The life-size tableaux features a disheveled woman crawling on her knees and elbow, her face buried in her hand; she is dressed in remnants of her business attire. Cast to the side are garments and an unopened purse and briefcase. The woman could be anyone, her flesh tones representative of multiple ethnicities. Above her hang her attackers: two muscular, ghostly figures. Theatrical lighting casts dramatic shadows.

The project –

An anti-sexual assault public exhibition, project and campaign –

The Morality/Mortality tableaux is the featured visual component for the national project focusing on issues of sexual assault, recidivism, and criminal justice.

Developed in connection with the Center for American Studies and Culture, the initial public education campaign was produced in Los Angeles, New York City, Chicago, Washington D.C., and Miami. The five-tableaux edition was unveiled simultaneously in the five cities on high-trafficked sites as part of a national public education campaign calling attention to the horrors of rape and the inadequacies of the judicial system in dealing with the crime. Among the initial goals of the project was to help generate legislative support for more comprehensive and effective laws and enforcement related to sex crimes.

Few people outside law enforcement ever see the immediate aftermath of rape. By selecting the most high-trafficked street-front sites for Morality/Mortality, the project brought the issues of sexual assault – a subject often spoken about only in hushed tones - to the general public.

Peg Yorkin leads the list of those who deserve much recognition for their contributions to the Morality/Mortality project.