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Made in L.A. and undocumented inmigrants in the United States.
January, 2008
Immigration is a universal behavior in which human beings migrate to a resourceful area in search of a better life and opportunities for themselves and their children. Immigration is the story of the United States as a nation.
We currently have approximately 12 million undocumented immigrants who already are an integral part of our society. Of those, about three million live in California. Furthermore, according to the Urban Institute, about one million live in the second largest city of the United States: Los Angeles.
Because of the continual influx of immigrants into the United States, immigration is one of the controversial issues our country, politics, and people face. It is also a human reality that has created and continues to create exploitation and discrimination. This is the reason why it is important to address it in educated ways that voice the concerns of the inmigrants themselves. It is this awareness that permeates Made in L.A., a documentary by the madrileña director Almudena Carracedo.
Made in L.A. is a documentary film that is being well-accepted in the United States and Mexico. It exposes the life of three undocumented Latina immigrants working in Los Angeles' garment sweatshops, and their individual struggle for human dignity in a three-year odyssey to win labor protection rights from Forever 21. This fashion retailer takes advantage of the immigrant workers by paying below minimum wage, not paying overtime, and forcing them to work in an unsafe and unsanitary environment. And they can get away with it because undocumented workers are limited by their illegal status and the language barrier, and therefore are treated as nonexistent individuals. Nevertheless, these immigrant workers are like the ancestors of every American that came into the United States at one point of history or another to work for a better life and opportunity.
The three women in the film share a single struggle, but have different personal stories that inclined them to leave their native country and immigrate to the United States. Lupe Hernandez, who learned survival skills at an early age, left Mexico City at age 17 to work in Los Angeles garment factories for over 15 years. Maura Colorado left her three children behind in El Salvador to work in the garment industry to support them. Because of her undocumented status, she was unable to return to El Salvador to see her children for over 18 years. Maria Pineda came to Southern California at the age of 18 in search for a better life, but instead found helseft getting making a miserable wage and eventually being abused by her husband. This not only jeopardized her human dignity and womanhood, but also the future of her children.
Maria, Maura, Lupe, and other immigrant workers teamed up at L.A.'s Garment Worker Center to take action for their working rights. They launched a lawsuit and a boycott to Forever 21, one of the city"s flagship clothes centers, demanding minimum wage, paid overtime and different working conditions. At the same time, they raised awareness about the social faults of globalization and low-wage labor north of the U.S.-Mexico border. They took the risk of getting arrested and deported to gain the rights they deserved all along. The campaign went on for three long years and brought discouragement and conflicts to the women. After losing hope for justice, they found strength to continue fighting for fair wages and the respect they deserved. The campaign resulted in a turning point from victimization to empowerment in which each woman made decisions that impacted their lives in more ways than they ever imagined.
The struggle reflected in Almudena Carracedo"s Made in L.A. documentary is not unique. In March 2006, Los Angeles faced one of the largest immigration protests in the United States. More than 500,000 people protested legislation that would make it a felony to be in the United States illegally. The law against illegal immigrants was supposed to protect the country against terrorism after the 9/11 bombings. Why is this government fighting inmigrants, most of whom are, let"s face it, Hispanic, when the World Trade Center was attacked by terrorists recruted in the Middle East? The reality is that the United States government is blaming the wrong people for the security of the nation, and that the approximate 12 million undocumented people are already part of the American society. These illegal immigrants are doing the jobs that Americans do not want and are contributing to the economic vitality of the United States. What more does this government want?
Another struggle to ponder about is that of the Mexican activist Elvira Arellano. Elvira Arellano is an undocumented immigrant and the mother of a U.S. citizen, born in Chicago, Illinois, seven year old Saul. To avoid deportation and the ultimate separation from her child, she took refuge in the Adalberto United Methodist Church in Chicago for one year. She wants to stay in the United States, where she can provide Saul with a better education and future, which is the lasting hope of all immigrant parents in the United States. Elvira Arellano was considered a threat to national security and was arrested and deported to Mexico. Is it a crime for a mother to want to be part of her child"s life? It is such a shame to see that the United States government, that claims to be the champion of freedom and human rights in the world, would allow a child to be left alone, without the love and support of his mother.
The immigration issue is still one of the leading controversial topics and a priority subject of debate for the 2008 presidential elections in the United States. The question asked is what to do about the 12 million undocumented people already living in the United States, and how to control the influx of immigration into the nation. One of the presidential running candidates and current Democratic Illinois senator, Barak Obama, whose father is an immigrant from Kenya, says that there is an urgent need for an immigration reform that is fair, consistent, compassionate, and that emphasizes both maintaining the rule of the law and the security of the borders while working together to keep families united. This would mean finding a solution to give undocumented people a chance to obtain their citizenship sooner than what it currently takes, which is anywhere from 15 to 20 years. The control of the north and south borders would have to involve better technological and operational control that would strengthen security and discourage dangerous crossing.
The reality of immigration in Los Angeles and anywhere in the United States is that it has existed and will continue to exist because human beings have the natural tendency of leaving their native country in search for a better opportunity for their families, even if it means leaving children behind to be able to send back money to feed them. These immigrants risk their lives by crossing the dangerous deserts and border to find themselves working in unfavorable conditions that pay measly wages. Nevertheless, it is worth it because it allows their families to survive. The reason why these undocumented workers do not speak up is not just that they do not speak English, but that often they cannot find the necessary voice to defend their rights against the fear of deportation. Though there are many undocumented workers that cannot find that courage, the brave women in Made in L.A. Lupe, Maura, and Maria did find their voice and made a difference. The question is how many of these lawsuits, boycotts, and protests are necessary to make the ultimate move of granting citizenship and rights to the already integrated undocumented workers in the United States. These immigrants are not criminals. They deserve the chance for a better future for their families and themselves. They deserve to live at peace without the constant anxiety and fear of abuse and deportation.
Links related to this post:
- Made in L.A. Official site
- Garment Workers Center
- Sweatshop Hall of Shame is a listing of retailes that consistently deny basic labor rights to their workers.
- 2008 Shop with a Conscience Consumer Guide is a list of clothing companies that respect worker's rights.
Griselda Denise Ramirez is originally from Salinas, California. She's currently studying abroad in the International Institute in Madrid, Spain. Her majors are Marketing and Spanish.
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