March 13th

03-13-1991 Release of film Paris Is Burning in U.S.A. American documentary film directed by Jennie Livingston. Filmed in the mid-to-late 1980s, it shows the ball culture of New York City and the African-American, Latino, gay and transgender communities involved in it. Livingston stated, “ This is a film that is important for anyone to see, whether they’re gay or not. It’s about how we’re all influenced by the media; how we strive to meet the demands of the media by trying to look like Vogue models or by owning a big car. And it’s about survival. It’s about people who have a lot of prejudices against them and who have learned to survive with wit, dignity and energy. It’s a little story about how we all survive.”