ns with lesbians of Africa descent" to Atlanta with the hopes of finally giving the many women in the film who reside in the area the much deserved opportunity to finally see the film in its entirety as the rest of the country has throughout the year at various venues and events. What was not expected was the turn of events to which i have to even release this statement for. In short this is what happened during my screening December 3, 2008 at The Plaza Theatre in Atlanta, GA:

When i arrived to the venue to set up for the screening i was greeted by the staff on hand. I paid my second and final deposit for the screening and gave my exhibition print to the projectionist. The box office lady/concession worker also greeted me and allowed me to post posters for the film in the venue. I was given a table for ticketing which i placed next to the box office. Shortly after the screening had begun, I told the box office woman that i was going to sit at the bench by the door to my screening. After sitting there for a while, a few folks came in and out for tickets to upcoming screenings. Mind you most of these patron where white.

This is when the shit hit the fan.

Two black men (20 and 19) drive all the way from Macon, GA and Barnesville, GA to see Noah's Arc Jumping the Broom at the Midtown Theatre in Atlanta, GA. They stop into The Plaza Theatre on Ponce De Leon and ask for directions from the Concessions and Box Office woman. She gives them the worst attitude I've seen all day, let alone by a box office worker in any venue. They continue to ask for some help to the theatre. She tells them she "already told them where it is". They ask for exact directions. She tells them "she is not going to give them exact directions to her movie house's competitor. The guys are clearly thrown off by the rudeness of the woman and say a few words and then leave. As they walk down the lobby and open the door to leave the woman yells "FAGGOTS" as they walk out the door.

At this point i was completely stunned. I got up and walked over to the woman and requested that she give me Jonathan's number(the owner and manager). She kindly gave it to me and went back to work. I then walked outside to the two men who had gone to their car and proceeded to leave. I told them to wait as i called Jonathan and notified him of what happened, and also requested that he return to the venue to handle the situation accordingly. I then took the young men inside to wait with me until Jonathan arrived. When Jonathan arrived he was very apologetic and expressed concern about his employee and what she had said. I then inquired on what his plan of action was to rectify the situation. I also express my deep discomfort about the fact that i rented the venue for my film which happens to be a film dealing with LGBT issues, and how ridiculous it is that this would even happen in his business. Jonathan then went to get the Woman who said the slur and brought her back for an "apology" as he stated prior to leaving. When she arrived she stated to the men that she did not say anything to them let alone the word "faggot" as they left. It was then that i told her that not only did she say it loud and in a "singing" tone, but that i was sitting outside the theatre and heard her entire dialogue with the young men. At that point she started to fake cry and said that she did not say the slur. Jonathan then asked her what could she have said that sounded like the word"faggot". The woman had no answer and repeatedly lied saying that she doesnt "use those words".

Jonathan then said that he could not make her apologize for something she did not say. A turn i did not expect being that he was welcoming of me before my film screening. He also started to talk about how it was so hard to keep a business open such as his. Once he said this, i personally became offended and asked him how hard he thought it was for a black lesbian filmmaker to rent a venue and sale tickets to a screening of her own film. I also stated that this was not an issue about business and that it was an issue of an employee of his being highly offensive to two black gay men, and how could he support her when his theatre is screening my film about black lesbians?!! I also told the girl that not only was this offensive to the men, but as a member of the LGBT community that the situation could have easily been reversed. That the men could have be at the theatre hosting a screening of their film and that it could have been me coming through that door requesting directions, and in turn her calling me a "dyke" instead. I also asked her if she knew exactly who i was(a black lesbian), and if she understood what she was doing by not telling the truth to me being the director of a film currently screening in their theatre, with key figures in the LGBT community seated in the audience. At this point she asked to speak to Jonathan in the back and they left me and the two men in the lower lobby.

I then had the two men give me their contact information and explained to them that my film was currently screening in the movie theatre as we were speaking. After hearing this they were appalled that the woman would say such a thing given the circumstances. One of the men then walked to the back and expressed that he and his friend were leaving and that he did not expect the girl to be fired. I then told Jonathan that as soon as my film finished that i would alert the audience of what happened and vacate the premises of his theater as quickly as possible. I also said that before i left the city that i would contact every LGBT outlet possible to alert them of this incident and his lack of action in dealing with his employee. He then said a few more things about his business being hard to run and that the woman was crying so much that he doesn't believe that she said the slur. He then said that he didn't know what else to do, and asked me what more could be done. I then told him to cut me a check for the full amount of money paid for the rental of the venue and to this he said that he could give me the money order back that i have them earlier. I told him that was impossible to do since it was signed to him, and that i would wait until he secured cash for the full amount. He then left to get my money, and the men stated that they were leaving to go to their intended destination. I gave the men directions and walked them out the theatre. I then came back and sat at the very seat by the door entrance of the theatre that my film was screening in, and waited for Jonathan to return. Upon his arrival he handed me the cash and the proceeded to ask me if i possibly "misheard" what the woman said since i was sitting away from the box office. I then asked him if would like to stage an impromptu reenactment of the incident, and not to insult me by implying that i made this situation out of nothing. He then proceeded to tell me that i was defensive and walked off muttering a few words i couldn't hear.

Once the film finished, i went to the front of the theatre and waited for the house lights to be turned on. I then told the audience what happened and that in protest and anger with the venue and its owner that i could not bear to stay in the theatre. I then asked that if they could bear the cold outside, i would be more than happy to answer any of the questions that they may have regarding the incident and the screening. The audience was shocked and vacated the theatre in a prompt manner and we all convened at the entrance of the outside of the venue. At no point did Jonathan or his staff apologize to the audience which was majority of black lesbians, as we exited the venue. It was then, outside of the theatre doors, that i asked for their attention and tearfully explained my regret for this happening and also apologized for not being able to provide a proper Q&A as advertised. I told them that Atlanta was one of the most important screening to me personally because i began my career as a filmmaker in the city and that many of the women first interviewed for the film were from the city as well. I explained why it took so long to get here and that i had to pay out of pocket to provide the screening at a venue that i personally saw fit to give them an experience that they could be proud of. I also asked for help in regards to the young men because since i was no longer a resident i may not be familiar with all of the outlets that may be able to help them in regards to dealing with this manner.

I think that this incident speaks to the work that still needs to be done in combating homophobia in its many ever-changing forms. As a resident of Atlanta for six years, i experienced racism and homophobia at a consistent rate. The majority of my life has been spent in the South. Still i NEVER would have thought this kind of situation would happen in any scenario during the short time i have visited Atlanta for this trip. I must admit that i was VERY hurt and am still reeling from the incident. This trip was a bit of a homecoming to me personally, and a chance to bring the work that took me 5 years to create in order to combat such behavior. The fact that two black gay men on their way to support another LGBT film, had to drive a long distance to even to attend a screening, and then endure such blatant homophobia was validation for the importance of LGBT film and activism.

For assistance in helping the two young men with addressing this issue- I am asking for folks to send me any info that i can pass on to the men, to assist them in taking action against the theatre. I also would like to alert the LGBT community and allies about The Plaza Theatre and at least give them the option to patron a business where something as offensive as this situation could happen.

Tiona McClodden
Producer/Director
"black./womyn.:conversations with lesbians of African descent."
&
"Baby Makes Me"(in production)