1942 – The Women’s Auxiliary Army Corps (WAAC) was established by an act of the U.S. Congress.


Women’s Army Auxiliary Corps (WAAC)
With war looming, U.S. Rep. Edith Nourse Rogers of Massachusetts introduced a bill for the creation of the Women’s Army Auxiliary Corps in May 1941. Having been a witness to the status of women in World War I, Rogers vowed that if American women served in support of the Army, they would do so with all the rights and benefits afforded to Soldiers.

Spurred on by the attack on Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941, Congress approved the creation of WAAC on May 14, 1942. President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the bill into law on May 15, and on May 16, Oveta Culp Hobby was sworn in as the first director. WAAC was established “for the purpose of making available to the national defense the knowledge, skill, and special training of women of the nation.”

for more go to …

army.mil/women/history/wac.html

Birthday – James Madison


Image result for james madison

James Madison (1751-1836) the 4th U.S. President was born in Port Conway, Virginia. He played an important role in the formation of the new U.S. Constitution following the American Revolutionary War. During the War of 1812, President Madison was forced to flee Washington, D.C,. while the British attacked and burned the White House and other important public buildings.

archives.gov

1968 – U.S. troops in Vietnam destroyed a village consisting mostly of women and children. The event is known as the My-Lai massacre.


The Ghosts of My Lai

In the hamlet where U.S. troops killed hundreds of men, women and children, survivors are ready to forgive the most infamous American soldier of the war
By Shaun Raviv, photography by Aaron Joel Santos

for entire article:

Smithsonian Magazine