ARKANSAS DIARY #1

Dear GGOT Diary,

What a great tour! I have to admit I was a little nervous about this one. Touring to southern, red states always makes me nervous. I'm never sure how I (being a black Guerrilla Girl On Tour), or how we (being feminists), will be received. But I had no reason to be nervous because Aphra, Edith and I received the warmest welcome from one of the most diverse schools I have ever toured to.

The welcoming faculty was great. As we toured the theater and dance department we discussed the true meaning of feminism, and how some of the school's female students felt uncomfortable identifying as feminists, (despite the fact that they believe what feminism stands for). Ah it’s the same wherever we go and I immediately knew that everyone on the campus of Henderson U in Arkadelphia, Arkansas was on our side!

The performance went really well. We kept the energy up, the audience laughed where they were supposed to and they loved "Size Two Pants". When I picked a man from the audience to point out as a "true feminist" it just so happened that I chose the schools Vice President! He was perfect. Immediately, I could tell that he was a man of power and intelligence. He had a great sense of humor, and went with the joke. After the show he came over and told us how much he enjoyed it and how much he learned from “Feminists Are Funny”.

Here's a fun fact for ya: Did you know that March 15th, the day of our show, was National Hug a Lesbian day? We didn't. But, during "Announcements from the Audience" we learned that it was! At curtain call, Edith ran right up into the audience, and hugged herself a bunch of lesbians! I followed right behind Edith and so did Aphra, hugging until we were too tired to hug anyone else.

There's nothing better than taking an extra 45 minutes to leave the stage, because the audience is still loving you. We were signing t-shirts, and posters, and taking picture after picture after the show. It felt really great.

I learned something huge from this tour. There's no need to stress about any of our tour destinations. You never know how the audience is going to react. In blue states our feminist message may be taken for granted. But in red states they love us as soon as we step over the state line. Until we meet again you reddies!

Love,

Josephine Baker

March 16, 2011