Prop 8 Film Debuts At Sundance

Yesterday the documentary 8: The Mormon Proposition debuted at the Sundance film festival in Utah as two dozen anti-LDS protesters rallied outside the venue.

The activists were there to show their support for the film and to protest the efforts of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to pass Proposition 8, the successful 2008 California ballot initiative that eliminated the right of same-sex couples to marry in the state. Conservative Christian groups opposed to the film also had been expected to demonstrate, but none showed up. "We are not here to be anti-LDS," rally organizer Eric Ethington said Sunday, outside the documentary's premiere at the Racquet Club venue in Park City. "We are here to share our own stories." During the 2008 election season, the LDS Church was part of a coalition of religious groups that pushed the "Yes on 8" campaign. The church encouraged its members in California to donate time and money to the effort, sparking protests near LDS temples after the measure passed. "We think it's a shame -- a very big shame," demonstrator Joe Baker-Gorringe said Sunday. "If [Mormons] would have channeled [their time and money] into something more constructive, they would have helped a lot of people."