Social Impact
The historically laborious process of washing clothes (a task which often had a whole day set aside to perform) has at times been labelled "woman's work".
In 2009 L'Osservatore Romano published an article entitled "The Washing Machine and the Liberation of Women" that was controversially meant to demonstrate that the washing machine had done more for the liberation of women than the contraceptive pill and abortion rights, which are often associated with Women's Day. The article shocked Italian feminists and provoked criticism from Opposition MP Paola Concia. A study from Université de Montréal, Canada presented a similar point of view.
Swedish statistician Hans Rosling suggested that the positive effect the washing machine had on the liberation of women, makes it "the greatest invention of the industrial revolution".
Read more about this topic: Washing Machine
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