The Pursuit: 50 Years in the Fight for LGBT Rights Premieres on WHYY
independence-visitor-gay-pioneers-2015-02-homepage.jpg
A group of activists held the first organized civil rights demonstrations in front of Independence Hall and Liberty Bell in Philadelphia on July 4, 1965. Photo © Mattachine Society.
The Pursuit: 50 Years in the Fight for LGBT Rights, a new documentary by Emmy award-winning director and producer Ilana Trachtman, will premiere June 23 at 9 p.m. on WHYY-TV. The film is produced through a collaboration of Independence Visitor Center Corporation, WHYY, and Equality Forum, with Center support.
An advance screening of the film will be held on June 16 at the Independence Visitor Center, with a pre-show reception beginning at 5:30 p.m. Online event registration is now open.>>
Illuminating the 50-year history and progress of the LGBT community, The Pursuit features poignant interviews with LGBT families and Gay Rights pioneers, along with archival images and footage of those who marched in the first peaceful demonstration at Independence Hall on July 4, 1965 to publicly call for an end to LGBT discrimination.
"Few of us grasp the great distance traveled by the LGBT community in the last 50 years," says Trachtman. "And despite our current 'open' environment, few of us understand the complexities of life for LGBT people today. In making this film I wanted to open up the conversation by offering intimate portraits of individuals and the challenges they face."