Interview, Rose Rossi-Williams, USMC

Rose Rossi-Williams (b. 1946) was born in Rochester, New York, and grew up in Rochester and the town of Rush, New York. The oldest of five siblings, she enlisted in the United States Marine Corps in 1964, shortly after her 18th birthday. She trained at Parris Island, South Carolina, and was based as a Marine photographer in Pendleton, California. She volunteered for an overseas assignment and was sent to the Futenma air station in Okinawa, Japan, where she served from 1967 to 1968. Rossi-Williams ran the photo labs at both Pendleton and Futenma. She never went to Vietnam and, as a woman, was not allowed in combat. She was honorably discharged from the military in 1968 and married a fellow corpsman who was also a Vietnam veteran. After the war, Rossi-Williams remained active in veterans affairs as a member of the Marine Corps League, the Vietnam Veterans of America, and the American Legion.

In her interview, Rossi-Williams explains that she joined the military because she knew that her parents could not afford to send all of their children to college and that President Kennedy’s speeches motivated her to enlist. She notes that her boot camp experience was just like the basic training men received, only without rifles. She recalls the fun she had taking aerial photographs while hanging out of a helicopter and reports that overall, she enjoyed her time in the service. She also loved living in Okinawa. Rossi-Williams explains that before entering the military, she believed in her country and thought that there must be a good reason for the United States to be in Vietnam. However, after she returned home and witnessed anti-war protestors and the mistreatment of veterans, she came to resent the political motives behind the war and to feel that too many people had died for nothing. She shares that her husband’s personality changed dramatically as he became addicted to substances during his many tours of duty in Vietnam and that this led to the end of their marriage. Rossi-Williams also shares her insights about what it was like to be a woman in the military during the Vietnam War.