By chanson and Donna Banta Gloria Steinem’s recent passing has inspired many conversations, including here on Main Street Plaza. Donna: Like many women, old and young, I will miss Gloria Steinem. We all have stories and memories. I was a senior at BYU when I read “If Men Could Menstruate.”…
Author: Donna Banta
My novels, "Open House," "Seer Stone," "Mormon Erotica," "False Prophet" and "The Girls From Fourth Ward," are available on Amazon.
Testimony
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Devout by David Archuleta
While I’m still game for a good Mormon exit story, I’ve become all too familiar with the genre, having heard the same tale over and over again. Starting with my own, some three decades ago. It goes something like this: You’re gay and tired of pretending you’re not. You have…
Film
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Heretic Review: If only…
I went to see Heretic on Sunday, along with some fellow heretics. A group that included one non- and five ex-Mormons, two of whom were returned LDS missionaries. We were not disappointed. The critics were a little. Manohla Dargis of the New York Times wrote: “Even as the movie dribbles…
Humor
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Another Mormon Horror Story
Horrors! Another Mormon-themed film is about to come out. And this time it’s an actual horror story. Heretic, written and directed by Scott Beck and Bryan Woods, and starring Hugh Grant, debuted at this year’s Toronto Film Festival to mostly favorable reviews. At first glance, the film’s premise seems compatible with…
Testimony
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They Don’t Make ’em Like They Used To
Remember when going to the temple meant getting all dressed up for a trip to an Oz-like castle perched high on a hill above some of the most desirable real estate in town? Remember how the awesomeness of that pilgrimage actually lent an air of reverence to the strange rituals…
Testimony
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Still Sharing It With Our Husbands
Some thirty years ago, not long after I’d quit going to church, Mark and I moved out of the Dallas suburbs and into town. The move brought a dramatic change in both neighborhood and church dynamics. In the suburbs the directory for our highly active Mormon ward was a tidy…
Feminism
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It’s the Community, Stupid
It was over thirty years ago but I remember it like yesterday. Our daughter was sitting with us in the pews, watching the administration of the sacrament, when it dawned on her: Only boys were participating! That same day she asked her Primary teacher why girls weren’t also permitted to…
Public Relations
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In My Day it was Paul H. Dunn
Recently Mormonland has been crowded with stories about Tim Ballard, the LDS founder and former CEO of Operation Underground Railroad (OUR). Once a model Latter-day Saint and possible candidate for Romney’s senate seat, Ballard is now excommunicated and facing charges of sexual assault. Reports also reveal he frequented bars and…
Mormon Doctrine
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Mormonland!
Saw Barbie the other day. What a delight. It was cute, sparkly, hilarious, deliciously subversive, inspiring, relevant, and above all, PINK! Plus it made me nostalgic. Not so much for the doll. Although I did have a Barbie, also a Ken, a pre-pregnancy Midge, and a Skipper (flat-chested model). But…
Romney
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He Used His Powers for Good!
I like to say that Mormon satire writes itself. Take Senator Mitt Romney’s public scolding of Congressman George Santos at the State of the Union. “You don’t belong here,” Romney declared. Santos, who generally remains smug when confronted with his pathological lying and otherwise unethical behavior, appeared visibly shaken in…