'Out in the Silence' Erie screening October 21, 2009

Sponsored by Northwest PA American Civil Liberties Union.

Out In The Silence captures the remarkable chain of events that unfolds when the announcement of filmmaker Joe Wilson's wedding to another man ignites a firestorm of controversy in Oil City, the western Pennsylvania hometown he left long ago. Drawn back by a plea for help from the mother of a gay teen being tormented at school, Wilson's journey illustrates the universal challenges of being an outsider in a conservative environment and the transformation that is possible when those who have long been constrained by a traditional code of silence summon the courage to break it.
The film will be followed by a dynamic panel discussion with filmmakers, characters from the film, and local and state activists and leaders. Email: [email protected]. Browse to http://wpsu.org/outinthesilence.

Produced in association with the Sundance Institute, OUT IN THE SILENCE is an uplifting film about courageous local residents confronting homophobia and the limitations of religion, tradition and the status quo in their conservative small town in the hills of northwestern Pennsylvania.

The aim of the film and associated community engagement campaign is to expand public awareness about the struggles gay people continue to face in rural and small town America and to promote dialogue and action in communities around the country that will help people on all sides of the issues find common ground.
It all started when Wilson, who married his long-time partner, Dean Hamer, in Canada, ran a wedding announcement in the Oil City paper, The Derric

"There was a firestorm of controversy and a flood of negative letters to the editor which said the paper should not have published the announcement, that gay marriage should never be recognized, and that it would have been better if I, as a gay person, had never been born" said Wilson on the phone from Washington, D.C., where he and Hamer live.

"One of the most interesting attacks, in the form of a letter-to-the-editor in The Derrick, came from a fundamentalist minister and his wife," said Hamer. "Over the course of the next three years, we actually became friends with the fervently religious couple. And once they got to know us as people, they underwent an incredible transformation, all of which is chronicled in the film."

The controversy also introduced Wilson, Hamer and their cameras to CJ, a gay teen being tormented at a high school in Venango County, and his mother Kathy Springer. With no where else to turn, Kathy pleaded to Wilson for help after seeing his wedding announcement in the paper. Soon thereafter, Wilson helped to connect Kathy and CJ with the ACLU of Pennsylvania.

"As chronicled in the film, CJ's and Kathy's courage and willingness to speak out about their lives, with the key backing of the ACLU, will show audiences the remarkable change that is possible when people stand up for what is right in their community."

Wilson and Hamer are working with a variety of organizations, including the ACLU, to take the film to small towns and rural communities throughout Pennsylvania and across the country to help raise awareness about the lives and concerns of GLBT people and encourage viewers to get involved in efforts to promote fairness and equality for all. The filmmakers will be at the screening and are available for interviews (Visit OutintheSilence.com for information and to view the trailer.)

Official Website: http://www.outinthesilence.com