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A hilarious fake talk show that domestic workers in the U.S. dialed into for information on overtime wages, tax requirements, trafficking, and more.
Nannies, housekeepers, and eldercare providers have long been excluded from basic labour protections in the United States, but thankfully, this is now starting to change. In 2010, New York passed the very first Domestic Workers Bill of Rights, followed by Hawaii and California, with other states soon to follow. In the wake of these major victories, a challenge arose for organizers, who recognized that these victories would be hollow if workers remained unaware of the changes. Given that domestic workers generally have low print literacy, don’t regularly listen to the radio, and often work in isolation, how best to inform them about their newly enshrined rights? And how to communicate the law — a wonky snore-fest — in a lively and engaging way that domestic workers could act on?
To help address this challenge, Domestic Workers United, a New York City-based advocacy group, turned to REV-, a non-profit art, media, and social justice studio. Via a survey, they noted that all domestic workers at least had a basic cell phone. Could we transform the cell phone into a tool for popular education? Collaborators from the MIT Center for Civic Media and Terravoz were brought in to flex their tech, while lawyers from local community groups (the Urban Justice Center and the National Employment Law Project) were brought in to ensure that the creative work of the project aligned with long-term legal advocacy goals (see: PRINCIPLE: Use the law, don’t be afraid of it).
Could we transform the cell phone into a tool for popular education?
With REV- at the helm, the team created a public art nanny hotline. Here’s how it works: With even the simplest of cell phones, users can call (347) WORK-500 and hear humorous episodes of a show called New Day New Standard about topics like overtime wages, tax requirements, trafficking, and more.
Users would call in to hear the New Day New Standard host, Christine Yvette Lewis, a spunky nanny and advocate from Trinidad & Tobago whose charisma had landed her a guest spot on the Colbert Report — bantering back and forth with the fictional Miss Know-It-All and other characters calling in to the fake talk show.
The project launched in May 2012 as part of a citywide campaign led by domestic worker groups. Each month since then, the hotline receives from 400 to 1200 calls a month. While the hotline’s primary audience is domestic workers, the project and its message were carried further through media attention (BBC, GOOD magazine, parent blogs) and through presentations at universities, film festivals, and the White House (yes, that White House).
In response to the requests of domestic worker groups from coast to coast, in early 2014, REV- led a collaboration that includes new partners like The National Domestic Workers Alliance and NuLawLab in the creation of a souped up national nanny hotline whose content is being created with workers around the US via a mobile design studio and sound lab dubbed NannyVan. The national hotline, appropriately called the “Domestic Worker App” — but still accessible by any kind of phone — features new functionalities such as the ability to subscribe to weekly SMS tips about topics like the law, domestic worker history, health and safety, and the growing movement.
Call (347) WORK-500 to check out more!
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An issue like domestic workers rights can raise a lot of thorny issues and elevate levels of fear for both domestic workers and their employers. But by referring to these nanny hotlines as “public art,” the topic became more approachable: Domestic workers were more excited to participate, and referring to their contribution as “art” valorized their creative agency. For employers, framing the project as art dismantled their inhibitions and allowed them to explore the topic in a new way.
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Both the New York and national nanny hotlines were created from the stories, data, and strategies developed by local domestic worker groups across the nation. Working in concert with local domestic worker leaders, REV- upped participation through storytelling workshops that included voice acting, skits, drawing, and envisioning ways to tell a critical piece of policy in a compelling and creative way.
Humour and off-the-cuff banter can often more effectively convey information than straightforward delivery of hard news. The success of New Day New Standard’s fake call-in radio shows was built on this premise.
Characters and character-driven narratives are a fun and easy way to hook in your audience. The New York nanny hotline’s episodes were inspired by and written around the character of Christine Yvette Lewis, whose charisma drove the narrative. The national nanny hotline boasts a bevy of bonkers, yet relatable characters whose dialogue makes the messages stick.