Critically acclaimed documentary highlights "Rosie the Riveters" and the Black women who helped win World War II

CBS News

01-03-2025

Many of you know the story of World War II and the sacrifice of millions of men who went overseas to keep us safe, but few know the significant role millions of women played during the war efforts.
Those women were called Rosie the Riveters — a term to describe women who took on industrial and government jobs during the war. Millions of women stepped up to help, including African American women.
In honor of Black History Month, we are highlighting our very own Rosie, Ruth Wilson, 102, who worked at the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard in the early 1940s. Wilson died last year in October, but was recognized for her work during the war four years ago.
"She was a real hero," said Esther Brown, Wilson's daughter.
The honor was decades in the making for Wilson. The 102-year-old was celebrated for her work as a sheet metal specialist on the USS Valley Forge.
But before the recognition, her job as a Rosie was only a part of her life story; neither Wilson nor her daughter knew it was also a part of history.
"She didn't realize it. And we certainly didn't. To us, she was just going to work like everybody else," Brown said. "She would say when I used to work at the navy yard…she had friends who worked at Frankford arsenal and different places, but it still didn't dawn on us how it important it was to the war efforts."
Wilson was one of 600,000 black women who contributed to the war efforts by building planes, tanks and other machinery while men fought overseas.
Black women took on dangerous roles but also administrative work for the government. For Black women, it was the first time they had joined the modern workforce.
Wilson's daughter, Esther Brown, called her mom a trailblazer and inspiration.
When asked if she learned to be strong from her mother, Brown replied: "Yes, and to realize that you are not better than anybody else, but nobody is better than you either."
Wilson is one of several women highlighted in a critically acclaimed documentary called "Invisible Warriors: African American Women in World War II." It chronicles the role women played during the war.
The man behind the film, Gregory Cooke, also pointed out how these women were fighting a war on fascism abroad while also dealing with racism and discrimination at home.
"We were fighting two wars," he said.
Cooke said the women, which includes his own mother who was also a Rosie, helped create job opportunities for future generations of Black women.
He argues that the Black Rosies are the most significant group of Black women in the 20th century.
"They did remarkable, incredible things under very difficult circumstances to improve their life, the lives of their families and the lives of future generations of African American people….we should not forget that," Cooke said.