Donald Trump ran his presidential campaign partly on promises of overhauling the United States’ immigration system.
While the president-elect seldom shared specific policies or actions he’d take, he’s made several promises when it comes to immigration. His most infamous proposal: building a “Great Wall” on the U.S.-Mexico border, a structure he recently said U.S. tax payers will pay for until he gets Mexico to reimburse costs. Trump has also said he’ll deport or imprison millions of undocumented immigrants shortly after taking office.
And the future of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, which gives undocumented immigrants brought to the U.S. illegally as children temporary deportation relief, remains uncertain.
Political debates on immigration can make it easy to forget that millions of human beings will be affected by what’s decided in Washington. That’s where the arts ― and in this case, documentarians ― come in to offer some personal perspective.
These 11 standout documentaries from the last thirteen years serve as a reminder of the human struggle and spirit that drive many of the immigrants living in the United States. From those who make the dangerous journey across the U.S.-Mexico border to those who fight on the front lines for immigration reform in Congress, these films will help you put a face to an often divisive but important issue.
Take a look at the trailers and synopsis of all the documentaries below:
The story of "Dayani" is the story of the thousands who've died on their journey across the U.S.-Mexico border. The doc is an eye-opening look at the true impact of a more militarized border.
“The decisions that are made in places like Washington affect people thousands of miles away,” Silver told The Huffington Post in 2014. “It’s not just a story of the U.S.-Mexico border. It’s a story that resonates from North Africa, to Indonesia and Australia, where people are dying.”