Influential Women
The 1940s was a time period filled with brand new changes and major events. One of the most major and world changing events of the 1940s, of course, was World War II which took place for over half of this decade. The overall view of women greatly changed during this time period. Instead of being seen only as stay at home mothers and weaklings, women were now being seen as, singers, athletes, political figures, and even as replacements for men in the war. In this time period, more and more women were taking a more prominent part in society.
Ella Fitzgerald began her career as a jazz
singer in 1935. She is known as the first lady of song. She was the most
popular female jazz vocalist in the United States for over a century and her
music is still played today.
The All-American Girls professional Baseball League (AAGPBL) was a women's professional baseball league which existed for twelve seasons from 1943 to 1954 and was meant to maintain baseball in the public eye in the Midwest at a time when many of baseball's male players were in military service.
Eleanor Roosevelt was the first lady of the United States from 1933 to 1945. She supported the new deal policies of her husband, Franklin Roosevelt, and became an advocate for civil rights. Eleanor Roosevelt’s work on the Universal Declaration of Human Rights is her greatest legacy. She was without doubt, the most influential members of the UN’s Commission on Human Rights.
Over 150,000 American women served in the Women's Army Corps (WAC) during World War II. Members of the WAC were the first women other than nurses to serve within the ranks of the United States Army. Given the opportunity to make a major contribution to the national war effort, women seized it. By the end of the war their contributions were widely heralded.