Women of Steel

The history of the fight for gender equity dates back to past centuries. But that struggle accelerated in a period when women showed that they are made of steel.

In 1943, photographer Margaret Bourke-White spent time in Gary, Indiana, documenting the wide range of jobs that women were performing in steel factories.

In LIFE magazine, she reported: "The women are recruited from Gary and nearby East Chicago. A minority has drifted in from agricultural areas. They are black and white, Polish and Croat, Mexican and Scottish… The women steel workers at Gary are not freaks or novelties. They have been accepted by management, by the union, by the rough, iron-muscled men they work with day after day. In time of peace they may return once more to home and family, but they have proved that in time of crisis no job is too tough for women." (LIFE, August 9, 1943, issue, https://www.life.com/history/women-of-steel-life-with-female-factory-workers-in-world-war-ii/)

We are still behind in equity of opportunities. Equity isn't just a nice-to-have, it's a must-have. The fight for equity continues.

Examples women of steel are not limited to World War II. In Faber by Kalisch, we see those same examples every day with our collaborators. The legacy of women of steel continues thanks to you, colleagues. You are true women of steel.

View the complete image gallery here: https://www.life.com/history/women-of-steel-life-with-female-factory-workers-in-world-war-ii/

Photo by Margaret Bourke-White, The LIFE Picture Collection/Shutterstock, 1943. Link in post.

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