"On Friday, it was reported that in early September, the Art Institute of Chicago fired all of its docents, or trained volunteer museum guides and greeters, for being "mostly older white women of above-average financial means."
"According to the Wall Street Journal, on Sept. 3, Veronica Stein, an executive director of learning and engagement at the museum, sent an email to the more than 100 docents the museum has, firing all of them."In gratitude for their long, unpaid service—averaging 15 years each—the Art Institute offered the involuntarily retired guides a two-year free pass to the museum," wrote the Wall Street Journal.
"According to the Wall Street Journal, Stein said that the museum needs to move "in a way that allows community members of all income levels to participate, responds to issues of class and income equity, and does not require financial flexibility," reportedly pointing to the predominantly white and above-average financial means of the museum guides as an issue.
"A museum docent is a guide who serves as an educator who brings people on tours of the museums' artworks, giving details into the works and the artists' backgrounds. The position is usually a volunteer one."...
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