OFFICIAL TRAILER for the LGBT aging documentary, Gen Silent, Full and short versions of this film for libraries, schools, and institutions are available at gensilent.com
I am now 55 years old and gay. My husband is 51. Hopefully by the time I'm (if I have to be) in a nursing home, I pray that I am treated with dignity and respect. I refuse to hide who I am. Nuff said........
I'm watching this trailer as part a class assignment. I'm in pursuit of my BA in nursing. I had a gay roommate for over a decade so I wasn't expecting anything striking. Wow, was I wrong. My emotions are swirling. The subjects had me in tears. There is an intense immediacy because it was filmed in Boston - I'm looking at very familiar sights. The fact that my college (URI) hasn't purchased a copy of the full documentary _really pisses me off._ I very much want to see it. Going to go grill my Professor right now about why it's not available to us.
it is so sad to see the elder gen having to live in hiding considering they were the ones who blazed the trail for us to live as we are, out and proud!!! from the bottom of my soul! thank you all for living the lives you have and for being the insperators in our lives!!
Watched this movie today, as part of a Cultural Competency workshop provided by my organization. I cried. It's hard enough being an elder in this American youth obsessed society, but to be LGBTQ and elderly in this country must be frightening. Thanks Stu for this powerful moving informative and not afraid to ask and provide the tough questions!!!
I'm 72, thank you for telling out story. I am frightened to see the present generation of youth knowing that at some point in my life they will be making decisions for me. We've come a long way but gay senior citizens are still the most unwanted and abused. Maybe your video will reach some young gays and heterosexuals, that they will realize that we are just people like everybody else, especially be their care-giver.
Our elderly deserve so much more! This absolutely had me in TEARS! After everything that our seniors have gone through only to continue to be discriminated against and/or feels as though they are being pushed "back into" the closet is heartbreaking! As an ordained minister my heart goes out to them and I stand with them! Praying we begin to show respect, kindness and be open to one another.
Saw this movie yesterday and it left me in tears. What these people have gone through is terrible, but they pushed through regardless. Love has no boundaries, you can tell.
I hope people will realize love is not defined by your belief, but what is in your heart. We all need to have compassion, especially for the elderly and the weak. I am what you call straight, but I could never hate anyone for what they are. Try and remember, "In the End, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends." Martin Luther King, Jr.
I am almost fifty and my husband is in his fifties...and we have talked about this many times. It is a terrifying prospect to think that as we near the end of our time together, at a time when we will need each other the most, that we could end up separated or forced back into the closet for fear of it.
This looks incredibly interesting...I am a Gerontology student and we learn extensively about elder abuse and mistreatment in long-term care facilities and it is clear that institutions are trying to combat that, but there is still a lack of education and information about LGBT seniors and their needs...I am sure that this film will be eye opening!
My deepest respects to that generation, who fought for what we now have, who made society to think about this stuff. Who pushed open the closet door. And the fact that so many feel they have to go back inside when they get older breaks my heart. They've faced so many battles, you'd hope they wouldn't have to continue doing so.
Thank you to this brave generation that paved the way for the likes of me and my friends, we love you and honor you and you deserve to live your entire life in the same dignity that you have created for so many of us.
First of all I want to thank Stu Maddox for shedding light on this pervasive yet silent issue. But most importantly, I thank all of my LGBTQIA elders, for we all stand on your shoulders. Thank you for everything you have done for generations past, present and future. This isn't just a LGBTQIA issue, it is a human issue. The things that some of these people went through to simply survive and maintain their dignity saddens me . I don't care what gender, or sexual orientation a person is, at the end of the day, we should all be treated as human beings.
I can sure relate. I am gay, medically proven during 13 years of reparative therapy which included electronic shock therapy. But I was married my accepting wife for 51 years and I have a family. She passed in June 2022. They might visit hopefully if I am in a nursing home later. I wouldn't come out there though. Maybe having a heart attack when I'm mowing the lawn sounds like a really great idea when its my time.
Powerful and moving. I thank those that came before me that lived their lives with PRIDE despite those that felt they should've been ignored. OUT and PROUD - THANK GOD!
I was so appalled that these wonderful fighters for LGBT rights are now living with fear. Its just so sad that the younger LGBT people think that just because they have bars and clubs to go to that all is well. Wake up and respect those in your community who fought for your rights before you were even born.
I would certainly love to see this film. I think it's a shame that this documentary is not available to the home viewer. I would pay a fair market price to have a copy or to watch it online (I tried to use the website link for "home viewing" but see it is no longer available). Why would the creators of this film NOT want to make this easily accessible? I hope its unavailability is not due to bad politics or greed.....we've dealt with enough of that.
A Zwilling The producer of Gen Silent here. I am glad you share our desire for everyone to hear this important message. Here's what's going on: stuviewer.tumblr.com/post/103225078788/the-sad-level-in-the-filmmaker-survival-game Let me know your thoughts.
It's very nice of you to respond, Mr. Maddux. Of course your explanation makes sense to me. I am saddened to read it. I wish I had an answer, or at the very least a big, fat bank account so I could write you a nice check to compensate you for your important work. While small independent film makers/artists like you continue to do meaningful projects, "big production companies" will produce their tripe to appease the masses, and will make big $$$$ doing so. I will keep my eyes and ears open for an opportunity to see your film somewhere in my community. Thank you for being the voice of those of us who may very likely live long enough to have to worry about this subject matter. Best regards.
Its so sad ! I'm struggling to get out of the closet !! Please, I don't want to come back to closet :( Love and much hugs from Palestine ! And thank you for all what you have done for us,.
God bless you sir I see you helping and attending this elderly man the dignity that you show and the look on his face he knows exactly what's going on. I don't know if he's your partner or not but I'm just so pleased that you're there to help him there's no excuse for us to be treated in this manner when all we did was work our lives pay our taxes and lived our homes to the end God bless you sir ladies and gentlemen do not let them take our dignity from us
Brilliant! I know so many elderly Gay people in my community; they are quite amazing people. And Pappy - you're a sick puppy; pray (since you believe in that sort of thing) that those who will be looking after you when you are that old have more compassion than you do.
@PappyCaligula I am an aged care worker and there are just as many (if not more!) sad and lonely STRAIGHT people seeing out their remaining years alone in their homes or in decrepit government bed sitters. Most are abandoned by their families who have given up on them or cant be bothered. Some are over 80 years old and are on anti-depressants just to get by. God hasnt spared them either. And nice to see you're a Kylie Minogue fan PC and keeping up with your Gay icons despite your views! ;P
I see more and more of these stories in my work. A big challenge for policies to provide, NO! mandate sensitivity training and provision to providers and health care settings respectively.
It's really sad to see the very people who gave us the rights we have today be forced back into the closet. I'm lucky enough to be Dutch-Canadian and in either country I can marry, adopt children and not be outed in the health care system- all thanks to the LGBTQ generation before us! So...I thank them with all my heart and hope that things will change for the better.
@verysoliy VerySolly, the point to this documentary is that you will not see the elderly gay for the very reason that they feel compelled to disappear again.
This reminds me of the horrific Tuskegee experiments on African Americans. So many still fear procedures like transplants because of that tragedy. Now these innocent folks are suffering from the same thing.
@verysoliy This old gay, by the way has been married to the same partner since 1991 and lives as an "out" married couple in a continuing care community. There are couples here who are not "out." I don't know if it is fear or natural reticence.
I don't understand why this documentary is so difficult to find. Why can't I stream it online using one of the popular streaming sites? I'm happy pay to view it. The film has an important message, but what's the use if the audience is so limited?
It may turn out that our Lesbian sisters are the fiercer fighters. So many Gay men have dealt with HIV and its effects and I know from the experience of the epidemic that it was the Lesbians in our community who stepped up and helped out when we were at our weakest. If there is any strength in the community it will probably come from the women.
wow older gays. as a gay man i am impressed. you rarely see old gays. maybe there is some hope that we will eventually live as long as straight people after all
Elder abuse is a legal matter, and it is punishable by law in the U.S.A. Staff members are mandated reporters , and they have to call adult protective services when they suspect emotional, physical or sexual abuse. Where was this shot?
The City of Toronto operates 10 Great Homes for the Aged, there is a growing LGBT program starting with Fudger House which is located near the "gay ghetto" were staff has been trained to be sensitive to their gay residents needs, they have a Pride Flag raising,Ceremony,they need more support from the younger gay community at large, willing to become involved in the program and volunteer They need to remember that one day they may need the same loving care.
Saw this before what got to me was how the Elder trans woman was disowned by most of her family and by the time her family came around to it she was at deaths door. If that isn't a sign life is too short I don't know what is
@mooeythemooseman Sure, your life is miserable but MY life is even worse because of X, Y, and Z!! Wait, I didn't know the oppression olympics were today! Maybe there should be a scale to rate the pain and suffering someone feels and compare it to others pain and suffering. For example, if someone has gotten abused as a child that should be rated a 5, but if someones parents die that should be rated a 6. An extra 1 point if you're a miniority, female, transgender, or gay.
Jesus lived and died according to ROMAN records...(The Empire kept meticulous death certificates)..Sins of the flesh are the worst..We''re often "given over to them". Like a drug, we need to do the more extreme until we start viewing others as just objects for our pleasure. You know the worship of Satan isn't some bizarre ceremony. It's philosophy is simple. "DO as THOU wilt"., (Do you own thing). NOW is a few years of "Doing your own thing" worth an eternity of loneliness and torment?
God gave you the choice to live according to his law or not. To accept Jesus or not. Who says "I am the way, the life". You can be a good person but to God's standards, our good deeds are as "filthy rags". We cannot earn out way into Heaven. God doesn't send you to Hell which IS a real place of eternal separation and torment, a place of no hope or rescue. All of our chosing. Seems to me, if you were to choose, I'd choose to accept Jesus and surrender my life to HIS WILL not my desires.
