"YOU CAN DO IT!"

http://re3.yt-thm-a03.yimg.com/image/25/m2/2367376398

The above link should lead to the image of Rosie the Riveter. For some reason, the image

would not paste exactly as is to this blog. I chose the image of Rosie the Riveter because she

represents women entering the work force during WWII. This is very much pertinent to what

we have studied thus far, relating to oppression.

"Domestic. Shop Girl. Waitress. Cook ... Those were the jobs for women in the 1930's ­ when

they could get work. Suddenly the U.S. entry into World War II created an unprecedented

demand for new workers. Notions of what was proper work for women changed overnight.

Thousands of posters and billboards appeared calling on women to "Do the Job He Left Behind."

Rosie the Riveter was born ­­ the symbol of working women during World War II.

After whirlwind training, women found themselves doing "men's work" and they did it so well

that production levels rose despite the military call­up of millions of male workers. They

discovered a new sense of pride and dignity in their work. Their earnings leapt upwards. Many

joined unions and found substantial new benefits from labor representation. And for the first time

in history, black women gained entry into major industrial plants"

(http://osulibrary.oregonstate.edu/video/hist172.html).

This relates to our class material in obvious ways. Although we have not talked much about

women's rights, this directly relates to oppression, women's oppression. Women have been and

are just as much at the forefront of oppression as any race. If we go by, what Johnson describes,

as the "Matrix of Domination" than no matter if a woman is able bodied, white, and heterosexual,

she is still not a 4. She is merely a 3 based on her sex!

I am proud of how symbolic Rosie the Riveter is. I see her photo in many Lesbian bars. Her

representation really has nothing to do with Lesbianism or homosexuality but more to do with a

woman's power. WWII was a milestone for women. Women no longer felt like they only

belonged in the kitchen but they were and are worth so much more!

Sources:

http://osulibrary.oregonstate.edu/video/hist172.html.

Johnson, Alan G."Chapter 6:"What it All Has to Do with Us.""Power, Privilege and Difference, 2nd edition.New York:McGraw Hill, 2006.76-84.