Filmmakers Raymond Braun, Rob Epstein and Jeffery Freidman set out to document what Pride means today to LGBTQ people across the country, 50 years after the Stonewall riots catalyzed the modern movement for LGBTQ rights. State of Pride, follows Raymond and his conversations with LGBTQ people attending and organizing Pride events in Tuscaloosa, Salt Lake City, and San Francisco.

From a married lesbian couple in Alabama who travel two hours to attend their first Pride, to an ex-Mormon who convinces his family to march with him in Utah, the stories capture a range of experiences and perspectives not often singled out in broader Pride narrative that tend to focus on big cities.

“Pride is both a party and a protest with equal importance. The roots of Pride are in rioting and protesting and raising awareness about injustice. We also need to have self-care moments to celebrate each other and to recharge. It’s not so much about the size of the Pride events that matters. It is really the idea of having a spirit of connectedness and creating a space where people feel like they can shed all of the internalized shame and just be themselves.”

The film reminds us that the adoption of the word Pride is the opposite of shame and homophobia. Too often, LGBTQ youth in rural areas flee to larger cities to find acceptance. Filmmakers hope to inspire and support LGBTQ youth to live wherever they want to live, including rural conservative towns and have that place accept them for who they are. Pride forces a conversation.

HAPPY PRIDE!
In honor of PRIDE season, each attending registrant of the State of Pride Big View event on July 14th will be entered in to a drawing for the children’s book, “PRIDE – The Story of Harvey Milk and the Rainbow Flag”, the very first picture book to tell this remarkable and inspiring history.
Attendance required.