I’m a firm believer that in the toughest of times, our underlying motivations and passions seem to reveal themselves.

During the 2016 election, Donald Trump referred to his then-rival, Hillary Clinton, as a “nasty woman”, which ignited a fire within female voters; it was time for women to stand up and control the narrative behind the words which were used to describe them. Lucy McClure was one of those women.

After the 2016 presidential debate, McClure was terrified as she came to the realization that things would drastically change for her as a woman, a mother, and an immigrant. McClure is the mother of two mixed children; a son who resembles her white ex-husband, and a daughter who resembles Lucy herself. Both of her children will grow up to have different experiences despite being raised by the same parents and despite being siblings…all because of how they appear on the outside.

McClure lived in Washington, D.C. with her then-husband and two kids in 2015, before moving to New Haven later. It was a lonely time in her life and although she spent her days doing photography and teaching art, her main focus was on motherhood. One day she found herself scrolling through social media (as we all do) and came across a post on Facebook: a friend shared a post calling for artists in New York City in response to Trump’s “nasty woman” comment. The goal was to take control of the narrative rather than letting a man try to use his power and platform make women feel less than. McClure felt something shift in her that day. She recalled how reproductive rights were being attacked and wanted to join the art and activist movement that was formed in responding to Trump ‘s offensive comments.

“We cannot be complacent, we must do something,” McClure recalled the night she created a Facebook message and added all of her art contacts–friends and aquantainances alike–and tapped “send.” Her reaction to her own measures of outreach reflect the symptoms of the common theme of disempowering women in a patriarchal American culture. Immediately, the self-doubt and regret settled in. What are you doing? Who do you think you are? What followed quickly taught her that it was the best move in the right direction.

In the morning, she woke to an overwhelmingly positive response to her message. She thought quickly that maybe, just maybe, this would all work out. The main objective of the Nasty Women movement was for women to unite together in a time of uncertainty and allow artists to use their voice and creative drive to express their thoughts and ideas. Nasty Women CT was established to give voices to creative activists at a crucial time in American history.

Nasty Women completely removes the elitism that often comes with the arts. It’s an inclusive group that welcomes all ideas and points of view. Over 350 artists across Connecticut submitted their art; McClure and her team worked with local restaurants and businesses around New Haven to donate their resources and materials for their first show, which took place on the bottom floor of a library that was on its last leg. Nasty Women CT’s opening night was the largest art show opening in a decade. Over 1,000 people showed up and attendees waited as long as 2-3 hours in line just to be a part of it.

McClure realized that Nasty Women wasn’t just an exhibition; it was a movement that had begun and gained momentum that very night. It changed the New Haven art scene forever. The following day, McClure was invited to join Artspace New Haven because she brought community members together in a time of societal divide due to the stress of the upcoming election.

Nasty Women is local, as are other resources and activist groups, but we are rarely aware of such organizations despite how close they are to us. Nasty Women allows us to have these difficult conversations because it fosters open communication through the unique artistic expression of ideas, thus, making the environment feel more inclusive.

The conversation with Lucy turned into one about today’s education system. We often don’t have the chance to have uncomfortable, but important, conversations in the classroom. If we do, when do we learn how to enter these discussions without judgement, but rather curiosity? This is why self-education is critical. It is tough to have conversations about racism, sexism, LGBTQ+ rights, and other seemingly “taboo” subjects, because we aren’t familiar with the language that is required for them (for example, sex education). It is up to us to ask ourselves these questions and find the answers ourselves. Fortunately, as a student of the Communication program at Southern, I have learned how to have healthy debates about ethics and other tough subjects and how to NOT approach them on the defense, with stubborn views. I have learned how to see other points of view, and my courses often have conversations about current events. However, not every program, or university for that matter, will offer such luxuries. This is why it is important for us to educate ourselves, rather than remaining passive and dependent on our educators to tell us everything we need to know.

Watch our interview with Lucy on our documentary, which aired December 11th!

Visit Nasty Women's website: https://nastywomenct.org/home