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voice
georgia VOL.11 • ISSUE 13
ABOUT THE COVER: Cover photos by Shuterrstock ([Biden photo] Spike Johnson and [Harris photo] Sheila Fitzgerald) Out On Film cover artwork by Alex Watson
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GUEST EDITORIAL
Out On Film and COVID-19 Jim Farmer, festival director of Out On Film When Georgia Voice publisher Tim Boyd asked if I’d be interested in being the guest columnist for this edition, I hesitated for a moment. My head said I was much too busy to take on another task, especially during my busiest time of the year, but my heart said I really wanted to do it. Movies have always been a huge part of my life. Growing up in Milledgeville, I was a teenage boy with low self-esteem, few close friends and a home life that was scary. I was a loner with a secret I knew one day I’d have to deal with. I knew I was gay and most everyone did, but it took a while to find the confidence to be myself. Movies became my escape. I will never forget the experience of seeing a movie on the big screen for the first time at the Campus Theater, a beautiful cinema within walking distance of my grandmother’s house. It’s now gone. A bookstore is in its place now, but the theater shaped my life.
Publisher Emeritus: Chris Cash
FINE PRINT
All material in Georgia Voice is protected by federal copyright law and may not be reproduced without the written consent of Georgia Voice. The sexual orientation of advertisers, photographers, writers and cartoonists published herein is neither inferred nor implied. The appearance of names or pictorial representation does not necessarily indicate the sexual orientation of that person or persons. We also do not accept responsibility for claims made by advertisers. Unsolicited editorial material is accepted by Georgia Voice, but we do not take responsibility for its return. The editors reserve the right to accept, reject, or edit any submission. Guidelines for freelance contributors are available upon request. A single copy of Georgia Voice is available from authorized distribution points. Multiple copies are available from Georgia Voice office only. Call for rates. If you are unable to reach a convenient free distribution point, you may receive a 24-issue mailed subscription for $60 per year. Checks or credit card orders can be sent to Tim Boyd, tboyd@thegavoice.com Postmaster: Send address changes to Georgia Voice, PO Box 77401, Atlanta, GA 30357. Georgia Voice is published twice a month by Georgia Voice, LLC. Individual subscriptions are $60 per year for 24 issues. Postage paid at Atlanta, GA, and additional mailing offices. The editorial positions of Georgia Voice are expressed in editorials and in editor’s notes. Other opinions are those of the writers and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Georgia Voice and its staff. To submit a letter or commentary: Letters should be fewer than 400 words and commentary, for web or print, should be fewer than 750 words. Submissions may be edited for content and length, and must include a name, address, and phone number for verification. Email submissions to editor@thegavoice.com or mail to the address above.
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4 Editorial September 25, 2020
At UGA years later, I found a tribe of people who loved movies as much as I did. Soon I was with the university group that helped bring movies to campus. Now, decades later, programming is what I do for a living now. I’ve been serving as the festival director of Out On Film, Atlanta’s LGBTQ film festival, since 2008, and it’s about as perfect a job fit as I could ask for. Like most everybody, I had grandiose plans for 2020. My husband and I were planning a trip to Paris. Professionally, I was planning the best Out On Film year in our history, after the big news we had earlier this year that we had become an Oscar qualifying film festival. Then COVID-19 hit and changed everyone’s lives. I spent much of March in utter disbelief and fear about what was happening. Some self-pity slipped in as well. After a while, I realized how fortunate I was to be healthy and to have an organization that (at least for now) is financially stable. I also realized that the show goes on. We
could still do a festival, just one that looked different. Our top priority during this time, however, was the health and safety of our patrons. Many of our brothers and sisters are dealing with compromised immune systems. As such, Out On Film has opted for a virtual film festival, save for a 40th anniversary drive-in screening of “Fame” on October 3. It doesn’t allow for in-person interaction, but there are many advantages. Patrons have a larger window of time in which to watch a movie, and the shift to online gives us greater access to filmmakers around the world. I love seeing movies in a movie theater, and I have hope that we’ll get back to that point soon. The online component, though, is one that will have to stay with us beyond this year. It’s important for us all to be able to adapt and do what is best for audience members. Although movies have always been an escape for me, I never really saw that many LGBTQ people on screen while I was growing up. There were a few here and there, but inevitably those characters had to die or lead tragic lives. It’s truly refreshing to be in an era now where LGBTQ people can have happy endings.
“Although movies have always been an escape for me, I never really saw that many LGBTQ people on screen while I was growing up. There were a few here and there, but inevitably those characters had to die or lead tragic lives. It’s truly refreshing to be in an era now where LGBTQ people can have happy endings.” Our mission with Out On Film has always been to represent the community we serve and reflect as much diversity and inclusivity as we can. We also want to show positive experiences of the LGBTQ experience. We work very hard at that. We are in an era where this is more representation, but there’s still some work to do to reflect us all. Out On Film is lucky in that we have been able to adapt and pivot what we have to offer. I hope that you will be able to join us and take advantage of the next 11 days — September 24–October 4 — and see great films from around the world, as well as listen in on conversations with the likes of Margaret Cho, screenwriter Kevin Williamson, Del Shores, Alexandra Grey and many more. Movies let us all see ourselves on the big screen. Movies bring us all together and make us laugh, cry, scream and feel alive and happy. After the year we’ve had, we all need that. TheGeorgiaVoice.com
NEWS BRIEFS
RBG Dies at 87, Georgia Equality Announces 2020 General Election Endorsements Staff Reports
* indicates an openly LGBTQ incumbent or candidate
Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Champion of LGBTQ Rights on the Bench, Dies at Age 87
STATE SENATE: Senate District 6: Jen Jordan (i) Senate District 17: Brian Strickland (i) Senate District 40: Sally Harrell (i) Senate District 41: Kim Jackson* Senate District 48: Michelle Au Senate District 56: Sarah Beeson
U.S. Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who joined major decisions for LGBTQ rights on the bench and was known as the “Notorious RBG” in progressive circles, has died at age 87. “Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg died this evening surrounded by her family at her home in Washington, D.C., due to complications of metastatic pancreas cancer,” a Supreme Court spokesperson said in a statement Friday evening. Rea Carey, executive director of the National LGBTQ Task Force, said in a statement upon Ginsburg’s passing she was “a giant of justice, a champion for equality and progress.” Public domain photo
“Justice Ginsburg was an American hero and pioneer, a voice for so many marginalized people, leaving behind a legacy of courage, tenacity and historic impact in creating a better country and a better world for all of us,” Carey said. “We are all so grateful for all Justice Ginsburg has done for LGBTQ people, for women, for our ability to control our own bodies, for all that seek to move freedom forward in this country.” With a seat vacant on the Supreme Court, the responsibility falls to the president of the United States to appoint a replacement who will be subject to Senate confirmation. For the time being that is Trump, who would have a Republican-controlled Senate to evaluate his pick before the election. Senate Majority Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), flip-flopping from rules he set in 2016 when he refused to allow a vote on the confirmation of Merrick Garland, said in a statement late Friday the situation is different from 2020 and Trump’s pick will get a vote. “Americans reelected our majority in TheGeorgiaVoice.com
U.S. Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg has died at age 87.
2016 and expanded it in 2018 because we pledged to work with President Trump and support his agenda, particularly his outstanding appointments to the federal judiciary,” McConnell said. “Once again, we will keep our promise. President Trump’s nominee will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate.” When conservative justice Antonin Scalia died in 2016, McConnell struck a different tune, saying he’d let the people speak their voice in the presidential election rather allow consideration of President Obama’s nominee Merrick Garland.
Georgia Equality Announces Endorsements for 2020 General Election The Board of Directors of Georgia Equality, the state’s largest political advocacy organization for LGBTQ Georgians and allies, has announced its endorsements in the upcoming 2020 General Election. The endorsements are as follows:
STATE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES: House District 20: Ginny Lennox House District 34: Priscilla Smith House District 35: Kyle Rinaudo House District 36: James Ryner House District 37: Mary Frances Williams (i) House District 39: Erica Thomas (i) House District 40: Erick Allen (i) House District 44: Connie Di Cicco House District 45: Sara Ghazal House District 48: Mary Robichaux (i) House District 50: Angelika Kauche (i) House District 51: Josh McLaurin (i) House District 54: Betsy Holland (i) House District 79: Mike Wilensky (i) House District 80: Matthew Wilson* (i) House District 95: Beth Moore (i) House District 101: Sam Park* (i) House District 102: Gregg Kennard (i) House District 105: Donna McLeod (i) House District 107: Sally Hutchinson (i) House District 109: Regina Lewis-Ward House District 132: Robert Trammell (i) House District 138: Marc Arnett House District 179: Julie Jordan* “As we draw near to the general election, it is more important than ever that we support candidates and incumbents that will bring expertise, clarity, and fairness to our State Capitol. Each candidate we have endorsed believes in equality and safety for all LGBTQ Georgians, and if elected will work diligently to ensure that these beliefs are reflected in our state law,” said Jeff Graham, executive director of Georgia Equality. Find these stories and more at thegavoice.com September 25, 2020 News Briefs 5
NEWS
Former Methodist Church in Savannah Becomes Nondenominational Over LGBTQ Beliefs Asbury Memorial Church is the first in the country to leave after split
“We wanted to let all people know —because it’s not just gay people that have been hurt by the church but straight people, too — that this is a safe place.”
Katie Burkholder Following the split of the United Methodist Church (UMC) denomination over LGBTQ issues, Asbury Memorial Church in Savannah, Georgia, has become the first church in the country to disaffiliate from the denomination. Formerly Asbury Memorial Methodist Church, the church is now nondenominational after a 309-7 vote made by the congregation back in September 2019. Asbury is the first to formally disaffiliate from the denomination after a vote from the United Methodist judicial council decided to uphold the “Traditional Plan” back in April 2019, solidifying the denomination’s ban on same-sex marriage and the ordination of LGBTQ pastors. Asbury Reverend Billy Hester said he and his congregation had been waiting for a change for years, and the vote was the deciding factor to leave. “We had been waiting for the denomination to change, and we thought it would,” Hester told Georgia Voice. “The UMC used to be leaders of social justice issues — they were one of the first to start ordaining women. However, it’s a global denomination ... the fastest growing [Methodist] churches are in Asia and Africa, so they had delegates at the General Conference. Their delegates weren’t votes for change. If we had been voting just in the United States — many people don’t know this — [the church’s stance on LGBTQ issues] would’ve changed 20 years ago. Most Methodists in the United States are moderate to progressive, but if you add the conservative influence of Asia and Africa, they can’t get past that vote.” “2019 was the deciding General Conference where we thought it could change,” he said. “It was either going to change then, or the denomination was going to split … Sure 6 News September 25, 2020
– Asbury Reverend Billy Hester The program attracted many LGBTQ people and solidified the church’s reputation as all-inclusive. Since then, Asbury has been openly dedicated to the LGBTQ community, even voting five years ago not to marry anybody in the church until all people, gay and straight, could be married there. Now that the church is nondenominational, they can finally make it happen. Courtesy photo
The front of the Asbury Memorial Church in Savannah, Georgia
enough, the Traditional Plan won out, and we [at Asbury] were dejected.” It was then Hester knew they had to leave the denomination. The church overwhelmingly voted to leave a year ago, but it wasn’t until the South Georgia General Conference voted to officially allow the disaffiliation in August of this year that they were able to. Before the disaffiliation, Asbury was already well-known in Savannah for being LGBTQinclusive, with about 35 percent LGBTQ members, thanks to Hester’s background in urban ministry and musical theater. Hester went to school for theater, where he met many LGBTQ folks, including his best friend. It wasn’t until he moved to New York, though, that he realized that his background in the church and his love for the LGBTQ people in his life could coincide.
“I attended a large church on Fifth Avenue, and they had a lot of gay members, even in leadership positions,” he said. “I got to know them, and a lot of them had a lot more integrity than I did. It really reshaped things for me.” Hester eventually moved back to his hometown of Savannah and took over Asbury in 1993. Then, there were only 30 active members, the youngest of whom was 66. Needless to say, the church needed a revival, and it came in the form of God on Broadway. “We wanted to be an all-inclusive church, and since me and my wife’s [educational] background was in theater, we decided to put on two musicals a year and have open auditions for the community,” Rev. Hester said. “We wanted to let all people know — because it’s not just gay people that have been hurt by the church but straight people, too — that this is a safe place.”
“The first thing we wanted to do after disaffiliating was have a big renewal of vows ceremony for all the couples, gay and straight, who couldn’t have been married in the church,” Hester said. “With COVID, though, we can’t do that right now. We’re still going to do that [later], but we didn’t want to wait. So, we decided to have all four Sundays in September dedicated to this new phase in our journey.” The first two Sundays included the first holy communion and the dedication and consecration of the church, respectively. Last Sunday, the 20th, the service honored the original Asbury members from 1993, including the only one still with the church, 96-year-old Virginia Holiday. This Sunday, the 27th, Asbury will honor all of the couples in the church. Then, in October, Asbury virtually launches God on Broadway. To find more information on Asbury and watch their virtual Sunday services, visit asburymemorial.org. TheGeorgiaVoice.com
I believe that sexual orientation should not influence access or rights. For far too long, even in the Metro Atlanta region, persons along the sexuality spectrum have been forced to live in denial or only partially acknowledging who they are without fear of retribution. As a member of Congress, I will continue the work for equality in public policy to which I was committed when I served on the Atlanta City Council. My platform and accomplishments are below, but I believe it is important to affirm the beliefs that support my work. Why Am I Running I am running for Congress to finish the rest of John Lewis’ last year in office. He was a neighbor and dear friend to me and my family. He and his late wife Lillian Lewis mentored me in high school, college, and throughout my 15 years as an elected official on Atlanta City Council and the Atlanta School Board. For me, serving the remainder of John Lewis’ term in Congress is not an opportunity to start building a political resume or to place a capstone on the end of my career. This is my personal obligation to continue the justice leadership that has always uplifted and fought for the LGBTQ community in the 5th Congressional District started by Ambassador Andrew Young and continued by Congressmen John Lewis. Accomplishments • Led the installation of Rainbow Crosswalks that laid the foundation for the permanent Rainbow Crosswalks that exist now. • My District 2 Keep It INtown small business support TV segments featured LGBTQ businesses like Charis Books & More, Highland Bakery, and USpace Art Gallery • Sponsored National Youth HIV/AIDS Awareness Day with Alex Wan • Participation in Pride most years unless traveling • Pre-Arrest Diversion that supported transgender community in Congressional District 5 Platform 1) Stronger anti-discrimination policies inclusive of sexual orientation 2) Increase funding for federal prisons to properly house and support LGBTQIA+ persons, specifically transgendered persons 3) Restore Obama-era protections for transgendered persons in the military 4) Support birthright citizenship to children born to US Citizens who are in same-sex relationships/marriages and adoption rights for same-sex married couples 5) I will support funding for HIV research and services for those who are positive 6) In Congress, I will partner with Fulton, Clayton, and DeKalb Counties, and the state of Georgia to provide best-in-class services for those living with HIV.
Vote early today so that we win this election on
SEPTEMBER 29TH! For more information, please visit: www.kwanzahall.com Info@kwanzahall.com 404-454-1116
ELECTION 2020
For Joe Biden, Push Relentlessly Until November 3 Election National LGBT Media Association
with African-American citizens, “You, you really drank the Kool-Aid, didn’t you?”
Among the many compelling reasons to make sure that Donald Trump and Mike Pence are not reelected on November 3, perhaps the 26 most compelling are the transgender Americans — most of them trans women of color — known to have been murdered this year. We needn’t be simple-minded in making this argument. Trump and Pence did not pull the trigger, and those who did must, of course, bear the consequences for their horrific acts. But the all-too-toxic environment which too many of our transgender siblings have endured in their lives has gotten immeasurably worse over the past four years. For this reason and many more, in a historic move, the 12 newspapers of the National LGBT Media Association (NGMA), which represents the nation’s oldest and most established LGBTQ publications, are issuing this joint endorsement of the Joe Biden/ Kamala Harris ticket. From the start, Donald Trump has used the trans community as a punching bag to prove his toughness to a conservative base hungry for a strongman to turn back the clock. He has denied trans folks the ability to serve openly in the military, sought to strip them of nondiscrimination protections in healthcare, worked to rob trans youth of dignity in their schools and battled to take away the rights of student athletes to compete in sports. And against the trans community, as well as lesbian, gay, and bisexual Americans, Trump’s administration fought tooth and nail to prevent the pivotal advance we won at the Supreme Court in June: the recognition that we enjoy employment nondiscrimination protections thanks to the 1964 Civil Rights Act. Even still, Trump and his see-no-evil GOP Senate allies refuse to move the Equality Act, which
The coronavirus’ most recent surge in the Midwest and the wild fires raging through wide swaths of the West are only the most calamitous indicators of Trump’s refusal to accept the basic facts of science, a posture at one with his hostility to fact-based discourse on almost any public policy issue. It’s no surprise that the nation’s free press and the unfettered right of Americans to vote are, in his mind, enemies of the people.
Official photo
The 12 newspapers of the National LGBT Media Association (NGMA), which represents the nation’s oldest and most established LGBTQ publications, are issuing this joint endorsement of the Joe Biden/Kamala Harris ticket.
would extend those nondiscrimination protections across the board in areas like housing and public accommodations. For them, the nation’s most embattled minority are bigots who want to enshrine their right to discriminate under the cloak of “religious liberty.” After Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell denied President Barack Obama federal judicial appointments in his last year in office, he and his colleagues have rubber-stamped an unprecedented number of judges — many of them viciously rightwing, others lacking in even the most elementary judicial qualifications — whose influence will last for decades to come. Roe v. Wade, the cornerstone decision in protecting reproductive freedom, may already be
8 Election 2020 September 25, 2020
doomed by the Trump court’s configuration. Trump’s governing has been much like his court appointments: where he is not cruel, he is incompetent. Mexican and other Latin American immigrants have been slurred in overtly racist terms, and their children have been caged. Where they have not been outright blocked, Muslim newcomers to America have been stigmatized. The damage is not limited to the immigrants. Latinx and Muslim-American citizens have faced increasing levels of hostility and violence. Trump saw “very fine people, on both sides” during the 2017 neo-Nazi invasion of Charlottesville, but he’s been snide in reacting to the Black Lives Matter movement, telling Bob Woodward, in response to a question about why he can’t bring himself to empathize
Since Hillary Clinton lost the presidency in 2016 despite winning almost three million more votes than Trump, the Democratic Party has undergone an internal battle of sorts for its soul, pitting insurgent, left-leaning candidates, many of them young newcomers, against more moderate establishment figures on issues from racial justice and healthcare policy to economic inequality and climate action, all areas on which debate is legitimate and needed. But here’s the thing: with four more years of Trump, there is no real consequential venue for having those debates. Trump and his enablers are draining the oxygen out of our democracy. Debating between left and center in the House of Representatives is no substitute for regaining the White House and the Senate. Only then can we have our debates, lick our wounds, and set a course for a better tomorrow. This election will be decided in a small number of states. In all of the battleground states, LGBTQ activists and our progressive allies are on the ground working to elect Joe Biden and Kamala Harris. All of us across the nation can pitch in to help those states where a boost for Biden is most needed. So, grab a bucket, adopt a state, and dive into the battle. None of us should wake up November 4 wishing we had done more. TheGeorgiaVoice.com
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September 25, 2020 Ads 9
YOUR VOICE
Rest in Peace
RBG
Official commissioned portrait of Ruth Bader Ginsburg made by artist Simmie Knox in 2000. PHOTO BY NATIONAL ARCHIVES AND RECORDS ADMINISTRATION / WIKICOMMONS
Bill Kaelin bill@billkaelin.com Written on September 19th at 12:12 am. About five hours have passed since I found out about the passing of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. I am grieving. I went from feeling like I was handling the election season fairly well to finding it hard to breathe … like I got punched in the gut. I am numb. I feel like I did after Hillary lost the election in 2016. It’s surreal. I feel sick, scared and hopeless with the odd feeling of impending doom. I am seeing that the world really is in a dark place and that maybe we really are at the end of days. The world has changed so much. Everything is so different, and it’s happened so quickly. The world was simpler, kinder, and the only hate we had to fear was usually coming from other countries. Today the call is coming from inside the house. It is here. Times are changing. We are not united. It feels more 10 Your Voice September 25, 2020
and more like it is us versus them, and I don’t know who will actually win. I don’t know if I even want to stick around to find out. Living in America is like being in an abusive relationship with politicians and power. Ginsburg hasn’t even been dead two hours, and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has already announced that he will push a Trump nominee through the system for the Supreme Court before the election. The hypocrisy of this statement compared to what he said in 2016 during an election year is sickening. In 2016, McConnell said: “The American people should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court Justice. Therefore, this vacancy should not be filled until we have a new president.” Because President Obama believes in democracy and decency, he didn’t press the issue. If McConnell ignores his own rhetoric and pushes a justice through less than two months before an election, we will all witness the most hypocritical move in the history of modern day politics. Last month, I wrote a column about this
election being more about the next Supreme Court Justice than President. The Supreme Court position lasts a lifetime, and because of this Donald Trump’s influence will live on long after he dies. The hate, the division, the lying, the cheating, the disrespect and the gaslighting brought on by this president will now be a part of the American fabric for years to come. It will only take three Republicans to decide whether or not they will vote for a replacement just six weeks before the election of our lifetimes. Their choice very well could break an already fragile country. Hopefully, there are a few Republicans left who still have a soul and believe that America is a place where all people need to be represented. We all knew the day was coming. Ruth held on for as long as she could. The pressure for her to live until 2021 must have been excruciating. My heart breaks at the thought of her final wish; it wasn’t for her husband, her daughter or her destiny. It was for us: our country, our women, our LGBTQ community, our freedom. “My most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a
new president is installed,” she said. She was looking out for us until her final breath. Will the Republicans respect her final wish? Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s death has thrown gasoline on the fire that is this already frightening election. I am truly worried, and I wish I could leave now until it is all over. If this doesn’t make you want to get out and vote, then I don’t know what will. While I still think Joe Biden will win, I know it will be a long and intense ride until Trump leaves on January 20th. What is going to happen in the next 16 weeks? Will America survive? Are we prepared for the marathon that is ahead of us? I woke up feeling good today. I believed our country was going to pull through, and I was finally seeing some light at the end of the tunnel. I had hope for the first time in a while. It is now 12:47 AM on Saturday, September 19th, and unfortunately I am not sure about anything anymore. RIP Ruth Bader Ginsburg. TheGeorgiaVoice.com
Restaurant GUIDE
YOUR GUIDE TO LOCAL EATERIES
12 Restaurant Guide September 25, 2020
TheGeorgiaVoice.com
Restaurant GUIDE
YOUR GUIDE TO LOCAL EATERIES
TheGeorgiaVoice.com
September 25, 2020 Restaurant Guide 13
A&E SPOTLIGHT
Out On Film Becomes a “Flextival” Steve Warren During the first 32 years of Out On Film, if you wanted to see a certain film, you had to be at a certain theater on a certain day at a certain time. This year you simply have to be in the state of Georgia (for certain events) at some point during a 72-hour period. It’s a flextival! The virtual festival allows more filmmakers to attend — virtually. You can’t get their autograph or pose for a selfie with them (unless you snuggle up to your computer screen), but you can tell them how much you enjoyed their films and hear them describe the process of making it. This is the weekend for two special events. On Saturday, a 20th anniversary screening of “Margaret Cho: I’m the One that I Want” coincides with the presentation of the festival’s Icon Award to the star, who will stay for a chat afterward. The film preserves a theatrical monologue in which Cho reviews essentially the first decade of her career, including her private life. Beginning at noon Sunday, you can then see a benefit reading of Topher Payne’s play “Perfect Arrangement,” with an all-star cast directed by Chad Darnell. Then on Wednesday, the 30th, Out On Film has another 20th anniversary screening: Del Shores’ comedy classic about life in a small Texas town, Sordid Lives. Shores and some of his crew will be available for a Q&A at 10pm Wednesday. Most shows will be available online for 72 hours starting at noon on their premiere date. In some cases there will be a limit to the number of tickets that can be sold for each show, as if it were restricted to the capacity of a theater. In the following reviews, ratings are on a **** scale, but I’m a tough grader. More detailed versions of the reviews can be found at thegavoice.com. For full information and to buy tickets, visit outonfilm.org.
Publicity photos
Clockwise from top: “Give or Take,” “Twilight’s Kiss,” and “Shiva Baby.”
MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 28
TWILIGHT’S KISS **1/2 Pak (Tai-Bo) and Hoi (Ben Yuen) have made it well into their 60s living outwardly straight lives. Pak drives a cab and lives with his wife. Hoi, long divorced, is retired and lives with his son and daughter-in-law. They meet outside a public restroom and become friends, then lovers. What kind of relationship can these old farts have? Writerdirector Ray Yeung sets up the question,
14 A&E Spotlight September 25, 2020
but leaves it for us — or a sequel? — to answer. That’s a bit frustrating, after we’ve become invested in their lives, but the fact that we care means Yeung must have done something right.
TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 29
GIVE OR TAKE *** “Give or Take” deals with a situation that’s thankfully less common than it was before
we were allowed to marry legally. A gay man dies without leaving a will and his family swoops in, virtually ignoring the man he lived with for the last six years. His son Martin (Jamie Effros), who hardly spoke to his father after he came out, comes up to Cape Cod from New York and treats Ted (Norbert Leo Butz) like a tenant who’s about to be evicted. It’s a moving story presented in believable fashion and should CONTINUES ON PAGE 15 TheGeorgiaVoice.com
A&E SPOTLIGHT CONTINUED FROM PAGE 14 remind some viewers they have unfinished business.
WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 30
SHIVA BABY **1/2 Danielle (Rachel Sennott) has a bad day as she’s preparing to graduate college. After having sex with Max (Danny Deferrari), the lone client of her “babysitting” service, she attends a shiva — the Jewish mourning at the home of the bereaved — where Danielle’s whole sex life flashes before her eyes. Maya (Molly Gordon), the girlfriend she’s been avoiding lately, is there; and Max, with a wife and baby Danielle didn’t know about. Essentially one long scene, “Shiva Baby” begins feeling padded as writer-director Emma Seligman strains for fresh twists; but until the last few minutes, it’s mostly fresh and enjoyable.
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 1
LUZ *** Some guys think they’ll find Mr. Right on Grindr. Writer-director Jon Garcia (The Falls trilogy) makes a pretty good case for prison as an alternative. Innocent-looking Ruben (Ernesto Reyes) is immediately attacked by Carlos (Jesse Tayeh), his cellmate. Before Carlos’ release they’ve had sex - or have they made love? That will be resolved in three years when Ruben gets out, as will whether Ruben will be able to get his young daughter back from his mafioso cousin. While I have some minor issues with the script, Luz is shot and acted like an “A” movie, certainly not festival filler. MILKWATER **1/2 “Milkwater” has a very original story that’s well filmed, but no characters who are consistently likable. Milo (Molly Bernard) meets Roger (Patrick Breen), a 52-yearold drag queen who wants a child. Milo eventually volunteers to be his surrogate, thinking a pregnancy might spice up her dull life. After appearing to become her bestie, Roger cools and gets all legal about being the child’s sole parent. This chills any warmth Milo had begun to exhibit. Bernard TheGeorgiaVoice.com
Publicity photos
Clockwise from top: “Milkwater,” “Keyboard Fantasies: The Beverly Glenn-Copeland Story,” and “Luz.”
is a unique actress, in appearance and manner, but she’s too good at portraying Milo’s negative aspects. Like Milo, we need someone to care about.
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 2
TWO OF US (DEUX) *** In one of the best of the fest, widowed Madeleine (Martine Chevallier) and German-born Nina (Barbara Sukowa), 70ish, have been a secret couple for about 30 years. They plan to move from France to Rome together, but Madeleine can’t muster the nerve to tell her children and the strain gives her a stroke. This sounds like a flatout weeper, but director/co-writer Filippo Meneghetti is full of surprises. There are laughs when you least expect them, and you won’t know how it’s going to end until it does. Madeleine can’t speak poststroke, but the film has something to say to everyone.
SATURDAY, OCT. 3
KEYBOARD FANTASIES: THE BEVERLY GLENN-COPELAND STORY **1/2 I usually enjoy documentaries about musical artists for the music, but the reverse is true in this film about Beverly Glenn-Copeland, who lived as a female, an out lesbian from a middle-class Black family, for nearly 60 years before transitioning almost two decades ago. He achieved renown in 2015 after a Japanese collector discovered a 1986 recording of their unique blend of folk, jazz and electronica with touches of classical, gospel and blues. That’s an acquired taste and I preferred hearing him talk about himself with his sparkling personality. Director Posy Dixon doesn’t need visual gimmicks to hold our interest. MUSIC FOR BLEEDING HEARTS (MÚSICA PARA MORRER DE AMOR) **1/2 This Brazilian deconstruction of love has so
many characters, some of similar appearance, they should wear nametags. A sexually hyperactive gay man, Ricardo, lives with his soulmate, Isabela, and works with Felipe, who is shy but has a girlfriend. (Ricardo and Isabela will both go after him.) Isabela goes to live with her current boyfriend, Gabriel, but later dumps him. There’s a lesbian throuple; much talk about love, some of it Shakespearean; and music of many genres. A lot of it’s entertaining, but it will leave some viewers scratching their heads and others trying to book the next flight to São Paolo. STONE FRUIT **1/2 Manny (Matt Palazzolo) and Russ (Rob Warner) don’t act like intellectuals, but that’s what they talk like, and they talk a lot. After seven years of marriage, they’re marking their “divorce weekend” by touring CONTINUES ON PAGE 16
September 25, 2020 A&E Spotlight 15
A&E SPOTLIGHT CONTINUED FROM PAGE 15 California’s Wine Country on a tasting trip before Manny moves to Santa Fe to study on a fellowship. They spend most of a day with Byron (Thomas Hobson), who’s taken advantage of their open relationship with each and both of them. As the guys seek closure by rehashing every argument they’ve ever had, the movie has its moments. Maybe quite a few, depending on your taste. THROUGH THE GLASS DARKLY ** In “Elrod,” Georgia, Charlie (Robyn Lively) keeps searching for her daughter Lily, who disappeared a year ago. Charlie often has fantasies of seeing Lily again, and experiences flashbacks, like of the time she explained the town didn’t like Lily having two mommies. She nags the sheriff for not taking Lily as seriously as Elodie Carmichael, who vanished more recently and is part of the town’s wealthiest family. Charlie and a visiting reporter (Shanola Hampton) play detective, and things get pretty dull until The Big Twist, which renders everything we’ve seen nonsensical. Director/co-writer Lauren Fash must think viewers will believe anything. THE WHISTLE **1/2 About a dozen lesbians and one trans man (producer-director-writer-editor StormMiguel Florez) talk about their Albuquerque high school days in the ‘70s and ‘80s. The city was behind the times, with police still raiding our bars, but many will find the stories relatable. A unique feature: the high-pitched whistle of the title they used to connect with others like themselves. There are horror stories of therapy and parental rejection; a heroine in lesbian teacher Havens Levitt, who counseled some of the girls; and happy endings as the women introduce their partners/wives of many years. Nice folks to spend an hour with.
SUNDAY, OCTOBER 4
ARMY OF LOVERS IN THE HOLY LAND *** How did I not know the Swedish pop group Army of Lovers was the Campiest. Band. Ever? I’d never seen their videos, including “Crucified,” with Jean-Pierre Barda prancing in high heels and everyone in outlandish
Publicity photos
Clockwise from top: “Dramarama,” “Ellie & Abbie (& Ellie’s Dead Aunt),” and “Army of Lovers in the Holy Land.”
costumes. Asaf Galay’s documentary about Barda’s immigration to Israel caught me up with clips from videos and performances that made me want to join their Army. Barda was born Jewish, gave it up in his teens and felt a calling to return as he neared 50. As long as he sees bandmates Alexander Bard and Dominika Peczynski occasionally, he seems content with his new life. DRAMARAMA *** Gene (Nick Pugliese) is a 17-year-old closeted gay agnostic who’s made it through high school by hanging with
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fellow nerds in the Drama Club. That was me a long time ago, so I related like crazy to this tale of the 1994 going-away party before the first of Gene’s gang of five leaves for college. Three of them are girls. Oscar (Nico Greetham) presents as a ladies’ man, but enjoys “wrestling” with Gene and gets jealous when Gene goes out without him. “Dramarama” gets heavier as it goes along, as three years of repressed feelings come out — but Gene doesn’t. ELLIE & ABBIE (& ELLIE’S DEAD AUNT) **
When Ellie (Sophie Hawkshaw), 17, comes out to her single mom, she’s visited by her “fairy godmother,” her late Aunt Tara (Julia Billington), who gives her advice and encouragement. Mom’s best friend is also an out lesbian, so why does her daughter’s news disturb her? Ellie wants to invite her crush, Abbie (Zoe Terakes), yet another lesbian, to the formal (Australian for prom), but lacks the nerve. What should have been a simple romcom, a fairy tale about lesbian teenagers, gets heavier and heavier as the formal date nears, and ceases being fun. Or maybe I just don’t understand women. TheGeorgiaVoice.com
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A&E SPOTLIGHT
Director Discusses “Surviving the Silence” Rose Pelham Director Cindy L. Abel’s “Surviving the Silence” follows the story of three lesbian women in the military, the repression they faced, and the military review board hearing that ultimately set the precedent for overturning Don’t Ask Don’t Tell. The following interview has been edited for length and clarity. To begin, could you tell our readers a little about the documentary and the three women at the core of it? “Surviving the Silence” is the untold story of two women in love who help change military policy. At its core, it’s a love story that reveals a new history. In the nineties, Col. Margarethe Cammermeyer had been expelled from the military for admitting she was a lesbian, and that was made into a film starring Glenn Close and executive produced by Barbara Streisand. But what most people don’t know is the story behind the story: that the woman who presided over Col. Cammermeyer’s military trial was also a lesbian — and the way she handled the trial played a big part in Colonel Cammermeyer’s reinstatement via civil court. What drew you to this story? I was screening my first film, “Breaking Through,” which is about openly LGBTQ elected officials and the many barriers they had to break through. After the screening at Sierra College in California, two women came up to me and told me how much they loved it. We got to chatting and they shared their story with me. The first thing I fell in love with was their love story. I was fascinated that here were these women who had been together for 30 years and for much of that time had to pretend that they were not together. Col. Thompson was the first chief nurse of the Army National Guard. While she was in Washington and Barbara was in California, they had been told that their phones had been tapped. They didn’t
Photos via Facebook
Above: A scene from “Surviving the Silence.” Director Cindy L. Abel
know if their mail had been opened. How do you go through all of that and still stay strong as a couple? The affection that they still showed … it was just tangible how much they love each other. Could you tell me about what it was like to work with Thompson, Brass, and Cammermeyer? It was fantastic. Before we get to that, I want to add one more thing about LGBTQ folks in the military. Even though we are coming up on the 10th anniversary of the end of Don’t Ask Don’t Tell … there are still people serving in silence. Just because a law changes that does not mean that society or the culture of an institution changes. That’s very true. As for your question, they are so open and candid sharing their experiences. It comes from a place of knowing that when we share our stories, it helps touch hearts, change minds, dismantle those stereotypes and preconceived notions that are used to
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hurt our community. And they also know that it offers courage to people who might be considering coming out. So, they were willing to share whatever it was we were asking about, which is quite rare. You may have noticed, when Pat Thompson was talking about losing her brother, almost 80 years ago, you can see her tearing up. It seems that had this film been made a few years ago it would have had a different ending. Could you talk about that? We’ve had some big leaps forward including marriage equality, and there were so many good things happening under the Obama administration. [Pat and Barbara] thought they could share their story about how bad it used to be and how it’s better now, but then came in the current administration. Barbara, given her heritage [as the daughter of two Holocaust survivors], immediately tuned in to what was happening. She had tremendous fear and anxiety over the possibility of having to live through what her parents had to live through. You’re right. It’s absolutely a different ending. We had a nice “and they made it through the storm”
“We’ve had some big leaps forward including marriage equality, and there were so many good things happening under the Obama administration. [Pat and Barbara] thought they could share their story about how bad it used to be and how it’s better now, but then came in the current administration. – Director Cindy L. Abel type ending, but we had to change it. From Pat’s perspective, as a former highly decorated military officer, and as someone who loves America so much that she was willing to sacrifice her life — both in terms of physically dying and also having to give up being openly who she was — to give everything, what’s happening is devastating to her. She’s not going to just curl up in a corner, she’s going to do everything she can to remind America of the promise of America. Their courage, their commitment, their dedication to the ideals of full equality, to true freedom, are really inspiring. TheGeorgiaVoice.com
A&E SPOTLIGHT
Lisa Donato Talks ‘Gossamer Folds’ Conswella Bennett
“Bittersweet and compassionate” are two words Lisa Donato, director of the film “Gossamer Folds,” used to describe her film, which will be one of several showcased during the 33rd annual Out On Film Festival later this month. With “Gossamer Folds,” Donato makes her feature directorial debut, and it was just the project she had been hoping for in her career. She is most noted for her short films, in which she tries to change old stereotypes surrounding the LGBTQ community. “My work is my activism,” Donato said of her mission. It was because of her body of work that the queer director was picked by Yeardley Smith, co-founder of Paperclip Ltd., to produce the film. Smith is known not only for voicing Lisa Simpson on “The Simpsons,” but also as an active ally for the LGBTQ community. Halfway through the script, Donato knew she wanted to be a part of bringing the story of two unlikely friends to the screen. “It normalizes the life of a Black trans woman and goes against so many of the negative images,” Donato said. According to Donato, “Gossamer Folds” is “about the beautiful friendship that starts between two people who you would never put together.” The movie takes place during the summer of 1986, when ten-year-old Tate Millikin is uprooted and forced to move to the suburbs of Kansas City. When his transphobic father discovers that their next-door neighbor is a trans woman named Gossamer, he forbids Tate from even saying hello. As his parents’ marriage unravels, Tate defies his father’s orders and forms a powerful bond with Gossamer and her father, Edward, a retired English professor. For Donato, true representation was key. Referring to the 2020 documentary on Netflix that showcased the depiction of Hollywood’s impact on the trans community, “Disclosure: Trans Lives on Screen,” she said, “85% of Americans don’t think they know a trans person. So many Americans get their information from the media and what they see is a lot of negative images — violence TheGeorgiaVoice.com
Photos via Facebook
Above: A scene from “Gossamer Folds.” Director Lisa Donato
and death.” With her latest project, she is trying to change that. For the leading role of Gossamer, Donato didn’t even think of hiring a cisgender actress — “Representation is huge,” she said. Donato eventually found the perfect actress: Alexandra Grey, who is best known for her roles in “Transparent,” “Empire,” and, recently, “The Alienist: Angel of Darkness.” “The role really resonated with her,” Donato said of Grey. For Grey, she was playing a character that was all too familiar to her. The actress grew up feeling trapped in a small Illinois town and dreamed of making it to California to become an actress. This film is important on many levels, but perhaps the most important for Donato is normalizing a Black trans character. “It’s showing a healthy relationship between a Black trans adult and a child,” the director noted. “You never see that happen.” The perfect actor to play the role of Tate was
Jackson Robert Scott, who’s known for his role in the remake of Stephen King’s “It.” Donato said Scott has a huge teen following and many of those fans have been checking out his latest role of Tate as the movie makes its way through virtual film festivals. Despite being a different sort of part for the young actor most known for his roles in horror movies, Donato said his young fans have been engaging in great dialogue surrounding the movie. “Gossamer Folds” is lined up to be showcased at about 20 film festivals this year through October. Donato would love to have the film reach small rural areas as well, so that people in those areas get the opportunity to see trans characters and to see their stories. So far, the film has been well received. The goal is to have a distribution deal for the film, and if all goes well, Donato said maybe it will be on Netflix or Amazon. If that happens, the film will reach a larger audience. To get the chance to see “Gossamer Folds” or any of the other films during Out On Film’s 11-day celebration of different stories,
“It’s showing a healthy relationship between a Black trans adult and a child. You never see that happen.” – Director Lisa Donato passes and ticket packs are available. You can purchase all-access passes to see as many films as you can. We also have ticket packages that give you discounts when buying five or 10 tickets. Single tickets are $10 and will allow you to watch your selected film and a live stream Q&A if one is scheduled. For more information and to purchase tickets, go to the Out On Film website at outonfilm.org.
September 25, 2020 A&E Spotlight 19
CLIFF BOSTOCK OLD GAY MAN
Why Art and Film Matter PHOTO BY SHUTTERSTOCK
Cliff Bostock Have you ever been with friends and someone announces that these young gay kids don’t know what it was like back in the day and should be more respectful of their elders? I hate this, because it has been the complaint of every generation since mankind dragged itself out of the swamp, regardless of sexual orientation. Still, it’s absolutely true that gay people, like Black and Native American people, were long written out of history textbooks save for unresearched stereotypes. When you live outside any clear historical context, you have to dream up your own version of history and culture. That’s partly why marginalized communities are so often plagued by infighting, generation after generation. It’s why gay history projects and events like the Atlanta Pride celebration remain. 20 Columnist September 25, 2020
One of the ways gay people began to form a collective identity in the past was through art, particularly film. As a teenager in the late ’60s, I hid in the downtown library, reading about homosexuality and never finding a single positive word (Only later did I realize that supportive text was probably banned back then). I later discovered peep shows, where in the back rooms of socalled newsstands on Peachtree Street you could look through a lens at a series of taboo photos shuffling like cards so that a muscle man appeared to be flexing in his loin cloth. These and “muscle magazines” taught me that there really were others similarly haunted, that my alleged “illness” was actually my yet-experienced pleasure, but given the actual back room context, it was necessary to be hidden. I could do that! Things would get slightly more positive thanks to pop culture’s “alternative” turn
toward forbidden subjects. It is a measure of how utterly adrift in clueless confusion I was that I resumed my unconscious exploration of gay identity even while engaged to get married. I was 19, dragging my future wife to movies like “The Queen,” “Fellini’s Satyricon” (which ended up becoming the inspiration for my doctoral dissertation), and “The Boys in the Band.” I also became entranced by the camp artistry of “Myra Breckinridge,” “Pink Flamingos,” and Andy Warhol films like “Lonesome Cowboys.” I remained determined to stay hidden. When I got married at 20, we collected a lot of art. Almost all of it was bizarre images of women with, for example, their legs open during an abortion or a plane crash. I have a huge photomontage from that time of a young man in constricting formal attire standing between a furry bunny rabbit and a naked woman, trying to make a decision. In all honesty,
it was many years before I recognized the function of these images from film and art. I don’t think it’s coincidence that my doctoral studies were in imaginal psychology. If I’d had someone near to help me read the meanings of these images, like those in a dream, my coming out might have gone more smoothly. I am immensely glad nobody has to go through anything as soul-suffocating as I did, but I know many still do. The big difference is that you don’t have to do it alone, and you don’t have to do it with the destructive unconsciousness that I did. Moreover, current gay films don’t always have the tragic endings of the past. It’s sad that this year’s Out On Film is virtual and doesn’t provide the proximity of other warm bodies, but it can make a real difference anyway. Enlighten yourself, get tickets, and call me if you want a blood-red lithograph of an aborted fetus floating above a woman’s open legs. TheGeorgiaVoice.com
MELISSA CARTER THAT’S WHAT SHE SAID
Living Through Tumultuous Times When learning about history as a student, I often wondered what it was like to live in the most tumultuous times. Did people realize what was happening around them? And more importantly, why didn’t they do anything to stop the worst in human behavior? After recently learning about a woman named Pauline Binam, I’ve come to realize I am living through one of those times and lament my own ignorance and inaction.
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22 Columnist September 25, 2020
Binam is an immigrant who was being held at a detention center in the South Georgia town of Ocilla. According to NPR, the 30-yearold was seeking treatment for an irregular menstrual cycle. After what she thought would be a routine procedure to remove tissue from her uterus for that condition, doctors informed Binam they also removed one of her fallopian tubes without her consent, the result of which may be an inability to have children. Afterward, in a scene you would normally see in an action movie, Binam was nearly deported to Cameroon. While she was standing on the tarmac awaiting departure, members of Congress intervened and put a stop to her travel. Democratic Representative Pramila Jayapal said it felt like ICE was trying to rush through Binam’s deportation. Apparently Binam is not the only one to experience this. Many other immigrant women say they’ve been subjected to unwanted hysterectomies and other gynecological procedures at that same facility in our state. More than 170 lawmakers have now signed a letter calling for an investigation into these women’s stories, including one from a whistleblowing nurse at the facility. ICE, however, denies all these claims. Allow me to emphasize this again: women of color are being sterilized without their
Courtesy photo
Pauline Binam
consent while being detained because of the color of their skin. Atrocities such as these committed on fellow human beings is not something of the past. This is not a story from Europe during World War II or syphilis experiments last century in Alabama. This is happening now, in our own backyard. I’ve argued for many years that history is the most important subject offered in school because it gives an exact blueprint of what results come from which actions. Depictions of both successes and mistakes are at our fingertips, yet we groan at having to memorize dates and argue that it’s a waste of time to learn about dead people. And as a result, we repeat the same behaviors that should have been left in our textbooks. However, I’m learning another subject from our youth is in dire need of the spotlight. A friend recently sent me a video of a young man, outlining the structure of our government to others in an effort to motivate them to vote. The simple explanation of what each branch is responsible for was shocking to me as this too was explained in Civics class. Yet the friend who sent it confessed she needed to brush up on the topic herself. I said I hope she finds this country a great machine, but that we have to pay better attention to its maintenance. That way I have an answer for my son and his children when they ask if I realized what was happening around me now, and why I didn’t’t do anything to stop the worst in human behavior. TheGeorgiaVoice.com
RYAN LEE SOMETIMES ‘Y’
Mourning RBG, Our Constitutional Bodyguard I’ve heard the voice of death four times this summer: during farewell calls to my aunt and father figure who were in the last days of lives abbreviated by cancer, in the final goodbye from a friend who would attempt suicide, and in the sigh of my 94-yearold grandma who suddenly feels cursed by good health and is becoming impatient for the morning she does not wake up. As eerie and hopeless as each of those conversations felt, as overly familiar as we have become with death in the first nine months of 2020, I was unprepared for the depth of anguish brought by the news that Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg had passed away. Over several generations Ginsburg has been a constitutional bodyguard for women, LGBTQ Americans and minorities whose freedoms often come with asterisks, and it’s hard not to feel vulnerable without the protection of the Notorious R.B.G. I remain hopeful the U.S. Supreme Court is not as partisan and predictable as both parties cast it for electoral advantage. Aside from Ginsburg, the leading champion of LGBTQ rights on the court, former justice Anthony Kennedy, was appointed by a Republican, as was the surprise author of this year’s majority opinion that affirmed sweeping employment protections for LGBTQ workers, Neil Gorsuch. Paranoia over Supreme Court appointments has become the guiding propeller of U.S. politics, and there are millions of conservatives who believe three new justices — a third of the court — are worth wading through the sewage and decay into which Donald Trump has steered their cause and our country. Trump’s depravity can no longer be used to cloak the reprobate nature of Republicans like Mitch McConnell and Lindsey Graham, as there is no doubt the senators would be the TheGeorgiaVoice.com
same caricatures of hypocrisy if a Supreme Court justice had died in the final quarter of Jeb Bush’s first presidential term. However, Ginsburg’s death has lit the fuse on a keg of shortsightedness many Democrats have been perched upon for almost a decade, and we are about to see an explosion of intellectual duplicity among liberals. Enraged by Republican obstructionism when the Democrats controlled the Senate, progressives have advocated nullifying the filibuster (something Sen. Elizabeth Warren called for during the presidential primary debates), an effort that probably will be abandoned now that the filibuster is the only barrier between the left and a judicial hellscape. Without much comfort, I trust Senate Democrats have the competence to stave off confirmation of any Trump nomination until the election via legislative delays and campaign pressure on vulnerable Republicans facing reelection. With even less comfort, I understand how Trump supporters will consider any Democratic maneuvering or delayed vote to be a hostile act, and how eager they are to defend their leader from coups and “deep state” conspiracies. I envy not only anyone who thinks the presidential contest will resolve the debate over who replaces Ruth Bader Ginsburg, but also those who believe we will have a meaningful national election in November. Already committed to delegitimizing mailin voting and any negative election results, don’t be surprised if Trump uses the stalled court nomination as further proof to his followers that he is being usurped and their country is being stolen. It feels naive to no longer expect 2020 to bring our worst nightmares to fruition, and there are still three months left in the year. September 25, 2020 Columnist 23