Women in the War
The War had a great impact on women. The Military organized women into auxiliary units with special uniforms, their own officers and they received equal pay. The majority of the women who joined the army filled traditional women's roles such as nursing or replaced men in non-combat jobs. By 1945, more than 250,000 women had joined the Women's Army Force (WAC,) the Army Nurses Corp, the Navy Nurses Corps, the Marines, The Women Accepted for Voluntary Emergency Service, and the Coast Guard. The war tried the stereotypical "working mother" image that women in that era withheld. "Rosie the Riveter" became a popular American symbol to women who abandoned traditional female activity to work in the defense industries . For the first time in history, married working women outnumbered single working women as 6.3 million entered the work force during war. Social Critics relished in criticizing women for their inappropriate actions. Many social workers fault the working mothers for the increase in juvenile delinquency during the War. |
Mexican Americans
Approximately 400,000 Mexican Americans served in armed forces during the war. For many Mexican Americans, jobs in the industry provided an escape from the poverty of transient farm labor. The need for farm labor dramatically rose after Pearl Harbor. The United States would then create the Bracero Program in 1942. By 1945 hundreds and thousands of Mexicans had immigrated to the Southwest. Commercial Farmers resented them with open arms but there were also the labor unions who resented them. This lead to the discrimination of Mexicans and Mexican Americans in the US. In Los Angeles, ethnic differences were becoming a problem. This later erupted into violence and newly formed Mexican American youth gangs who celebrated their culture by wearing "soot suits," colorful suits. In June 1943, hundreds of Anglo sailors, from nearby naval bases, invaded downtown Los Angeles eager to discourage Mexican American youths. They attacked and riots broke out for several nights. The press blamed the Mexican American gangs. The riots did not end until the military police ordered the sailors back to their ships. |
Page Written and Edited by Valerie Fong.