Grrl Fair – at Calacas – Santa Ana, CA

International Women's Day was first commemorated in 1911 primarily as a result of working conditions and lack of labor rights during the age of industrialization. Almost 100 years later, International Women's Day is not only observed in the foreign countries it experienced its birth in, but also right in the middle of downtown Orange County via Grrl Fair. Grrl Fair is an annual event dedicated to showcasing the talents of women in honor of International Women's Day. Grrl Fair provides empowerment for women of all ages and encourages females to seek out their talents and skills and enforce them into the male dominated world. Although the original festivities on Saturday for Grrl Fair were cancelled due to interference from local law enforcement, Calacas in Santa Ana offered to host the activities of Grrl Fair in their store, allowing female talent and pride to continue on and exemplify the power of women and the strength of their cause.

Adrienne Santellan, the woman largely responsible for the organization of Grrl Fair, first became involved as a volunteer for the event. Originally headed by Paula Arnett, Grrl Fair has been in circulation since 2000. The year after Adrienne Santellan volunteered, there was a strong possibility that Grrl Fair would not take place, ultimately decimating the only opportunity girls in Orange County possessed in celebrating a holiday already ignored in much of the United States. Santellan shares, "The year after I volunteered we found out Grrl Fair wasn't going to take place. I really didn't want that to happen, so I started asking around for volunteers and bands, and I was really trying to find people who were just as eager to keep this going." It was after Santellan's hard work that her "committee" was started. With the help of Vanessa Gaston, Candace Hansen, Vivian Anica, Karina Cervantes, and Claudia Lavini, Adrienne Santellan and her collective group of strong minded females are able to provide the rest of the women in Orange County a place to demonstrate what they're really made of.

The original plans for Grrl Fair consisted of a greater amount of activities, workshops, and talent displays which could not all take place inside Calacas. When asked about the situation with local law enforcement, Adrienne Santellan stated, "The Santa Ana Police Department contacted us and said that we didn't have the proper permits for the event, but the police didn't specify what permits we needed." Karina Cervantes, a member of Santellan's committee also shared, "A police officer said that if we decided to go on with Grrl Fair, the event would be shut down, and if we decided to operate as "Grrl Fair", they would be forced to take action." Whether or not the circumstances of Grrl Fair being shut down pertained to the event's ideals, and conservative Orange County's fear of it, with the last minute offer from Calacas, the women of Grrl Fair overcame the adversity and progressed their plans to continue on and celebrate International Women's Day.

The relocation of Grrl Fair proved to be a success. Calacas is a small store in downtown Santa Ana that sells items relevant to Mexican culture. The environment of the store proved to be compatible with the crowd Grrl Fair attracted that day. Decorated in Dia De La Muerte(Day of the Dead) art and ornaments, Calacas situated the vendors outside the store, the art in the back, and the bands close to the window display. Around 5pm, Calacas was filled and crowded with people, both male and female, who came to support Grrl Fair's cause.

Riot Grrrl band Mermaid was one of the few bands that played on Saturday. With vocals equivalent to Bikini Kill's Kathleen Hanna, the band upheld a fierce sound with loud Punk Rock musical stylings. Mermaid generated a large audience inside the small store, and members of the crowd banged their heads violently as the band maintained aggressive beats. The set was short, but Mermaid was able to demonstrate the raw talent that Riot Grrrl bands can provide to jaded females that may think otherwise.

Halfway into the event, A Pretty Mess began their set and augmented the Punk Rock mood inside the room. A Pretty Mess played music that intermingled different influences, ranging from Rock 'N' Roll to Street Punk. A few songs maintained a sound similar to Motorhead, and other songs dove straight into Punk Rock and cultivated music similar to the music of bands like A Global Threat. A Pretty Mess was energetic and invigorating, offering the audience music potent enough to commence a fast paced circle pit and on behalf of the women, create "a pretty mess".

Orange County natives He's Not Gay performed after A Pretty Mess and maintained a sound strikingly different from the previous bands. The trio performed a set inspired by alternative rock and indie rock, demonstrating vague hints of surf rock influences. He's Not Gay was sassy and full of attitude, and caused members of the audience to dance and sway their bodies in a lively manner. The band was entirely composed of girl power, and even the male drummer was able to amplify this energy.

The success of Grrl Fair was immense, and the positivity the event produced was overwhelming. While Grrl Fair was not able to provide its original large scale plans, the smaller setting at Calacas proved to be more intimate and intensely moving. Females AND males united in support of International Women's Day, and united to support the talent of women in Orange County who may not have any other outlet for their artistic abilities. The showcase of the different arts provided empowering content that inspired both young girls and young women, and ultimately offered females stronger perspectives regarding the essence of women. Adrienne Santellan shared, "I'm so grateful for everyone who helped, I'm grateful for Calacas, and I'm grateful for all the girls who showed up to the event. I'm really happy about the outcome, I sincerely appreciate everyone's support for Grrl Fair." Grrl Fair could have accepted its cancellation, but in the true spirit of womanhood, was unwilling to be defeated by "lack of permits", and through the adversity, Grrl Fair conquered the obstacles, ultimately proving the power and efforts of women victorious above oppression. It's no longer past history, barriers are still here today, and Grrl Fair was able to knock them down and celebrate International Women's Day AND its own personal victory. That's some serious Girl Power.

Grrl Fair MySpace: www.myspace.com/grrlfair
 

-Stephanie M.-
Big Wheel Senior Staff Writer

 

More photos of the event can be seen HERE

 

 

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