Film explores alternative views of immigration

  GCSU is celebrating National Hispanic Heritage Month with several multicultural events, the most recent of which was a showing of the film, “Al Otro Lado” in the Arts & Sciences Auditorium.  “Al Otro Lado,” or “The Other Side”, is a documentary on immigration shown from the viewpoints of songwriters, Mexican natives and I.N.S. rangers.
    “We’re trying to use this opportunity to present a different perspective outside of the stereotypes we see in the media,” IDST instructor Javier Francisco said.  “People often look at immigrants as invaders, but there are so many issues, like drugs and corrupt politics, that we often fail to consider.”
    The movie focuses on Mexican culture, specifically in the poverty-stricken Sinaloa region. Songs called “corridos” tell the stories and history of the people, idolizing Mexican drug runners and bragging about eluding American authorities.  Artists such as Chalino Sanchez and Los Tigres del Norte focus on the struggle of the poor Mexican man with folk style songs reminiscent of a Latino Waylon Jennings.
    The film also centers on the dangers immigrants face when they attempt to cross the border.  People smugglers known as “coyotes” charge prospective immigrants thousands of dollars to get them into the U.S. and often just drop them off in the desert near the border where they must wander for miles without food and water.  Terrace Park Cemetery in Holtville, Ariz., contains the bodies of some 500 unidentified immigrants who met a sad fate while searching for a better life.
    “Living in the U.S. you forget just how bad they have it over there,” Jessica Bean, a junior business major, said.  “The movie is very raw and eye-opening, I really think it should be mandatory.”
    Other students were moved by the film, too.
    “It certainly changed my point of view,” Melissa Coker, a freshman business major said.  “I used to think immigrants had no right to come here, but now I realize they’re just trying to make it like everyone else.”
    Despite the good intentions of most illegal immi grants, there is a lot of controversy surrounding immigration.  Federal authorities recently discovered a record-breaking 187 pounds of crystal meth and over 90 pounds of cocaine in a home in Buford that was run by a Mexican drug ring. Tax-paying small business owners are increasingly finding themselves unable to compete with the cheap labor provided by non-resident aliens.
    “I had to sell my business,” John Fanning, a local landscaper said. “I mean, you give a customer a quote for a job and someone else comes right along behind you to undercut your bid.  I can’t work for $6 an hour.  I got a family, bills, taxes and overhead.  Plus, I don’t live with five other people who go to work and make money.”
    No matter what your stance on immigration may be, “Al Otro Lado” is a sobering film that  depicts the debate from multiple perspectives.   

Posted by Colonnade Archives on Sep 29 2006. Filed under Features. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry