© Latinas in History 2008
On
August 4, 1944, as the Second World War continued to dominate newspaper headlines,
a group of seventy eight women graduated from a Sweetwater, Texas, army pilot
training program. Verneda Rodríguez McLean was among the group and on this
day became one of the now legendary Women Air Force Service Pilots (WASP). Her
tour of duty took her to Moore Field in Mission, Texas. The task assigned to the
WASPs was extremely dangerous and the women chosen to serve as WASPs numbered
among the best qualified. Their job was to fly tow target missions so that gunnery
recruits could practice their skills on the field. The WASPs also ferried planes
from the factories to the airfield. When the army terminated the WASP division
women were expected to return to their previous lives without any of the provisions
provided for other military personnel. Although she went on to marry, raise a
family, and work in a variety of other positions, Rodríguez McLean successfully
fought for recognition of the women’s service and the benefits entitled to
them. She died in 1982, and may be the first woman WASP to be buried in Arlington
National Cemetery.
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