BAYARD & ME:
Iconic American civil rights leader Bayard Rustin and his longtime partner, Walter Naegle, wanted to legally marry in the 1980s, but that was not possible. Still wanting legal protection for their union, Bayard adopted Naegle, who was 30 years his junior. In this intimate love story, Naegle remembers Bayard and a time when same-sex marriage was inconceivable. He reflects on the little-known phenomena of intergenerational gay adoption and its connection to the civil rights movement.
Followed by
A GIANT'S LOVE (AMOR A PASO DE GIGANTE):
Leonardo Munoz was born in 1943 in Argentina. At the age of 14, Leonardo became Mariela. Being transgender under a right-wing military dictator was not without complication. A loved and loving woman, Mariela welcomed, fostered, adopted, and raised 17 abandoned children in her lifetime and became the first transgender person ever to obtain legal documents, thus setting a precedent in Argentina. Through the testimonies of her children and others close to her, A GIANT'S LOVE traces the fight for the recognition of Mariela’s identity in a country under military junta and highlights her commitment to the protection of the oppressed.
With A GIANT'S LOVE director Maria Audras in attendance!