The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1934-12-12
Heroic Role
Resented bV
Unemployed
Jobless Women Find
Nothing Inspirational
in Hardships.
BY EVELYN SEELEY
Times Special Writer

NEW YORK. Dec. 12.-Concen-
L ' ing US white collar women
the world seems TO have an old
fashioned and a cock-eyed idea.
They see US. it appears. as bunch
Of nice college girls out challenging
the world. making fudge on Sunday
nights and taking II on the chin
nov that we muslin a graceful,
ladylike manner.
This is ones forced conclusion to-
day on the editorial reaction TO a
report of white collar women Just
completed by the American Wom-
ems Association, showing that near
ly twice as many Of us are unem-
ployed today as in 1881.
The report shows not only that
our status is slipping but that it
IS slipping even faster than the
status Of workers in general. The
figures are, 6.5 per cent Of white
collar women unemployed in 1881
and 13 to Is per cent Of general city
workers: in 1888. IL per cent unem-
ployed white collar women, as COM
pared to % per cent general unem-
ployment.
Here We go. says the report statis-
tically, skidding right back to the
kitchen or to the semi-dependence
Of limited and underpaid profess
siOns.
Fail to Find Inspiration
But editorial writer's, seeking the
everlasting bright spot, have gone
Pollyanna on us. One finds this
report "inspirational" because, al
though a third of these women have
been tobless for periods averaging
Is months during five years, only 2
per cent have been dependent on
relatives-because we have had the
fOrtitude to pull through" on our
own.
1t grows eloquent about the white
collar Woman's rigid economies,
her ingenuity" 1t even says, Many
rejoice over the depression because
it jolted them out of ruts." 1t calls
us the responsible SEX and finds
our endurance and adaptability a
proof that, after all. we are the
prime example of the rugged in
dividual"
God forbid!
doubt that any white collar
woman sees anything "inspirational
in this report. Only man could
get such an idea. Rigid economies
as to stockings and food and rent,
ingenuity" "fortitude," adaptable
ity" are acutely boring and very
old stuff
Play Bleak Role
It is traditional with women
since cave-women days, to make
shift, to compromise, to stretch
dollar bills over the essential space.
Women through history have been
the great adapters-a role that holds
no glory and no fun but only the
bleak satisfaction at the days end
that one has hung on to shelter and
food for one more day.
In the second place. they are not
going around rejoicing over being
"iolted out of ruts." They know
quite we'll they are only being jolted
out of Jobs back into the kitchen.
In the third place, the report
proves nothing about women as
rugged individuals" but the absolute
opposite. 1t has shown them the
tremendous danger of their position
has aroused them to get together
and fight against flight to hang
on to their slipping economic status
and to regain what they have lost.
Women have learned at last,
says an A. w. A. official, that they
can't work as lone individuals but
must work together. They even
realize-contrary to their old femin-
ism-that they must work with
white collar men and face their I'M
employment problem solidly."
Every women'S organization with
any backbone = out to face this
crisis. Wake up. white color work
erl" is the title of a conference the
A. w. A. is calling December %.
They do not know exactly what tc
do. But they do know this-Not a;
PollyannaS, not as rugged in
dividuals, but only as realistic
women working together will they
get any place.