(Courtesy of the U.S. House of Representatives)
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In May 1941, Massachusetts Congresswoman Edith Nourse Rogers introduced a bill to Congress to establish a women’s corp in the Army, independent from the ANC. The women’s corp would ensure that both sexes were compensated equally for defending their country. However, the bill failed to be considered seriously, especially since the U.S. wasn't fully involved in any major conflict.
“The politicians... made flimsy promises of considering a women’s corps of sorts while quietly hoping that it would all go away and secretly trying to figure out how to stop it” - Colonel Barbara Wilson, 1941. |
USA Declares War - Franklin Roosevelt
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However, on December 7, Japan attacked the U.S. Pearl Harbor naval base. One day later, Congress passed the motion to let the nation officially enter World War II. The sudden need for manpower left the Army feeling unprepared. Many men were holding non-combatant Army jobs, and soldier jobs remained vacant. Rogers’ bill suddenly seemed to be one that had to be considered.
"Political and military leaders, faced with fighting a two-front war and supplying men and equipment and supplies for that war... realized that women could supply the additional resources so desperately needed in the military and industrial sectors. " - Judith A. Bellafaire, Author of the Women's Army Corps: A Commemoration of World War II Service |
(Courtesy of Pearl Harbor Memorials)
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(Courtesy of Online Archive of California)
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