Rosie the Riveter (continued from page 5)

weeks, standing by me as I faced the cold stares of men unsure if I'd "pull my weight" or go crying to see the boss the first time something went wrong. If I felt I was experiencing discrimination, the union would say, "Write up a grievance and we'll back you all the way!" Think of that! Think of on-site childcare centers (free!), prepared dinners for you and your children to heat up when you got home from work, women's locker and shower rooms, equipment, machines and uniforms fitted to women's sizes and shapes, and best of all, high wages!

During World War II, propaganda films exaggerated the availability of some of these benefits, but these conditions did exist for many women who "took over" men's jobs in the factories. For most women, it was the first time they weren't made to feel guilty about working outside the home. For a majority of women who held "women's" jobs as domestics, waitresses or shop clerks, it was an opportunity to experience something new-pride and dignity in their work, and support from the unions which in those days were more willing to fight for all their members' rights, understanding that dividing the workers only benefits the employers.

As we discover in the film through interviews with five women and clips of old newsreels, there were still many problems. Women were channeled into lower skilled jobs, production jobs, and also dangerous jobs: in 1944 the New York Times reported that more people had been killed in the war plants than in the battlefields! Although for black women the unprecedented hiring of women during World War II provided a breakthrough in their getting jobs in ma-

W.I.S.E. (continued from page 5)

numbers of women offer less pay and fewer benefits than traditionally "male" jobs. Women have effectively been segregated into less skilled occupations. Only token numbers of women have entered apprenticeship programs, learned to drive trucks or stock warehouses. They suffer the visibility and labeling common to any token group. If they are late, sick, tired, crabby, obnoxious, or slow to learn, so are all women. Progress in debunking the myths has been slow.

Since the WISE program is still in the initial development stage, we would be delighted to receive any suggestions, resource material, volunteers, etc. Please feel free to call us at 696-6767.

jor industrial plants, unfortunately the camaraderie between the women workers didn't always overcome the racism still running deep in our society.

In retrospect, it's not surprising that once the war was over, government and industry did everything possible to throw women out of their new-found jobs. Still, many women were shocked in 1945 by the massive layoffs of women and the propaganda films portraying working women as unpatriotic, selfish and negligent of their children. The fact that most women who worked during the war had also worked before it was ignored. They would continue to work after the war, not because they were "unnatural," but because they had to!

All the issues raised by the film are of vital concern to working women today. The stories of these five women are both inspiring and saddening. Seeing the power of the government to provide opportunities and in an instant to remove them through propaganda bordering on blackmail is awesome.

Everyone should take advantage of the opportunity to learn the story of Rosie the Riveter. It can inspire you to feel that you have a right to equality and dignity on the job.

Pentagon Action (continued from page 6)

earnestly to engage them in conversation, to find the common thread.

We defy all that would divide us. We refuse to live by the old sad messages that have been handed down from generation to generation: that we must fear each other, that we must suspect and control those who are different, that domination is the source of strength.

We look at the stone Pentagon where the messages of death are enshrined. The materials we build with are flexible and tenacious. In our weaving is our strength.

What is visible for a moment but endures through time? What can be frayed but never destroyed?

We look again at the work of the spider, an ancient symbol for women. We know that we will never stop weaving. And our webs will become more intricate, more inclusive, more palpable.

Sarah Pirtle is an ex-Clevelander, now a member of Women for Survival in western Massachusetts and part of the large northeast network of eco-feminists in Women and Life on Earth. She is a weaver with songs and stories, and part of the Big Mama Poetry Troupe. This article was commissioned by "Crane Quarterly," Crane Mountain Abbey, Box 717, Fairfax, CA 94930.

EEOC Imperilled (continued from page 4)

courts, have used "different treatment" and "adverse impact" theories of discrimination. These theories are based on the observation that people are treated differently in practice, even though the perpetrators deny it, and that a policy can be neutral on its face but discriminatory in effect (as is the case with many tests which are unrelated to the jobs for which they purport to screen applicants).

Evidently, the advisors are hoping that the same philosophy of justice based on "intent" will absolve them of responsibility for cutting back on the resources available to redress the grievances of women and minorities and for removing any motive for employers to change discriminatory policies and practices. They would have us believe that they do not intend to harm us or to place an added burden on us, but rather that they wish only to relieve employers of the excessive cost placed on them by the EEOC's employment guidelines and lawsuits.

The transition team has asked President Reagan to impose a one-year freeze on new guidelines and on lawsuits filed by the Commission, a proposal which

would strip the agency of its only direct access to enforcing Title VII and abrogate a 1972 amendment to that law which first permitted the EEOC to litigate cases. The advisors also recommend several structural changes, including dismantling Carter's reorganization plan, which coordinated the workings of various federal equal employment opportunity programs under the EEOC. They urge the formation of a private sector advisory committee "to insure sufficient input for those against whom many charges are filed," and suggest that Reagan appoint to chair the Commission a person who has "a strong belief in our free market system." The report also urges a budget cut for grants, equipment, travel, and personnel.

Examining the recommendations and the philosophy behind the transition team report, it would appear that the Reagan adminstration may believe that the "mission of the Commission" is no longer to work towards ending discrimination, but rather to accommodate the systems and practices of business which actually perpetuate discrimination.