Presented as a board game, Womanopoly is a humorous, tongue-in-cheek exploration of the way the cards are stacked against women as they progress through their careers.
The hurdles and social attitudes encountered by women as they negotiate college, marriage, children, family demands and work contrast starkly with the opportunities and encouragements that men often take for granted.
In this notional game of chance, women are persistently disadvantaged as they progress through their careers, moving backwards or missing turns as their male counterparts are encouraged and rewarded.
Womanopoly also highlights the inherent sexism that underpins the pay gap, career choices, attitudes to women managers, family responsibilities and other work-based inequalities.
Drawn and illustrated by Stella Dadzie (who freely admits that it was probably based on 'something I saw somewhere'), Womanopoly provides a snapshot of the issues that preoccupied feminists and working women in the late seventies. You don't need to play it to realize that most of these issues continue to concern women to this day.
Womanopoly by Stella DadzieBlack Cultural Archives
Roll the Dice
START: Men throw a six . Women throw two sixes
8.
MAN: a new, better job means you & family move house away from your wife's job - go forward 4 spaces. WOMAN: give up work to start a family... back 4 spaces.
11.
WOMAN: Husband wants you at home. Lose a turn as punishment for working. MAN: Wife stops working at your demand. Forward 5 spaces
23.
MAN: you are elected an MP. You are one of many, but well done anyway. WOMAN: you become one of 23 female MPs. Go forward 4 spaces.
30.
MAN: You have a very high IQ go forward 2 spaces. WOMAN: So have you. How embarrassing! Lose a turn for arguing.
38.
WOMAN: Bonus for looking pretty. Forward 1 space. MAN: bonus for working hard. Forward 2 spaces.
48.
The average wage for women is 40% less than the median wage for men doing the same work. WOMAN: go back 2 spaces.
Finish Line!
A game for woman vs. man, in a society where the cards are stacked against women. Showcasing the various setbacks that women can encounter as they progress through life.
GAME OVER!
The game is over. It was really hard for a woman to finish, let alone win. Men have a much easier set of rules...
Introductory text written by Stella Dadzie
