
“The Couple in the Cage” documents the traveling performance of Guillermo Gómez-Peña and Coco Fusco, in which he exhibited two caged “Amerindians” from an imaginary island. While Gómez-Peña’s and Fusco’s intent was to create a satirical commentary on the notion of discovery, they soon realized that many of their viewers believed the fiction, and thought the artists were real “savages”.
The record of their interactions with audiences in four countries dramatizes the dilemma of cross-cultural misunderstanding we continue to live with today. Their experiences are interwoven with archival footage of ethnographic displays from the past, giving an historical dimension to the artists’ social experiment. “The Couple in the Cage” displays a type of tactical media as described by Kaprow’s happenings in which by showing a powerful blend of comic fiction and poignant reflection on the morality of treating human beings as exotic curiosities, Guillermo and Coco spread awareness about misunderstanding of human rights.
Their performance allows outside individuals to create their own interpretation of how they view the couple in the cage. The individual’s behavior is studied and shown to have misunderstandings of people who are different than them.
02/21/12
I was trained ahead of time on how to run as an LGBT candidate without making it an issue. I was taught how to turn a conversation around and focus on the topic at hand and not on being a gay candidate. - Indianapolis City-County Councilman At-Large Zach Adamson
OPEN IN INDIANAPOLIS: ZACH ADAMSON
FuerteMen.com has a new section on their site called People Who Make A Difference. They wanted to feature individuals in LGBT and Latino communities who in their own unique way make this world a better place. People who may otherwise go unnoticed walking down the street, but have the courage and integrity to stand up for others and make things happen.
If you know a person that you would like to submit as an individual who makes a difference, send them an email at salvarez@fuertemen.com and tell them why. Fuerte Men debuted this section with Indianapolis City-County Councilman At-Large Zach Adamson.
Fuerte Men is an on-line magazine to help advocate globally for both Latino and LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender) communities.
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Kudos to Zach Adamson, an inspirational Latino who ran an openly gay campaign and won!
02/16/12