She helped America win WWII. Meet a real-life 'Rosie the Riveter'
Jennifer McMullen had two brothers fighting during World War II — one in the European theater and the other in the South Pacific — and so the Ohio native-turned-Phoenix transplant was happy when she landed a job as a riveter at a California Lockheed factory. "I worked the night shift," she told USA TODAY via video call from her home in Whittier, California, her son Tim by her side. "I was 18 and I lived on my own, and I felt like I was contributing to getting my brothers home." Her brothers both did come home safely, "thankfully," and McMullen, now 101 years old, will celebrate her 80th wedding anniversary with her husband, Mel, at the National World War II Museum as the New Orleans site hosts 31 real-life "Rosie the Riveters" at its 2026 American Spirit Awards June 4-6. June 6 is also the 82nd anniversary of D-Day, when Allied troops invaded Normandy, France, turning the tide of the war in Europe. "Rosie the Riveter" started from a song, the Library of Congress says on its website. At 19, Rosalind Walker worked as a riveter at an aircraft manufacturer in Connecticut, and two songwriters, inspired by a newspaper account of her work, penned a song called "Rosie the Riveter." The song, and the idea, quickly caught on, and Rosie became a symbol for women who'd gone to factories and manufacturing facilities to help with the war effort. Famed artist Norman Rockwell's Saturday Evening Post cover image of a woman in dungarees, holding a sandwich and wearing goggles, a riveting gun resting on her lap, and J. Howard Miller's image of a woman flexing her arm with the slogan "We Can Do It" helped solidify the idea of a strong, capable and hard-working woman.
I took this photo of Rosie the Riveter statue at the Bay Area Hmong New Year celebration in San Jose, CA:
Topic: Saw her statue at the BA Hmong New Year a few years ago (Read 18 times)