Illegal (Why High School Honor Students Across the Country are Being Thrown in Jail)
Illegal is a documentary about the struggle of undocumented high school students living in America.
Documentary and commercial director John X. Carey captures the plight of four undocumented students who through no fault of their own find themselves in a dead-end situation due to their migratory status. Eddy, Eric, Leti and Mario were brought to the United States by their parents as children. They did not choose to leave their homeland yet they find themselves without a country to call their own. These young adults are American in identity and spirit, if not on paper. They share the aspirations of their American-born peers, but due to their legal status their social mobility is severely restricted after high school graduation. Though they have attained academic greatness and feel as American as their friends our country’s broken immigration system rejects their contributions to our society, and more importantly, contradicts our basic American values and beliefs in the “fundamental right to life, freedom and the pursuit of happiness.”
Through a series of interviews with undocumented kids, activists, policymakers, non-profit leaders, educators and members of the clergy Illegal seeks to raise the consciousness level of the American public regarding the importance of full immigration reform beginning with the Dream Act.
Want to get involved? The Illegal site has four excellent options.
