Name: Ayelet Kurtzman

Social Justice Group: 2021-2022, Conversion Therapy & “Panic” Defense

Date of Fieldwork: February 3, 2022

Name of Organization and person (people) with whom you met and their title(s):Daniel Karslake, Director and Producer

Type of Fieldwork: Interview

What I did and what I learned about my topic, activism, social justice work or civil and human rights work from this fieldwork?[:: :

On Thursday morning, February 3rd our group had the pleasure of interviewing Daniel Karslkae. He is a director and producer of several documentaries, some of which relate to our topic of lgbtq+ conversion therapy such as The Bible Tells Me So (2007), and For They Know Not What They Do (2019). In his films, he interviews many people about their views and we get a look into their lives. He has spread people’s words on a very wide platform and so many are able to learn so much from him.

Daniel told us about how he started his career as a child actor, before transitioning into filmmaking after graduating from Duke University. Once he finished film school, he worked at PDS (public broadcasting service) on a show called In The Life, which was about LGBT+ people and issues they face. He says that he focused a lot on the religious aspect because he feels that’s what is at the root of most homophobia and transphobia. He left this job to start working on his first film.

It was amazing to listen to Daniel and for him to share so much with us. We learned so much about why homophobia and transphobia are such a big problem today, while also hearing about his experiences working with people with such a wide variety of opinions and views. My group and I are now even more encouraged to educate ourselves and others about our topic.