The iconic image of Rosie the Riveter, the working woman who was in the factories supporting the war effort of World War II while the men were off to the fight, has been an inspiration for women ever since. It’s a strange thing, considering the original and most iconic form of the image, the “We Can Do It!” poster, one of many that Westinghouse Electric used to keep employee motivation high and production on the move. It’s important to understand that it was never actually intended to be a feminist icon or a call for women to do more than bake and keep the house, but if you look to many of the women in the world today, especially those who you’ll see wrenching, driving, tuning, and competing in the same arena we all enjoy, that image of the strong woman in the red bandana was inspiration personified.

Rosalind P. Walter was not the woman in the poster; that was Naomi Parker and that poster was inspired by a photograph of Parker working at Pratt & Whitney. But Walter also fed into the image of Rosie the Riveter…she was a riveter at Vought, working night shifts helping put F4U Corsairs together when a newspaper column about her work turned into a 1942 song that became popular. But that wasn’t the true impact that the Rosie character had upon the nation. At the height of World War II, employment opportunities for women opened up widely…to explain it quickly, due to a lack of men in the workplace, women were not only requested to come in, but women of every color and creed were encouraged strongly to apply and join the workforce. And in these jobs that just a few years prior would have never seen a woman on the working floor, women proved that not only could they handle the work, but they were damn good at it and that they could keep pace with their male counterparts, no problem. Post-war, she became highly philanthropic, supporting the American Museum of Natural History, Long Island University, the United States Tennis Association, wildlife preservation, land conservation, and public television via PBS and WNET.

Walter’s philanthropy certainly was the main focus of her life, but there is no way she didn’t know that she inspired an entire sex to do more than just what they were told. The actions of millions of women like her during a time of duress for our nation proved that they had it within them to spin a wrench, get dirty, and many of them balked when, after the war, they were pretty much told to get back into the kitchen. If you don’t think that her work carried on to modern times, I dare you to look at the works of the late Jessi Combs. Tell me you don’t see the same kind of attitude in what she brought to the table. Inspiration starts with a single spark and that spark can turn into a wildfire before anyone knows what’s happening. Mrs. Walter was that spark, and her legacy will continue to burn in the hearts of girls who still have to fight to be accepted.

Rest easy.

Photo: Flight Journal