Gay painter (and former soap opera star) Thom Bierdz donated his ‘Brokeback’-inspired painting to an effort to raise funds to buy DVDs of the film to donate to rural public libraries.
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BO SHELL
Friday, April 14, 2006
Wal-Mart is selling DVD copies of "Brokeback Mountain" despite protests from the anti-gay American Family Association.
The bargain giant’s decision to distribute DVDs of the gay cowboy love story in its 3,800-plus stores nationwide drew quick criticism from the AFA.
"It’s quite obvious to anyone who shops at Wal-Mart that they’re no longer the family-friendly company that they used to project in their image," Randy Sharp, director of special projects for the Tupelo Mississippi-based AFA, said on the group’s website.
The AFA recently headed up boycotts against Ford Motor Company for advertising in gay publications and Kraft Foods for supporting the Gay Games in Chicago. The group also claims it was behind Wal-Mart’s removal from its stores of three "racy" men’s magazines, Stuff, FHM and Maxim.
"It seems [that Wal-Mart is saying], ‘We’re going to do everything we can to make another dollar, regardless of how our consumers feel,’" Sharp said in the online article.
Wal-Mart officials said their DVD selection reflects their audience.
"We serve a broad customer base and therefore offer an expansive assortment of movie titles to meet the needs of the diverse consumers that shop our stores," said Jolanda Stewart, a corporate communications representative for Wal-Mart.
The only factor Wal-Mart considers when deciding to sell certain items is demand among consumers, another company spokesperson told Reuters in an April 5 article.
DVD sales of "Brokeback Mountain" topped 1.4 million copies on its April 4 release date, according to Universal Studios Home Entertainment.
The Arkansas-based Wal-Mart Stores Inc. ranks No. 1 on the Fortune 500 list. The chain scored 57 out of a possible 100 on the 2005 Corporate Equality Index published by the Human Rights Campaign, the nation’s largest gay political group.
Wal-Mart lacks marketing, sponsorship or philanthropy aimed at gays and does not offer domestic partnership benefits for employees or include gender identity or expression in its equal employment opportunity statement. Sexual orientation is included.
THE ULTIMATE BROKEBACK FORUM, a website created by gay writer Dave Cullen, is in the midst of a letter-writing campaign thanking Wal-Mart for carrying the DVD, and Cullen said he is doing his best to make sure patrons of rural public libraries also have access to the film.
The forum’s "Missionary Project" aims to place 2,000 "Brokeback" DVDs in public libraries in the U.S. and Canada.
"Our members want to do this in order to make sure that those in rural areas have access to the DVD, so those like Jack and Ennis who live in the closet due to fear and shame might be better understood or maybe even find the DVD for themselves," Cullen said.
After about four weeks, the 3,500-member forum has donated nearly 400 copies to libraries in 26 states and two Canadian provinces, as well as $3,500 for the purchase and donation of more DVDs.
Cullen said about a dozen libraries have refused the donation offer, several citing the film’s R rating, but none citing the film’s gay themes.
Gay painter Thom Bierdz donated a $3,500 painting of the cowboys’ embrace to the group for sale or auction with proceeds going to support the forum and the DVD campaign. The campaign ends April 30.
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