We live in a world where we are used to seeing changes occur on a regular basis. Some of those changes may be somewhat subtle and we don’t recognize that they are taking place. Others, however, may cause such a stir that they can even lead to riots and social change that will last for many, many years. We often think about this occurring in the United States, because there has been a lot of social unrest in the US recently. As it turns out, however, changes are also taking place thanks to a Dutch woman as well.
Indy Mellink is the 23-year-old woman who had an epiphany when she was with her cousins playing a game of cards. It was something that she did on a regular basis because of living life in lockdown, but she recognized the need for change. When she was teaching the rules to the card game they were playing to her cousins, she noticed that the king was rated higher than the Queen. That is when she got the idea to replace the king and queen with gold, bronze, and silver. She feels that the inequalities are ripe for changing, and she wanted to do her part in order to make the changes happen.
“If we have this hierarchy that the king is worth more than the queen, then this subtle inequality influences people in their daily life because it’s just another way of saying ‘hey, you’re less important.’ Even subtle inequalities like this do play a big role.”
Her family encouraged her to move forward with the idea and her father even suggested that she get started right away. She decided to replace the hierarchy with a metal-based system, similar to what we see in the Olympics. The Queen, King, and Jack would be replaced with gold, silver, and bronze.
When she made the first pack of 50, it was sold out right away and since that time, she has sold more than 1500 worldwide. Game shops are also approaching her to partner with her and the creation she made.
In the end, Mellink recognizes that there are going to be differences of opinion but she wanted to provide a solution for those that also saw it as a problem.
