MISSION STATEMENT OF GUERRILLA GIRLS BROADBAND, INC.
The mission of Guerrilla Girls BroadBand, Inc. (GGBB) is to combat sexism, racism and social injustice in the artworld and beyond through electronic and other means deemed appropriate.
PROCESS: In order to ensure that the GGBBs not only hear the ideas of women of color and lesbians but implement them as well, the composition of the wing shall be at least 50% women who are marginalized in society by virtue of their color or sexual orientation. If the white, heterosexual composition of the wing’s active members exceeds 50%, all work will halt until balance is restored. The wing will also endeavor to include women in their 20s, 30s, 40s, 50s, 60s and 70s if possible in order to represent all generations of feminism in its work.
ANONYMITY: The success of the Guerrilla Girls was made possible by their anonymity, which kept focus upon the issues rather than the personalities or careers of individual Girls; their pedagogical use of the names of dead women artists as personae; and their public appearances in gorilla masks. In order to continue to combat social injustice and to undertake initiatives that may not be legal, it is imperative for the GGBBs to maintain anonymity, and to protect the anonymity of its members. There is no time limit on this pledge; however, certain close personal and working relationships are understood to be exceptions, provided those individuals understand the gravity of the need for anonymity as well. The anonymous address of the GGBBs is P.O. Box 69, New York 10116 (the General Post Office at 34th Street and 8th Avenue). Individual GGBBs shall be given email accounts under their code names as dead women artists to maintain the business of the group anonymously.
DECISION-MAKING: Generally, decisions as to projects and process will be made by consensus. This means that a project may not go forward if a member of the wing is vociferously opposed, and GGBBs must weigh how important it is to them to block the action of the wing. If a divisive issue arises, the President of the GGBBs will put the issue to a vote. The vote of the majority of active GGBBs will stand, with each GGBB holding one vote. No decisions made by a subgroup of the wing may be binding on the GGBBs as a whole.
INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY AND ARCHIVES: The ownership of the work of the GGBBs belongs to the GGBBs in common, not to the individuals in the wing by percentage or by any other method of calculation. However, the wing may decide to exhibit the signed work of individuals on its website, www.ggbb.org. The disposition of the archives of the GGBBs shall be determined by majority vote of the active members of the wing at the time this issue arises.
GOVERNANCE: The GGBBs are a for-profit corporation with the purpose of “advertising.” At the Annual Meeting of the corporation in January of each year, the GGBB membership will elect a President, Secretary and Treasurer. The job of the President will be to provide leadership and set the agenda for the ensuing year; the Secretary will take, or ensure Minutes are taken at each meeting, maintain a list of active members, and attend to legal issues; and the Treasurer will maintain financial records, and file taxes annually through a CPA. Any GGBB elected as an officer must have been active for at least 6 months.
FINANCES: The GGBBs are a volunteer organization. However, GGBBs are paid if they go on gigs. No member of the wing is permitted to give or use the assets of the GGBBs without the knowledge and consent of the whole. Mothers will be reimbursed for their babysitting costs so they may attend meetings.
MEMBERSHIP: New members of the GGBBs may be invited by active members of the wing at any time. Proposed new members are submitted and approved at a meeting of the wing, and a Mentor GGBB is identified to contact her to ask if she has the time and interest to commit to the GGBBs. The Mentor shall guide the new member of the GGBBs for one year, giving her a copy of this Constitution and a tour of the website, along with other background materials as required to make her feel comfortable with the GGBB process. GGBBs are re-elected each year at the Annual Meeting; if a GGBB has not attended in six months and does not attend the Annual Meeting in January, she will be dropped from the list of active members for the subsequent year. Tasks for which GGBBs will be asked to volunteer each year will be determined at the Annual Meeting.