Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/1278299
Summer 2020 The Costume Designer 17 It is March 2020. California and most of the country are in quarantine. Toilet paper has become a high-ticket item and there are long lines and empty shelves at the grocery stores. Just as people begin to accept and accli- mate themselves to a 24/7, COVID-19/Trump news diet; steady retorts of "economy versus lives" from those championing reopening; and the heartbreaking deaths caused by "The Rona," a Black man dies at the hands of the police prompting a national and international outcry. During the following months, after long protests and soul searching, the country reopens in July to the chagrin of the medical professionals. COVID-19 cases are now spik- ing and it is as if the March quarantine never happened. This sounds like the summary for a movie script our members would be chomping at the bit to design. However, it is our new reality. This is a moment that the next generation is going to be reading about in history textbooks or, dare I say, online school reading materials from home. What were you doing when the country shut down? What were you doing when George Floyd died at the hands of the police? His death reverberated around the world, reminding people of our shared humanity. It opened the eyes of many and sparked national and international protests against police brutality; institution- alized racism; and racism against Black citizens of the United States and the diaspora. For all those that witnessed his death, it was a moment of horror and a moment of reckoning. Find an excuse to blame the victim and go back to our daily lives? Or say something. Do something. Millions of people spent 30 or more days in the streets generally peacefully protesting the right of Black Americans to attain "Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness," the three unalien- able rights which the Declaration of Independence says have been given to all humans by their creator and which governments are created to protect. It was during the tumult of the quarantine and after the death of George Floyd that the CDG Diversity Committee was created. Since discussions were hap- pening regarding COVID-19 and getting back to work safely, I thought we should consider all aspects of safety. I recounted a story of an IA member's run-in with a secu- rity guard while working on a show to the CDG Eboard, and then asked President Salvador Perez if I could cre- ate a survey to find out how prevalent this type of law enforcement incident is within our CDG community. He replied in the affirmative as he had been considering creating a diversity committee. On June 5, he asked me if I would co-chair the CDG Diversity Committee with him and tasked us with creating the survey. Our Committee started quickly, using the CDG's social media presence to reflect our collective feelings sur- rounding the death of George Floyd and others, and the protests happening daily across our nation and the world. We have created resource pages with information about literature, movies, social, and political programs to edu- cate CDG members, the IA, and our affiliates. The social media feed and the resource pages will ultimately reflect information about the diversity of all of our members. There are other areas of activity planned such as panel discussions and voter registration in conjunction with the IA to support the foot campaign of the protests at the ballot box in November. The survey, our most important task, is nearly complete. By the time you are reading this, you might have received an invitation to participate. This anonymous survey will tell us who we are as Costume Designers Guild members and what the needs of the membership are. We are looking to 100% participation to have accurate data to work with. This will allow us to educate and protect our members and place the focus where it is needed the most. The CDG Diversity Committee has been at work for several months now and during that time, there have been many new developments in our world. The economies of several states have reopened. Industries including enter- tainment, are trying to get back to work safely. COVID-19 is spiking once more and ICU's in many states are almost at capacity. While we are moving backward in the fight for our public health, let's not move backward in the fight for the unalienable rights of Black citizens in this country and in so doing, all citizens of this country. We can start small, with the CDG survey and grow to larger actions of participation. Then as we look outward and keep informed through education, we can vote for the rights of all our citizens and all people to pursue life, liberty, and happiness. "We are able to do our jobs because other union members are doing theirs." by Dana Rebecca Woods, Co-Chair CDG Diversity Committee & The CDG Diversity Committee A Call to Action