Narrated by Grethe Cammermeyer
A film by Tami Gold and Kelly Anderson
This
disturbing documentary addresses the startling reality that in forty American
states it is legal to fire an employee for being homosexual. It reveals the
ongoing perils that gays and lesbians face in companies in many states across
the U.S., through moving case studies of two gay men and one lesbian worker,
who are exposed to job discrimination and finally take action to fight for their
rights.
Cheryl Summerville, a cook at a Cracker Barrel restaurant in Bremen, Georgia, for more than three years, was fired when a corporate policy was instituted announcing that the "family" restaurant could no longer employ individuals "whose sexual preference failed to demonstrate normal heterosexual values." Mark Anderson, a trainee at the Los Angeles branch of Cantor Fitzgerald, a prestigious securities trading firm, was also fired when rumors started spreading through the office that he was gay. He became the target of degrading slurs and vandalism initiated by both co-workers and, surprisingly, the branch's top partners. Ron Woods, a third generation auto worker in Detroit, was physically attacked by co-workers and management after they learned he was gay. He initiated a lawsuit alleging that Chrysler had failed to provide a safe work environment.
These harrowing tales of harassment in the workplace make this an important resource for management, business, sociology, human rights, and gay and lesbian studies.
58 min. Video or DVD. Sale $295. Video rental $75.
Filmakers Library
124 East 40th Street, NY, NY 10016
Phone 212-808-4980, fax 212-808-4983
e-mail: info@filmakers.com