Ask a GeekGirlCon Agent!
Did you know that GeekGirlCon is one hundred percent volunteer-run? From our Tweets to our unforgettable events, everything gets done due to diehard geeks working together.
While a full-time volunteer staff is essential to making the magic happen, an extra-inspiring aspect of our yearly convention is the contribution of geeks who come from across the country to work during the big weekend. These GeekGirlCon Agents donate their time and effort to ensure a smooth, seriously rad celebration for all. Not only is their hands-on help hugely important, but their energy and unique insight into the Con makes for a dynamite time.
This fall, we have Agents joining us from nine different states across the USA, as well as Canada and even Australia! There are 183 Agents in our ranks, and four of them have written us to share their experiences and excitement for GeekGirlCon ‘13.
Returning Agent Laura Lucas learned about the very first GeekGirlCon in 2011 by seeing a flyer for it:
Why do you think GeekGirlCon is an important event?
Girls need to know that they can be geeks too, and that it’s okay to be a geek if they want to be.
What was your favorite volunteer activity at GeekGirlCon, and why?
Helping the vendors unload before the Con! They were thrilled that we were there, and happy to tell us about whatever cool stuff they were selling/had just done/had planned.
What are you hoping to gain from your time volunteering for GeekGirlCon?
Fun, a good experience, and some new skills are never a bad thing!
The very first GeekGirlCon logo!
Agent Alison Rapp will be bringing her enthusiasm back this year as well:
How did you hear about GeekGirlCon?
I can’t remember the first time I heard about GeekGirlCon, but I know it was a couple years ago, when the convention was just getting started. I was in grad school (feminist media scholarship represent!) in Minnesota at the time, and all I can remember thinking was, “Gosh, I’d really like to go there and meet some more geeky ladies interested in feminist stuff.” I moved out here to the Pacific Northwest in early August and am so psyched to not only be attending GeekGirlCon, but also helping out however I can.
Why do you think GeekGirlCon is an important event?
One of the reasons I think GeekGirlCon is important is because it’s a space where women—not to mention other marginalized folks—are visible and are able to freely share their love of geeky things, AND issues with being excluded from more traditional spaces and cultures. I think that’s awesome, and I’m so happy I can finally be a part of it.
Agent Lauren Smith will be joining us as a volunteer for the very first time this October:
How did you hear about GeekGirlCon?
I honestly don’t remember, but it would most likely have been through one of the geek feminist spaces I frequent on the web or follow on Twitter or Facebook.
What makes you proud to be a geek?
My geekdom generally revolves around television and movies I grew up watching that are deemed nerdy. I have always identified as a geek and consider it a very important piece of myself because those movies and television are foundational to who I am as a person. For example, on a rewatch of Star Trek: The Next Generation I discovered a small scene where Picard explains to Wesley Crusher about the importance of, essentially, a broad range of study in one’s education. I was stunned. This scene was immediately familiar, though until that moment forgotten, and basically sums up my entire approach to my formal and informal educations. This is something about myself that I value and take pride in, and it came directly out of my geekiness.
Why do you think GeekGirlCon is an important event?
I have too often felt uncomfortable and out of place, even in geek circles where I am familiar with the material, because of dynamics of misogyny and elitism that permeate geek culture. While those dynamics go in a number of directions (directions that reflect mainstream kyriarchal values, such as white supremacy, able-bodied supremacy, classism, etc.) their misogyny is particularly forthright and needs to be addressed. Having a space that centers women, and that I hope strives toward an intersectional understanding of what “centering women” looks like, is desperately needed while the things we want to talk about within our fandoms, genres and communities are sidelined and ignored. Frankly, the panels I’ve read about coming out of GeekGirlCon are ones that should exist at most Cons, that they don’t says a lot about where geek culture at large still is and why GeekGirlCon needs to exist.
What are you hoping to gain from your time volunteering for GeekGirlCon?
I have only recently moved back to the Seattle area and am hoping to connect with other feminist/womanist geeks, get more involved in fandom and geek culture in the physical world, and go to my very first Con!
Agent Lauren Hambacher also tells us about her excitement to volunteer for GeekGirlCon for the first time:
How did you hear about GeekGirlCon?
I ran into Terra Clarke Olsen. I learned about it from her after I moved to Seattle.
What makes you proud to be a geek?
Being a geek about something just means you are passionate about it. There’s pride in loving something that much and being excited about it.
Why do you think GeekGirlCon is an important event?
This will be my first year, but I’m so excited about it that I wanted to volunteer and help out too! I’m proud to be a girl geek, and it’s really nice to see a con with that specification. (Without excluding the men-folk as well!)
What are you hoping to gain from your time volunteering for GeekGirlCon?
New experiences, new friends, and a fun time!
A thousand thanks go out to these vital volunteers, and all who celebrate women and girls in geek culture. Come meet all our awesome Agents at GeekGirlCon ‘13! Pick up your passes today to be part of the geeky goodness! Want to be notified when the Agent application for 2014 goes live? Sign up for this list today!
