Pulitzer Center Update

"The Abominable Crime" to Screen at LGBT Film Festival in NC

This weekend the Out at the Movies Int’l LGBT Film Festival in Winston-Salem will feature “The Abominable Crime,” a film produced by the Pulitzer Center about LGBTQ struggles in Jamaica. The festival will screen 18 films that explore the lives of LGBTQ individuals around the world.

In an interview with the Winston-Salem Journal, Jon Sawyer, director of the Pulitzer Center Director and Winston-Salem native, spoke to film’s message:

“The Pulitzer Center is thrilled to bring this important documentary to Winston-Salem, in collaboration with the wonderful people at Out at The Movies,” Sawyer said. “It is an exploration of homophobia in Jamaica that also speaks directly, in unforgettable human terms, to the costs of discrimination and stigma anywhere.”

Jamaica is one of the most dangerous countries in the world for LGBTQ individuals. “The Abominable Crime” features two Jamaicans as they seek refuge and fight homophobia in Jamaica. The film spans four years and five countries.

As one of the film’s main characters, Maurice Tomlinson, said to the Journal:

“One very important role that this film serves is to make visible the lived realities of LGBT people and reduce the fear and stigma associated with us. The film also shows the very practical ways that Jamaican LGBT people are working to bring about their own liberation, and provides useful suggestions on how allies in the global north can help in that process.”

The screening of “The Abominable Crime” in Out at the Movies is part of the Pulitzer Center’s NewsArts program. Now in its second year, the program integrates arts programing with journalism and hopes to be a model for schools across the country. As part of the NewsArts initiative, this week Micah Fink, the director, will discuss his work with seven schools and universities in Winston-Salem.

“The Abominable Crime” will screen at 8:00pm on Oct 5, 2017 at Aperture Cinema. After the screening there will be a discussion with Fink, Tomlinson, and Fareed Mostoufi, the Pulitzer Center’s senior education manager.