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World War II
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Drafting Begins
The first drafts are drawn and thousands of men are sent to drill camps. -
Attack on Pearl Harbor
Japanese aircrafters attacked the United states naval base. As a result the United States declared war on Japan and Germany declared war on the United States. Pearl Harbor Attack Footage (1941) -
Germany and Italy declare war on U.S.
Adolf Hitler declares war on the USA, bringing America, which had been neutral, into the European conflict.
In the following video clip, Hitler addressed the Reichstag to defend the war declaration. The failure of the New Deal, argued Hitler, was the real cause of the war, as FDR, supported by plutocrats and Jews, attempted to cover up for the collapse of his economic agenda.
Adolf Hitler Declares War on the USA (English captions) -
The Angels of Bataan
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Congress approves Creation of the WAAC
Although the idea of women in the Army other than the Army Nurse Corps was not completely abandoned following World War I, it was not until the threat of world war loomed again that renewed interest was given to this issue. In May 1941, the Honorable Edith Nourse Rogers, Congresswoman from Massachusetts, introduced a bill for the creation of the Women's Army Auxiliary Corps (WAAC). Spurred on by the attack on Pearl Harbor , Congress approved the creationof the WAAC. -
The Women Accepted for Voluntary Emergency Services (WAVES) is authorized by the U.S. Congress.
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Mary McLeod Bethune
African American activist and educator Mary McLeod Bethune isn't normally thought of as a major contributor to the nation's defense efforts, but she lobbied the War Department during World War II to commission black women officers in what became the Women's Army Corps. Bethune became the national commander of the Women's Army of national Defense, an all-black women's organization. -
The Scrap Drive is On!
Americans were urged to recycle their scrap metal for use in the war effort. -
Food Rationing Program announced
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first point rationing books distributed
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In the U.S., President Roosevelt issues an executive order forbidding discrimination by government contractors.
In the U.S., President Roosevelt issues an executive order forbidding discrimination by government contractors. -
"Rosie the Riveter
The Saturday Evening Post is published with a cover illustration by Norman Rockwell that introduces an American icon known as "Rosie the Riveter." -
Women’s Army Corps (WAC)
President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed into law legislation which changed the name of the Women's Army Auxiliary (WAAC) to the Women’s Army Corps (WAC). -
5,000 Women Serve in Pacific
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WASP Disbanded
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one out of every four married women worked outside the home.
1945 nearly one out of every four married women worked outside the home. -
The 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion, an all-black WAC unit arrive in Europe
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The Army-Navy Nurse Act of 1947
The Army-Navy Nurse Act of 1947 makes the Army Nurse Corps and Women's Medical Specialist Corps part of the Regular Army and gives permanent commissioned officer status to Army and Navy nurses.
