PBS Specials

The Pursuit: 50 Years in the Fight for LGBT Rights (2016x19)

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The pursuit of happiness for the LGBT community continues 50 years after activists publicly protested discrimination against "homosexuals" with picket signs in front of Philadelphia's Independence Hall. LGBT elders - four surviving protestors and eleven activist peers - recall life in the 1960's, when "gays" were "hidden in plain sight," vulnerable to arrest, subjected to psychiatric treatment, fired from jobs and publicly shamed. Their poignant recollections introduce four pieces exploring the complexities of contemporary LGBT life. In Kids Today, four resilient, young LGBT adults share how they became homeless. Out at Work introduces viewers to LGBT cops and the changing face of the Philadelphia police department. In a Family Way presents two families that couldn't have existed 50 years ago: one that includes a mother who is transgender and another with two dads raising their biological children. And No Place Like Home features residents of the nation's first federally-funded housing project for low-income LGBT seniors. A thoughtful look back and an intimate look at the present, The Pursuit reminds us that while the past half-century has seen momentous changes, the fight for LGBT rights continues today.