So it appears the female programmers had a skill set that was not easily replaceable by GI’s returning from the war.
Between 1880 and 1950 women made a lot of progress toward equality with men. A lot of women had college degrees and were independent. During WWII, women kept factories running, look up “Rosie the Riveter” for example.
When the war ended, the GIs returned, and many women were pressured back into the home and give their jobs back to men and to have families instead of careers. After WWII is when women were seemingly transported back to the dark ages and conditioned to desire to be housewives and forego careers. So the women of the 1960s had to go back and restart where the women of the 1880s (and before) started.
That’s the quick summary that helps explain what isn’t really explicit in history textbooks — even more succinctly, and a sweeping generalization, WWII set women back by 50 years or so.
