Embedded Files
Women in the Homefront
Women in the Homefront
Jobs
Jobs
image by Rivas-Rodriguez
(above) Chicanas working at Friedrich Refrigeration during World War II
(below) Rita Rodriguez, an airplane industry worker in 1942
image by Hollem
Labor shortages in defense industries pulled Mexican-American women to war industry jobs. Few jobs had been available to Chicano females before the war: Primarily domestic jobs employed Mexicanas. Therefore, women sought defense industry jobs. During 1943, women had composed over half of aircraft and munitions industries. During this time, there were not sufficient demographic surveys. However, estimates say around 5,000 Mexican-American women from the midwest worked for the defense industries. (Rankin)
Apart from missing their families, women had to take a big responsibility at home and take care of their families on their own. Women for the most part would work around the house taking care of basic needs for their families. Once the war started, women prepared and sold war bonds to raise money for military operations. They would even host entertainment events for troops such as dancing and musical shows. A job shortage occurred which left no choice but for women to fill in those spots. Jobs included mining, railroad construction, airplane factories, and agricultural jobs. In an interview with Henrietta Rivas, who was a wife filling in jobs during WWll, said she went from earning $1.50 a week from cleaning houses and $90 a week from being a civil service interpreter (Rivas).
Mothers and Wives
Mothers and Wives
In Tucson, Arizona, Mexican-American men founded “El Club de Madres y Esposas” (The Mothers and Wives Club); however, the club was very much female based. The women in the club attracted public attention for the war effort, volunteered for the Red Cross, and one mother received honors from an Arizona veteran program. Carmen Rios, a mother of five in the military, earned this award. The members of this organization donated 36 hours of their time to make 9,000 surgical dressings for the Red Cross. The club also sold war bonds to raise money for the war effort. (Campbell)
Furthermore, women put their time into making newsletters that notified the community and those overseas of anything of importance: "Chatter" covered birthdays, deaths, astrology, and many more topics. Rose Rodriguez wrote the newspaper. Having secretarial skills and time, she wrote the paper between her lunch breaks and free time. Although she initially wrote the newspaper in Spanish, English speakers wanted to read it. The title of the newsletter changed from “Chismes” (Spanish for gossip) to “Chatter.” The women behind this newsletter and group received recognition from many men overseas. (Campbell)
image in Campbell's article, "Madres Y Esposas"
Women in the Warfront
Women in the Warfront
Carmen Conteras Bozak
Carmen Conteras Bozak
Image found in interview titled “Carmen Conteras Bozak”
Some of Bozak's Medals include:
The European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal
World War II Victory Medal
Battle Stars
American Campaign Medal
WAAC Service Medal
Good Conduct Medal
Carmen Conteras Bozak was the first Hispanic American to serve in the Women’s Army Auxiliary Corps (WAAC). She had been called to the war by her motivation and the War Department. The Army sought for bilingual Hispanic women to work for communications and cryptology departments. Likewise, Carmen Conteras Bozak spoke five languages: Including English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and Italian. However, in the 1940’s it was riskier for women to volunteer: If the enemy captured a servicewoman, they did not have the same protections as captured male servicemen. Nevertheless, Carmen Conteras Bozak volunteered to go to North Africa. (DeSimone)
Overseas, she worked for the Signal Corps. There, she sent and received coded messages for then general officer Dwight D. Eisenhower. Although the encampment she stayed in had been a German target, she did not leave to the states until she got an infection. Discharged as a technical sergeant, she received a multitude of awards and medals. (Heintz)
Maria Sally Salazar
Maria Sally Salazar
Maria Sally Salazar illegally enlisted in World War II in 1941. The United States joined the war while she turned 19; however, Sally Salazar had to be 21 to volunteer for the war without parental consent, which she did not have. Motivated by her dream of traveling to Europe, Maria lied to her parents, took her older sister’s birth certificate, and signed up to serve in San Antonio. So, she went by her older sister’s name, Ameilia, during her service. (“Maria Sally Salazar”)
Through the Women’s Army Corp, Sally Salazar had been sent to New Guinea and the Philippines, sadly not Europe. Although she had a multitude of jobs, she mostly worked for the General Surgeons office. She rose to Private First Class. The conditions were horrendous: High-stress situations combined with not even the bare minimum medical supplies took a toll on many women, including Sally Salazar. Eventually, she was discharged and sent to a hospital in the Philippines for treatment of multiple illnesses. (“Maria Sally Salazar”)
When asked if she regrets volunteering for the war, she responded that she was grateful for both the good and the bad from serving. (“Maria Sally Salazar”)
Rafaela Muñiz Esquivel
Images found in "Rafaela Muñiz Esquivel" interview
Rafaela was born in San Antonio, Texas. The Muñiz family had three children who joined the army during WWII. “Mother never seemed to worry too much about me,” Esquivel said. “She knew [that] I knew what to do. …I think she was more concerned about [my brothers].” It was in junior high that Rafaela decided to become a nurse. Rafaela graduated from a nursing school in May 1942. Rafaela joined the Army Nurse Corps, and she was a second lieutenant in the reserve and showed up for duty on October 1, 1942. She was sent to Fort Sam Houston for basic training.
Esquivel worked in the respiratory, dental, eye, and medical wards. Patients who were very ill were sent to the medical ward. For a short time, Rafaela was sent to another camp and that is where she was assigned to the 101st Evacuation Hospital in Luxembourg. That is where casualties were sent after they were given first aid. In early 1945 she was sent to a hospital in Germany near Koblenz. "[We] had a couple of German ... SS, real strong looking. Both had stomach wounds and they had rubber tubes ... 'wagenstien suctions' ... One of them used to get up and pull it out from the other one and pull his out," she said. "The following day, I found ... they both had died. I guess they didn't want to be taken prisoner" (Esquivel).
Carmen García-Rosado
Carmen was a school teacher that lived in Caguas, Puerto Rico. She saw in newspapers that the U.S. Army was recruiting women. She asked her mother what she thought about the army recruiting women and her thoughts about enlisting. Her reply was “No daughter of mine will ever join the Army.” Garcia-Rosado ended up becoming one of the 200 Puerto Rican women to be able to travel to the United States and serve with the Women Army Corps(WAC). She was assigned to Company 6, 2nd Battalion, 21st Regiment of the WACs. Garcia-Rosado became a mail clerk and read letters in English and Spanish searching for any military secrets. When she finished her service she decided to become an activist and politician after becoming aware of the unfair treatment female veterans faced. She created many of the groups that fought for the rights of Puerto Rican veteran women. In 1980 Carmen ran to be the Puerto Rican Senator but lost to Velda Gonzalez. She published a book in 2006 about the experience the Puerto Rican women had during WWII.
Images found in "Carmen Garcia-Rosado" interview
Felicitas Joyce Cerda Flores
Images found in "Felicitas Joyce Cerda Flores" interview
Felicitas Cerda Flores was born and raised in Houston, Texas, and worked outside of her home as a typist and helper in a daycare center. Felicitas and her father showed their support by collecting scrap metal during their spare time. When Felicitas was 22 she enlisted in the Women 's Army Auxiliary Corps(WAAC), and later on, she was sent to Louisiana then to Aberdeen, Maryland where she was a typist for the quartermaster. Flores was the only Mexican American in her unit. She also mentioned that she appreciated the camaraderie: “Nobody looked down on me. I was one of them. We were all the same, even the captains… No one ever called me Mexican” said Flores. When Felicitas was in Maryland and in Washington D.C. she was awarded two medals and she was also honorably discharged with “excellent character.” At the age of 52, Flores got her GED from the University of Houston and while she was at the Dominican College and Houston Community College she studied child psychology.
Henrietta Rivas
During WWll, women were affected because of their loved ones being at war. Apart from missing their families, women had to take a big responsibility at home and take care of their families on their own. Women for the most part would work around the house taking care of the basic needs of their families. Once the war started, women prepared and sold war bonds to raise money for military operations. They would even host entertainment events for troops such as dancing and musical shows. A job shortage occurred which left no choice but for women to fill in those spots. In an interview with Henrietta Rivas, who was a wife filling in jobs during WWll, said she went from $1.50 a week from cleaning houses and $90 a week from being a civil service interpreter (Interview with Henrietta Rivas, San Antonio, Texas, U.S. Latino and Latina World War II Oral History Project, June 12, 1999).
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