Vol86Issue10

Page 1

M THE MANEATER The student voice of MU since 1955

Vol. 86 Issue 10

www.themaneater.com

October 30, 2019

LGBTQ

Ragtag Film Society ending sponsorship with The Crossing leads to discussion about gender identity, partnerships, free speech Kevin Smith gave a sermon many considered to be transphobic, which led to public outcry for Ragtag Film Society to cut ties with his church. ALEX FULTON

University News Assistant Editor The Ragtag Film Society, which includes the True/False Film Festival, will end its sponsorship relationship with The Crossing church after Co-lead pastor Keith Simon delivered a sermon about gender identity and dysphoria. The organization announced the ending of the relationship in a statement on Oct. 18. This decision comes after several members of the community created a petition calling for the organization to cut ties with the church. True/False Film Festival has received $35,000 from the church and an additional $8,000 for Ragtag Cinema, according to the Change.org petition. In the Ragtag Film Society’s statement, the organization said that the values expressed during Simon’s sermon have created an “unbridgeable difference” between the two. “Most of the message we want to convey is in the statement itself,” True/False co-conspirator David Wilson said. “It speaks to the partnership and the history. It speaks to why we reached a moment where it felt untenable to continue that

partnership with The Crossing. It speaks to the LGBTQ community of Columbia who were so hurt by the pastor’s words.” During discussions of whether or not to end the partnership, The Crossing posted a Q&A on its website to answer questions about the church, its stances on transgender issues and the sermon. “We have never had a problem having partnerships with people who have different beliefs than we do,” Simon told The Missourian. “But we understand that in today’s world, that’s becoming more and more difficult.” Simon did not respond for further comment on the matter. To view and listen to Simon’s sermon visit The Crossing’s website. The Process The Ragtag Film Society began to hear from members of the community on social media and through email the Monday following the service. Then management began to formulate a temporary statement to release within 24 hours. After that, the executive committee of the board of directors met with the Ragtag Film Society executive leadership to discuss a recommendation for the board of directors. At the end of the meeting, the executive committee voted to recommend ending the relationship with The Crossing. That night, the board of directors met to discuss the recommendation and voted unanimously to end the relationship and approved the official

LGBTQ

Keith Simon, the Co-lead Pastor of The Crossing Church, delivered a controversial sermon on Oct. 18, 2019 discussing gender identity and dysphoria. | COURTESY OF FACEBOOK VIA @THECROSSINGCOMO

statement to be released immediately after the meeting.

FILM | Page 4

CRIME

Columbia shootings raise Columbia City Council votes unanimously to ban conversion therapy MU students’ fears Andrea Waner, chair of Columbia’s Commission on Human Rights, says she hopes Columbia will set an example for other cities. CAITLIN DANBORN

Student Politics Reporter

Columbia City Council voted Oct. 7 to ban conversion therapy for minors, making it the first city in Missouri to do so. Conversion therapy is a scientifically discredited process that involves using therapy in order to convert LGBTQ people to heterosexuality or traditional gender

expectations. Caitlin Cunningham spoke at the City Council meeting to represent anonymous youth voices to protect the teens’ safety. Cunningham works at Prism, which is a teen LGBTQ group run through The Center Project in Columbia. She pointed to the harm of conversion therapy on LGBTQ youth, especially as they are disproportionately represented in homeless populations as well as in youth suicide rates. “So often I think that people think that conversion therapy is this very almost aggressive, insidious, violent, disgusting therapy,” Cunningham said. “But in fact what it oftentimes ends up being is just a very gaslighting approach to convincing

CITY | Page 4

There were more homicides in September than in the rest of 2019 combined and the trend has continued into October. WICKER PERLIS

University News Reporter When 13-year-old Dajion Harris was shot and killed on Oct. 19, it was a story that had become all too familiar for many Columbia residents. From the months of January to August, there had been four homicides involving firearms. Then, a string of shootings during September started when five people were shot and killed over a 10-day span. That number is equal to the total number of shooting deaths reported in the city in 2018. Since those deadly 10 days, there have been at least four

FEAR | Page 4


Turn static files into dynamic content formats.

Create a flipbook
Issuu converts static files into: digital portfolios, online yearbooks, online catalogs, digital photo albums and more. Sign up and create your flipbook.