PULLMAN, Wash. — They’ve been called “irreverent,” have been accused of pushing non-violent protest to the limit, and they are headed to Washington State University Dec. 7.
This group of female activists, known as the Guerilla Girls, is aptly named because members wear gorilla masks to disguise their identities. Their cause? Consciousness raising. Their target? Discrimination. The Guerilla Girls specifically target the worlds of art and film.
“They use startling images to make the point that women, and people of color, are often barred from the most rewarding careers in art and film,” says Professor Noël Sturgeon, Chair of the WSU Department of Women’s Studies.
As an example of an image some might find startling, the Guerilla Girls have produced a new, anatomically correct Oscar that they say aptly reflects the person who always gets the award. The figure is white and male and obviously middle aged. Guerilla Girls say the statue would be more fitting considering no woman has ever won an Oscar for cinematography, direction or sound.
The Guerilla Girls are appearing Saturday, Dec. 7, at 6:30 p.m. in the Bryan Hall Theater as part of the Jo Hockenhull Distinguished Visiting Lecturer series. The series was launched in 1996 by the Women’s Studies Department to honor Hockenhull, a WSU professor emeritus of fine arts who was director of Women’s Studies for more than ten years and associate dean of the WSU Vancouver campus.
