imagery

so i will be posting some images about women empowerment

The infamous “We Can Do It!” poster of J. Howard Miller from 1943

“We Can Do It!” is an American World War II wartime poster produced by J. Howard Miller in 1943 for Westinghouse Electric as an inspirational image to boost female worker morale.

The idea behind the poster is often considered debatable, and it is one of the most used images about women empowerment, far beyond its original meaning and purpose.

In 1982, the “We Can Do It!” poster was reproduced in a magazine article, “Poster Art for Patriotism’s Sake”, a Washington Post Magazine article about posters in the collection of the National Archives.

In subsequent years, the poster was re-appropriated to promote feminism. Feminists saw in the image an embodiment of female empowerment.

There are many examples where women empowerment and labor was used as theme for political campaigns, advertisements and propaganda

First and only female prime minister of Australia, Julia Gillard’s election campaign poster
An example of commercial use on a pair of vending machines for bottled water
A 1943 Monsanto advertisement for refrigeration reveals ambivalence, emphasizing that after the war, women will return to their homes as “Rosie the Housewife.”

Rosie the Riveter was an allegorical cultural icon of World War II, representing the women who worked in factories and shipyards during World War II, many of whom produced munitions and war supplies.

Norman Rockwell‘s Saturday Evening Post 1943 cover featuring Rosie the Riveter

Naomi Fern Parker Fraley (August 26, 1921 – January 20, 2018) was an American war worker who is now considered the most likely model for the iconic “We Can Do It!” poster. During World War II, she worked on aircraft assembly at the Naval Air Station Alameda. She was photographed operating a machine tool and this widely used photograph was thought to be an inspiration for the poster. Geraldine Hoff Doyle was initially credited as the subject but research by a professor at Seton Hall University set the record straight.

Turret lathe operator machining parts for transport planes at the Consolidated Aircraft Corporation plant, Fort Worth, Texas, USA. Howard R. Hollem, 1942.