Just because June is over doesn’t mean we have to stop celebrating he LGBTQIA+ community. In fact, it’s totally fine to celebrate queer people every day. There are many queer people who just walk around celebrating themselves on a daily basis so why can’t everyone else?
Nonetheless, the needle is moving at the Directors Guild of America (DGA) as they recently created an LGBTQ+ committee. Diaspora obtained a letter to 120 members of the DGA announcing the formation of the committee.
The letter explains how Kill Your Darlings director John Krokidas presented the case to the national board as he recounted his own personal encounters with homophobia on set.
“The message was clear: LGBTQ+ people suffer discrimination even in our industry and we should count as a protected class. We were all moved,” the letter stated. “After John spoke, our behind-the-scenes champion, Todd Holland, made a motion to create the committee and Kimberly Peirce, Paris Barclay and Nicole Kassell spoke in favor of the motion.”
Read the letter in full below.
Dear friends,
We are writing with very happy news. After much cajoling, rallying and a dash of political subterfuge, this past Saturday the DGA National board unanimously approved the creation of the LGBTQ+ Committee.
John Krokidas presented our case to the national board with heart and pathos, recounting his own personal encounters with homophobia on set. The message was clear: LGBTQ+ people suffer discrimination even in our industry and we should count as a protected class. We were all moved. After John spoke, our behind-the-scenes champion, Todd Holland, made a motion to create the committee and Kimberly Peirce, Paris Barclay and Nicole Kassell spoke in favor of the motion.
We could not have even gotten to this point without your support. All together, we culled 120 DGA member signatures from every letter of the LGBTQ spectrum. With your signatures, we demanded a meeting and the DGA heard us.
This was an important first step in the creation of the committee but we aren’t done yet. Mark your calendars for 7/21 at 6pm for our first provisional meeting (over Zoom) – details to come. This first meeting is important because it will set the scope and agenda for our trial year, which the National Board will use to determine whether we can be made a permanent committee. Numbers are important. Let’s show up en masse.
Also, if you haven’t already, please identify as LGBTQ on the new DGA profile page. (https://www.dga.org/Account/Settings.aspx) This new feature has been rolling out slowly over the past few weeks and should now be available to everyone. Think of it as the “DGA census,” with the ultimate numbers deciding how much support we get from the guild.
What a great way to close out a month of Pride! Thank you for being an active, participatory part of our community. We are so lucky to have you and look forward to seeing you soon.
In solidarity,
John Krokidas, Anne Renton, Daniella Eisman and Steven J. Kung
