The reality of thousands of undocumented immigrants in the United States is reflected in the story of eight families in Netflix’s new documentary, Living Undocumented. It tries to show that this is not only a border problem, but rather that it implies a more complex situation.
The docuseries is made by Anna Chai and Aaron Saidman, both Emmy winners. It also features the executive production of Selena Gomez, who became deeply involved with the subject by seeing it up close, with a paternal family that immigrated from Mexico.
This series of six documentaries follows the day-to-day lives of the eight families who work, study, pay taxes and receive credits to buy houses, but who live in the shadows in fear of being deported at any moment. The case of each family is completed with specialists’ analysis and the most controversial laws that have been implemented around illegal immigration in the U.S. for several decades.
The eight families involved in Living Undocumented
The production reveals immigration stories of people from five countries who are struggling with possible deportation. Dramatic stories include Alejandra, a Mexican woman who left her country in 1998 to flee the violence and lived illegally in the U.S. for many years after being denied a visa.
Alejandra’s case is difficult for lawyers because she entered illegally and was detained during her first attempt to cross the border. Her situation is particular because she is the wife of a soldier and her defense attorneys argued for her family’s sacrifice to be taken into account during the three times her husband was on duty.
Ron has a packaging factory and arrived with his wife and daughter 17 years ago. The asylum request of this family from Israel was denied and, since then, they live with the anguish of being discovered. Bar, the eldest daughter, feels helpless despite having most of her life in the U.S., not knowing if she will be able to continue working legally and attend college soon, as she plans.
The Dunoyer family comes from Colombia. They arrived in America in 2002 after receiving several death threats from the guerrillas in the city where they lived. Although they presented evidence of their situation, asylum was denied due to inconsistency in the dates they gave during the interrogation. Fear and pressure made Roberto forget important dates such as the birth of his son.
Consuelo and Roberto Dunoyer, in spite of having a university education in Colombia and having jobs as professionals, when they arrived in the United States, they forgot about their CV and looked for cleaning jobs. With the money obtained from their long working hours, they bought a house with the help of a bank loan.
One of the cases involving the border is that of Luis Diaz, a Honduran who arrived in 2012 after traveling in ‘the beast’, a very dangerous train where many of those who cross the border between Mexico and the United States do so on the roof. Police arrested his pregnant girlfriend, also undocumented, during a vehicle traffic check.
Vinny’s story is notable because he arrived from Laos with his family in 1986, and they became refugees because of the precarious situation in their country of origin. Vinny had drug problems during his adolescence and youth that led him to jail for more than ten years. When he got out, his residence was revoked, but in the absence of an agreement between the U.S. and Laos for repatriation, his situation is uncertain. Vinny, now with a family and trying to vindicate his mistakes, hopes that they will give him an answer to his problem.
Miguel and Maria decided to cross the border with their niece in 2018. The 12-year-old was separated from her legal guardians for 4 months. When the authorities agreed to reunite the family, they refused to hand them over because they only had a copy of the custody document. After obtaining a new document through relatives in Honduras, the girl was returned to the care of Maria and Miguel.
Eddie, a Mexican who entered legally in 2002, stayed longer than expected. When he married Tyler a few years ago, he was denied residency because of problems during his entry when he was still a minor. Despite having a solid life, with his own company employing more than 30 people, Eddie had to leave the country. Tyler, an American citizen, and Eddie decided to move to Canada because of the imminent deportation. Both left their family and friends to start a new life away from home.
Awa and her mother narrate the case of Amadou, who arrived in 1991 from Mauritania and was denied asylum in 2001. Amadou was arrested and faces deportation during the documentary to a country that has the highest rate of slavery in the world. His daughter Awa, who studies at the University of Cincinnati, had to get a job to help at home.
A platform for the voiceless
In addition to the 6 episodes of the documentary on Netflix, the platform uploaded a video to its YouTube channel with Selena Gomez along with three of the young people facing possible deportation. There they talk about future expectations, their fears and what has happened in their lives in recent weeks.
Selena Gomez’s father was born in the United States after her aunt crossed the border and later her grandparents. For her, sacrifice means a lot, because of the opportunities she might have had as an American citizen. The actress and singer joined the production team of ‘Living Undocumented’ to try to use her platform as a celebrity and speak for those who are afraid to do so.
The creators of the documentary try to give faces to the reality of many immigrants, so that they stop being just statistics within the system. The debate opened by the production of Netflix addresses a problem that must not only be observed and managed in a single dimension, but represents a complex situation that involves real people and the system.