Lodi Cemetery Movie Night Draws Criticism For Being 'Disrespectful' To Dead
LODI (CBS13) — A movie night planned on the grounds of a cemetery has people upset, calling it disrespectful to the dead who call Cherokee Memorial Park their home.
It's not something many people think go together—a movie night at a cemetery, let alone a family event, but the organizer says the event makes perfect sense.
It's a lush green lawn perfect for an outdoor family movie night. Look just past the lawn and you begin to see those interred here—50,000 call this their final resting place just off of Highway 99 and Harney Lane in Lodi.
A recent invitation and a post on social media about the upcoming movie night had some residents taking offense.
In the opinion section of the Stockton Record, one resident wrote, "I feel it is not only disrespectful to the deceased but it is extremely disrespectful to their loved ones."
Organizers say they want to show the community that it's family-oriented, and cemeteries aren't scary places at night.
They're not the first cemetery to do such a thing. At one Los Angeles, cemetery movie nights are sold out.
In Lodi, the company says it's their way of offering a quiet and family-friendly event, that's not connected to any grave sites.
Admission and popcorn are free for the movie night on Aug. 25.