The West Des Moines Project

This is a very important piece about a very famous, yet tragic event in recent memory. The consequences of Matthew Shepard's murder are far-reaching and the effects can be seen even in a quiet town like W. Des Moines and in the lives of the parents, students and faculty at Valley High School. It's amazing how you got so many people to contribute their feelings on the subject and it was interesting how your "project" follows in the same vein as the play/movie.

Although this film draws inspiration from the Laramie Project, it really goes well beyond the story presented therein and looks to examine intolerance itself. The strong focus on how we can not only recognize intolerance, but work to change it, echoed strongly with my own value system, as I'm sure it will for many others.

Excellent film focusing on the controversial decision by a high school to produce the Laramie Project, a play examining the effect of Matthew Shepherd's murder on his community. The play's controversy exists because Shepherd was murdered due to his sexual orientation, and the play discusses the bigotry and hatred towards homosexuals. What I found very interesting about this film was how many who objected to the play hid under the guise of objections based on explicit language, religion, and morality. This film unearths the importance of exposing high school students to issues some may find improper. Smothering issues that dominate the media on both sides of the table only leads to ignorance and intolerance, especially at a time when students are forming views that may stay with them for the rest of their lives. This film does an incredible job of portraying one community's struggle to bring important issues to the forefront to enable a productive discussion among students and members of the community.

What is encouraging about this documentary is that the people in the community are engaging in dialogue. If there was more open discussion in the world, we wouldn't be in such a mess. And that the students are committing themselves so seriously to important issues is truly wonderful. They are a ray of hope for all of us and deserve a thunderous standing ovation. What a privilege it would be to attend the play!

The first thoughts that come to my mind are how amazing and wonderful it is to see this display of courage and wisdom on the part of the students. In a society that is quickly swallowing up its youth with flashy technological distractions - this documentary gives hope that today’s youth are striving to become an intricate part of the positive and necessary changes in our society. I applaud the actors and actresses in this play. My second thoughts are kudos for the teachers and community elders who are standing up in support of the presentation of the Laramie Project. Brilliant points in relating discrimination against homosexuals to discrimination against Black Americans or women. Hate is hate no matter how it is packaged.

This is such a great documentary. It not only highlights the issues of Gay Rights, but it focuses on the direction of hope and the light at the end of the tunnel. It is too easy for a documentary to lay out the facts without offering any evidence of hope. This doc is evidence of the hope being inspired in West Des Moines – and it really is such a relief.

Watching this documentary reminded me of a very valuable quote by Margaret Mead, “Never doubt that a small, group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.”

It's startling to think how slow our progress in humanity has become to our advances in technology. That is the undercurrent that struck me most about this documentary. Also, it is inspiring to see the courage of our young adults. What time forgets, youth reveals. I would love to see W. Des Moines reception to the opening and run of the play.