“Stonewall” follow-up

This is a follow up on my piece from issue one, so if you haven’t read that already, please do before reading this. I went and saw the movie “Stonewall” so you don’t have to. Be glad that I did and can now tell you that it is not at all worth your time. My overall opinion is that it was not a good movie in any way. Although the movie is titled “Stonewall” and is supposed to be focused on the Stonewall riots, it was way more focused on the main character, Danny’s (Jeremy Irvine) coming-of-age story. Throughout the entire movie there’re quite a few flashbacks to how his sexuality was discovered and to his parents kicking him out. Of the five or six other characters already living on the infamous Christopher Street before Danny arrived, only one small detail of one character’s life was divulged. The only real story involved was that of the white cis male who was new to the entire movement. I’ve read a lot of other reviews on the movie lately and a common thought is about how the scenes were laid out and filmed. To many, it reminded them of a Broadway musical because it seemed as though the characters were always about to break into song and dance. Alonso Duralde, writer for the Wrap said the movie was “as if ‘Selma’ had focused [on] a fictional white liberal character instead of Martin Luther King Jr.” Its one redeeming quality? The costumes! They were perfect for the late ‘60s, early ‘70s time period. I wish almost everything worn in the movie was a part of my closet. If you’d like to see these costumes, please search for some images. Just don’t see the movie. Please don’t give any of your money to the makers of such a problematic movie.

Protect her character

This may be a bit outdated, but I feel as though it still needs to be addressed. Lincoln High School in Manitowoc, Wisconsin hung up some pretty offensive posters during last school year’s prom season. The posters featured a simple silhouette of a woman in a prom dress with dozens of positive attributes filling her figure. In an arc above the woman, “A Night to Protect Her Character” was written. Below, the two sponsors, The Crossing of Manitowoc County (a Christian pro-life clinic) and Holy Family Memorial (a Catholic health care provider) were listed. Combine all of these factors and you realize that it’s definitely an anti-sex on prom night poster. The “protect her character” title completely devalues women to an incredible point. It sends a message that women are only valuable if they save their virginity. The graphic implies that a woman will no longer be courageous, confident, or warmhearted (as written in the silhouette) if she has sex on prom night. Also, why is this poster only targeted at women and protecting them? According to the poster, a man’s reputation can’t be tarnished by having sex; only a woman’s can. Planned Parenthood responded to the situation in a fantastic manner. They tweeted their own prom proposal, “Like condoms and birth control, I think we make a great pair! Prom?” So when it comes to prom night, and any other time for that matter, let’s remember that safety is more important than valuing people based on their sexual choices.

Thanks for reading!