Guerrilla Girls on Tour Makes a Stop at Scranton

“It is a great time to be a feminist. Feminism is experiencing a comeback. It is swift wind sweeping the country. And it’s great to be the wind – the wind is powerful. The wind is unpredictable. The wind has the ability to mess things up. So today, I am going to share with you how, as part of the Guerrilla Girls on Tour, I messed things up,” said Donna Kaz aka Aphra Behn, Guerrilla Girls on Tour! member, who recently gave a lecture on “PUSH/PUSHBACK: Nine steps to make a difference with art and activism” at The University of Scranton.

Kaz, a leading feminist voice in the nation on how to combine art and activism, has led the touring activist troupe, Guerrilla Girls on Tour!, for nearly twenty years.

“Sexism and discrimination are everywhere. The arts are probably more discriminatory than huge corporations because they don’t have to follow the laws of equal opportunity. Where there’s more money, there’s more discrimination,” said Kaz.

Kaz discussed the evident lack of equality between men and women, especially in the theater world, and addressed some solutions to the issues of inequality that are plaguing the nation.

“I’m not here to say that the work of white men should go away. I’m not talking about eliminating work that is already here. I’m not talking about that Shakespeare should go away. I’m talking about equality. And there has to be a place at the table for everyone. We have just been fed one narrative for a long time, and it’s time for other narratives to come forward. Because we are not a rich country without the diversity of those narratives,” said Kaz.

The activist also mentioned how her experiences in surviving domestic violence shaped her career path as a feminist in the arts.

“I was just really embarrassed by the whole thing, and it took me twelve years to finally open up about it. And it hit me: I’m a survivor. And that was twelve years after the incident. I really became involved in the domestic violence movement and started writing about it,” said Kaz. Her memoir, “UN/MASKED, Memoirs of a Guerrilla Girl On Tour” was published in 2016. She speaks regularly at conferences, universities and festivals and has won numerous awards.

The lecture concluded with a question and answer session with attendees, where Kaz offered advice on the future of equality and the steps individuals can take to make a difference.

The Guerrilla Girls on Tour presentation was co-sponsored by the Women’s Studies Program, the Jane Kopas Women’s Center, the Multicultural Center, the Schemel Forum, the Art and Music Program and the Hope Horn Gallery at The University of Scranton.