Down with kitchen slavery! [1931]

'Down with kitchen slavery! Let there be a new lifestyle!' by G. Shegal

In 1917 the majority of laws of Russian Empire were repealed. Instead the first Soviet Constitution of 1918 declared full rights of women in divorcements, private property, children wardship, work and profession opportunities, choosing of place of living, education and suffrage. A decree which was stating the equal payment for men and women was also issued that year. Finally woman has got the same rights as men.

The reforms of the economy were hampered not only by the Civil War but also by the runaway inflation. The country needed as much workforce as possible to complete the first Five Year plan, so women who were nursing children at home and did the cooking could now begin working in nurseries, large-scale mechanized canteens, kindergartens, plants.

The poster above is an illustration of this trend. The woman dressed in red working overalls and a kerchief opens a large window showing a woman exhausted by laundry a bright perspective with new modern buildings with signs saying: 'Club', 'Mechanized Canteen', 'Nursery'.