"Lynden" - A Documentary Film Screening and Q&A
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Description
Join the Western campus community for a free screening of the newly-released documentary film Lynden.
This event is free to attend; however, an RSVP through this event page is required for admittance. RSVP with this form here.
Amsa, a 17-year-old girl adopted from Ethiopia leads a racial justice march in her small, conservative town, igniting a fierce cultural battle that divides friends, families and church members, and forces the community to confront deeply ingrained issues of identity and race. Q&A with Amsa and one of the film's Co-Directors after the screening.
Watch the Trailer:
Lynden Trailer
FULL FILM DESCRIPTION --
In July 2020, the small, conservative, majority-White town of Lynden, Washington, faces its first-ever racial justice march. After church leaders and conservatives mobilize, nearly 1,000 people attend, half of whom are Trump-supporting counter-protesters armed with guns, signs, and flags. Amid the tension, an organizer of the march stands on a bench and speaks through a megaphone: "My name is Amsa. I’m 17 years old, and I was adopted from Ethiopia by a White family. I’ve experienced racism growing up in Lynden."
Lynden follows Amsa over the next 12 months through her last year of high school, along with a cast of characters grappling with the fallout from the march. Among them is Wylin, a proud Christian Nationalist who attends every political rally in the region with his camcorder to capture the “conservative movement.” Though Wylin and Amsa never formally meet, their paths cross several times in moments that highlight the ideological divides within the community. As tensions build towards the 2020 presidential election, Lynden captures a small town at a crossroads, striving to understand and heal its deep-seated divisions.
- Director: Chris Baron, Bryan Tucker
- Country: USA
- Year: 2024
- Running Time: 72 min.
- Language: English
Doors will open at 5:00pm and event will begin at 5:30pm on Thursday, August 1.
Again, the RSVP form link is HERE.
Accessibility Information:
The film will be shown with captions.
This event is intended for all participants, including those with apparent or non-apparent disabilities. For disability accommodation(s) (such as ASL interpretation, etc.) please contact haydenj@wwu.edu. Advanced notice is appreciated and sometimes necessary to arrange for some accessibility needs.
[Image description: Photograph of Amsa, a young Black woman captured in profile view wearing a white top standing in front of a painted mural in the town of Lynden, WA that features a windmill, river, a tulip garden, and two children and an adult depicted as wearing perhaps Dutch or Scandanavian attire from long ago.]