By Candace Perry
Cape Cod Branch

March 2022

The Cape Cod Branch invites everyone to attend an International Women’s Day program, Racial Reckonings. The Zoom program is on March 8 from 7:30 – 9 p.m. (EST). To attend, please register in advance by clicking here. There will be three short plays and discussions. Two of the plays, “No Surrender” and “Kinfolk,” were written by WILPF member Candace Perry, who has written several plays dealing with white privilege and the impacts of historical racial prejudice, especially in the southern United States, where she was raised. Her fellow playwright, John Dennis Anderson, is the author of “Writing Wrongs,” and also grew up in the South.

“We bring our Southern roots and a concern for our white privilege to our work. As a longtime member of the Cape Cod Branch of WILPF, I’ve learned how racism and white supremacy have impacted every part of our lives.” Candace says of the plays she and John have written. The three plays were produced via Zoom. “Writing Wrongs” by Anderson, features Dorothy Mains Prince with Anderson, as himself, and deals with a 1952 allegedly racist novel. Perry’s play, “No Surrender,” about the removal of a statue of Robert E. Lee, was filmed live with actors John Shuman, Patrick Riviere, and Anderson. Perry’s other play, “Kinfolk,” deals with family connections and costars Sallie Tighe, Cynthia Harrington, and Patrick Riviere.

In addition to the plays, a pre-recorded discussion led by Charles Everett Pace will be shown. Pace, a scholar and historical interpreter who portrayed Frederick Douglass, Langston Hughes, and Malcolm X, brought his insights as an anthropologist of performance and a social justice activist to the discussion. Following the pre-recorded portion, the playwrights will be joined by two of the actors, Dorothy Mains Prince and Sallie Tighe, for a live discussion. Prince and Tighe will bring their experiences as African-American women, actors, and activists to the conversation.  WILPF members will be able to participate, and we look forward to a dynamic exchange.

The pre-recorded program was originally presented on Zoom in December with funding from the Joan Patchen Fund of WILPF. The fund supports the work of WILPF branches in the use of the arts to promote social change and create a more peaceable world.  

The Cape Cod Branch is pleased to be able to extend the viewership of the plays to all of WILPF with a new virtual program on International Women’s Day. You can view the flyer for the program here.