In Sickness and In Health

[rknapp]

I posted this a few days ago in my blog, but I want for this to get more exposure than that. Copy/pasted from the blog.

 

I'm not sure if any of you know of it, but if you ever get the chance, see the documentary titled, In Sickness and in Health. This film touches on a few subjects, including hate, gay marriage, and ALS (Lou Gehrig's Disease). This film is about a lesbian couple from Haddenfield, NJ and their struggle with the government in getting married. They'd always been fighting for civil rights, but when one of the partners was diagnosed with ALS, they fought all the more hard. Why? ALS today is much like AIDS was thirty years ago. If you're diagnosed with it you simply go home, get your shit together, and relax until death comes (and it will, quickly). The couple, Marilyn and Dianne, wanted to get married before Marilyn passed away. It got to the point where they had to get a domestic partnership just so that Dianne could visit her in the hospital as a relative. Marilyn died a year before NJ legislature approved civil unions, but it was too late since Dianne still has nothing left of their relationship beyond the memories.

 

The documentary was made by their neighbor, Pular Prasses, and won the Gay and Lesbian Film Festival in Philadelphia last year. Today it is spreading throughout the nation, so I encourage those of you who can see it, to make it a point to do so. I saw it last night when Dianne and Pular came to my college as the start of the documentary's college tour and held a special screening for all of those interested (it was put together by the GSA I recently joined, and even I shed blood and tears for it... blood from the chalk wearing out fast as we wrote ads all over campus on the sidewalks and walls, and tears because the film was that moving). Marilyn and Dianne were one of the seven couples from NJ who contacted Lambda Legal and sued the state for the right to marry. We now have civil unions here, but the fight will not stop until the word marriage can be applied, because anything else is second-class.

 

Last night = Last Thursday. I have no idea how you can get a hold of a copy of the film and it is not available online, so that's why I said if you have the opportunity.

[Adrian Michaels]

Wow, that's really sad...

 

I will be sure to try and find the film!

[AFriendlyFace]

Sounds like a really intense, excellent movie!

 

I'll definitely check it out if I ever get the chance!

 

BTW, have I mentioned I'm proud of you, Robbie

 

 

Have a fantastic day all!

Kevin