So far as possible, the army, navy and air force based recruitment pitches on opinion surveys of what service personnel and the civilian public found attractive or unattractive about the women's forces.
To counter the "whispering campaign" impugning the good morals of women in uniform, a series of posters was issued stressing the propriety and respectability of the women who joined up. "I'm Proud of You Daughter" was one for the Canadian Women's Army Corps, showing a smiling father with his arm around his khaki-clad daughter. "The envy of them all" was the headline of an advertisement for the Women's Division of the RCAF, showing an airwoman, resplendent in her blue uniform and with all eyes upon her, as she sang in church on her first home leave.
Another series stressed the friendship and sisterhood to be found in the women's services as with the banner "Count me in!" And, knowing that many a servicewoman enlisted to be close to the man in her life, the army came up with the line: "Are you the Girl he left behind?" There was also the straightforward hard hitting variety, such as the poster for all three women's corps with a stern-faced servicewoman pointing her finger at the viewer and asking: "Do you honestly believe you're doing your full share?"
To appeal to "pride of race" in the French-Canadian population, the army developed a series of posters on famous historical figures. This one eulogized the military valour of Madeleine de VerchÅres, who in 1692 at age fifteen and in the tradition of her mother took command of the forces on her father's seigneury and successfully led the defence of its fort against an Iroquois attack.
Courtesy: Canadian War Museum, National Museum of Man, National Museums of Canada (S83-19)
