will do more than a male will do.

Rosie's got a boyfriend, Charlie.

Charlie, he's a Marine.

Rosie is protecting Charlie,

Working overtime on the riveting machine

When they gave her a production "E",

She was as proud as she could be,

There's something true about,

Red, white, and blue about,

Rosie the Riveter.

There was also a big propaganda campaign in Britain and Europe, producing posters and other images, urging women to join the labor force to help support the war.

  There was, in fact, a real "Rosie the Riveter". Even though she was found after they had created the classical character, she fit the profile completely. Rose Monroe was the real life "Rosie the Riveter", a riveter in the Willow Run Aircraft Factory in Michigan, riveting plane parts together. She had moved from Kentucky to Michigan after her husband died, and riveting planes to help support herself and her two children. While making a short film about selling war bonds, actor Walter Pidgeon discovered her. He then decided to make her into "Rosie the Riveter" in the film, she also appeared in other promotional war films. According to one of her daughters, Vickie Jarvis, "she happened to be in the right place at the right time and was chosen to be in some of these films." The character of "Rosie the Riveter" was credited for an enormous increase in the number of women joining the work force to help support the war.

"Rosie" spurred so much interest in the women's labor force, that about six million women joined the work force and sections of the navy and military while the war was going on. Many of the industrial companies realized the stresses that women with jobs and families could have; they started to supply special services for the women working. Companies like Kaiser Corporation, Hudson & Douglas Aircraft, Curtiss-Wright, and others provided day care centers where the women could leave their children while they worked, and they also provided things like shopping, food service, laundry, and repair stations. Even though there were many women in the work force, a lot of them started jobs that were already designated "women jobs" such as secretarial work, clerking, typing, teaching, and other areas in need of workers. Since there were more conveniences in the factory, many women worked overtime and often spent up to 10 hours per day, working in the factories seven days a week. Some of the women were not paid for working, it was purely voluntary. The women who did get paid, were only paid half of what a man would earn at the same job with the same hours. Women were paid about $31.21 when men were paid $54.65. Skilled women were even paid less than unskilled men were. After the war was over and the men were starting to come back home, women were encouraged to go back into the home and resume their old, subservient jobs in the house and kitchen. The government then launched another campaign that now, emphasized the need for women to leave the work force and go back to the kitchen, so that the men returning could reclaim their jobs in the industry. While many of the "Rosie's" of the war followed the urging of the government and did go back to the kitchen, the real "Rosie", Rose Monroe went on to become a variety of things. She pursued the occupation of a cab driver; she also started her own beauty shop as well as a construction company. She also earned her pilot's license, and was the only female in her flying club. Later, there was a song wrote based on a quote found by Linda Allen and "Rosie the Riveter-Revisited" was written.

Since the image of Rose Monroe and "Rosie The Riveter" were so well-known during the war, many women found it necessary to address the issue of women's rights. Thus, the continuation of the Women's Movement. Women decided they, too needed equal rights, not only in the right to vote, but in the work place as well. After the war, many women decided to pursue their own careers. Despite the domesticity of women in the 1950's, the next decade reflected a lot of the attention that the women in the 1840's wanted. The women of the 1840's set out to have women recognized as capable people that can function outside, without a man around. They wanted the same rights as men. Women such as Elizabeth Cady Stanton got together and decided to do something about the position of women. Stanton drafted the famous "Declaration of Sentiments" following the format of The Declaration of Independence. This document thoroughly drew out he wishes for a reform in the rights of women. Despite the meetings and letters and small protests, the vote wasn't won until 1920! In the 1960's, women took it to a new level of extremes of protests and burnings, but they got the attention they wanted, right? The Women's Rights movement pushed to creation Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act ("prohibiting employment discrimination an the basis of sex as well as race, religion, and national origin"), the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, and the National Organization for Women.

Many other people believed that "Rosie the Riveter" was an inspiration for lesbians of the 1940's. There were two women in particular who were supposed to represent all that a woman in the 1940's was supposed to be like, and they turned out to be a lesbian couple who worked together riveting the bombers for the war. Well, the fight for equal rights for women is still going on in the 1990's, but there has been a lot accomplished so far in the area. Many women hold jobs and positions the same as, if not higher than men in many job areas. There has been much advancement in the position of women in general. Women, nowadays, are given a lot more respect than they used to be given in the late 1800's and early 1900's.

In 1997, Rose Monroe died at age 77 of kidney failure. She left behind her many family members and fans who were inspired by her image during the war and afterwards. She may not have known it, but she helped further the efforts of the labor movement and helped established the fact that women can do a good job, if not better, at the same things that men can.