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Piece Description
Stories from gay folks who left their mark in the world. Reporter Paul Mueller features the story of a surviving gay fireman from Ground Zero at the 9/11 attacks; then Gillian Kendall tells of her work to transform a small Methodist college in Birmingham, Alabama with its first gay organization; and finally Producer Barbara Bernstein peers into the twisted masterminds of the Oregon Citizens Alliance (OCA) when she befriends, reveals and ultimately defeats them at the polls.
Broadcast History
This show, in a slightly modified form, was originally distributed by PRI in May of 2002.
Timing and Cues
at or near 37:00 - 37-second music bed for station ID
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Chris Chambers
Posted on May 28, 2006 at 02:08 PM | Permalink
Review of Making a Difference
David Gilmore has a gentle voice. It's soothing, conversational and packs a heavy punch. He pulls you into a story with seemingly minimal effort. The production values of the whole programme are high with an excellent use of music that is an almost constant feature throughout and it's far from being obtrusive as it could so easily be.
There are three features in this one all with the theme 'Making a Difference' and if you've only got twenty minutes to spare then save it for the final item with Barbara Bernstein. She recounts (with great style) her encounters in the early 1990s with the 'Oregon Citizens Alliance'. This was a religious group that was highly vocal in the State in this period and had a strong following. There are moments of utter absurdity which one could laugh at if it wasn't so threatening and serious. "I believe there is a devil," says one woman. "And I believe that he's deceived gay people into believing that their practices are OK." But then that's easily trumped by the 'Pink Swastika theory'. Homosexuals are responsible for the creation of the Nazi party! Yes, apparently fascism comes from "the minds and perverted ideas of homosexuals. Militant, sado-masochistic, paedophilic homosexuals!" By 2002 the leader of the band was serving a six month jail term and according to the programme his wife was due to join him. Hallelujah!
This would suggest that within the space of a decade public opinion can shift (positively) but there's a moment in the first item when you realise, in the US anyway, there are some trenchant and dangerous views. A gay fireman describes his experience on 9/11. He risked his life only to hear later the evangelist Pat Robertson blame the attack on homosexuals. This is a standard report (with a rather cliche ridden reporter's commentary ending with "his life will never be the same"....) about a 9/11 experience but when it's aligned with such bigotry one realises it's an important message. This fireman is 'Making a Difference' by speaking out.
The last two items are both written by articulate women with a good, strong, narrative style. It's fine and thought provoking material.