Assault on Gay America

Using as its centerpiece the Billy Jack Gaither anti-gay killing in Alabama in February 1999, this estimable addition to the PBS-aired Frontline series explores the rise of hate crimes against gay men and the roots of American homophobia. Hosted by Forrest Sawyer and boasting an effective soundtrack by Vince Gill, the production interviews the principals and looks at the circumstances surrounding the Gaither case, reminds viewers that gay hate crimes have doubled between 1990 and 2000, and, most important, provides eye-opening reasons for homophobia's rise and social acceptance. For instance, the men who beat or kill other men might do so because they feel they have a "duty" to punish those who step outside the boundaries of religiously determined gender roles. Or they need to prove their own masculinity or heterosexuality...or, as in the Gaither case, they themselves are gay, and must negate those self-impulses by beating them out of others. An exemplary model of connecting the specific to the general, and of providing illuminating background to a disturbing contemporary issue, this tape is highly recommended. Aud: H, C, P. (K. Glaser)