When we think about who gave voice to women during their fight for the right to vote, or their battle to legalise abortion, those in the arts have often been at the forefront. Likewise the Black Panthers in the US civil rights movement and people with Aids shunned by the government. Artists haven’t only captured political shifts – their work has changed vital conversations.
At times, they have even changed laws. Paula Rego’s agonising depictions of women going through unsafe illegal abortions helped sway public opinion in Portugal’s 2007 referendum on legalising the practice. The one-woman show Prima Facie, by Suzie Miller, about a female barrister and sexual abuse survivor, exposed flaws in the law when it comes to rape victims. By asking the accused if consent was given, it influenced a senior British judge to rewrite the direction read to the jury during rape cases. Art and artists can have a huge influence.
