Are movies your thing? Looking for a conversation about LGBTQ topics?

Join us for the LGBTQ monthly film discussion series! Each month we will discuss an LGBTQ film through the library's Kanopy collection. It's all about watching films, sharing stories, and having an honest conversation about the tough issues faced by the LGBTQ community.

This month we are watching:

Laramie Inside Out: How Matthew Shepard's Murder Changed Laramie

https://www.kanopy.com/en/product/144191

In October 1998, Wyoming college student Matthew Shepard was brutally beaten and left lashed to a fence to die. The horror of this murder pushed Laramie into the media spotlight and sparked a nationwide debate about homophobia, gay-bashing and hate crimes. As Laramie braced for the trials of Matthew's killers, filmmaker Beverly Seckinger returned to her hometown to see how his murder was transforming the site of her own closeted adolescence. In Laramie Inside Out, we meet "God-hates-fags" Westboro Baptist Church Reverend Fred Phelps, who condemns Shepard and all LGBTQ people to hell. But we also meet students, teachers, parents, and clergy determined to fight for the soul of their community.

This series allows us to explore complex topics. Due to adult content and mature themes, viewer and participant discretion is advised.

The program will be presented online using Webex. Registration is required. Registered participants will receive an email with instructions on how to join the meeting. Don't see the email? Check your spam folder.

Don’t have the Kanopy App? For instructions on how to set up a Kanopy account visit https://www.phoenixpubliclibrary.org/browse/elibrary/getting-started/kanopy

The Phoenix LGBTQ Employee Alliance has partnered with Burton Barr Central Library to produce a program featuring a series of award-winning films that showcases the experiences of the LGBTQ community. The series highlights the artistic contributions both nationally and internationally of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender films and filmmakers. Our goal is to create a diverse film series that educates, entertains, and offers the viewer an opportunity to experience the challenges and triumphs firsthand.