LGBTQ+ history has long been omitted from educational curricula and programming, but the last few years have been transformational, leading universities to want to create more welcoming and inclusive campuses for queer students. According to a recent Gallup poll, 1 in 6 people who are Gen Z identify as queer or transgender, and it’s clear that today’s students are hungry for LGBTQ+ content and education. Unfortunately, queer women’s stories and history are still largely untaught and unknown. You can help change that by featuring and organizing programming alongside the documentary AHEAD OF THE CURVE, which is accessible through your library’s Avon or Film Platform subscription.
AHEAD OF THE CURVE tracks the story of Franco Stevens, who launched Curve, the best-selling lesbian magazine ever published with a fist full of credit cards and a lucky run at the track. Against the hostile backdrop of hate crimes and family rejection in the ‘90s, with few celebrities or politicians willing to be out publicly, Curve dared to show that lesbians, queer women, and non-binary people are fully human. Now disabled, Franco connects with queer women leading today who share the belief that authentic representation looks like us being the authors of our own experience and that any type of visibility is political.
Franco’s story sparks students’ curiosity about queer women’s history, introduces them to new role models and builds empathy and understanding for LGBTQ+ women, and non-binary people. The film and accompanying educational discussion guide will complement your existing gender and sexuality studies curriculum and engage students in relevant conversations around LGBTQ+ history, and women’s history and leadership while providing faculty with pathways for creating a safe, inclusive culture for lesbian, bisexual, transgender, gay, queer, and non-binary students in the classroom and beyond.
Click the links above or reach back to us to learn how to bring AHEAD OF THE CURVE to your student organization!
EDUCATOR REVIEWS
“Sharply edited and well researched, the film is sure to spark classroom discussion about identity, intersectionality and visibility, bringing lesbian history into the present and underscoring the importance of ongoing activism. The film has strong educational potential and will be a great tool in college classes focused on gender studies, history, journalism and community activism.”
– Johnny Symons, Associate Professor and Director of Queer Cinema Project, School of Cinema, San Francisco State University
”The film is a great gift to a generation inheriting the sacrifice and risks undertaken by whip-smart 1990s dykes.”
-Bonnie J. Morris, Ph.D. author; Gender Studies professor at Georgetown University, George Washington University, and University of California, Berkeley
“Ahead of the Curve is a moving tribute to a hugely important time in lesbian history and the brave magazine and publisher that captured it all.”
-Lillian Faderman, Lesbian Historian; Professor Emerita of English at Fresno State
