Comments on: Do You Have a Vision for Women in Comics? Friends of Lulu Needs Help

By: It’s Official — Friends of Lulu No Longer a Non-Profit Organization » Comics Worth Reading

Thu, 09 Jun 2011 13:37:12 +0000

[...] that time, a group of volunteers stepped forward to try and get the group back on its feet (after a public call for help). However, the only news since from the group has been a public resignation (via blog post) from [...]

By: Friends of Lulu Future Uncertain as President Resigns Publicly » Comics Worth Reading

Thu, 16 Sep 2010 12:34:45 +0000

[...] much of a surprise — her fatigue has been obvious since the end of July, when she first began talking publicly about her tenure as the group’s leader over the past three years and the problems the group [...]

By: Friends of Lulu Saved! » Comics Worth Reading

Friends of Lulu Saved! » Comics Worth Reading — Mon, 02 Aug 2010 17:48:59 +0000

[...] call for help Friends of Lulu President Valerie D’Orazio posted last week worked! An interim Board of [...]

By: Joshua Macy

Joshua Macy — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 15:56:46 +0000

At this point I suspect that if anybody has a compelling vision for Women in Comics, they’d probably be better off going their own way instead of trying to resuscitate FoL.

By: mercury

mercury — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 12:55:44 +0000

Valerie definitely knows how to spin a story. In my mind the headline reads, “Valerie D’Orazio Drives Board Away, Runs Lulu into the Ground”.

By: Johanna

Johanna — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 10:10:01 +0000

The Board of Directors all quit or drifted away, Valerie said in her piece. But then, I don’t think anything about this situation is typical.

By: Hooper Triplett

Hooper Triplett — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 01:48:51 +0000

I’ve been around a fair number of non-profits that closed their doors, and I don’t recall the president or CEO typically having the sole autonomy over the decision. Aren’t there Directors or Trustees per IRS regulations?

By: ernie jones

ernie jones — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 01:23:12 +0000

i totally agree. i was half certain this thread was going to turn into personal attacks and recriminations. i think it’s important to take stock and move on. these are tumultuous times in so many ways and it’s important that we critique activism as much as we critique that which is being acted against.

By: Johanna

Johanna — Wed, 28 Jul 2010 20:05:09 +0000

It made sense to me. If we’re going to take something positive from all this, I think we need to look at what worked when and why and how and what needs to be transformed for new generations.

By: ernie jones

ernie jones — Wed, 28 Jul 2010 19:43:09 +0000

I wasn’t totally clear, I just realized. I mean they don’t have the same tax status concerns or other things like that, not that they aren’t concerned with the struggle for equality in comics.

By: ernie jones

ernie jones — Wed, 28 Jul 2010 19:42:03 +0000

Wow, great analysis on the old style vs. new style activism thing. I totally didn’t think of that but I believe that is the real issue here. The Girl-Wonder team don’t have the same concerns but yet can fight the same battles. They’re distributed enough that no one person has to mind the shop and take on major hardship. Maybe we can put this whole thing down to a paradigm shift?

By: Johanna

Johanna — Wed, 28 Jul 2010 16:27:50 +0000

The problem is how they get from here — potential tax-exempt status problems, all the financial (and possibly legal) problems Valerie mentions, no memberships or donations taken in for two years — to there — full-time salaried staff of at least one. It requires rebuilding a lot of ground work and trust.

Girl-Wonder.org is a very interesting comparison, yes, because they come across as more willing to pick a fight if necessary.

By: Maddy

Maddy — Wed, 28 Jul 2010 16:23:34 +0000

I don’t know much about Friends of Lulu, but I do agree that an organization focused on women in comics would be a good thing. I don’t believe it’s inherently an outdated concept, and I do think if it had a large online presence that invited participation somehow, it would draw in younger women too.

What about Girl-Wonder.org? Perhaps it’s something different, but they host webcomics by women, review and recommend comics by and about women, they have a Female-Friendly Comic Book Store Map, and the Convention Anti-Harassment Project. And while some may debate its results, there’s no doubt that Project Girl Wonder made an impact.

If Friends of Lulu continues, or if it doesn’t and something else replaces it, I think it should definitely be modelled in such a way that those running it can make it their full-time job. Unless a person doesn’t have to worry about money, that kind of unpaid work is a major drain and often not sustainable.