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Our Mothers' War

American Women at Home and at the Front During World War II
L1br0V0re
Feb 22, 2013L1br0V0re rated this title 3.5 out of 5 stars
Fascinating look at the feminine side of the Greatest Generation. It's appalling to think of the sexual double standard which raged then. Women, not men, were blamed for spreading venereal disease. Single women were barred from going to public places like bars unescorted. Underage women were arrested for hanging out near military bases. While white women were allowed to take dangerous industrial jobs and serve in auxiliary services (WACs, WAVEs, WASPs, nursing, etc.), many women of color were barred or forced to take the worst possible jobs. All women dealt with harassment from male co-workers. Lesbians were subjected to degrading disciplinary hearings. In spite of this, women kept the factories humming, the wounded alive, the troops supplied and entertained, and children fed and clothed during a time of tremendous dislocation and shortages. They also calculated artillery trajectories, helped to crack enemy codes and risked their lives as spies. If you are at all interested in the social impact of World War II on the US, read this book.