CareForce

04/28/2015 MAPstaff

Photo by Studio REV-

Marisa Morán Jahn collaborates with nannies, housecleaners, and caregivers to create the CareForce, a dynamic public artwork that combines live performance, visual art, sound, dance, participatory storytelling, documentary film, interactive animation, as well as a fleet of real-life, tricked-out superhero vehicles/mobile recording studios–the CareForce One and the NannyVan. With Jahn’s artistic leadership, the CareForce transforms individual stories into that of a larger movement exemplifying the triumph, resiliency, and the trailblazing leadership of women. You can catch the CareForce online and across social media; performances at public and community spaces (public libraries, parks, transit hubs, worker centers, etc.); and installation-based screenings at festivals, conferences/symposia, and museums.

When New Deal Labor Laws passed in the 1930s, Southern congressmen intentionally excluded nannies, housekeepers, and caregivers from receiving basic labor protections. Today, the tide is turning! In 2010, New York passed the very first Domestic Workers Bill of Rights, followed by Hawaii, California in 2013, Massachusetts in 2014, with Connecticut likely to be next in 2015. With more bills of rights underway, what we need now, more than ever, are stories that spark the public imagination and inspire a culture shift in how we understand domestic work in this country.