Actividad cultural/lingüística: Una noche de cine sobre los derechos humanos

2008 HUMAN RIGHTS FILM NIGHT AT USF

MARCH 10
Admission is free and open to the general public.

5PM
FATHER G AND THE HOMEBOYS (USA, 2007, dir. John Bohm and Peter Tapia)
104 minutes, DVD, English.
This award-winner documentary weaves the story of Father Gregory Boyle (Father G) with the lives of four Latino gangbangers as they struggle to leave violent pasts and embrace hope with jobs through Father G's non-profit organization "Homeboy Industries." We meet Joe, who has spent most of his life in the notorious White Fences gang or in prison, now trying to break free of a meth addiction; Frances, who journeys from chola to working mother; Droopy, a second generation gangbanger trying to escape his legacy; and Spider, so heavily tattooed he has become a walking target, now enduring the pain of leaving la vida loca. All of them are inspired by Father G.'s promise "nothing stops a bullet like a job" and by his drive to help them plan for their future instead of their funerals.
Winner, Best Documentary, Cine Sin Fin Film Festival 2007
Winner, Audience Award, Dances with Films 2007
Winner, Grand Jury Award, Buffalo/Niagara Film Festival 2007

7PM
FOR THE BIBLE TELLS ME SO (USA, 2007, dir. Daniel Karslake)
98 minutes. DVD. English.
Can the love between two people ever be an abomination? Is the chasm separating gays and lesbians and Christianity too wide to cross? Is the Bible an excuse to hate? Winner of the Audience Award for Best Documentary at the Seattle International Film Festival, Dan Karslake's provocative, entertaining documentary brilliantly reconciles homosexuality and Biblical scripture, and in the process reveals that Church-sanctioned anti-gay bias is based almost solely upon a significant (and often malicious) misinterpretation of the Bible. As the film notes, most Christians live their lives today without feeling obliged to kill anyone who works on the Sabbath or eats shrimp (as a literal reading of scripture dictates). Through the experiences of five very normal, very Christian, very American families -- including those of former House Majority Leader Richard Gephardt and Episcopalian Bishop Gene Robinson -- we discover how insightful people of faith handle the realization of having a gay child. Informed by such respected voices as Bishop Desmond Tutu, Harvard professor Peter Gomes, Orthodox Rabbi Steve Greenberg and Reverend Jimmy Creech, FOR THE BIBLE TELLS ME SO offers healing, clarity and understanding to anyone caught in the crosshairs of scripture and sexual identity.