ABOUT THE PROJECT

LOGLINE
A story of compassion in the face of deadly silence, THE BODY OF CHRIST HAS AIDS examines the contradictory ways Christianity responded to the AIDS crisis. This is a deeply personal story of one of the most tragic decades in American history.

SYNOPSIS
Despite initial hope that Christian movements would embrace LGBTQ+ persons as part of the civil rights movement, the church doubled down on their rejection of the gay community. Voices like Anita Bryant and Jerry Falwell’s Moral Majority embodied this increasingly vocal position in the late 1970s. This active condemnation happened just in time for the AIDS crisis. In the 1980s and 1990s, a very marginalized community suddenly, and rapidly, were given death sentences.

Where was Christianity before and after the “gay plague?” Where was society and our morals during the death of so many?

And yet, some Christian rebels showed deep compassion in the face of deadly silence. It is in their stories that we see what love of neighbor truly looks like. They believed as Christians, if one has AIDS we all have AIDS. This was their rally cry. The journey you will go on in THE BODY OF CHRIST HAS AIDS is one of inspiration, heartbreak, and ultimately hope.

PROJECT TYPE Documentary Feature

DIRECTOR Margaret Irwin, Stephen Hale
PRODUCER Margaret Irwin, Stephen Hale

WEBSITE thebodyofchristhasaids.com

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