Lance Black Speaks to Colorado College Students
When the Academy Award winning screenwriter, Lance Black, took the stage at Colorado College to give a speech, the audience excitedly anticipated what they knew would be an captivating talk. Interestingly enough, few members of the audience actually knew what Black was there to talk about. Was he going to focus mainly on LGBT Rights, or would he talk mostly about his career in Hollywood? Black, who stated officially at the start of the speech that he hated speaking to large crowds, spoke about his life as a gay man in a conservative Texas town and his climb to the top of the Hollywood ladder. Speaking to a crowd of mainly students in a small liberal college, Black seemed at ease despite his own warning not to let his shaking and sweating distract from his words. This may have been because he knew his audience, consisting of many fans, was in tune with the message he was sending.
While his message contained one purpose, there was more than one exigence. One main exigence in his speech dealt with today being a critical moment for LGBT Rights despite their recent fade from the public eye. The black and white poster with Harvey Mlik leading a protest speaks to this exigence. Black explained that the reason he wrote the film “Milk” was because he wanted people to remember Harvey Milk and all that he did for LGBT rights in the seventies. He said that by forgetting Milk’s fight, we as a free nation are taking a step backwards when we have been poised, by activists like Milk, to go forwards.
Black also discussed how those naturally inclined to act on their beliefs, for example today’s leaders and the leaders of the new generation, are not doing so. The Obama poster mimicking Shepard Fairey’s iconic poster says, “Hope?” The poster effectively displays this idea because it is identifiable among the generation it is speaking to, my generation. The colors of the gay flag in the poster, along with what it says, send the message that there is little promise for more LGBT rights under the current government. In both cases, Black’s p
urpose was to convince his audience to act upon these exigences. After all, his young, active audience members who came to see him speak on a Friday night would be obvious candidates for leaders in the LGBT movement.
Black’s message targeted our generation. Both posters speak to the need for imminent action. Although our generation is, as a whole, politically charged and remarkably more open and accepting of sexual orientation, it may be that our generation is so dedicated to President Obama’s agenda that it disregards the LGBT movement. Black speaks out to this generation in order to call its attention to the LGBT rights. This generation seems naturally inclined to stand up in support of the LGBT agenda; however, the stimulus behind the LGBT movement has weakened in recent years. Engaging such a politically active generation is the best way to get the attention of Obama’s government, which has been so enthusiastically championed by our generation. Black aims to gather support from our generation as a way to direct the government’s attention to the LGBT issue. Black’s talk, and the audience’s support and enthusiasm for what he had to say made it clear that the LGBT movement will likely be the civil rights movement of this generation.
When the Academy Award winning screenwriter, Lance Black, took the stage at Colorado College to give a speech, the audience excitedly anticipated what they knew would be an captivating talk. Interestingly enough, few members of the audience actually knew what Black was there to talk about. Was he going to focus mainly on LGBT Rights, or would he talk mostly about his career in Hollywood? Black, who stated officially at the start of the speech that he hated speaking to large crowds, spoke about his life as a gay man in a conservative Texas town and his climb to the top of the Hollywood ladder. Speaking to a crowd of mainly students in a small liberal college, Black seemed at ease despite his own warning not to let his shaking and sweating distract from his words. This may have been because he knew his audience, consisting of many fans, was in tune with the message he was sending. While his message contained one purpose, there was more than one exigence. One main exigence in his speech dealt with today being a critical moment for LGBT Rights despite their recent fade from the public eye. The black and white poster with Harvey Mlik leading a protest speaks to this exigence. Black explained that the reason he wrote the film “Milk” was because he wanted people to remember Harvey Milk and all that he did for LGBT rights in the seventies. He said that by forgetting Milk’s fight, we as a free nation are taking a step backwards when we have been poised, by activists like Milk, to go forwards.
Black also discussed how those naturally inclined to act on their beliefs, for example today’s leaders and the leaders of the new generation, are not doing so. The Obama poster mimicking Shepard Fairey’s iconic poster says, “Hope?” The poster effectively displays this idea because it is identifiable among the generation it is speaking to, my generation. The colors of the gay flag in the poster, along with what it says, send the message that there is little promise for more LGBT rights under the current government. In both cases, Black’s p
urpose was to convince his audience to act upon these exigences. After all, his young, active audience members who came to see him speak on a Friday night would be obvious candidates for leaders in the LGBT movement.Black’s message targeted our generation. Both posters speak to the need for imminent action. Although our generation is, as a whole, politically charged and remarkably more open and accepting of sexual orientation, it may be that our generation is so dedicated to President Obama’s agenda that it disregards the LGBT movement. Black speaks out to this generation in order to call its attention to the LGBT rights. This generation seems naturally inclined to stand up in support of the LGBT agenda; however, the stimulus behind the LGBT movement has weakened in recent years. Engaging such a politically active generation is the best way to get the attention of Obama’s government, which has been so enthusiastically championed by our generation. Black aims to gather support from our generation as a way to direct the government’s attention to the LGBT issue. Black’s talk, and the audience’s support and enthusiasm for what he had to say made it clear that the LGBT movement will likely be the civil rights movement of this generation.
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