REEL SOUTH

- Hey I'm Valerie June.

Coming up on Reel South.

- Where do I feel safe as a queer person in this valley?

- Downtown used to really have a lot of the gay community in it, and now all you see is just empty buildings.

- [June] In this West Virginia town, the LGBTQ community remembers better days.

Happy birthday to you - I know people who have, because of their job, they have to be closeted.

And I'm thinking, I get that, but why is that here?

- [June] Despite discrimination, the community bravely stands up and demands their equal rights.

- This is our moment, our opportunity to create a community that welcomes all and facilitates a culture of non-discrimination.

- [June] "Outspoken" on Reel South.

aid-back blues music] ["Man Done Wrong" by Valerie June] [sizzle sound] - For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son That in spite of your sin, in spite of the judgment you deserve, in spite of the wrath you deserve.

you see friends, everybody thinks they're a good person, no friends.

there is an objective morality.

and that is the standard God has given.

- [Woman] Can you read up and just raise your hands?

- Excuse me, sir.

- Hold on.

- [Preacher] The true meaning of the rainbow.

- A new commandment that I give to you, that you love one another just as I have loved you you also are to love one another.

- [Preacher] The rainbow's meaning is not to justify a sinful lifestyle.

- This is lovely.

- I saw you guys get the rainbow flag.

I don't want you think this was a barrier.

We wanna your engage and talk.

We're not preachers of hate.

That's not why we're here today.

So, I'ma give you guys some gospels track, you know.

If have any questions or anything you wanna talk about.

- [Interviewer] Where do you feel safe?

- Where do I feel safe as a queer person in this Valley?

- If you're happy and you know it, and Elliot's face will show it, If you're happy and you know it, clap your hands. - For years, I've just felt safe as myself because I just am who I am.

And I was in many ways oblivious to a lot of the hatred that was growing here, until this year.

- [Group] Hello!

- I told them it's your birthday.

- Thanks a lot Kim.

- We actually need this surprise Jean for the first time in the 23 years I've been.

Happy Birthday to you [group applauding] - I meet Jean in 1994 at a gay bar in Parkersburg, underneath the railroad tracks you know.

The gay bar is always in the best part of town right?

- She was just the easiest person to be with that I had ever met.

I wanted to build a life in a world with someone.

[door opening] - [Jean] What's that?

Let's put your necklace on?

- [Kim] Come on, babies.

[Jean laughing] - My dog.

- Your dog feel the wind?

- My dog feel the wind.

- We moved here and I called for an apartment in the historic district of Parkersburg, because I loved those old mansions.

I mentioned that I had a female roommate.

I didn't even use the word partner and I was told they were not interested in renting to two women a one bedroom apartment.

I didn't look for anymore for one bedrooms, 'cause I realized what the territory was here.

[oil sizzling] - Where's the butter?

- Nuts?

- I told you she need some nuts.

- I thought you just needed flour.

- I told you three times.

- You do not see butter to me.

- I did.

Babe, you walk away from me when I'm talking to you.

Like, I need butter.

- You can tell how much I pay attention in math class.

This one was math class.

This one was math class and this one was science.

It was a lot more easy for me to be upfront about who I was because that's also who my mom was, that was who my other mom was, - Sir, I hope you like sausage gravy biscuits 'cause we live in West Virginia and that-- - He does like it.

I want more.

- This is one of my favorite pieces I earned.

See, it changes expressions.

Where's my KY Lo collections, my biggest collection?

This is actually part of my type of 1st Legion costume, seem to get the light near for the camera to see it I have a deer skull that picked up at North Bend we were stopped walking in a field and I found it.

I have a weird collection, really, really weird.

There we go, I wanna say I was maybe five or six.

I'm not really sure, I don't remember a lot of my childhood.

I just kind of locked in my memories which is good thing, I had a lot of abuse growing up.

This is actually me during a flood.

I did not know it was going on with me I thought I was just a lesbian but nope.

[laughing] Not a chance.

It's just something weird like you're looking back in a mirror and you just you see the part that doesn't fit.

To be trans, is it's just liberating and you feel powerful.

I felt that, yeah I'm becoming Ashton I'm becoming me.

Downtown used to really have a lot of the gay community and it's focus in it but now it's just drift away and now you just see empty buildings.

[relaxing music] - There used to be a tremendously large gay community here in the Parkersburg area.

- It was a sense of community when there was drag shows almost every night.

- That used to be huge.

Now there is no real place just be ourselves.

- There's a lot more discrimination.

- I've lived out for so long I can't hide who I am, I think if you see me at the grocery store walking on the street or whatever, you're like that's a lesbian you know?

But I know people who have because their job they have to be closeted.

And I'm thinking, I get that, but why is that here, why do you have to be closeted here?

In other places people aren't closeted.

- An ordinance recognizing equal opportunity, in the areas of employment, public accommodations, sale lease, rental financing of housing accommodations for all persons without regard to race, religion, color, national origin, ancestry sex, blindness disability, genetic information, familial status veteran status, sexual orientation or gender identity.

- There were so many people there.

- People are sitting in the aisles.

- They are all along on the wall, all the chairs were full.

- Overflowing into the lobby.

- Sitting on the flor.

- They were in another room where they were piping in the sound It was huge and it was scary.

- I heard these people saying things about us.

They don't know me.

- I think at some point during that evening I kind of went numb because I just couldn't believe the stuff I was hearing.

- When I sat down, I realized by parts of conversations that I was hearing that I was surrounded by people who hated me.

- These people are willing to stop people from living their lives to the best of their abilities, just because of who they love.

- We don't need it, there is no discrimination in Parkersburg, that is a lie because there is.

- I was just thinking maybe they just need to be like told what's up.

- The city council decided to table the ordinance that night.

- We got together we said we cannot let this die, this is too important.

- Yeah, you may have to do it just that way because it kind of wants to curl at the bottom.

- Megan Reynolds.

- Susan Char.

- Eddie Mcdonal.

- Jennifer Bryant, Market Street.

- Jean Peters, 49th street, Vienna.

- The mid October release of the municipal equality index, was heart breaking.

- There for the entire country to see was the ranking of Parkersburg as dead last, among West Virginia cities for its treatment of LGBT citizens.

- What do we want?

Humans rights!

When do we want them?

- [women responding] Now!

- What do we want?

- [women responding] Humans rights!

- Unbeknownst to us there was an organization at work called, family policy Council of West Virginia I called an organization it's one man, it's lobbyist out of Charleston named Allan Witt.

He and some of the local churches had launched a campaign portraying this non-discrimination ordinance as a bathroom bill.

- A lot things been going on in our community and one in which I think I need to express.

- If this ordinance is passed, that means that your little girl could be down in the city park using the restroom and a man that identifies as a girl can go ahead and use that same restroom and legally everything can be okay.

- Trans people are not committing crimes in any restrooms matter fact, they're the victims of crimes in restrooms okay?

- How do you have a dialogue with somebody we can't even establish with the basic facts are?

- There's a lot things we like to see us being dead last on the list here in Parkersburg.

Opioid abuse that'd be a good one?

Job loss, that be a good one?

However human rights isn't a measure where we can afford to be dead last.

- The lot of people can't come forward and say I've been discriminated against because I'm gay.

I was fired from a job for being trans.

A lot of people can't come forward and say that because there are no protections for them.

So they'll find themselves in the same position again if they open their mouth.

One, two, three.

- So here we are, in Parkersburg West Virginia, the dead last city, in the dead last state for LGBT people.

- This is our Moment, our opportunity to create a community that welcomes all and facilitates a culture of non-discrimination, until the administration Parkersburg decides to leave the city with an inclusive vision and take actions that match that vision, Parkersburg will remain dead last.

- It was actually six months exactly I was working there.

I come into work, I'm 15 minutes on the clock on time doing dishes.

The manager himself was very accommodating.

My name tag was Ashton, I was allowed to use the men's restroom.

The week before the owner actually sat down with me and was asking questions.

She wanted to learn about my transition, she seemed real polite about it, she seemed really actually honestly curious and then the following week, my manager he goes, hey man, come on in the office.

I'm like, what'd I do?

He goes, you didn't do anything.

And he goes if it was up to me you'd still have a job but the owners want you to be let go.

This store is taking a new turn and we can't do it with you still employed.

And I was terminated.

- Couple weeks back I was actually put in the hospital because I had a bit of a mental breakdown and I had contemplated suicide.

Normally I'd be a mess, I would not be able to handle myself but that day it felt like there was a pair of hands there on my back.

- Growing up, when my grandmother passed away, I became angry with God and I walked away from anything Christianity.

Returning to faith was nerve-wracking, scary.

My misconception growing up was they hate gays, they hate LGBT people.

- I love you.

- I love you too.

A lot of people use the Bible as a weapon.

- Our mission in life is to be to be evangelizing to bring other people to Christ.

- Practicing is be a example to everybody.

- People see, people see how are you living your life.

- Our actions speak louder than words.

- Yes.

- Absolutely.

That's actually a phrase that I've had to start living by, is actions speak louder than words.

- We have seen Christians suffering today, some of the things in the news really disturbed me.

Secular world is is attacking every, every aspect of faith.

- And they will do anything they can too - I know.

- The loudest voice is the one people listen to.

Where did we leave off?

- I have people say to me all the time well you can't change people's hearts and minds so what was the point of a non-discrimination ordinance.

And I said, I know that, you can't change somebody's heart or mind I mean, people are going to think, what they want to think or feel what they want to feel that's not the point of it.

It's providing protections for people.

[people praying in unison] - It was just like, they wanted us to be invisible.

- Having been out since 1979 and having seen the progress that we had made in this country, it breaks my heart, to see us here.

And it's also the reason why we can't sit down shut up and go away.

- We all knew in our heart something bigger had to happen and we needed to be visible.

- Here we are, Parkersburg in the house!

- Parkersburg Pride very much was a creative solution to a problem that the government's not willing to address.

- I think there is not a point of reference for people that come from Parkersburg of what's happened.

We've never had a gay pride parade in Parkersburg, We need to have a presence.

- I'm good, how're you?

- Good.

- She does all the typing at the city council meetings.

I wanted to get out there that people of faith think what's going on is disgusting.

They have to tone me down sometimes.

I love you guys.

- I love you too.

- Sure do not.

This is horrible.

- I want people to know that when they see me with my wife and my children, we're not like this because we want to be deviant.

Or not even because we're damaged.

We want the same things for our kids as anybody else regardless of you know who we love.

- We're really excited to have the first annual Parkersburg Pride picnic.

Help us rebuild the LGBT community with the help of our allies right here in Parkersburg.

Thank you all for being here.

- For us, the non- discrimination ordinance had been so draining and we wanted to do something that was positive and affirming.

- Holly wanted many, many names, you have always been for love and for community and so today as we celebrate inclusion and love we ask your special blessings on everyone that is here today, amen.

- I'm beautiful now.

- Pride in America has been around for a long time now but I think it remains this moment this magical space in which people feel like they can be exactly who hey are.

[upbeat music] - And you're not this isolated little dot.

And you're not the only kid in your homeroom and you're a part of something so much bigger than yourself.

Down your lights, baby come back to here Open your mind, reach out your hand Come with me on a train to the promise land - I've had mothers come up to me who have trans children and are like the young child looks up to you because you are visible, because you are seen.

- What does our vision of this community look like.

- I know, can you believe it?

I mean Three Hundred tickets sold and people calling like crazy and now we are sold out.

- Right, Are you ready?

- In 25.

- There are many people who would have you believe that we lost everything, you know what?

You didn't beat us.

- I'm actually grateful that the non-discrimination ordinance failed, because if it would have passed we wouldn't have continued on this path of building our community.

- I learned that there are a lot more accepting people out here, there really are.

- Parkersburg is finally starting to wake up something that once was is starting to come back to life.

- Here I just, I don't think people understand but hopefully in time they will.

- I am so proud that my kids won't be intimidated by people that want them to go away.

- People often feel that you can't change things and that we're at the whim and the mercy of what happens in the federal government and the Supreme Court and that is not the truth.

You can never make more change than you can at the local level.

[upbeat bluegrass music] Tear down the walls Inside your mind Ones that make you scared Make you want to run and hide Open your mind Reach out your hand [laid-back blues music] ["Man Done Wrong" by Valerie June]