part I of outline

Outline

I. Women's lives changed in many ways during World War II; many found their roles, opportunities and responsibilities, expanded.
A. Husbands went to war or went to work in factories in other parts of the country, and the wives had to pick up their husbands' responsibilities.
1. In the military, women were excluded from combat duty.
B. American women were not the only ones to be affected, women in other Allied and Axis countries were also affected.
1. Some ways in which women were affected were specific.
a. The "comfort women" of China and Korea
b. Jewish women and the Holocaust
II. Women at home were forced to conserve resources and domestic products.
A. Resources were diverted from domestic uses to military uses, the domestic workforce fell, and even though women filled some of the openings domestic production fell as well.
1. Women's shopping and food preparation habits were affected by having to deal with rationing methods, as well as working outside the home in addition to her homemaking responsibilities.
2. Women were urged by organized propaganda campaigns to practice frugality, to carry groceries instead of using the car to preserve tire rubber for the war effort.
a. Also to grow more of their family's food and to sew and repair clothing rather than buy new clothes, to raise money for and contribute to war bonds.
III. Because of the absence of many men who joined the military or took jobs in war production industries, some women moved outside their traditional roles and took positions in jobs usually reserved for men.
A. Propaganda posters with images like "Rosie the Riveter" promoted the idea that it was patriotic and not unfeminine.
B. Thousands of women moved to Washington, DC, to take government office and support jobs.
C. There were many jobs for women at Los Alamos and Oak Ridge, as the US explored nuclear weapons.
D. All-American Girls Baseball League was created during this period, and reflected the shortage of male baseball players in the major league.
IV. Women served in many positions in direct support of military efforts.
A. Military women were excluded from combat positions, but that didn't keep some from being in harm's way.
1. Many nurses in or near combat zones or on ships, for example were killed.
2. About 74,000 women served in the American Army and Navy Nurse Corps.
B. Figures for women serving with the American military in World War II:
Army - 140,000, Navy - 100,000, Marines - 23,000, Coast Guard - 13,000, Air Force - 1,000
Army and Navy Nurse Corps - 74,000
C. More than 1,000 women served as pilots associated with the US Air Force in the WASP (Women Air force Service Pilots) but were considered civil service workers, and weren't recognized for their military service until the 1970s.
V. In addition to thousands of women who took government jobs in support of the war effort or to free up men for other jobs, women played key leadership roles in government.
A. In China, Madame Chiang Kai-shek was an active promoter of the Chinese cause against the Japanese occupation.
1. This wife of the Nationalist leader of China was head of China's air force during the war.
2. She spoke to the US Congress in 1943, and was called the world's most famous woman for her efforts.
B. In the United States, First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt played an active role in building morale among citizens and military forces.
1. Due to her husband's disability and the fact that he must not be seen by the public as disabled meant that she took over some of his responsibilities.
C. At the end of the war, Alice Paul rewrote the Equal Rights Amendment, which had been introduced into and rejected by each session of Congress since women had achieved the vote in 1920.