Betty Reid Soskin, WWII Home Front Worker and Iconic Park Ranger, Dies at 104

In 2016, Soskin received The National WWII Museum's Silver Service Medallion, which recognizes veterans and those with a direct connection to World War II who have served our country with distinction and continue to lead by example.

2016 年，索斯金获得了国家二战博物馆的银质服务奖章，该奖章旨在表彰退伍军人以及与二战有直接关系的人士，他们为我们的国家做出了杰出贡献，并继续以身作则。

Top Photo: Ranger Betty Reid Soskin sits in front of the Rosie the Riveter/WWII Home Front National Historical Park Visitor Education Center.

顶部照片：护林员贝蒂·里德·索斯金 (Betty Reid Soskin) 坐在铆工罗西/二战后方国家历史公园游客教育中心前。

National Parks Service Photo, Luther Bailey

国家公园管理局照片，Luther Bailey

Soskin was born in 1921 in Detroit, Michigan, the daughter of Louisiana natives with both Creole and Cajun backgrounds.

索斯金 1921 年出生于密歇根州底特律，是路易斯安那州本地人的女儿，拥有克里奥尔和卡津血统。

She spent her early childhood years living in New Orleans until 1927, when river flooding devastated Louisiana.

她在新奥尔良度过了她的童年时光，直到 1927 年路易斯安那州洪水泛滥。

Her family resettled in Oakland, California, joining Soskin’s maternal grandfather, who had moved there after World War I.

她的家人重新定居在加利福尼亚州奥克兰，与索斯金的外祖父一起定居，外祖父在第一次世界大战后搬到了那里。

During World War II, Soskin went to work as a file clerk for the segregated Black auxiliary of the International Boilermakers Union in Richmond, California.

第二次世界大战期间，索斯金在加利福尼亚州里士满的国际锅炉制造商联盟的隔离黑人辅助机构中担任档案文员。

“I was working in a segregated union hall that was in a building that was torn down after the war,” Soskin said in a 2016 interview with The Times-Picayune .

“我当时在一个隔离的工会大厅工作，该大厅位于一栋战后被拆除的建筑内，”索斯金在 2016 年接受《皮卡尤时报》采访时说道。

“I never saw a ship being launched or a ship being built.

“我从未见过一艘船下水或建造中。

I was filling out change-of-address cards for people who were constantly moving.

我正在为经常搬家的人填写地址变更卡。

That was what I was doing to save the world for democracy.”

这就是我为民主拯救世界所做的事情。”

In 1945, Soskin and her husband founded a small Berkely music store—Reid’s Records—and she became a prominent Bay Area community activist and an advocate for the legacy of women Home Front workers and African Americans during the war.

1945 年，索斯金和她的丈夫在伯克利创办了一家小型音乐商店——里德唱片公司——她成为了湾区著名的社区活动家，也是战争期间女性后方工人和非裔美国人遗产的倡导者。

She was named a Woman of the Year by the California State Legislature in 1995, and in 2005 was named one of the nation’s 10 outstanding women by the National Women’s History Project.

1995 年，她被加州立法机构评为年度女性，2005 年，她被国家妇女历史项目评为全国 10 名杰出女性之一。

In 2003, while serving as a field representative for a member of the California State Assembly, Soskin became involved in the planning for the Rosie the Riveter World War II Home Front National Historical Park in Richmond.

2003 年，索斯金在担任加州议会议员的现场代表期间，参与了里士满铆工罗西二战后方国家历史公园的规划。

During her interview with The Times-Picayune , she mentioned that she never connected with the Rosie the Riveter myth.

在接受《Times-Picayune》采访时，她提到她从未与铆工罗西神话联系在一起。

However, by including African American perspectives in the narrative for visitors, she explained, "I'm adding complexity to a story that could have wound up being little more than a bumper sticker."

然而，她解释说，通过将非裔美国人的观点融入到游客的叙述中，“我增加了故事的复杂性，而这个故事最终可能只不过是保险杠贴纸而已。”

Betty Reid Soskin at the Rosie the Riveter Visitor Education Center in Richmond, California.

贝蒂·里德·索斯金 (Betty Reid Soskin) 在加利福尼亚州里士满的铆工罗西游客教育中心。

National Parks Service Photo /Luther Bailey

国家公园管理局照片/Luther Bailey

She also became a consultant to the National Park Service and then, at age 85, a ranger.

她还成为国家公园管理局的顾问，然后在 85 岁时成为一名护林员。

She retired in 2022 as the oldest serving park ranger.

她于 2022 年退休，成为年龄最大的公园护林员。

In 2016, Soskin received The National WWII Museum's Silver Service Medallion in recognition of her life of service and leadership.

2016 年，索斯金荣获国家二战博物馆银质服务奖章，以表彰她一生的服务和领导才能。

She was featured in the Museum's 2018 Electronic Field Trip about African Americans' wartime experiences, and we are proud to have her oral history in our Digital Collections .

她在博物馆 2018 年关于非裔美国人战时经历的电子实地考察中得到了专题报道，我们很自豪能在我们的数字馆藏中拥有她的口述历史。

Soskin was also a featured speaker at the Museum’s 2012 International Conference on World War II.

索斯金还是博物馆 2012 年二战国际会议的特邀演讲者。

We are grateful for Ms. Soskin's service and friendship, and our thoughts are with her family.

我们感谢索斯金女士的服务和友谊，我们与她的家人同在。

The All-American Girls Professional Baseball League served as inspiration for young women across the country and opened the door further for women’s professional sports.

全美女子职业棒球联盟为全国年轻女性提供了灵感，并进一步为女子职业运动打开了大门。

Moments where compassion collided with combat defined Roy J.

同情心与战斗发生冲突的时刻定义了罗伊·J·罗伊 (Roy J.

Caldwood's experience as an African American medic serving with the 92nd Infantry Division during World War II.

考德伍德在二战期间作为一名非裔美国军医在第 92 步兵师服役。

Rosie the Riveter represents the more than six million women from a wide variety of backgrounds who entered the workforce to support the American war effort.

铆工罗西代表了超过 600 万来自不同背景的女性，她们进入劳动力市场支持美国的战争努力。

This month, we explore how World War II intersects with African American history, achievements, and contributions to help learners consider how to approach teaching and learning about how the war relates to Black History Month.

本月，我们探讨第二次世界大战如何与非裔美国人的历史、成就和贡献相交叉，以帮助学习者考虑如何教授和学习战争与黑人历史月的关系。

The International Olympic Committee's (IOC) plans for the 1940 Summer Games took many unexpected turns as the world drifted toward global war.

随着世界逐渐走向全球战争，国际奥委会 (IOC) 的 1940 年夏季奥运会计划发生了许多意想不到的转变。

Antonio Arias Bernal’s art reminds us that World War II was also a war of ideas, fought with pens and brushes as much as with troops and firearms.

安东尼奥·阿里亚斯·贝尔纳尔的艺术提醒我们，第二次世界大战也是一场思想之战，不仅用军队和火器，还用钢笔和画笔进行战斗。

On July 16, 1945, the world’s first atomic bomb detonated in the New Mexican desert, releasing a level of destructive power unknown in the existence of humanity.

1945年7月16日，世界上第一颗原子弹在新墨西哥州沙漠引爆，释放出人类前所未见的破坏力。

Emitting as much energy as 21,000 tons of TNT and creating a fireball that measured roughly 2,000 feet in diameter, the first successful test of an atomic bomb, known as the Trinity Test, forever changed the history of the world.

第一次成功的原子弹试验，即所谓的“三位一体试验”，发射了相当于 21,000 吨 TNT 的能量，并产生了一个直径约 2,000 英尺的火球，永远改变了世界的历史。

While most people are familiar with the names of “Little Boy” and “Fat Man” as the atomic weapons used over Japan, what they may not be familiar with was how different the respective technologies of each bomb were and why this difference mattered.

虽然大多数人都熟悉日本使用的原子武器“小男孩”和“胖子”的名字，但他们可能不熟悉的是每种炸弹各自的技术有多么不同以及为什么这种差异很重要。

945 Magazine Street, New Orleans, LA 70130 info@nationalww2museum.org 504-528-1944

945 Magazine Street, 新奥尔良, LA 70130 info@nationalww2museum.org 504-528-1944