by Susan Jordan
The Gay Alliance will host a Producer’s Premiere and Gala for
“Shoulders To Stand On,” the documentary feature film, on Sept. 29 at
the Dryden Theatre of the George Eastman House. The film traces the
history of Rochester’s LGBT community and equality movement from
pre-Stonewall times to today.
Kevin Indovino (right) interviews John Curtis.
The screening begins at 4 p.m., followed by a gala reception to meet
some of the individuals in the film. Cost is $40 and since space in the
theatre is limited, those who would like to purchase tickets should go
as soon as possible to www.gayalliance.org.
Producer/director Kevin Indovino told The Empty Closet, “One question
we’re asking a lot of people is, looking at the LGBT movement in
Rochester, what is it about our city that made it possible to be
progressive? When you start talking to the early pioneers you realize
the courage it took to step out of the closet in the early ‘70s and
become visible and let their voices be heard. They were risking their
jobs, their ties with family and, to some extent, risking their lives.
“That seems to be the common thread. They were people who saw the
need to do things. They had everything to lose. They weren’t doing it to
be in a historical documentary someday, or thinking about their legacy.
They were reacting to something that needed to be done.
“People always say, we’re the city of Susan B. Anthony and Frederick
Douglass. They too were not doing activism in terms of their future
fame. They were doing what they had to do. Our LGBT pioneers deserve to
be included in the hall of fame with them.
“The title Shoulders To Stand On says it all. It’s about recognizing
and celebrating the people and organizations that have made Rochester a
pretty good place to live for lesbian, gay, bi and trans people. It
didn’t happen by magic – it took a lot of passion and imagination.”
Kevin pointed out that the documentary is part of a historical
archiving project, which also involves the digitization of the EC, oral
histories recorded by Evelyn Bailey and hopefully a website that will
archive all the historical materials, including those at Cornell and the
University of Rochester. It will also include a toolkit for teachers,
to show them how to use the website for their classroom studies.
The documentary film will be available for purchase on BluRay and
Kevin hopes that it will be televised on certain PBS stations. It will
also be broken down into sections that can be used for different
educational purposes, i.e. a class on HIV/AIDS.
Kevin noted, “It’s important to preserve our history because a lot of
it is quickly disappearing. Back in the ‘70s WCMF hosted a radio show,
Green Thursdays, which was produced by early activists like Patti Evans
and Bob Crystal. All of those shows have been lost – probably were never
even recorded. There’s a huge chunk of history that is gone. We have no
idea what those shows might have contained. That’s why it is important
to do this project and make sure our history is saved.”
He added, “There are people in the community who have items stored in
their closets and don’t realize their historical significance. It’s
important to save our history. The other thing is, we are recognizing
this history while many of the pioneers are still alive, so they can see
the record of what they have done.”
Since the ‘90s, a generation of LGBT people has grown up thinking of
Pride as a big corporate-sponsored boozin’ and cruisin’ party, without
political or grassroots content. Kevin commented, “Today’s younger
generation needs to realize that the fight isn’t over. It kind of comes
full circle – we are capturing and celebrating this history, but we also
need to make sure that youth today know this history and that their
freedom comes from people who stepped out of the closet and risked their
lives – and also that there is work still to be done.”
Even if many youth couldn’t care less, Kevin says, “We want that one person to see this and say, ‘Here’s where I can make a difference.”
He said, “To wrap it all up, it’s about the importance of saving our
history, and second, the importance of celebrating who we are and where
we come from. It’s not just the LGBT movement that made it happen – it’s
about Rochester and that there’s something here that makes us stand up
for what’s right. One thing that comes through in the documentary is
that very early on, Rochester became an educated community, and
education is where activism comes from.”
Evelyn Bailey, Shoulders To Stand On organizer, has been working on
documenting the history of the Rochester community for over a decade.
Evelyn said, “The Rochester LGBT community has a story to tell and a
history to be documented. The 90 minute Shoulders to Stand On
Documentary does both. The Producer’s Premier in September will be a
very PROUD moment for me. It is the culmination of a 10-year labor of
love.
“I have been awed by and humbled by your stories. YOU have made the
history and Rochester will be the first community to produce a
documentary on its own history. I am very proud to be a part of the
Rochester LGBT community, and have been overwhelmed many times by the
community’s generosity.
“I must mention Tony Mascioli. Tony challenged me to get serious
about raising money. He supported my efforts from beginning to end. Tony
died on Aug. 9 of this year. I know he will see this documentary. To
Tony and all those who have in any way participated in the making of
this documentary film — the Gay Alliance and I are deeply grateful. Let
us all celebrate, be proud, be out — and continue to be shoulders of the
future!”
For those who miss the premiere, the film will also be screened at ImageOut in October.
Here’s where to go in order to donate to the Alliance’s Forty and
Fabulous fundraiser and keep Rochester’s LGBT history going for another
four decades – until there really is no more work to be done:
http://www.firstgiving.com/fundraiser/GayAllianceStaff/fabulous-40-challenge.