Full House for “The Laramie Project”

The Fargo Theater was almost full Monday evening for a single performance of “The Laramie Project: Ten Years Later.” Produced by Fargo’s cutting edge Theatre B and by the Pride Collective Community Center and the North Dakota Human Rights Coalition.

The new production played simultaneously at more than 130 theaters around the world on Monday. It focuses on the dichotomy of how public attitudes toward the gay community have changed positively in Laramie, Wyoming and America while an undercurrent of virulent homophobia seeks to rewrite recent history.

Ten local actors performed the docudrama flawlessly. Each of the actors portrayed multiple characters with skill, sensitivity and passion. It is astonishing and good to know how many truly fine players lend their skills and commitment to our local stages.

In the past few years Fargo has lost a number of seasoned volunteer actors willing and able to make the personal sacrifices necessary for professional quality community theater. The number of new faces in this ensemble is auspicious for the future of theatre in the FM area. And the success of Theatre B assures that many of the productions will be thoughtful and challenging.

Many members of the sensitive, enthusiastic audience stayed to participate in the Pride Collective’s panel discussion which followed.  Five panel members (State Senator Tom Fiebiger, Lt. Greg Lemke, Rabbi Janeen Kobrinsky, attorney Andrew Lensmeier, and Concordia visiting professor of theatre Jon Leiseth) offered welcome examples of positive changes in local attitudes toward gay and lesbian people.

Some astonishing improvements have been brought about in the last eighteen years. We’ve gone from Fargo City Commission meetings full of a hundred bigots wanting to recall our mayor because he proclaimed a Gay Pride Day. Now we boast a Gay Pride week—with a parade!

In 1991, local law enforcement refused to call a gay bashing murder a hate crime. The eerily similar murder of 32-year-old Fargo businessman and computer whiz Terry Dorff preceded Matthew Shepard’s death by eight years. But the Fargo Police Department now has an official liaison officer to the gay and lesbian community and the officer is openly gay. He also serves as a Moorhead City Commissioner.

Same-sex prom dates have showed up in The Forum, on the first page no less. Another local high school crowned an openly gay homecoming king. Students at Fargo South now have a Gay Straight Alliance, the first in the state, I believe. West Fargo High is organizing and there are strong GLBT associations at NDSU and MSUM.

Yet some terrible things that happened can never be erased. In an ironic twist and as an attempt to shorten their life sentences, Matthew Shepard’s killers’ story has changed. A number of homophobic Laramie citizens support a new motive for the murder, saying it was a drug robbery. According to the killers’ own court testimony, that’s a patent lie. While in the case of Terry Dorff, David Sumner’s refusal of promised testimony against Reginald Tweed so weakened the case that Sumner walked free.

The very best thing, however, is happening right now.  On October 8, 2009, the House passed the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act as part of the conference report on Defense Authorization for fiscal year 2010. The vote was 281-146, with support from 237 Democrats and 44 Republicans.

The bill passed the Senate when the Defense bill passed on July 23, 2009. As originally passed, the House version of the defense bill did not include the hate crimes legislation, requiring the difference to be worked out in a Conference committee.

On October 7, 2009, the Conference committee published the final version of the bill, which includes the hate crimes amendment; the conference report was then passed by the House on October 8, 2009. The Senate must now vote on the conference report before the bill can become law. President Obama has promised to sign the bill without delay.

All this progress is remarkable, brought about by the blood, sweat and tears of many brave people: gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender and straight. We honor and thank them all.

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