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Before Hurricane Katrina, the melting pot of New Orleans was about two-thirds black and a third white. The Latino population was almost unnoticed. But a new spice is being stirred into the gumbo. With half of New Orleanians still not home a year after the flooding, tens of thousands of Latino migrant workers have arrived to rebuild, half of of them undocumented. They were unprepared for what they found--everything from discrimination to health hazards to deportations.

After the storm, the government let contractors hire people without a fair wage, safe conditions, or legal status. With their bare hands, workers gut homes that soaked in a cocktail of cancerous chemicals. Some work for weeks and never get paid. Meanwhile, the mayor has wondered how to keep New Orleans from being "overrun by Mexican workers," and many local black residents share his view of Latinos as a threat.

I believe that the acceptance of the Hispanic working class into a new New Orleans will be slow but sure. The seed of tolerance is intolerance.

Thanks to everyone who helped my single man effort to make this movie in three weeks. 9 hours down to 11 minutes. I have enough to make a 45 minute film.

Credits:
Eddie & Johnny & Larry for letting me crash in your places, and Kieran Walsh for hooking that up.
Alex Outhred for funding
Elsa Wenzel for support and research help
"CESAR" for putting up with me in his editing suite.
Christian Roselund, Ed Holub, Eva San Martin, Luz Molina, Jorge Lopez, Damion, Claire Didier, Lamar LeBlanc, Albert at Common Ground, and the immigrants themselves who put themselves at risk to help me make this film.

Thank you all,
Miguel
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migsono
  • video added October 02, 2006

35 comments // Orgullosos de estar aqui // Video

  •  

    Very good job for a first timer to short docs - miguel should be very proud of this work. As the son of a once illigal immigrant who is now nuclear physicist and professor, i must say we should foster the growth of immigrant families who are already here in the US. The fraud committed against people who work is bullshit.
    Davideo Cortometraje

    cortometraje
  •  

    Thank you for telling a complicated issue through a captivating lens.

    jazzy_j
  •  

    awesome effort to show what mainstream media would never allow us to see.

    cristina1898
  •  

    brilliant. very nice. thank you. this will go up on my blog in a few days.

    whoisgringo
  •  

    Miguel, You've done a wonderful job with the material. You should be proud. This is the type of critically important peice that needs to be made, today.
    Edward Holub

    holubfilm
  •  

    Well done. I hope you can get this film in front of a wide audience. You might let the Southern Poverty Law Center know about your work. They may be interested in helping you to get the film in front of audiences.

    Abogado
  •  

    Wow! My jaw dropped a couple of times during your pod. Fascinating! I hope a LOT of people get to see this pod and learn about what is really going on in N.O. Really nice pacing too!

    mrmonkeyman
  •  

    Video GEM. Good luck in the judging. -zen

    zenbeer
  •  

    Nations shouldn't have borders...every one wants the opportunity to have a good life. Unfortunately, exploiting the poor and working class is not a new thing...Thank you for this piece.

    FiatLux
  •  

    great job! muy buen trabajo...
    mucha suerte en el contest...

    Mikolino

    Mikolino_Gonz
  •  

    bien hecho, esa es la forma correcta de hacerlo. sigue asi.

    StareAllYouWant
  •  

    Muy buen trabajo, tocaste un tema muy importante y diferente acerca de lo que esta pasando en New Orleans, ademas de que los mexicanos que estan trabajando alla necesitan tener una voz para que se respeten sus derechos.

    spiral
  •  

    amazing...such a breadth of issues, very well put together, great great piece, best of luck

    srfpir8
  •  

    Jaw dropping. Runs a little long for Current, maybe, but I can't argue that every minute isn't put to good use. I would've instantly GL'd this if I had the chance. You've got stiff competition in this category, but by every standard, this deserves to go to air. Good luck!

    BTW: Regarding your question about my pod, LLOYD KAUFMAN crosses that line, it was at number one over the weekend, and I expect it to make it back there soon, and thence, hopefully, to air. The response here has been great -- the climb has been steady and, in comparison to other pods that reached number one, fairly quick. I'm stil hopeful that I'll make the grade soon.

    DanPersons
  •  

    This piece inspires dialogue in a very polarized country and that I think is the key to change. Great editing.

    ethanm
  •  

    Hi,
    Thanks for your comments on my piece, "News Girl". I agree with your thoughts on it, but my vision was something very simple. I actually was going to just have one shot of her throughout the whole piece. Cut aways are a good idea but would have turned it into something different. But it looks like my piece is too minimal for the current tv people because i've only had 3 people green light it!
    i like you piece alot. its really well done. good luck...

    tara_milutis
  •  

    This video shows one of the many untold stories unfolding in New Orleans -- one that I had not given any thought to. Thank you for the time and energy you put into making this video. Very thought provoking and very well made.

  •  

    Great work. Not something that I would have otherwise thought about. Def not an MSM story.

    dhalliday
  •  

    Hey bro,
    Great work. I wanted to do a piece like this as soon as I found out that people from Los Angeles were leaving to NO for work. Radio stations were advertising the work in NO. And of course since our people are always trying to prosper and get a better way of life this is what happened. Once again great piece. ILLEGAL does not mean EXPLOITATION!

    avelez16
  •  

    congratulations! i just saw your piece on air just now. good job.

    kieb0i
  •  

    This is the best piece I've seen on current. Professionally done on all accounts.

    matt_orfalea
  •  

    What amazing work. Stellar storytelling, editing. I am stunned at the talent on Current TV, PLEASE keep podding. GL I live in New York City and was a volunteer and became friends with the Iron Workers, these blue collar guys don't ask how is the air quality before they offer a helping hand, they are the true heros, thank you for telling this story. If you get a chance come support my newest pod Shadow Boxer link Getreel

    getreel
  •  

    This is clearly an eye-opener, educational pod, that can spread awareness about an issue that wouldn’t be covered from this perspective by the conventional media. I congratulate you for doing such a great job in putting it together. All production values were applied very nicely, and therefore made the essence of this pod even stronger. I look forward to seeing your future productions. In the meantime, GL from me on this one!

    When you get a chance, please check out my pod ( ”A Humane Society” ) and let me know what you think. Thanks!

    pantazonia
  •  

    Thank you for your support, and for your comment on my pod . I really appreciate it. Good luck with your future productions!

    pantazonia
  •  

    I love this piece SO much! It is thoughtful, organized, and very well done.
    I am a new member to the current tv community and feel like I could use all the help I can get to understand how to make pods. It appears you know what you are doing! I would really appreciate any kind of helpful feedback you might have on my most current piece called "Shoe Shine Man". Thank you!
    link

    BlindLyleFilms
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