More than 200 Penn State Beaver students, faculty, and staff, as well as members of the public, gathered on campus last week for a free evening screening of the award-winning documentary, ‘The Anatomy of Hate – A Dialogue to Hope,’ directed by Michael Ramsdell. The 90-minute film was followed by an informal discussion and question-and-answer session with the audience and Ramsdell.
For six years, Ramsdell worked with unprecedented access to some of the most venomous ideologies and violent conflicts of our time -- including the White Supremacy movement, Christian fundamentalism as an anti-gay platform, Muslim extremism, the Palestinian Intifada, Israeli settlers and soldiers, and United States military forces in Iraq.
"The film weaves a tapestry that reveals both the emotional and biological mechanisms which make all of us susceptible to acts and ideologies of hate," said Ramsdell. "It demonstrates how these very same traits make us equally capable of overcoming them." The documentary juxtaposes film footage with interviews from experts in the fields of psychology, neurology, and sociology and intersperses stories of redemption told by former participants in hate ideologies.
"The Anatomy of Hate" was named Best Political Documentary at the Philadelphia Independent Film Festival in 2009 and won the Audience Choice Award at the Atlanta DocuFest. The documentary also was an official selection for the Boston International Film Festival, the Cinema City Film Festival, and the Saratoga Fringe Festival.
The event was coordinated by Robin Schreck, coordinator of student activities/residence life, and sponsored by the Campus Climate and Diversity Committee.
For information, contact Schreck at 724-773-3947 or ras62@psu.edu.