| What is Don't Erase My History about? |
For students of all sexual orientations and gender identities, there are few opportunities to learn about prominent LGBTQ individuals and events in California history. Positive historical portrayals of LGBTQ individuals are even more inaccessible.
What is the impact on youth of knowing (or not knowing) that history? For LGBTQ and ally youth in particular, what is the significance of knowing their LGBTQ history?
These questions are the inspiration for Don’t Erase My History, a youth-produced documentary film created by Bay Area youth members of Ally Action. This film combines youth narratives, archival materials, and interviews with prominent adults to capture the youth filmmakers’ journey of self-discovery of their LGBTQ history.
The filmmakers reflect on their experiences of navigating the tensions they face as young people in seeking acceptance and respect in their communities as they also seek to learn about and express their own unique identities. They also reflect upon their own relationships to LGBT history, and upon the impact that what they have learned (or not learned) about LGBT history in school has had upon them.
As they learn about their history, the youth seek out adults who employed various means to create change in their communities. In addition to asking about the adults' contributions to LGBTQ history, the filmmakers invite them to share their stories of learning about their own cultural history. The youth reflect upon their experiences with these individuals and their stories, and consider how their relationship to history compares to that of these prominent adults.
At its heart, this is a film about cultural understanding. As the youth filmmakers document their journey of appreciating their unique history, the audience is invited to engage with the lives of these young people and the stories and events of the history that they uncover.
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| How long is the film? |
Don’t Erase My History is 30 minutes in length. The Teacher’s Guide (forthcoming) includes a variety of activities and discussion prompts to accompany the film, allowing the film to be shown in as little as a single class period.
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| Who created Don't Erase My History? |
Nine Bay Area youth leaders (ranging in age from 15-23) from Ally Action’s Awareness Leadership Team created Don’t Erase My History with the support of Ally Action staff, Humanities Scholar Martin Meeker, Filmmaker Dillon Thomas, and the California Council for the Humanities' California Stories: How I See It campaign, in partnership with the Digital Storytelling Institute of ZeroDivide. For more about the youth filmmakers, click here.
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| What inspired the creation of this film? |
Through our 22 years of working closely with various school communities, Ally Action has long been aware of the lack of institutionalized opportunities for today’s students to access and examine the contributions of the LGBTQ community to our shared history.
LGBTQ students who do not see their experiences and identities reflected in their school curriculum lose a valuable opportunity to understand more about their own histories, and to identify positive LGBTQ role models. Instead, they may feel further marginalized and devalued in their schools.
In addition, when history curriculum does not reflect LGBT people and issues, non-LGBTQ students are robbed of the opportunity to appreciate and understand the diverse cultures, people, and experiences of California.
Recent research also suggests that students (both LGBT and non-LGBT) who encounter LGBT-inclusive curricula in their schools feel a greater sense of safety at school, and are less likely to experience harassment based on actual or perceived sexual orientation or gender identity/expression. (California Safe Schools Coalition Research Brief No. 4, 2006)
In the past, one obstacle to ensuring that curriculum is LGBTQ-inclusive has been a fear of the unknown. Don’t Erase My History provides one example of what LGBTQ-inclusive curriculum could look like, helping to respond to some of those concerns by refuting myths about the possible nature of LGBTQ-inclusive curriculum.
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| What is Ally Action? |
Since 1985, Ally Action has been a leading non-profit organization that educates and engages people to create school communities that are safe and inclusive for all, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity/expression. We believe that culture changes over time, one classroom at a time—through one leader and one ally at a time. We offer training, resources, and ongoing support that help school community members take action as allies against anti-LGBTQ harassment and other forms of injustice. For more information: www.allyaction.org.
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Where has Don't Erase My History been shown? |
Three rough-cut screenings of Don’t Erase My History happened in June 2008, first at El Cerrito High School, then at UC Berkeley, and then at the prestigious Los Angeles Film Festival. The final cut of Don’t Erase My History premiered at Ally Action’s annual event, Come Out with Ally Action on October 11, 2008.
The film has also been used at leadership training events, including Ally Action’s Awareness Leadership Team Institute, the Santa Cruz Diversity Center’s conference “Queers Rule, Allies Rock!”, and the 2009 Queer Youth Advocacy Day in Sacramento.
Don’t Erase My History is being featured at multiple prominent film festivals in 2009. For more information about upcoming screenings, click here.
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How can I see Don't Erase My History?
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Upcoming film festival screenings of Don’t Erase My History are listed on our “Screenings” page. Make sure to get regular screening updates by joining the Don’t Erase My History page on Facebook or visit our MySpace page!
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How can I get a copy of Don't Erase My History?
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Don’t Erase My History is available online at www.allyaction.org/estore. Until June 30, 2009, it will be available for $19.95 (plus shipping) with discount code QW3LRLAV. After that, the price goes back up to the regular price of $24.95 (plus shipping).
Ally Action, Inc. reserves all rights to the use, duplication, and distribution of its materials. Educators have limited duplication rights to these materials, on the condition that they credit Ally Action, Inc. as the creator of the work. Content of these materials or any part thereof may not be used or transferred for any commercial or business purposes or in any manner not expressly authorized by Ally Action, Inc. Contact info@allyaction.org to request the right to any other use, copying, or distribution of these materials.
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| Who is the intended audience for Don't Erase My History? |
We were committed to ensuring that Don’t Erase My History would be appropriate for all high school students, grades 9-12. You may also find that the film will be appropriate for younger students you work with.
In addition, the film is a valuable discussion aid for college students, teaching credential programs, community groups, and staff development activities—anywhere that a discussion of LGBTQ-inclusive history and curriculum would be of interest!
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| I would like to use the film in my classroom - is there a Teacher's Guide? |
Yes! The Teacher’s Guide will be available on this site soon. It includes tips for getting ready to watch the film, a viewing guide, and a range of activities you can use with the film. It also includes an extensive list of resources to explore about LGBTQ history.
Ally Action, Inc. reserves all rights to the use, duplication, and distribution of its materials. Educators have limited duplication rights to these materials, on the condition that they credit Ally Action, Inc. as the creator of the work. Content of these materials or any part thereof may not be used or transferred for any commercial or business purposes or in any manner not expressly authorized by Ally Action, Inc. Contact info@allyaction.org to request the right to any other use, copying, or distribution of these materials.
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| What is the appropriate viewing age for Don't Erase My History? |
The youth filmmakers were committed to ensuring that Don’t Erase My History would be appropriate for all high school students, grades 9-12. You may also find that the film will be appropriate for younger students you work with. In addition, the film is a valuable discussion aid for college students, teaching credential programs, community groups, and staff development activities.
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| Should I get parental permission before showing the film in my classroom? |
In California, parental notification is not required before showing Don’t Erase My History. California law (SB 71) states that parental notice/opt-out is not required for educational activities about LGBTQ issues that do not include content about sexual behavior. This film does not discuss sexual behavior.
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| How did you select the history makers to interview for the film? |
The youth considered focusing on a wide variety of prominent figures from LGBTQ history. In the end, they felt it was important to be able to interview living history-makers about their own experiences as young people in learning (or not learning) about LGBTQ history. We also focused on people currently living in the San Francisco Bay Area.
As the youth note in the final credits:
“We would like to acknowledge that we could not represent the diverse spectrum of LGBTQ identities or capture the complexity of our LGBTQ history in a 30-minute film. We have only scratched the surface. But updating our social studies and history curriculum has to begin somewhere, so we thought we would start here…”
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| Who funded the creation of Don’t Erase My History? |
This film was produced with generous funding from the California Council for the Humanities (www.californiastories.org) and the following additional funders:
The Arch & Bruce Brown Foundation
Fed Ex Social Responsibility
Gay Chemists Support Fund
PG&E Pride Network
The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence
Charlie and Betty Brinamen • Charles Brinamen • Robert Carr • Rebecca Chekouras • Julian Cliff • Lovely Dhillon and Jassi Singh • Bob Dockendorff • Alice Ducey • John Govednik • Jonathan Joiner • Robert Kevess • Julie Lienert • Quin Marshall • Robert Martin • Michael Patrick O'Neil • Robert Sass • Michael Sears and Ben Redcross • David Walker • Vicky and Harvey Wright • Roslyn Wright and Micki Cianciosi • Carol Zumwalt • and hundreds of other individuals!
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| Where can I learn more about the youth who created the film? |
Information about the Cast & Crew of Don’t Erase My History is available here.
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| Where can I connect with other people who have used the film in schools or community groups? |
Join our Facebook page or our MySpace page -- or visit our Message Board—you’ll get regular updates on the film, including stories about how the film is being used, and there’s space for discussing the film with other fans.
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| Where can I find reviews of Don’t Erase My History? |
Check out our “What People Are Saying” page and our Message Board. You can also find more reviews on our Facebook page and on our MySpace page.
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| Where can I submit a review of Don’t Erase My History? |
Please post your thoughts about Don’t Erase My History on our Facebook page or on our MySpace page! You can also post a review of the film on our Message Board or in our online store (www.allyaction.org/estore).
You can also email comments to info@allyaction.org.
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| I would like to tell people about Don’t Erase My History—where should I direct them? |
Send them to www.allyaction.org/donterasemyhistory, and you can also connect them to the film via Facebook and/or MySpace. Thanks for spreading the word!
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| I would like to make my own film - where I can learn more about what's involved and where to start? |
Check out these online resources for more information on how to go about creating your own film:
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| I have a question not answered here—how can I get more information? |
Check out our Facebook page or our MySpace page.
You can also email us at: info@allyaction.org.
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