First Picture: "Oregon was a battleground state for the eight-hour day for women.Here, Marie Michaels poses in an apron advertising the cause forworking women. The photographer, Franklyn Sowell, worked inPortland between 1911 and 1915."http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.historycooperative.org/journals/ohq/. . . ; Second Picture from the "National Women's History Museum."

1-The Era of the "New Woman": New Women, Work, & Community

This week's readings address the working roles and status of U.S. women from the late nineteenth century to WWII. We begin in the era of corporate capitalism--an era of industrialization, immigration, and urbanization. Compare the labor force conditions for women in this earlier era to that of women during WWII. In this same time frame, women win the right to vote. Do you think women's unions, organizations, and citizenship provide them a stronger footing in the labor force? In which time do women have better labor force conditions? In which period do women have better access to public or political rights?

Chapter 10: Documents: Rose Cohen; Fannie Barrier Williams; Harriet Brunkhurst; Triangle Shirtwaist Fire; Vice Commission; Daniel Bender, "Women Workers and Sexual Harasment," pp. 274-284; Elizabeth Clark-Lewis, "Community Life and Work Culture," pp. 284-290.

You have documents and two articles on the conditions of labor for women at the turn-of-the-century, the time of the Triangle Shirtwaist Fire. Why does this fire occur? What are the worst aspects of laobr for women at this time? Which women are working--who are the women wage workers? What kinds of choices in jobs do these women have? Wages? Autonomy?

1-Rose Cohen Describes Her First Job in New York City, 1892

2-Fannie Barrier Williams Describes the "Problem of Employment for Negro Women," 1903

3-Harriet Brunkhurst Laments the Home Problems of "Business Girls, " 1910

4-New York Times on the Tragedy of the Triangle Factory Fire, 1911

5-Vice Commission of Chicago on the Working conditions of the Department Stores that Lead Female Employees into Prostitution, 1911

* * * * * * *

Daniel E. Bender, "Women Workers and Sexual Harassment in the Garment Industry"

Elizabeth Clark-Lewis, "Community Life and Work Culture Among African American Domestic Workers in Washington D.C."

2-Progressive Politics

Chapter 11: Kathryn Kish Sklar, "Differences in the Political Cultures of Men and Women Reformers," pp. 310-319; Glenda Elizabeth Gilmore, "Diplomats to the White Community: African American Women. . . " pp. 319-331.

What are significant issues addressed by these reformers? How do women manage to become so political in this era, even before they have the vote? How do African American women manage to become politically active in North Carolina? To what degree are women successful in reforming the State, and how do we account for their successes?

Kathryn Kish Sklar, "Differences in the Political Cultures of Men and Women Reformers During the Progressive Era"

Glenda Elizabeth Gilmore, "Diplomats to the White Community: African American Women in Progressive-Era North Carolina"

3-Great Depression

Chapter 12: Elaine Abelson, "Women and Homelessness in the Great Depression," pp. 351-360; Andrea Tone, "Women, Birth Control, and the Marketplace in the 1930s," pp. 360-369.

What were the particular challenges for homeless women? What is Tone's argument about the relationship between economy and birth control?

Elaine S. Abelson, "Women and Homelessness in the Great Depression, 1930-34

Andrea Tone, "Women, Birth Control, and the Marketplace in the 1930s"

4-WWII

Chapter 13: Megan Taylor Shockley, "African American Women," pp. 379-388; Valerie Matsumoto, "Japanese American Women during WWII," pp. 388-399; Leisa D. Meyer, "Regulation of Sexuality, " pp. 399-407.

How does the war affect the opportunities for women workers? What about the images of women, how do new job situations, especially given the need for labor, affect images and campaigns about women's work? How do the images of black, Japanese-American (Nisei), and white women convey ideas about sexuality? What are various ideas about women and sexuality? Women, sexuality, and the military? How are women given new situations during the war, and how do they adapt/ or not? How do these varieties of experiences reflect on the impact of the war on different groups of women? Is the impact of the war, overall, positive or negative? How do the opportunities for African American women change during the war, and also, relative to their opportunities in the past, such as domestic work? How did the camp experience affect Japanese American women?Why did the WACs feel they needed to regulate the sexuality of these women?

Megan Taylor Shockley, "African American Women, Citizenship, and Workplace Democracy During WWII"

Valerie Matsumoto, "Japanese American Women During WWII"

Leisa Meyer, "The Regulation of Sexuality and Sexual Behavior in the Women's Army Corps During WWII