Stories
Pam
On January 6, Pamela Hemphill walked alongside the Proud Boys and into history as she enthusiastically filmed the storming of the U.S. Capitol. After being rescued by the Capitol police on that day and serving 2 months in a high-security prison for her crimes, she realized that she had been duped. by a president she once revered. She refused Trump’s pardon, only one of two people to do so. This pugnacious 73-year-old cancer survivor has transformed herself from “MAGA Granny” to “Pamtifa”. She is now a common figure among those protesting ICE in Portland, Oregon.
Margaret
Margaret credits a Hobbit for saving her from Christian Nationalism. Raised in a tightly controlled religious sect, she had no contact with the outside world until she secretly watched The Lord of the Rings at a friend's house. Without her parents' knowledge, Margaret found online fan communities where strangers became friends, and Middle-earth became the bridge to discovering the real world. She left the church and dedicated her life to helping others get out. As the founder of Deconstruction Doulas, she has helped hundreds of women and men. Margaret, who lives in Kansas City, will share her story as a survivor and also serve as the film’s on-camera expert. She will help explain the psychological and emotional grip of MAGA and Christian Nationalism—and why so many people struggle to leave it behind.
Victoria
Both of her parents struggled with addiction and were largely absent, so Victoria found comfort and love in the home of her best friend's MAGA family. Immersed almost exclusively in right-wing media, she grew into adulthood believing the worldview she had inherited and voted twice for Donald Trump. But something never felt quite right. She searched for a wider range of information and was shocked to discover that January 6 was much more than a “tourist visit”. Her greatest teacher, however, was her future husband, a Black man who never tried to shame her for where she had come from. Instead, through patience and honest conversation, he helped her see a world beyond the "whitewashed" version she had been taught.
Stephania
For years, Stephania embodied the image of the ideal "trad wife"—a devoted Christian, wife, and mother homeschooling five boys within a deeply conservative church community. Then tragedy struck. After the father of her first oldest son was killed in a motorcycle accident, church leaders told him that his father was "better off gone" because he wasn't sufficiently MAGA. That moment shattered everything. Stephania walked away from the church despite knowing what she would lose. Today, raising five sons, she faces constant financial hardship. She knows that returning to the church would likely bring practical support, but she says there is no circumstance difficult enough to make her go back. Her story is about grief, resilience, and the cost of choosing integrity over belonging.
Carter
From her home in Atlanta, Carter Brown is documenting her own deconstruction in real time. More than 35,000 Instagram followers have watched as she publicly untangles the beliefs that once tied her to both MAGA and Christian Nationalism. The response has been fierce. While former allies condemn her for leaving, many progressives remain suspicious of her transformation. Carter's experience raises a difficult question: if we want people to leave extremist movements, are we prepared to welcome them when they do? Amid the backlash, there have been many bright spots like the outreach from Latasha Morrison, the founder of the nonprofit Be the Bridge. The film will show their friendship as an example for how we open our hearts to one another—a portrait of what becomes possible when people choose curiosity over condemnation and grace over suspicion.