on film: lesbian grandmothers from mars
From San Francisco to New York City, Elisia and Carrie Ross-Stone — two lesbian grandmothers (from Mars, Pennsylvania!) rode 3,800 miles across mountain ranges, through deserts and across prairies, as they struggled through the mud-slinging of election year politics, hateful protests, and even death threats to raise awareness about Equal Civil Marriage rights and to rally support for same-sex marriage.
Tired of all the regressive hate-mongering and motivated by the threat of a federal anti-marriage amendment, Carrie & Elisia set out to prove that they are not alien life forms who wreak havoc on society and destroy “traditional families.” Using their own family as an example, they met face-to-face with politicians and regular folks living in the heartland to show that their life is not so different from the lives of other American families.
Some of the highlights (and lowlights) included: a warm greeting from the mayor of Salt Lake City, Utah; an emotional protest outside the office of Colorado Representative Marilyn Musgrave (author of the Federal Marriage Amendment); a visit to the site of Matthew Shephard’s death in Laramie, Wyoming; a counter-protest by Fred Phelps in Topeka, Kansas; a bike ride through Manhattan to end the ride before five TV news crews.
Award winning filmmaker, Keith Wilson’s documentary is a beautiful film that truly captures the Grannies warmth, humor and insight.