‘When this film finally comes to theaters, audiences will see that it deeply honors the real-life activists who were there’

Openly gay director Roland Emmerich has responded to criticism that his new film Stonewall whitewashes the riots and ignores the drag queens and transgender women of color who started the LGBTI rights movement.

The trailer released earlier this week focuses on a fictional white man (played by Jeremy Irvine) from the Midwest who moves to New York City after being kicked out by his parents and gets caught up in the riots.

This led to an outcry on social media and an online petition calling for a boycott of the ‘newest whitewashed version of queer history,’ which had nearly reached its target of 15,000 signatures at the time of writing.

‘It is time that black and brown transwomyn and drag queens are recognized for their efforts in the riots throughout the nation. From the preview alone, we know that will not be happening,’ it reads.

‘Majority of characters casted are white actors, cis men play the role of transwomyn, and folks who began the riots do not seem to be credited with such revolutionary acts.’

But Emmerich on Thursday (6 August) assured that the film does honor the real-life activists in a lengthy Facebook post.

‘When I first learned about the Stonewall Riots through my work with the Los Angeles Gay and Lesbian Center, I was struck that the circumstances that lead to LGBT youth homelessness today are pretty much the same as they were 45 years ago,’ he wrote.

‘The courageous actions of everyone who fought against injustice in 1969 inspired me to tell a compelling, fictionalized drama of those days centering on homeless LGBT youth, specifically a young midwestern gay man who is kicked out of his home for his sexuality and comes to New York, befriending the people who are actively involved in the events leading up to the riots and the riots themselves.

‘I understand that following the release of our trailer there have been initial concerns about how this character’s involvement is portrayed, but when this film – which is truly a labor of love for me – finally comes to theaters, audiences will see that it deeply honors the real-life activists who were there – including Marsha P Johnson, Sylvia Rivera, and Ray Castro – and all the brave people who sparked the civil rights movement which continues to this day.

‘We are all the same in our struggle for acceptance.’

A statement by Jeremy Irvine, who portrays the role of Danny Winters, can be found here.
Source: gaystarnews.com