The insightful and thought-provoking film, Question One, is becoming a ‘must see’ for marriage equality advocates across the country. GLAAD wrote a review of Question One just a year ago, when it first was released. The film follows both campaigns around Question One, which in 2009 was passed by voters to strip the state of Maine of marriage equality. Now that we are in full swing toward votes on marriage equality in Minnesota, Maryland, Washington, and even Maine once again, Question One has become a powerful tool for understanding what marriage equality advocates are up against.
In “War Room” style fashion, this acclaimed film takes a rare behind the scenes look at the recent same-sex marriage referendum campaign that took place in Maine in which the filmmakers were granted unprecedented access to BOTH sides of the campaign.
The film spends considerable time portraying the campaigns, the volunteers, and the motivations behind the people involved in both the “Yes on One” and “No on One” campaigns. However, the film provides one of the first and most in-depth glimpses of the strategy and the power of Frank Schubert, who has successfully led campaigns against marriage equality in several states, including Proposition 8 in California. During the film, you can see Frank Schubert and his underhanded tactics and messages undermine the supposed chairman of the “Yes on One” campaign, Mark Mutty.
Now, with Maine once again voting on marriage equality, as well as Minnesota, Maryland, and Washington, the tactics used in the Maine campaign are coming to light. Schubert and his campaign tactics have been profiled in the New York Times, and he has undergone scathing criticism for his profiting from this anti-equality work. Filmmaker Joe Fox has written about what he witnessed and how important winning marriage equality this November is for the country.
The tactics portrayed in Question One are still being employed in Maryland, Minnesota, Washington, and even yet again in Maine. Misleading advertisements have appeared in all four states. Claims of what marriage equality will and won’t do have distracted voters from the actual votes at hand. Supporters of marriage equality need to see this film in order to understand what tactics and arguments are being used. Question One has also been helpful at uncovering the deception and misinformation that is being used toward undecided voters.
This is also why GLAAD has launched marriage equality, state-specific profiles for the Commentator Accountability Project. Many leading state opponents to marriage equality will provide false, misleading, or extreme claims about LGBT people. It’s important for mainstream media, and the voting public to understand how out of touch these anti-LGBT activists are, even with voters within their own state.
GLAAD invites its members and friends for a special faith-based screening of the powerful new documentary on the battle for same-sex marriage, "Question One”, Tuesday, October 23rd at 7:00pm at The Chelsea Clearview Theatre in New York City. Featuring guest speaker, Reverend Pat Bumgardner of the Metropolitan Community Church of New York and Ross Murray, Director of GLAAD’s Religion, Faith and Values Program and the film’s director, Joe Fox.