General Works on Immigration and Immigration Policy
Latin America/Mexico/the Caribbean
The Movies, Race, and Ethnicity

Chicanos/Latinos in Film and Television

A La Brava: Prison and Beyond.
Considers the ideas and experiences of two Chicano prisoners in Soledad Prison in California. Probes their motivations, ambitions, and insights and discusses their struggle for political, emotional, and cultural survival inside and outside of prison. 1974. 54 min. Video/C 56 [Stored at NRLF]

Abandoned: The Betrayal of America's Immigrants
Looks at the most recent wave of anti-immigrant sentiment in the United States and at the personal impact of new immigration laws, focusing on the severity of current detention and deportation policies. Legal residents find themselves torn away from their American families and sent to countries they barely know while political asylum seekers are kept for years in county jails that profit from their incarceration. Directed by David Belle and Nicholas Wrathall. 2000. 55 min. DVD 6747; vhs Video/C 7695
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Description from Bullfrog Films catalog

Accordion Dreams
A documentary featuring yesterday's and today's accordion players that define Texas Mexican Music. The arrival of the European button accordion to Texas and its merging with traditional Mexican songs gave birth to an explosive new sound, from lively polkas to smooth waltzes, an exhilarating musical style that is rapidly gaining fans worldwide. This program also looks at today's young accordionists who have expanded this musical style to include rock, blues, and pop. c2000. 57 min. Video/C 8428

Adelante Mujeres!
Spanning five centuries, this comprehensive video focuses exclusively on the history of Mexican-American/Chicana women; as the center of their families, as activists in their communities and as contributors to American history. 1002 30 min. Video/C 2727

Affirmative Action: The History of an Idea.
Explores the historical roots of affimative action and the current debate over its usefulness. Looks at several different affirmative action programs including the Univ. of California, Berkeley, the U.S. Army, federal aid to minority businesses, and affirmative action in the Chicago Police Dept. Includes archival footage and features interviews with a wide array of academic scholars. Dist.: Films Media Group. 1996. 56 min. Video/C 4999

Affirmative Action Under Fire: When is it Reverse Discrimination?
The account of a reverse discrimination court case over the firing in 1989 of a white teacher in a Piscataway, New Jersey high school because of her race. Shows how this court case became a national battle for affirmative action and how affirmative action preference advocates paid the white teacher $450,000 to drop her case in order to avoid a Supreme Court decision that would potentially invalidate all affirmative action programs in the United States. Originally produced for the ABC television program Nightline aired on November 11, 1997 under the title: Black teacher, white teacher, affirmative action under fire. Dist.: Films Media Group. 22 min. Video/C 6874

After the Earthquake.
A film by Lourdes Portillo. A young Central American woman living in the United States is joined by her fiance who is escaping the political situation in his homeland. The different courses their lives have taken call into question their values and their engagement. A film by Lourdes Portillo. 1979. 23 min. Video/C 3355

After the Immigrant.
A compilation of six short documentaries each with a variety of segments addressing issues in the overall theme of each film. Presents a unique mixed race persepective on the cultural shifts of people whose families moved from Mexico to the United States during the 20th and 21st centuries addressing a wide spectrum of issues and representations. Contents: History (10 segments, 41 min.) -- Cultural identity (14 segments, 46 min.) -- Family dynamics (8 segments, 24 min.) -- National ethnic identity (9 segments, 27 min.) -- Mix race perspectives (5 segments, 19 min.) -- Storytime (5 segments, 14 min.) Written, produced, and narrated by Dan Banda. 2005. DVD X102

Algun Dia
Set during the Proposition 187 campaign in California, this film looks at the plight of undocumented Mexican families through the experiences of the Gonzalez family as they strive to overcome xenophobic injustices in their Los Angeles neighborhood where confusion abounds over the "immigrant problem." Producer, director, editor, Pepe Urquijo. 1999. 27 min. Video/C 9215

An American Story with Richard Rodriguez.
Parts I and II. Rodriguez talks of his experiences growing up in America as the son of immigrants, the loss of his "Mexican soul", and his first exposure to American culture. Discussion continues on the differences between Mexican and American cultures, including his observations on America's growing sense of loss and the essence of American society today. 1990. 56 min. Video/C 2187

La Americana
When nine-year-old Carla suffers a life-threatening accident, her mother, Carmen, leaves her behind to make the dangerous and illegal journey from Bolivia to the U.S., where she hopes to earn enough to save her daughter’s life. Working in New York to support Carla’s medical needs, Carmen struggles in vain to legalize her immigration status, and wrestles with the prospect of never seeing her daughter again. Then, after six years of separation, Congress proposes "amnesty" legislation that could allow Carmen and Carla to be reunited at last... Directed and produced by Nicholas Bruckman. Dist.: Cinema Guild. 2009. 65 min. DVD X2113
And Now, Miguel
And Now, Miguel is known today as the beloved novel by Joseph Krumgold that won the Newberry Medal for excellence in American children's literature in 1954. But few know that the story actually originated as a motion picture for the US Department of State directed by the Academy Award®-winning Krumgold. Magnificently photographed with an emphasis on local customs and practices, this DVD debut mastered from the best 35mm material will be an important addition to Latino film studies. Miguel Chavez, 12 years-old, has dreamed of visiting the Sangre de Cristo Mountains since he was very little. This summer, he is going to work hard and pray until his father and grandfather realize that he is ready to take the trip with the rest of the older men. His prayers are granted when his older brother is drafted. His father needs an extra body and grudgingly allows Miguel to accompany them. [from Milestone Film and Video catalog) 1953. 63 min. DVD X1369

Animaquiladora: The Animation Sweatshop
Contents: Dia de la independencia -- L.A. cucaracha -- Signs of the times -- Mysterious apparitions on tortillas -- Latinos on TV -- Why cybraceros. Latino political satire as presented in a collection of short animated films satirizing U.S.-Mexican relations. Films by Lalo Lopez & Alex Rivera. 1997. 10 min. Video/C 9210

Ano Nuevo.
Describes the living and working conditions of undocumented Mexican agricultural workers at the Ano Nuevo flower ranch in San Mateo County, California. Documents the efforts of a group of these workers, fired when they attempted to join a union, to reach a settlement with the Ano Nuevo owner through the U.S. legal system. 1981. 55 min. Video/C 1235

Arrow
This experiential film is about the director's journey into his inner self as he travels through the desert in search of Aztlan, the place of origin of the Aztec people. 1996. 32 min. Video /C 9217

The Art of Resistance.
Seven chicano artists talk about their work and how it has contributed to the civil rights movement for Mexican Americans. 1994. 26 min. Video/C 4076

The Assumption of Lupe Velez
Assumption is an experimental look at the quasi-glamorous life of Mexican siren Lupe Velez, who died many years ago. Opening with Andy Warhol's film "Lupe," loosely based on the last night of her life, this film presents accounts and renditions of Velez's last night in Hollywood to examine her portrays in the mainstream entertainment press (accounts by Hedda Hopper) as well as her transformation into an underground cult icon (by Kenneth Anger, Andy Warhol and Puerto Rican filmmaker Jose Soltero). A video by Rita Gonzalez. c1999. 22 min. Video/C 9211

Balseros
A gripping look at the daring escapes of seven Cubans and their families on homemade rafts in 1994 and their depressing U.S. destinations. The film presents Cuba in a negative but wistful light, a light that seems all the brighter when the battered Cubans begin their new lives as Americans. The little these people had in Cuba is eventually pined over when they must begin anew with nothing in the United States. 2002. 120 min. Video/C 9875

Ballad of an Unsung Hero.
Uses archival footage, photographs, and recordings, as well as interviews, to chronicle the life of Pedro J. Gonzalez, who served as telegrapher for Pancho Villa, became a radio star and recording artist in the United States, championed the cause of Mexican-Americans, and worked as a prisoner in San Quentin to reform the California penal system. 1983. 28 min. Video/C 1763

The Battle of Glorieta Pass.
Using commentary from diaries and journals of Civil War participants film reviews the military strategy and events surrounding the Battle of Glorieta Pass during the New Mexico Civil War campaign of 1862. 1990. Video/C 2868

Beca de Gilas: Rebeca's Story
A personal and inspirational documentary about Rebeca Amendariz, a 21-year old community activist in Gilroy, California, her family, and her efforts to register Chicano voters during the 1996 struggle to defeat Proposition 209. c1999. 20 min. Video/C 9208

Bettina Gray Speaks with Luis Valdez
Bettina Gray interviews Luis Valdez, the celebrated founder of the Teatro Campesino, the West Coast theatrical group that has given voice to the struggles of Chicano farm workers. As a child, Valdez picked fruit alongside his father in California's fertile valleys. In this program, he describes how he became a playwright and director and explains how his plays retrace the experience of Chicano families. Recorded on location at the Mexican Museum, San Francisco. Dist.: Films Media Group. c2003. 26 min. DVD 6496

Beyond the Border (Mas alla de la frontera)
Beyond the Border, with tenderness and beauty, follows the immigrant experience with Marcelo Ayala, who leaves his family on a risky journey to the United States. We begin to understand his decision to leave Mexico with the insights of his brothers, who before him, have each made the same journey. Rounds out the presentation with a look at the immigration's effect on their family in Michoacan, Mexico. Director/producer, Ari Luis Palos. c2001. 56 min. DVD 8846

Biculturalism and Acculturation Among Latinos.
Explores issues of cultural identity among Latino Americans who are pursuing a biculturalism that will offer the Latino community "the best of both worlds". Film addresses the question: What of the Latino cultural heritage should be retained and what abandoned as they are assimilated into mainstream American culture? Dist.: Films Media Group. 1992. 30 min. Video/C 2634

Bilingual Education.
Examines Latino consensus on the issue of bilingual education while also looking at efforts to increase literacy levels and English language skills among Latinos. Dist.: Films Media Group. 1992. 26 min. Video/C 2870

Birthwrite: Growing Up Hispanic.
Hosted by Cheech Marin. 57 min. Video/C 1956

Black & Gold: The Latin King and Queen Nation.
Tells the story of the New York based street gang Almighty Latin King and Queen Nation. The Nation claims to have broken with its criminal past and to be following in the footsteps of the Black Panthers and the Young Lords as a street political organization. The product of over one year of filming on the front lines of New York City, this documentary combines the testimony of Kings and Queens with a fast-paced stream of images and hip-hop beats that capture the texture of their struggle and of the urban landscape in which it takes place. 1999. 74 min. Video/C MM335

Black & White in Exile
An indepth documentary chronicling 30 years of Caribbean exile in the United States, focusing on Cuban and Haitian immigration and its impact on the host communities. The four main groups probed are Cuban exiles, Haitian exiles, resident whites and African Americans. Issues of equity are explored in terms of the government treatment of each group, the economic opportunities available, the political empowerment achieved and the inter-racial/cross-cultural hostilities, cooperation and ultimately, coalitions that developed. Includes personal accounts of witnesses and participants tempered by objective insights of historians. Produced and directed by Ray Blanco. Originally produced for PBS in 1997. 60 min. Video/C 7194

La Boda (The wedding)
Filmed in Mexico, Texas and California, this is an intimate portrait of the challenges faced by a Mexican-American migrant community presented primarily through the eyes of Elizabeth, whose wedding to Artemio concludes the documentary. c2000. 54 min. Video/C 7976

Bombing L.A.
Documentary about L.A. graffitti artists. approx. 60 min. Video/C 2954

Border Brujo.
A performance art monolog which examines linguistic and cultural stereotypes that create "borders" between people. 52 min. Video/C 3455

Border War: The Battle Over Illegal Immigration
The human and drug trafficking across the border between the United States and Mexico has been called "the illegal immigration invasion." This film looks at the lives of five American individuals affected by the rise in illegal immigration. The story is told through the eyes of those involved firsthand, prompting viewers to think about this issue on a personal level. Written and directed by Kevin Knoblock. c2006. 95 min. DVD 6593

Borderline Cases: Environmental Matters at the United States-Mexico Border
A documentary describing the consequences of 25 years of environmental neglect by factories along the U.S./Mexico border focusing on the cities of Brownsville, Matamoros, Tijuana, San Diego, Ciudad Juarez and El Paso. It chronicles the 5 year bi-national effort to craft remedies to the border's deteriorating environmental conditions by a diverse mix of people of both countries from grass-roots activists to government, academic and industrial leaders. 1997. 65 min. Video/C 4748

Bullfrog Films catalog description

The Borinqueneers
A documentary on the all-Puerto Rican 65th Infantry Regiment, the only all-Hispanic unit in U.S. Army history. The film focuses on the establishment of the Regiment and on their contributions during the Korean War through testimony by the regiment's veterans and rare archival footage. Written, produced and directed by Noemi Figueroa Soulet. Dist.: Cinema Guild. 2007. 78 min. DVD 8605

A Bowl of Beings.
Deftly employing comedic styles from the Marx Brothers to Sam Kinison, Culture Clash, a group of Mexican American comedians, gives a powerful demonstration of Chicano wisdom, art and wit. 55 min. DVD X1289 [preservation copy]; vhs Video/C 4673

The Boxer. (Life; 6)
This film follows Luis Rodriguez, who lives in a remote peasant village in southern Mexico, who hopes to become a boxing champion in the United States. This film follows him as he travels north to the US-Mexican border, joining other migrants determined to outwit the U.S. border guards. Eventually he succeeds in crossing the border and finds work as an illegal alien. c2000. 24 min. Video/C 7766

Bullfrog Films catalog description

Break of Dawn: A True Story.
Based on the life story of Pedro J. Gonzalez who championed the cause of Mexican-Americans in California during the Depression years and who worked for the reform of the California Penal System. English and Spanish. 100 min. Video/C 1758

Brincando el Charco: Portrait of a Puerto Rican
Contemplates the notion of "identity" through the experiences of a Puerto Rican woman living in New York. In a mix of fiction, archival footage, processed interviews and soap opera drama, this film tells the story of Claudia Marin, a middle-class, light-skinned Puerto Rican, lesbian, photographer/videographer who is attempting to construct a sense of community in the United States. Produced, written, and directed by Frances Negron-Muntaner. 1994. 55 min. Video/C MM1032

Description from Women Make Movies catalog

The Bronze Screen
This extensive documentary honors the past and looks at the future of Latinos in motion pictures. From silent movies to urban gang films, stereotypes of the Greaser, the Lazy Mexican, the Latin lover and the Dark lady are examined. Rare and extensive footage traces the progression of this distorted screen image to the increased prominence of today's Latino actors, writers and directors. Featuring: Dolores Del Rio, Lupe Velez, Rita Hayworth, Anthony Quinn, Cesar Romero, Rita Moreno, Jennifer Lopez, Raquel Welch, Benicio Del Toro, Antonio Banderas, Desi Arnaz, Salma Hayek, John Leguizamo, Jimmy Smits, Raul Julia, Carmen Miranda, Ricardo Montalban, Joe Ferrer, Cheech Marin. Special features: Film trailers as tributes to three of the most influential and legendary Latino forces in Hollywood history: Anthony Quinn, Rita Hayworth, Rita Moreno. 1975. 120 min. DVD 1526

Brown is the New Green: George Lopez and the American Dream
Film examining how efforts to profit from Hispanic American culture have contributed to the shaping of its contemporary identity. The documentary's focal point is comedian George Lopez, an icon and advocate for Hispanic Americans' move into the mainstream. Features conversations with members of the Hispanic American youth market. Also includes interviews with Lopez and other Hispanic Americans. 2007. 60 min. DVD X1276

Cafe Con Leche
An introspective look at the lives of 17 young Cuban-Americans; the now adult children of the first wave of Cuban exiles that came to the United States. They comment on their experiences growing up bi-culturally; functionally American, spiritually Cuban, and on the challenges faced in the fusion of traditional old world values with modern American culture. 1997. 90 min. Video/C 6459

California Since the Sixties: Revolutions and Counterrevolutions: Challenge of Multiracial Democracy, 2/6/99 (11th California Studies Conference, University of California, Berkeley)
A panel of Mexican-American, Native American and Asian American leaders, authors and journalists examine, through analyses of minority history, future challenges for American minorities and American democracy in the 21st century. Contents: Introduction, Carlos Munoz (9 min.); Racism in 1960s and political movements, Elizabeth Martinez (21 min.); Contrasting social movements from the 60s to the 90s, Phil Hutchings (17 min.); Human values for the 21st century, Ramona Wilson (20 min.); Asian in America: the perpetual foreigners, Helen Zia (26 min.); Multiracial democracy and the labor movement, David Bacon (15 min.). Moderator: Carlos Munoz. Panel: Elizabeth Martinez, Phil Hutchings, Ramona Wilson, Helen Zia, David Bacon. 108 min. Video/C 5983

Compañeras: The Story of the First All-female Mariachi Band
An intimate profile of America's first all-female mariachi band: Mariachi Reyna de Los Angeles. Since 1994, this 12-member group has been taking on a male-dominated musical tradition and building the popularity of mariachi music. A film by Elizabeth Massie & Matthew Buzzell. 60 min. 2008. DVD X349

Description from Filmakers Library catalog
Campus Culture Wars: Five Stories About PC.
University of Pennsylvania: racially insensitive language, Harvard University: gay rights, Stanford University: multicultural ideals, Pennsylvania State: sexual harassment, University of Washington: radical feminism. 86 min. Video/C 3328

Carmelita Tropicana: Your Kunst Is Your Waffen
Carmelita Tropicana, a lesbian Latina performance artist who supports herself as a building super on New York's Lower East Side, winds up in jail with three other women after a protest at an abortion clinic. Humorous monologues and campy production numbers ensue. Performers: Carmelita Tropicana, Annie Iobst, Sophia Ramos, Livia Daza Paris. 1994. 28 min. Video/C 8354

[Cervantes, Lorna Dee] Lorna Dee Cervantes and Shirley Geok-lin Lim (Sounds of Poetry with Bill Moyers)
American poet Lorna Dee Cervantes founded her own press to publish the works of Mexican-Americans. Dr. Shirley Geok-lin Lim, An English professor uses her Chinese/Malaysian roots to bring a unique Asian-American perspective to her writing. In this program Bill Moyers and the two poets discuss topics that revolve around the theme of otherness. 1999. 27 min. Video/C 6828

Challenging Hispanic Stereotypes: Arturo Madrid.
Arturo Madrid, a Hispanic educator, has devoted himself to challenging the stereotypes that keep Hispanics outside the American mainstream. In this film Moyers and Madrid discuss the controversy surrounding bilingual education and the state of education, in general, for Hispanic people. Dist.: Films Media Group. 30 min. Video/C 4992

Chavez Ravine.
This documentary captures how a community was betrayed by greed, political hypocrisy, and good intentions gone astray. Don Normark's haunting photographs evoke a lost Mexican-American village in the heart of downtown LA, razed in the 1950's to build an enormous low-income housing project. Instead, the federally purchased land was used for Dodger Stadium. Directed by Jordan Mechner. 2004. 24 min. DVD 4003

Description from Bullfrog Films catalog

Chicana.
Employs Mexican murals, rare photographs, prints, and documentary footage to trace the traditional and the emerging roles of Mexican/Chicanas from pre-Columbian times to the present, showing how women have made important contributions as workers, mothers, activists, educators, leaders, and in numerous other ways, despite their generally oppressed status in the Latino culture. 23 min. Video/C 3342

Rashkin, Elissa J. "Historic Image/Self Image: Re-Viewing Chicana." In: Sex Positives? The Cultural Politics of Dissident Sexualities. Edited by Thomas Foster, Carol Siegel, and Ellen E. Berry. pp: 97-119. New York: New York University Press, c1997. (Main Stack HQ471.S495 1997)

Chicano Park.
The history and culture of the Chicano people, who were involved in the establishment of Chicano Park, San Diego, Calif. in 1978. 59 min. Video/C 1294

Ryan, Susan. "Chicano Park." (movie reviews) Cineaste v19, n1 (Wntr, 1992):66.

Chicano!: The History of the Mexican American Civil Rights Movement.
A four part series chronicling various aspects of the struggles for equal rights by Mexican Americans. 57 min. each installment. DVD 9933

Episode 1: Quest for a Homeland. Examines the events at Tierra Amarilla, New Mexico, that sparked a national movement for social justice. It focuses on the 1967 struggle by Mexican Americans to regain ownership of New Mexico lands guaranteed them by the 1848 Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo and then visits the landmark Denver Youth Conference in 1969. The program concludes with the Chicano Moratorium March against the Vietnam War, held in East Los Angeles in 1970...an event that turned into a tragic riot resulting in the death of renowned journalist Ruben Salazar. DVD 9933; also VHS Video/C 4308

Episode 2: The Struggle in the Field. Examines the efforts of farmworkers to form a national labor union. Under the leadership of nonviolence advocate Cesar Chavez, farmworkers launched a strike against California grape growers in 1965, demanding better working conditions and fair wages. In 1970, they undertook a national table grape boycott that eventually led to the first union contracts in farm labor history. An important milestone in the struggle was the passage of the California Labor Relations Act. DVD 9933; also VHS Video/C 4309

Episode 3: Taking Back the Schools. Documents the Mexican-American struggle to reform an educational system that failed to properly educate Chicano students, resulting in a more than 50% drop out rate, and leaving many others illiterate and unskilled. It focuses on the 1968 walkout by thousands of Mexican-American high school students in East Los Angeles, which resulted in conspiracy indictments against 13 community leaders. DVD 9933; also VHS Video/C 4310

Episode 4: Fighting for Political Power.Focuses on the emergence in Texas of Mexican-American political power and the creation of a third political party, La Raza Unida. Although the idea of a third party eventually proved ineffectual, La Raza Unida inspired a generation of political activists and pioneered voter registration strategies that eventually led to the election of thousands of Chicanos to political office. DVD 9933; also VHS Video/C 4311

Goodman, Walter. "Chicano! History of the Mexican-American Civil Rights Movement." (television program reviews) New York Times v145 (Fri, April 12, 1996):B8(N), D18(L), col 4, 8 col in.

Chicano Rock!: The Sounds of East Los Angeles
A look at the generations of young Mexican-Americans who express their heritage through music. Features rare film, photos, and music from artists such as Lalo Guerrero and Ritchie Valens, Cannibal and the Headhunters, Tierra, Thee Midniters, El Chicano, Los Lobos, and more. 60 min. DVD X2104

Chicanos in the New West [Sound Recording]
Lecturer Ricardo Romo. Deland, Fla. : Everett Edwards, 1979. 43 min. Sound/C 175

Chile Pequin.
Presents the story of a feisty, young, and ambitious Hispanic woman who earns a university scholarship and must fight to break away from the stereotypical sex role placed on her by her family's culture. Focuses on the needs and roles of women in contemporary society. Directors, Hal Weiner and Angela Paton. 1982. 30 min. Video/C MM608

Chulas Fronteras.
Features music and culture of Mexican-Americans living in southern Texas, showing food preparation, family life, dances, fieldwork,and other social activities. 58 min. DVD 3456; also VHS Video/C 1304

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Class Divided.
Documents a reunion of Iowa teacher Jane Elliott and her third-grade class of 1970, subjects that year of an ABC News television documentary entitled: The eye of the storm. Shows how her experimental curriculum on the evils of discrimination had a lasting effect on the lives of the students. 26 min. DVD 5915; also vhs Video/C 1143

Eye of the Storm Video/C 3984

Description from California Newsreel catalog

The Closing Door: An Investigation of Immigration Policy.
Presents an investigation of current United States policy on immigration in light of past history. Includes consideration of both legal and illegal immigration. 58 min. Video/C 983

Color Schemes: America's Washload in 4 Cycles.
The theme is society's intolerance for cultural diversity. 28 min. Video/C 1776

El Corazon Sangrante (The Bleeding Heart)
Several Mexican, Cuban, and Chicano visual artists and two performing artists are interviewed, and their work is discussed with particular reference to the image of the bleeding heart, which has been a significant symbol throughout centuries of Latin American culture. In Spanish and English, with subtitles in the opposite language. c1991. 45 min. Video/C 6411

Corpus: A Home Movie for Selena
Directed by Lourdes Portillo. Corpus focuses on the singer's fans -- the people on both sides of the border who saw in Selena a symbol of hope and cultural pride, and the chance to emerge from a background of poverty and despair to achieve personal and professional success. The film is structured around interviews with personal friends and family of Selena as well as fans who never met the star but consider her part of their lives. Their recollections are intercut with archival footage of Selena's performances and appearances at awards ceremonies, and news coverage about her murder and the memorial service in Corpus Christi. c1998. 47 min. Video/C 6551

El Corrido de Cecilia Rios.
When the life of Cecilia Rios is tragically cut short by her brutal murder, a group of teens comes together to commemorate her life and speak out about the violence that intersects their lives. Using the traditional structure of the Mexican ballad this film offers a unique entry into the lives of Latin youth and community healing. 1999. 15 min. Video/C 6905

El Corrido Mexico: musica y cuernos de chivo (The Mexican Corrido: Music and Goat Horns)
In existence for more than a century, the Mexican corrido --or musica de la frontera, as it has also come to be known --continues to be met with enthusiasm on both sides of the Mexico/U.S. border. Filmed on location in Mexico and San Diego, this program showcases live performances of corrido music and interviews with leading corrido singers. Dist.: Films Media Group. 2007. 57 min. DVD X33

Corridos!
Examines the influence of Corridos, Mexican and Mexican American ballads, which celebrate popular heroes and folk tales and provide a sense of history and standards of public morality. Includes performances of Corridos in a program originally produced for stage, with historical and critical commentary between performances. Performers: Clancy Brown, Evelyn Cisneros, George Galvan, Sal Lopez, Alma Martinez, Linda Ronstadt, Daniel Valdez, Luis Valdez. c1989. 58 min. Video/C 6789

The Couple in the Cage: a Guatinaui Odyssey
Directed and produced by Coco Fusco and Paula Heredia; Performers: Guillermo Gomez-Penña, Coco Fusco. Color sequences of the display in various museums of performance artists portraying an aboriginal couple from Gautinau (a fictional island off the coast of Mexico) are contrasted with archival footage and still photographs showing various occasions when indigenous persons were put on public display at circuses, sideshows and the like. Emphasis is placed on the response of the people viewing the Gautinaui couple. c1993. 31 min. DVD 6865; vhs Video/C 4785

Kirshenblatt-Gimblett, Barbara. "Couple in a Cage." (video recording reviews) TDR (Cambridge, Mass.) v42, n2 (Summer, 1998):175 (6 pages).
Taylor, Diana. "A Savage Performance: Guillermo Gomez-Pena and Coco Fusco's 'Couple in the Cage'." The Drama Review 1998 Summer, 42:2 (158), 160-75 (also in TDR (Cambridge, Mass.) v42, n2 (Summer, 1998):160 (16 pages))

Crossing Arizona
With heightened U.S. security along the California, Texas, and New Mexico borders, each day thousands of migrants attempting to enter the United States are being diverted into the treacherous terrain of Arizona's brutal desert, causing a dramatic rise in the number of migrant deaths. This documentary examines the border crisis as seen through the eyes of frustrated Arizona ranchers, border patrol agents, politicans, farmers, humanitarians, and Mexican migrants. Directors, Joseph Mathew, Dan DeVivo. Dist. Cinema Guild. 2006. 77 min. DVD 6419

Crossing Borders: a Cuban Returns
Tells the story of Dr. Magaly Lavendez, a professor at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, who was forced as a child to leave Cuba in 1962 and grew up in the U.S., but with a distinct Cuban identity. Here she returns in 1998 to her childhood neighborhood in Havana and reunites with relatives and old acquaintances in an attempt to resolve the lifelong crisis of her true cultural identity. [1998?] 49 min. Video/C 7870

Cuban Roots/Bronx Stories
Pablo Elliot Foster Carrion interviews members of his family who left Cuba in 1962, including his grandfather, father, uncle and aunt. He learns of their experiences in Cuba, as well as how they grew up 28 min. Video/C 9737

Cultural Bias in Education.
Examines roadblocks to Latino academic advancement as well as productive educational models. Dist.: Films Media Group. 28 min. Video/C 2873

The Culture of Poverty.
Explores strategies for meeting the needs of Latino children, and profiles an independent effort to keep kids off the street and instill in them a sense of pride. Dist.: Films Media Group. c2000. 56 min. Video/C 2633

De Colores: Lesbian and Gay Latinos: Stories of Strength, Family and Love (Lesbianas y gays Latinos: historias de fuerza, familia y amor)
This documentary examines the struggles of Hispanic gays and lesbians coming out to their parents, especially in a culture that places value on "family tradition" above all else. Through interviews and commentaries, the stories of this largely ignored community are contrasted against similar experiences by Anglo-Americans. 2001. 28 min. Video/C 8809

Death on a Friendly Border
The border that runs between Tijuana and San Diego is the most heavily militarized border between "friendly" countries anywhere in the world. Since the U.S. instituted the "Operation Gatekeeper" policy, an average of one person a day has died crossing the border. This documentary puts a human face on this tragedy, examining the hardships imposed by heat and thirst and abusive border guards. Includes interviews with a border guard, human rights activists and Mexicans who have attempted the crossing. 2001. 26 min. Video/C 9261

Description from Filmakers Library catalog

Del Mero Corazon (Straight From the Heart).
Producer, Chris Strachwitz; director, photographer, and special editing, Les Blank. A lyrical journey through the musings of the heart in the Mexican-American Nortena music tradition. Various performers are shown in dancehalls and cantinas, presenting songs of passion and death, hurt and humor, and the pleasures and torn dreams of love. Dist.: Flower Films. 1976. 28 min. DVD 3456; vhs Video/C1303

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The Devil Never Sleeps (El Diablo Nunca Duerme).
Filmmaker Lourdes Portillo interviews the Mexican American family and associates of her uncle, Oscar Ruiz Almeida, after his sudden death was ruled a suicide by authorities. "The Devil Never Sleeps exposes the loves and hatreds of a Mexican family convulsed by the death of one of its members. The emotions which Portillo captures in her particular blend of traditional and experimental techniques bring out the nuances of Mexican social and family order. Poetic, tragic, humorous and mythic, this film crosses the borders of personal values, cultural mores, and the discipline of filmmaking itself" [from filmmaker's catalog]. 1995. 82 min. Video/C 5337

Displaced in the New South
In 1980, there were a few thousand Asian and Latino immigrants in Georgia. By 1994, there were more than 300,000. This documentary explores the cultural collision between Asian and Hispanic immigrants and the suburban communities near Atlanta, Georgia, in which they have settled. The film provides a sensitive and insightful case study of a nationwide trend that is bringing explosive political upheaval all across America: waves of people, mostly from Asia and Latin America, coming to cities, small towns, and suburban communities that have never before experienced immigration on such a scale. c1995. 57 min. DVD 2890

Description from Berkeley Media (distributor) catalog

Dreams Ensnared: The Dominican Migration to New York.
This film discusses the mass immigration to the United States from the Dominican Republic due to the poor economic conditions there. Includes interviews with people, primariy women, who have emigrated and gives details on the hardships the travelers endure. Dist. Cinema Guild. 1994. 22 min. Video/C 4636

The English-Speaking Amendment.
This program examines a proposed amendment which would mandate that English be the official language of the United States; guests presented arguments pro and con on this issue. Dist.: Films Media Group. 28 min. Video/C 1920

Y Este Encuentro Quiere Ser Cancion (And This Meeting Wants to be a Song)
Statements by Latin American immigrant musicians living in the Mission District of San Francisco concerning the role music and song plays in the retention of Latin American culture. Includes musical performances by the group, La Pena del Sur. 25 min. Video/C 3949

The Eye of the Storm.
Award winning documentary records an innovative experiment in which a third-grade teacher divides her all-white class into "blue-eyes" and "brown-eyes," making each group superior or inferior on successive days. The program demonstrates the nature and effects of bigotry by showing changes brought about in the children's behavior and learning patterns. 26 min. Video/C 3984

A Class Divided 26 min. Video/C 1143

Description from California Newsreel catalog

Factory Farms.
1959 documentary by Harvey Richards. Tells the story of California agriculture, a highly capitalized, sophisticated industry with substandard wage rates that keep its workers in poverty. Documents 1959 labor conditions for farm workers. Produced by the United Packinghouse Workers Union. Dist.: Estuary Press. 1959. 32 min. DVD 4248; also VHS Video/C 2794

Farmingville
A provocative look into the ongoing nationwide controversy surrounding a suburban community and its ever-expanding population of illegal immigrants. In the late 1990s, some 1,500 Mexican workers moved to the middle-class town of Farmingville on Long Island, population 15,000. In some ways, it's a familiar American story: an influx of illegals crossing the border from Mexico to do work the locals won't; rising tensions with the Anglo population; charges and counter-charges of lawlessness and racism; protest marches, unity rallies and internet campaigns -- and then vicious hate crimes that tear the community apart. Produced and directed by Catherine Tambini and Carlos Sandoval. Originally released as a documentary in 2003 on PBS television program P.O.V. (Point of View). DVD 6599

Farmers and Farmworkers: The New Harvest
Examines the ongoing negotiations among growers, farmworkers, and teamsters including the impact of the Agricultural Labor Relations Board. United Farm Worker history is traced from the Delano beginnings to the present. An interview with Cesar Chavez is included. California Journal report; 104. 1981. 30 min. DVD 7646 [preservation copy]; Video/C 2097

Farmworkers' Diary
In the farmworker's own words, shows the living conditions, hopes and fears of Mexican migrant farmworkers in California. The documentary captures their dreams and anxieties, their longing for their families and their fear of becoming unemployable as farm mechanizaton increases. Produced by Tony Cisneros and Paul Shain. 1990. 10 min. Video/C MM600

Fear and Learning at Hoover Elementary.
A documentary by Los Angeles teacher Laura Angelica Simon, exploring the impact of California's Proposition 187 on the immigrant community. The subject is Hoover Street Elementary School, where Simon candidly explores the attitudes and emotions of teachers, students and parents, focusing on a ten year old Salvadorian girl. 1997. 53 min. Video/C 5246

American Library Assn. Video Round Table Notable Films for Adults, 1999

The Fight in the Fields: Cesar Chavez and the Farmworkers' Struggle.
The story of Cesar Chavez, the charismatic founder of the United Farmworkers Union and the history and impact of the movement that he inspired. The heart of the UFW, Chavez remains the most important Latino leader in this country's history. The activities he and his dedicated organizers led inspired the Chicano activism of the 1960's and '70's, helping to create a Latino civil rights movement. Film includes archival footage, newsreels and present-day interviews with activists, politicians and Chavez family members. Produced and directed by Ray Telles, Rick Tejada-Flores. 1997. 115 min. DVD 8780; vhs Video/C 4746

Ferriss, Susan and Ricardo Sandoval. The Fight in the Fields: Cesar Chavez and the Farmworkers Movement. New York: Harcourt Brace, c1997 (UCB Bancroft HD6509.C48 F47 1997; UCB Moffitt Ordered for Moffitt)

Gallegos, Aaron. "The Fight in the Fields: Cesar Chavez and the Farm Workers' Struggle." (television program reviews) Sojourners v26, n3 (May-June, 1997):59 (3 pages).
Goodman, Walter. "The Fight in the Fields: Cesar Chavez and the Farm Workers' Struggle."(television program reviews) New York Times v146 (Wed, April 16, 1997):B6(N), C18(L), col 5, 2 col in
Harvey, Dennis. "The Fight in the Fields: Cesar Chavez and the Farm Workers' Struggle." (movie reviews) Variety v365, n12 (Jan 27, 1997):79 (2 pages).
Weintraub, Irwin. "The Fight in the Fields: Cesar Chavez and the Farmworkers' Struggle." (video recording reviews) Library Journal v122, n13 (August, 1997):152 (2 pages).

Flyin' Cut Sleeves.
Examines the history of street gangs in New York City, contrasting interviews with Bronx gang members made twenty years ago with contemporary interviews. The former gang members reveal how the educational system failed them and the stablizing social function that gang life played for them. In interviews today, these men and women recount their subsequent education (some in prison programs) and choices of careers in youth and drug counseling, recreation and self-defense. Concluding sequence shows these former gang leaders lecturing youngsters today who are at risk to join gangs. 60 min. DVD 7154; vhs Video/C 5077

The Forgotten Americans.
Captures a day in the life of people living in colonias, (unincorporated settlements often lacking basic water and sewer systems, paved roads, and safe and sanitary housing) along the Texas-Mexico border. c2000. 60 min. Video/C 7853

Free Speech and Racism on Campus: Nightline: June 12, 1989.
Racist attacks are on the rise on America's college campuses. This newscast asks should some kinds of free speech be censored on university campuses because of their racial or sexual content? Includes interviews with Nat Hentoff of the Village Voice, college professors and students at Stanford University and the University of Michigan. 23 min. Video/C 5769

From Mambo to Hip Hop: a South Bronx Tale
Tells the story of the creative life of the South Bronx, beginning with the Puerto Rican migration and the adoption of Cuban rhythms to create the New York salsa sound; continuing with the fires that destroyed the neighborhood but not the creative spirit of its people; chronicling the rise of hip hop from the ashes; and ending with reflections on the power of the neighborhood's music to ensure the survival of several generations of its residents, and, in the process, take the world's pop culture by storm. Featuring: Angel Rodríguez, Benny Bonilla, Bobby Sanabria, Bom 5, Carlos "Charlie Chase" Mandes, Clemente "Kid Freeze" Moreno, Curtis "Caz" Brown, David Gonzalez, Mr. and Mrs. Salsa, Eddie Palmieri, Emma Rodríguez, Jean Manuel Massenya, Louis Mercado, Luis "Trace" Otero, Luis "Track II" Mateo, Luis Chalusian, Orlando Marín, "Popmaster Fabel" Pabón, Ray Barretto, Sandra María Esteves, Tony "Peanuts" Aubert, Willie Colón, Rock Steady Crew, Dynamic Rockers. 2006. 56 min. DVD X2128
From Sleepy Lagoon to Zoot Suit: The Irreverent Path of Alice McGrath
In the incendiary climate of WWII, 22 young Mexican-American men were charged with conspiracy to commit murder and tried en masse. In spite of a lack of evidence, 12 were convicted and sent to San Quentin. This film profiles the life and work of Alice Greenfield McGrath, who spearheaded the fight to get them out. With help from author Luis Valdez, Mcgrath tells this story of unbridled racism, the response to this injustice that she organized, and ultimately the chronicling of these events in Valdez's play Zoot Suit. 31 min. Video/C 5940

From the Other Side (De l'autre cote)
Through images and interviews with Mexicans and American law enforcement officers, this film examines the plight of poor Mexicans who try to emigrate to the United States illegally in hope of a better life. The use of cutting edge technology has stemmed the influx of illegal immigration in San Diego so now immigrants trek the mountains and deserts of Arizona to avoid detection, a much more dangerous route on which many have died. 2002. 99 min. Video/C 9303

First Run/Icarus catalog description

Frontierland
As this film demonstrates, mestizaje (Mestizo culture) is not so much a racial category as a state of mind, and it can be found even where nationalists and exoticists from both sides of the U.S.-Mexico border might least expect it: Not just in California and the Southwest but also in Mexico City, South Carolina, Vancouver and even in the homes of European collectors of pre-Columbian art. A film by Jesse Lerner y Ruben Ortiz-Torres. c1995. 77 min. Video/C 9207

[Garry, Charles] Charles Garry: Street Fighter in the Courtroom
A dynamic first-hand biography of the life's work of combative civil rights lawyer and activist, Charles Garry. Focusing on six compelling cases that brought the social and political battles of the street into the courtroom, this documentary relives the drama of the 1960s through archival footage of the events and interviews with journalists, defendants and Charles Garry himself. Contents: HUAC -- The Panthers -- Growing up -- The Chicago Conspiracy Trial -- Murder trial of Bobby Seale -- Stop the draft week -- Los Siete de la Raza. [200-?] 58 min. DVD 9959 [preservation copy]; vhs Video/C 7980

Gary Soto (Lannan Literary Videos; 44)
Gary Soto, Chicano poet, essayist and children's book writer, was born and raised in Fresno, California. He ) has published ten poetry collections for adults and here reads from his "New and selected poems, " followed by an interview with writer and university professor Alejandro Morales. Reading took place on May 3, 1995 in Los Angeles. 60 min. Video/C 9060

George Lopez, America's Mexican
Comedian/actor George Lopez makes his HBO solo debut live in front of a packed house in Arizona. Among the bits he riffs on are: immigration and naturalization, "minute men," dysfunction, modern-day kids, old-school values, hybrid cars, cars that run on corn, interracial relationships, dementia and the future. Performed live at the Dodge Theater in Phoenix, Arizona. Bonus features: Never-before-seen footage from the HBO Comedy Special; "A conversation with George Lopez." c2007. 63 min. DVD 8080

Getting to Heaven (Ganarse el cielo)
This docu-drama, based on interviews with actual immigrants, portrays Hispanic immigrant workers at a New York City restaurant, depicting their workaday reality and dreams for a better life in the United States. c1996. 19 min. Video/C 7869

Go Back to Mexico!
In 1992, 2.5 million illegal immigrants came to the United States. This film examines the fears about economic costs and social and political disruption to the United States and the growing public opposition to illegal immigration, particularly in California. 1994. 57 min. Video/C 5067

Going to School (Ir a la escuela)
Documentary focuses on experiences of several disabled students of Hispanic descent in Los Angeles attending their neighborhood public schools rather than schools for students with special needs. The role of parents as advocates, including their successes and frustrations, is especially emphasized, as well as the need for educators to become more aware of particular challenges that students with disabilities face at school. Producer, director, editor and narrator, Richard Cohen. 2001. 64 min. Video/C MM1006

Golden Cage: A Story of California's Farmworkers.
The experiences of Mexican farmworkers in California are chronicled. Using historical footage, interviews, newspaper clippings and black-and-white stills, the documentary traces the history of the United Farmworkers Union from the sixties to its current decline. It also examines the impact of the new immigration law. 29 min. Video/C 1935

Gomez-Peña, Guillermo SEE Experimental and Avant Garde Artists, Performers, and Film Makers

Graffiti Verite: Read the Writing on the Wall
Los Angeles graffiti artists discuss the themes and motivations of their work, and how they evolved from taggers to artists. Several are shown at work on projects, indoors as well as outside. The history and significance of graffiti is addressed, as is its role in the Hip Hop culture. 45 min. Video/C 4469

GV2: Graffiti Verite 2
A follow-up film to the award winning documentary Graffiti Verite. Includes interviews with more graffiti artists and street scenes with over 400 tags, throw-ups and pieces of "street art" all presented to a backdrop of Hip Hop music. Includes coverage of the winning artwork of the First International Graffiti Art Competition. 1998. 58 min. Video/C 5719

The Guestworker
Documents the story of Mexican farm workers who enter the United States legally as part of the H-2A guest worker program, and looks at the issues surrounding the program. Focuses on a 66-year-old man who has worked on North Carolina farms for forty years, both legally and illegally, and on his employer, who is dependent upon foreign laborers to sustain his farm. Produced and directed by Cynthia Hill and Charles Thompson. c2006. 53 min. DVD 6622

Description from Filmakers Library catalog

GV3: Graffiti Verite 3 (The Final Episode)
The Final Episode is a poetic voyage, a meditation, into the iconography of Graffiti art featuring an eclectic sound track as it's emotional and intellectual core. "GV3 is a compelling sensorial experience; shockingly honest and defiantly politically incorrect." c2000. 54 min. Video/C 7118

Hablas Ingles?
Videocassette release of a segment of the television program Currents.Examines bilingual education in the U.S., focusing on the arguments for and against a constitutional amendment to make English the official language of the United States. Includes interviews with Linda Chavez, president of U.S. English, and Juan Cartagena, of the Puerto Rican Legal Defense Fund. 26 min. Video/C 1922

Harry Gamboa Jr.: Early Video Art.
Imperfecto (1983, 34 min.) -- Insultan (1983, 24 min.) -- Vaporz (1984, 8 min.) -- Blanx (1984, 8 min.) -- Baby Kake (1984, 6 min.) -- Agent X (1984, 5 min.) -- No supper (1987, 28 min.).

As co-founder of the Chicano art group ASCO, Gamboa developed such multi-media forms as the "no-movie" and the "fotonovela," which drew attention to the workings of mass culture. In the mid-1980s, working through cable access, Gamboa produced a series of "conceptual dramas" that explored both stereotypical and traditional notions about the Latino family. In these works, collected here for the first time, Gamboa combined the political influences of the Chicano Movement with the narrative excess of film noir, B-movies, and Mexican telenovelas. 113 min. DVD 2786

Harvest of Shame.
Shows the degradation and exploitation of millions of migratory farm workers in the United States. Spokesmen for the groups present their views, both for and against the use of migratory workers under the conditions seen. Directed by Fred W. Friendly. Edward R. Murrow, reporter. 1960. 54 min. DVD 4008; also VHS Video/C 356

The Harvesters.
Documents the late 1950's farm labor conditions in California's fields when 14- to 16- hour days paid workers at eighty-five cents to a dollar per hour. It also exposes how the bracero program imported Mexican nationals to work at wages lower than the subminimum rates available to American workers. This film was used the Agricultural Workers Organizing Committee (AWOC) and the United Packinghouse Workers Union as an organizing film. A film by Harvey Richards. 1960. DVD 4249

Hate Crime.
Shows two examples of communities that are having some success in solving the problem of hate crimes. In South Carolina after the burning of Afro-American churchs, law enforcement officials arrested members of the Ku Klux Klan and one black church filed a lawsuit against the KKK winning a $38 million judgment against the Klan from a racially mixed jury. The second case spotlights a pioneering high school class on tolerance developed by teacher Joe Moros that has changed the social climate at San Clemente High School in California where tensions among whites, Latinos, blacks and Asian-Americans led to brutal violence and killing in the 1990s. c1999. 56 min. Video/C 6875

Hijos del silencio (Sons of Silence)
Documents the cultural silences that affect safe sex practices of young gay Latinos in the San Francisco Bay Area. Includes interviews with young gay men about their families, coming out and sex. 2001. 36 min. Video/C 9141

Hispanics in the Media
From news anchors to editors, from actors to filmmakers-- Hispanics are making their presence known in television and the motion picture industry. Discrimination still exists, however. In this program Hispanics who have made it describe how they did it, the problems they encountered along the way, the hurdles that remain, and the growth potential in the ever-expanding Hispanic media marketplace. Dist.: Films Media Group. 1998. 44 min. Video/C 6557

Home is Struggle.
Using interviews, photographs, and theatrical vignettes, the film explores the lives of women who have come to the United States from different Latin American Countries for varying political, economic, and personal reasons. Video/C 3354

Homeboys.
Documentary portrait of a Chicano youth gang. Depicts life in Cuatro flats, a housing project in East Los Angeles, as seen through the eyes of gang members. Video/C 1934

Homeboys: "My Daddy's in Jail"
Re-visits the young men interviewed eight years ago in the film "Homeboys: life and death in the hood" -- all but one now in jail. Equal time is given to their young children, who are struggling to remember their fathers and to understand why their fathers are not living at home. Both generations describe the pain of life without their fathers. Produced and directed by Donna Dewey. 1999. 26 min. Video/C MM108

Homelessness Among Hispanics.
Looks at homelessness among Hispanics in San Francisco, in San Antonio's Westside, and at the colonias that dot the Texas-Mexico border. 28 min. Video/C 2871

I Am Joaquin. See: Yo Soy Joaquin

Illegal Aliens Entering the U.S.: September 8, 1986 (Nightline)
Surveys efforts by the U.S. Border Patrol to locate and apprehend illegal Mexican aliens and the economic impact, particularly on California and Texas, of illegal aliens whose children born in the United States are eligible for public assistance. 23 min. Video/C 5776

Images of Chicanos in Film.
A symposium about Mexican Americans in motion pictures. Video/C 2172

Images of Mexican Los Angeles: Views of the Social and Cultural History of the Mexican Community of Los Angeles, 1781-1990s.
Presents the history of the Mexican community in Los Angeles from 1781 through the 1990's. 1991. 28 min. Video/C 5144

In My Corner.
Filmed at a community boxing gym in New York's South Bronx, this documentary provides an intimate and powerful portrait of two young Latino boxers on their journey through adolescence into adulthood and self-discovery. Fueled by the dream of becoming big-time boxing champs, 15-year old Joey and 13-year-old Jose get hard lessons in life from two surrogate father/trainers. The film is a compelling reminder of how local heroes can shape the lives of young people as they begin sparring with adulthood. Director, Ricki Stern. c1998. 57 min. Video/C MM753

In Plain English.
Made by filmmaker Julia Lesage. African-American, Asian-American, Pacific Islander, Chicano/Latin American and Native American undergraduate and graduate students discuss their expectations about college life before they came to the University of Oregon and the reality they encountered while at the university and they examine their experiences with racism and discrimination. 42 min. Video/C 3007

In Search of Aztlan
Directed by Jesus Salvador Trevino. A "docu-comedy", this film follows the Chicano comedy trio Culture Clash on a whimsical journey in search of the mythical Aztlan, the ancient homeland of the Aztec people believed by many to be located somewhere in the southwestern United States, using a map they've discovered and riding in a 1952 lowrider Chevy. In Search of Aztlan balances dramatized comedy scenes with documentary interviews to explain the myth and history of Aztlan. 2002. 57 min. Video/C MM414

In the Shadow of the Law
Shows the poor economic and social conditions under which illegal Mexican immigrants exist, in addition to their continual anxiety over possible discovery and deportation. Also shows the typical difficulties encountered in attempting to achieve legal resident status under the provisions of the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986. Director and editor, Frank Christopher. 1991? 58 min. Video/C MM639

El Inmigrante
Examines the Mexican and American border crisis through the story of Eusebio de Haro, a young Mexican migrant who was shot and killed during one of his journeys north. Examines the different perspectives of diverse individuals and cultures in this narrative. Special features include: "Narcoleptic drunken daydreams" 9 min. featurette from outtakes covering two stories on the border ; "Just coffee" featurette; "The De Haro's view the film" featurette; photo gallery; poster progression gallery; brief history of the border. Produced, edited and directed by John Sheedy, David Eckenrode, John Eckenrode. 2005. 90 min. DVD 8164

Invisible Indians: Mixtec Farmworkers in California
This presentation examines the distinct culture of Mixtec Indians from Oaxaca, Mexico, who started to migrate to California in the early 1970's to work in the produce fields. This program focuses on the special skills and values that these people bring to California agriculture jobs and their continuing connection to their communities in Mexico. Also examined are their living conditions in California. 1993. 35 min. DVD 9651 [preservation copy]; vhs Video/C MM684

Just As We Are (Tal como somos)
Latino culture is celebrated for it's rich tradition, close-knit families, and strong faith, but being Latino and gay, bisexual, or transgender is often seen as unforgivable. This documentary examines the lives of six Latino GBT men and women, focusing on their relationships with their families as well as their culture, religion, and professional lives. Based on the book "Campaneros" by Jesus Ramirez-Valles. Directed and produced by Judith McCray. 2008. 33 min. DVD X14

Justice on the Table
Farmworkers are paying a price to put food on our tables. Excluded from labor laws, they face low wages, harsh working conditions, and a 48-year life expectancy. This documentary listens to farmworkers themselves tell of their treatment in Oregon's fields, and highlights their contributions to regional and national economic prosperity. c2003. 24 min. Video/C 9819

The King Does Not Lie: the Initiation of a Priest of Shango
Documentary showing the ritual and ceremony associated with the initiation of a priest of Shango, the Thundergod of the traditional Yoruba religion. Takes place in a contemporary Puerto Rican community among New World practitioners of the ancient religion, Santeria. c1992. 44 min. Video/C8425

The Land is Rich.
Documents the United Farm Workers struggle to organize California farm workers in the early 1960's. Film contrasts the economic strength of California agribusiness and migrant workers poverty and the the effect of extensive exposure to agricultural chemicals on them. The film was used by the United Farm Workers Union. A film by Harvey Richards. Dist.: Estuary Press. 1966. 27 min. DVD 4246; also VHS Video/C 2800

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Latido Latino: Senas de Identidad
Discusses the influence of Latin American culture in the United States through interviews with more than 50 Latin American immigrants living in New York, including musicians, dancers, artists, and writers. Those interviewed share their personal and professional experiences of being of Latino descent in America. c2000. 120 min. Video/C 8045

Latino Comedy Series. Vol. 1
Presents all of the hottest Latino comics in America jam-packed for the first time into one exclusive video series. Volume 1 features stand up comedy routines by Jeff Garcia, Ludo Vica, Beny Mena and Cleto Rodriguez, as well as behind-the-scenes interviews with each comedian. Recorded live at The Ice House, Pasadena, Calif. 105 min. DVD X1108

Latino Comedy Series. Vol. 2
Presents all of the hottest Latino comics in America jam-packed for the first time into one exclusive video series. Volume 2 features stand up comedy routines by Jeff Garcia, Marilyn Martinez, Patrick Deguire, and Andres Fernandez as well as behind-the-scenes interviews with each comedian. Recorded live at The Ice House, Pasadena, Calif. 90 min. DVD X1109

Latino Comedy Fiesta. Vol. 5
Presents all of the hottest Latino comics in America jam-packed for the first time into one exclusive video series. Volume 5 features stand up comedy routines by Jeff Garcia, Sebastian Cetina, Franky C, Shayla Rivera, abd Rudy Moreno, as well as behind-the-scenes interviews with each comedian. Recorded live at The Ice House, Pasadena, Calif. 100 min. DVD X1118
Latino Employment and Unemployment.
Explores, analyzes, and compares the socioeconomic situation of Latinos and Hispanic Americans with that of the general population, illustrating some of the obstacles Latinos face in making the transition from poverty to financial independence. 27 min. Video/C 2631

ABC-CLIO Video Rating Guide for Libraries

Latino Hollywood. Part I
Latinos have contributed to the American film industry since its earliest days. During the silent and early talkie era, Latinos were almost always stereotyped as tempestuous lovers, bandidos, or cantina girls. This program remembers many of the early Latino actors and actresses and examines some of the stereotypical roles they portrayed. Mexican American Studies and Research Center, University of Arizona, 1994. 31 min. Video/C 4628

Latino Hollywood. Part II
1940's-1950s: All American stereotype and social realism -- 1960's-1970's: Criminality or invisibility -- 1980's: Chicano films, updated stereotyping and tokenism -- 1990's: Cross over dreams, new Latino filmmakers.

Program looks at the history and image of the Latino and Latina in Hollywoood films from the 1940s through the mid-1990s. Also reviews the roles Latino actors and actresses were given to play in popular films during this period and examines the few social realist films of the period. It then charts the gradual shift in the 70's and 80's from the Latino stereotypical image to the growth of independent Latino filmmaking and the "crossover" films of the 80's and 90's. 1996. 18 min. Video/C 5109

Latino Stories of World War II
Although an estimated 250,000 to 500,000 American Latinos fought in World War II, their contribution is virtually unknown to the American public. This documentary is the first to tell their stories, which have been "missing in action" for far too long. Four surviving veterans describe their experiences in their own words. These veterans served in the Air Force, the Army and the Marines and fought in three different theaters of World War II: Europe, the Pacific and India-China-Burma. Director/producer, Mario Barrera. 2006. 60 min. DVD 6748

Latino Voting Behavior.
Explores the increasingly important role Latinos play in the political arena as voters, as political candidates, as acitivists and the courting of the Latino voting block by politicians. 30 min. Video/C 2632

The Lemon Grove Incident.
Focusing on one of the earliest school desegregation cases, uses dramatizations, archival footage, and recollections of witnesses to examine the response of the Mexican-American community. In English and Spanish with English subtitles. 58 min. DVD 602; vhs Video/C 1295

Letters from the Other Side.
Heather Courtney's film interweaves video letters carried across the U.S.-Mexico border by the film's director with the personal stories of women left behind in post-NAFTA Mexico. The video letters provide a way for these women to communicate with both loved ones and strangers on the other side of the border, and illustrates an unjust truth - as an American Courtney can carry these video letters back and forth across a border that these women are not legally allowed to cross. Focusing on a side of the immigration story rarely told by the media or touched upon in the national debate, the film offers a fresh perspective, painting a complex portrait of families torn apart by economics, communities dying at the hands of globalization, and governments incapable or unwilling to do anything about it. 2006. 73 min. DVD 6656

Los Four; Murals of Aztlan: the Street Painters of East Los Angeles.
Two documentaries on key moments and figures in Chicano art. Los Four documents the first exhibition of Chicano artists held at a major art museum, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, in 1974. Murals of Aztlan documents the exhibition of the same name at the Craft and Folk Art Museum of Los Angeles in 1981. Featured artists include Los Four (Carlos Almaraz, Gilbert "Magu" Sanchez Lujan, Roberto de la Rocha, Frank Romero), Gronk, Judith Hernandez, Willie Herron, John Valadez, and others. Released as motion pictures in 1974 and 1981. Producer, director, James Tartan. 46 min. DVD 2785

Lost in Translation: Latinos, Schools and Society
The Latino dropout rate in the United States is 2.5 times higher than that of blacks and 3.5 times than that of whites. Why do so many young Latinos drop out? John Merrow explores the complex answer involving language problems, inadequate resources, lack of opportunities, poverty and the lure of the street. He also examines the future of Latino youth in the United States and the impact of California's Proposition 227, which would discontinue bilingual education. Documentary originally aired on the television program the Merrow Report. 1998. 60 min. Video/C 8977

Low y Cool.
A film by Marianne Dissard. Profiles the Camarados Lowrider Bicycle Club in South Tucson, Arizona which offers an alternative to street gangs for Mexican and Mexican American youth. It includes interviews with youth advocates who work through radio and other means to keep the kids out of the streets and affirm the cultural identity of the youth and adults of the Mexican American community. 1997. 52 min. Video/C 5579

Lowriders.
Examines the conflicts with community and police in Compton, California, surrounding the low riders and their cruising, culture and car rallies in customized automobiles. 28 min. Video/C 4368

Lowriding in Aztlan
Examines the lowriding culture in Northern California and attempts to dispel rumors and negative stereotypes associated with lowriding. Contains interviews with lowriders and lowriding experts, cruising and car show footage, and showcases lowriding artwork and design. Special features: Deleted scenes ; how to airbrush your own lowrider bike / with Freedy Alfaro ; Xavier: the X-Man's Sunday night oldies show (audio only) ; Sunday super oldies show / hosted by Tony Sandoval (audio only). Directed by Daniel Osorio. 2005. 60 min. DVD X1103

Luis Valdez and El Teatro Campesino.
Valdez is the celebrated founder of the Teatro Campesino, the West Cost theatrical group that has given voice to the struggles of Chicano farm workers. 26 min. Video/C 2872

Luis Valdez, Playwright. [Sound Recroding]
Recorded by the Institute of Governmental Studies, University of California, Berkeley, on April 8, 1980, in Room B-2 of the Golden Bear Restaurant in Upper Sproul Plaza, University of California, Berkeley. Luis Valdez, playwright, director and founder of El Teatro Campesino, talks about his experience as a third generation American from Mexican descent. Difference between our images of California and the Californian reality. Question and answer session. Sound/C 1134

Made in L.A. (Hecho en Los Angeles)
Traces the moving transformation of three Latina garment workers on the fault lines of global economic change who decide they must resist. Through a groundbreaking law suit and consumer boycott, they fight to establish an important legal and moral precedent holding an American retailer liable for the labor conditions under which its products are manufactured. But more than this, Made in L.A. provides an insider's view into both the struggles of recent immigrants and into the organizing process itself: the enthusiasm, discouragement, hard-won victories and ultimate self-empowerment. A film by Almudena Carracedo, Robert Bahar; directed by Almudena Carracedo. 2007. 70 min. DVD 9283

California Newsreel catalog description

Maid in America
An intimate look into the lives of three Latina immigrants working as nannies and housekeepers in Los Angeles, three of the nearly 100,000 domestic workers living in that city today. Judith hasn't seen her four daughters for the two years since she left Guatemala, but hopes to give them a better future by sending half her income back home. Telma, from El Salvador, has cared for the now six-year-old Mickey since he was a baby, essentially becoming his 'mom' so his mother can keep her career on track. Eva, one of the thousands of college-educated immigrants who have fled Mexico's unstable economy, is attending night school to improve her skills, and views housekeeping as a necessary transition.These women's stories vividly reveal how immigrants are redefining their roles, and underscores the vital role they play in many American households. The issue of worker's rights is introduced in the film through Dynamic Workers, a collective of women who have formed their own business to provide job security and benefits, and Domestic Workers Association, a support organization providing information and advocacy. Produced & directed by Anayansi Prado. 2004. 58 min. Video/C MM507

Description from Women Make Movies catalog

Mambo Mouth.
Hispanic American comedian, writer and actor John Leguizamo renders six monologues which illustrate fierce and funny Latin characters: Agamemnon, Loco Louie, Pepe, Manny the Fanny, Angel, and the Crossover King. Videocassette release of 1991 stage production filmed for television. 60 min. Video/C 5135

The Manhatitlan Chronicles
An animated flight of fancy that transposes elements of Mexican culture onto the cityscape of Manhattan. This humorous view of how Mexican and American cultures playfully intertwine, celebrates New York's great ethnic diversity, paying homage to the people who constitute its ever changing population. A film by Felipe Galindo-Feggo. 1999. 7 min. Video/C 9204

Maquilapolis (City of Factories)
Explores the environmental devastation and urban chaos of Tijuana's assembly factories and the female laborers who have organized themselves for social action. Carmen earns six dollars a day but she is not a victim. She is a dynamic young woman, busy making a life for herself and her children. In "Maquilapolis," Carmen and her friend Lourdes confront labor violations, environmental devastation and urban chaos, reaching beyond their daily struggle for survival to organize for change, taking on both the Mexican and U.S. governments and a major television manufacturer. The women also use video cameras to document their lives, their city and their hopes for the future. Produced and directed by Vicky Funari, Sergio De La Torre. 2006. 68 min. DVD 6606
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Description from California Newsreel catalog

Mayan Voices: American lives.
Mayan refugees from Guatemala, escaping political repression at home, have fled to the United States. In the last 10 years, 5,000-6,000 Mayas have settled in a small town of 3500 residents, Indiantown, Fla. Presents a picture of the adjustment problems to a new country and a different culture through interviews with the Indian refugees and other townspeople. 1994. 56 min. Video/C 3623

Memories of Tata.
A film by Sheldon Schiffer. Traces the creation and dissolution of the Adam Morales family. Adam Morales describes his relationships with his wife, his daughters, and with other women. 1993. 51 min. Video/C 5100

Mendez vs. Westminster: For All the Children (para todos los niños)
In 1943, Gonzalo Mendez sued the Westminster School District of Orange County, California in order to end segregation in the public schools. A landmark Mexican American desegregation case from Orange County California, it was decided 7 years before Brown v. The Board of Education. It was argued on appeal by Thurgood Marshall of the NAACP, who later argued and won Brown v. Board of Education. Then-governor Earl Warren, desegregated California education as a result of Mendez and later, as Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, wrote the Brown v. Board of Education decision. c2002. 27 min. DVD 6983

Mexican Americans (Multicultural Peoples of North America).
One of a 15 part series which celebrates the heritage of fifteen different cultural groups by tracing the history of their emigration to North America, showing the unique traditions they brought with them, and who they are today. Each volume discusses when and why each group emigrated, where they settled, which occupations they engaged in, and who the important leaders are within each community. 30 min. Video/C 3300

Mexican Tapes: A Chronicle of Life Outside the Law.
Chronicles the life of illegal Mexican immigrants in a small border community near San Diego, California, as seen by an outsider. 108 min. Video/C 1391

Mi Puerto Rico.
Presents a personal journey through Puerto Rico's rich cultural traditions, revealing the remarkable stories of its revolutionaries, abolitionists, poets and politicians, whose struggle for national identity unfolds within the history of relations between Puerto Rico and the United States. Combines interviews, location sequences, poetry and literature and the collages of artist, Juan Sanchez, with rare archival film and photographs to treat viewers to a visual and musical feast. Narrator, Raquel Ortiz. 1996. 90 min. Video/C 4645

Description from Berkeley Media (distributor) catalog

Goodman, Walter. "Freedom on My Mind." (and Mi Puerto Rico/My Puerto Rico) (television program reviews)New York Times v145 (Mon, Jan 15, 1996):B3(N), B6(L), col 1, 9 col in.

Miami-Havana
This video discusses how the relationship between the United States and Cuba has affected Cuban families separated by the political conflict. It includes interviews of children from Cuban families and senior citizens. c1992. 52 min. Video/C 3392

Miles From the Border.
Describes the changes that have taken place in the last twenty years in an agricultural community north of Los Angeles. A brother and sister describe how they migrated from a rural Mexican village to the town and tell what it is like to live in a world divided between Anglos and Chicanos. A film by Ellen Frankenstein. 16 min. DVD 5458

Description from New Day Films catalog

Los Mineros.
Videocassette release from the PBS series, The American Experience. This story, spanning nearly half a century, tells the history of Mexican American miners in Clifton-Morenci, Arizona, and their union's battle for fair labor practices in the copper industry. 60 min. Video/C 1925

The Mission. (Neighborhoods: The Hidden Cities of San Francisco)
Tells the story of San Francisco's Mission District from the time of the Ohlone Indians, through the Gold Rush, the close-knit Irish community of the twenties, the Latin identity of the neighborhood in the sixties, to the mosaic of the contemporary Mission, from its hidden community of day laborers to the vibrant New Bohemia to the roucous sounds of carnaval. 60 min. DVD 9559 [preservation copy]; vhs Video/C 4357

Mojado Remojado = Mojado Power.
Describes the life of a Mexican undocumented alien in Southern California, his search for work, and the sense of community and power which develops among the undocumented workers as they constantly evade the U.S. Immigration authorities. Video/C 1377

Mojados, Through the Night (Wetbacks, Through the Night)
Filmed over the course of ten days, this follows four men into the world of illegal border-crossing from Mexico to the United States. Guapo, Oso, Tigre, Viejo take the 120 mile cross-desert journey that has been traveled innumerable times by nameless immigrants who - like these four from Michoacan, Mexico - all had a simple dream for a better life. Fighting dehydration and exhaustion while evading the U.S. Border Patrol through sub-zero temperature darkness of night, filled with barbed wire, brutal storms and the ever-present confrontation with death, they endure unimaginable hardship that is the reality for tens of thousands of illegals who have made this similar journey. Written, produced and directed by Tommy Davis. 2004. 70 min. DVD 9209

Mountain's Mist & Mexico. (After the Immigrant)
A portrait of Mexican immigration to the Midwest that examines issues of assimilation, class structure, language, and ethics on both sides of the border. Written, produced, and narrated by Dan Banda. 57 min. DVD X101; vhs Video/C 4469

La Musica de la Gente = The Music of the People.
Hispanic folk music as performed today in New Mexico in plazas, dance halls and at state fairs. 28 min. Video/C 2185

La Musica de los Viejos= The Music of the Old Ones.
Songs in Spanish with English translation on screen. 28 min. Video/C 2183

My House is on Fire.
A film by Rodrigo Dorfman and Ariel Dorfman. Ariel Dorfman's acclaimed play, written in exile in Amsterdam twenty years ago, originally depicted the fear and confusion of two children growing up under the Chilean dictatorship. In this cinematic adaptation, the author and his son have relocated the setting to the American South. Pablo, age 9, and his six-year-old sister, Maria-Victoria, are children of illegal immigrants playing "waiting for the enemy." Seen through the eyes of the young children, this film creates the atmosphere of fear, anxiety, and unknowing that permeate the experience of being "illegal." 1997. 18 min. Video/C 5732

Natives: Immigrant Bashing on the Border.
Documentary on the xenophobia of some Americans living in California along the U.S.-Mexican border. Reacting to the influx of undocumented aliens, who they believe are draining community resources and committing crimes, they are forming activist organizations in an attempt to keep potential immigrants out. 28 min. Video/C 3273

The New Americans
Follows four years in the lives of a group of contemporary immigrants as they journey to start new lives in America, including a couple from India in Silicon Valley, a Mexican meatpacker in rural Kansas, two families of Nigerian refugees, two baseball players from the Dominican Republic joining the L.A. Dodgers, and a newly-wed Palestinian woman in Chicago. The detailed portraits of these immigrants not only result in a kaleidoscope of immigrant life but offer 'first impressions' of America. Directors (Dominican story), Susana Aikin, Carlos Aparicio ; directors (Palestinian story), Jerry Blumental, Gordon Quinn ; director (Nigerian story), Steve James ; editors, David E. Simpson, Steve James ; series producer, Gita Saedi ; executive producers, Steve James, Gordon Quinn ; presented by Independent Television Service. Kartemquin Educational Films, 2009. 411 min. DVD X1125

New Audiences for Mexican Music
The first part of the program describes Banda, a popular dance music that originated in Mexico over a century ago and is now sweeping Los Angeles. Banda features wind instruments and drums with modern electronic rhythms. The second part of the program which explains the history of mariachi music, shows performances by the group Campanas de America which mixes mariachi with country music. The third part of the program profiles Tejano music, popularized by the late singer Selena. Contents: La Musica Banda! -- Campanas de America -- Tejano 101. 30 min. Video/C 6139

New Harvest, Old Shame.
Discusses the living conditions of migrant farm workers in the United States. 59 min. Video/C 2434

ABC-CLIO Video Rating Guide for Libraries

The New Los Angeles
Explores the complexities of inclusion in Los Angeles -- the nation's largest divide between rich and poor. The film provides a riveting portrait of a city in often turbulent transition, beginning in 1973 with the election of African American mayor Tom Bradley and concluding with the political empowerment of Latinos and the election of Antonio R. Villaraigosa, Los Angeles' first Latino mayor in more than 130 years. c2005. 55 min. DVD 4783

Description from Berkeley Media LLC catalog

The New Majority: Beyond the melting Pot; a report on California's cultural and racial demographics and how they affect our society.
Part of the UC Berkeley Open Window Series. California's cultural and racial demographics - by K. Russell -- Diversity: Changing the face of politics; election reapportionment - by T. Mock -- Hate crimes - by K. Debro -- Labor unions and the new immigrants - by H. Frieze -- University of California, Berkeley: Multicultural education - by W. Lasola -- The arts - by H. Norman -- English only initiative - by J. McKelvey -- The lives of immigrants - by B. Pimentel -- A look at immigration policy - by F. Langner. DVD 9607; Video/C 2010

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New World Border
Documents the rise in human rights abuses along the U.S./Mexico border since the implementation of border blockades (Operation Gatekeeper), which have been erected in populated areas throughout the border region during the last decade. Includes interviews with immigrant rights organizers, testimony from immigrants, analysis of "free trade" policies and current efforts to build a vibrant movement for immigrant rights. 2001. 28 min. Video/C 7931

Nuyorican Dream
Follows five years in the life of a New York Puerto Rican family struggling against poverty, drug addiction and incarceration, capturing the emotional immediacy of a family in a free-fall without a social safety net. It also celebrates elements of community life -- solidarity, sharing of resources, cultural citizenship -- which make day-to-day survival possible giving testimony to the central role played by Puerto Rican women in maintaining family and cultural ties. 2000. 82 min. Video/C 7471

California Newsreels catalog description

Oaxacalifornia.
Profiles each member of a middle class Mexican American family living in Fresno, California. Examines their life style, attitudes, cultural traditions, and employment, and follows them as they return for a visit to their ancestral home, Oaxaca, Mexico to join in a religious festival and renew their cultural roots. 58 min. DVD 9515 [preservation copy]; vhs Video/C 4124

Oaxacan Hoops
Shot in the mountains of the Sierra Norte in the state of Oaxaca, Mexico and the inner-city neighborhoods in Los Angeles, this documentary explores the long-standing cultural tradition of basketball among the Oaxacan community. It looks at how the sport has helped many Zapotec Indians living in Los Angeles build community, keep traditions alive and maintain a connection to their villages in Mexico. During the biggest basketball tournament outside of Mexico, the Oaxaca Cup, more than 40 teams compete, most representing a village back home. Produced at the Graduate School of Journalism, UC Berkeley, producer, director, editor, Olga R. Rodriguez. 2003. 20 min. DVD 7648 [preservation copy]; vhs Video/C 9727

La Ofrenda: The Days of the Dead.
In Mexico, on the first days of November, the dead come to visit. They are received and given offerings of their favorite food, flowers, and momentos of their presence on earth. La Ofrenda takes a non-traditional look at the celebration in Mexico and the United States. A film by Lourdes Portillo and Susana Munoz. 50 min. Video/C 1778

On Strike! Ethnic Studies, 1969-1999
A historical presentation of the struggle to create and maintain a Department of Ethnic Studies at the University of California Berkeley. Includes interviews with participants in the 1969 demonstrations when the program was first established, with the 1999 demonstrators when the funding for the program was threatened and with Ethnic Studies faculty at U.C.B. Directed and produced by Irum Shiekh. 1999. 36 min. DVD 8561; vhs Video/C 6521
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The Oldtimers
A portrait of the elderly predominantly Latino community that gathers at Original McCarthy's, an historic, desolate bar in San Francisco. Living alone, the regulars have come to depend on McCarthy's for a sense of continuity and community. This moving documentary, an examination of the loneliness and alienation that faces the elderly who live in hidden pockets of America's cities, tells the stories of this clientele, the surivivors of another urban era. A film by Lisanne Skyler and Joseph Todd Walker.1993. 17 min. Video/C 9515

Once Upon a Time in the Bronx
A collage mixing Spanish rap narration, spaghetti western styling and animated dolls depicting homeboys and flygirls, in this Bronx-based slice of life depicting male bonding, machismo and Latino culture in an episodic story influenced by hip hop sampling techniques. An anti-documentary portrait of the rap duo Latin Empire. 1994. 27 min. Video/C 9209

One River, One Country: The U.S.-Mexico Border
Along the Rio Grande, a third country is emerging, neither Mexico nor the United States, but an uncomfortable combination of the two. Its inhabitants share family and economic ties, but feel isolated from the mainstream cultures of their two native lands. Program suggests how an aggressive "good-neighbor policy" of American trade with Mexico might alleviate some of the region's economic troubles. Originally presented as a segment in the television series: CBS reports. 1986. 47 min. Video/C MM882

La Operacíon
Puerto Rico has the highest incidence of female sterilization in the world. Over one-third of all Puerto Rican women of childbearing age have been sterilized. So common is the operation that it is simply known as 'la operacion.' Using newsreels and excerpts from government propaganda films, plus interviews with Puerto Rican women, doctors, birth control specialists and politicians, this film explores the controversial use of sterilization as a means of population control. Directed by Ana María García. Dist.: Cinema Guild. 1982. 40 min. DVD X1093; Video/C 5178

The Other Side of the Border.
A documentary on illegal entry from Mexico. Discusses new immigration reform law. 60 min. Video/C 1544

Palabra: A Sampling of Contemporary Latino Writers.
Performer: Octavio Paz, Gloria Anzaldua, Jimmy Santiago Baca, Jose Montoya, Lorna Dee Cervantes, Victor Hernandez Cruz, Carlos Fuentes, Gary Soto, Francisco Alarcon, Ernesto Cardenal, Lucha Corpi, Luis Rodriguez, Bernice Zamora, ) Ana Castillo, Juan Felipe Herrera, Demetria Martinez, Elba Sanchez. 52 min. Video/C 3475

Palante, Siempre Palante!: The Young Lords.
A film by Iris Morales. In the mid-60's from Chicago to New York City and other urban centers, the Young Lords emerged to demand decent living conditions and raised a militant voice for the empowerment of the Puerto Rican people in the United States. This documentary surveys Puerto Rican history, the Young Lords activities and philosophy, the torturous end of the organization and its inspiring legacy, through camera interviews, archival footage, photographs and music. 1996.48 min. Video/C 5039

Panel on Ethnic Diversity with Troy Duster, Elaine Kim and Alex Saragoza, January, 1991.
A panel of five faculty members discuss a report, chaired by Tony Duster. The Duster report concludes that students at the University of California, Berkeley, 50% of whom are of a cultural minority, tend to cluster into ethnic groups rather than interact. Julia Curry, Alex Saragoza, Elaine Kim, and Snow Arrow Fausett discuss problems facing various ethnic groups. UC Berkeley, Open Window series program; 921. DVD 9608; vhs Video/C 1932

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The Party Line.
Written, produced and directed by Mario Barrera. Relationships in the Mexican American culture are highlighted in this drama about Mexican American young people who renew a high school romance clearing up the problem that separated them after the senior prom. Produced with the support of University of California (Berkeley), Committee on Research [and] University of California, Institute for Mexico and the United States. 1996. 26 min. Video/C 5731

Los Pastores (The Shepherd's Play)
A staged presentation of a Christmas morality play that has long been part of Hispanic folk traditions in the American Southwest. Originally written by Padre Florencio Ibanez of the Soledad Mission in 1803, it may be the first play written and performed in California. Performed in the Regents' Theater, the Valley Center for the Performing Arts, Holy Names College, December 4, 2002. 39 min. Video/C 9728

Patrolling the Border: National Security and Immigration Reform
This ABC News program studies the connections between 9/11, the American economy, and the workforce of undocumented labor on which that economy increasingly depends. Interviews with Arizona border patrol agents evoke their frustrations and reveal the perils faced by many Mexicans who attempt desperate wilderness crossings. Contrasts between President Bush's proposed guest worker program and the Department of Homeland Security's efforts to crack down on the influx of illegal aliens highlight the complexity of the situation. Originally broadcast on 07/14/04 as a segment of Nightline. 22 min. DVD 4288

People of Color Symposium.
Symposium on Clark Kerr Campus, University of California, Berkeley, January 15, 1988. Video/C 2219

Plena, Canto y Trabajo = Plena is Work, Plena is Song.
Brings to life the cultural and political history of Puerto Rican plena, which is a musical blend of African and Spanish idioms. 29 min. Video/C 2534

Por la Necesidad de Trabajar: For the Need to Work.
Interviews with illegal aliens who have crossed the Mexican American boarder. They reveal their experiences during the crossing, their expectations and the realities they have found since their arrival in the United States including raids and arrests, attempts at deportation, labor organizing and assistance from legal organizations. Also examines the economic and social impact of NAFTA on the Mexican economy. Contents: El sueno (the dream) -- La realidad (the reality) -- Redadas (Raids) -- Por que (Why?) -- El futuro (The future). In Spanish with English subtitles. 37 min. Video/C 6180

Power, Politics and Latinos.
Examines the history and impact of Latino voting patterns in the United States. 57 min. Video/C 2925

El Pueblo Se Levanta
A hard-hitting documentary of the poverty and oppression in a New York City Puerto Rican community. Depicts the confrontations that occurred as a self help community group, the Young Lords, attempted to improve the conditions. Originally produced in 1970. Video/C 5857

Puerto Ricans (Multicultural Peoples of North America).
One of a 15 part series which celebrates the heritage of fifteen different cultural groups by tracing the history of their emigration to North America, showing the unique traditions they brought with them, and who they are today. Each volume discusses when and why each group emigrated, where they settled, which occupations they engaged in, and who the important leaders are within each community. 30 min. Video/C 3302

Que Pasa,U.S.A?
A program from a bilingual comedy series developed by WPBT-TV to chronicle the adventures of a Cuban-American family in our fast-paced society. The conflicts between two cultures and how this family solves its problems of culture shock provide a serious view into adjustments required of Cuban-American immigrant families. 28 min. Video/C 3752

Race is the Place
Focusing on the topic of racism in the United States, the program presents an assemblage of taped monologues, commentaries, readings, musical performances, and stills of visual artworks interspersed with documentary sequences, archival images, and dialogue exemplifying the topic found in American mass media and product packaging. Featuring: Amiri Baraka, Andy Bumatrai, Kamau Daaood, Mayda del Valle, Michael Franti, Lalo Guerrero, Barry "Shabaka" Henley, Danny Hoch, James Luna, Culture Clash, Richard Montoya, Willie Perdomo, Kate Rigg, Boots Riley, Ricardo Salinas, Beau Sia, Herbert Siguenza, Piri Thomas, Haunani-Kay Trask, Lois Ann Yamada ; visual artists: Enrique Chagoya, Michael Ray Charles, Paula de Joie, Faith Ringgold, Betye Saar, Ben Sakoguchi, Cora Yee. Produced and directed by Raymond Telles, Rick Tejada-Flores. c2005. 92 min. DVD 6153

Race, The Power of an Illusion
A three part series exploring the history of race perceptions and behaviors towards races in the United States, within the context of recent scientific discoveries which have have toppled the concept of biological race. c2003. 56 min. each installment

Description from California Newsreel catalog

The Difference Between Us. Follows students who sequence and compare their own DNA looking for a "race marker." It also looks at the history of racism in the U.S., the advent of stereotypes based on physical attributes attributed to races and somatotypes with particular reference to African Americans. Video/C 9574

The Story We Tell. Traces the race concept to the European conquest of the Americas, including the development of the slave system, which eventually crystalized into an ideology of white supremacy. By the mid-19th century, race had become the "common sense" wisdom of white America, revealing how social and political inequalities came to be recognized as "natural." Video/C 9575

The House We Live In. Focuses on how institutions shape and create race, giving different groups vastly unequal life chances. After WWII, whiteness increasingly meant owning a home in the suburbs, aided by discriminatory federal policies. Video/C 9576

Raza Spoken Here: Poesia Chicana. Volume 1 [Audiorecording]
The Taco Shop poets manifesto / The Taco Shop Poets -- Sonia on Hope Street, Metzli Chingona / Olga Angelina Garcia Echeverria -- Vato Loco de la Maravilla, Rafa chronicles / Manuel J. Velez -- Blood ain't salsa / Rasquachi Perfomers -- Tepalcate a tepalcate, sowing seeds / Elba Rosario Sanchez -- I hear a poem calling me, Heaven for eight dollars / Daniel Sanchez-Glazer -- For my sister who thinks I'm unhappy because I, like her, don't wear a size 6, Free metal woman / Sandra C. Mu~noz -- El mar y el muro, Sobre Baghdad han caido las bombas / Christian Ramirez. -- Holidays of el barrio, The out of order sign is out of order / Chuy Quintero -- Revolucion / Trago Amargo. Sound/D 43

Raza Unida.
Documents the national convention of La Raza Unide party in 1972. Video/C 1995

Reading, Writing & Race.
This program looks at the impact of affirmative action admissions policies, speech codes, and race relations on the campus of the University of California, Berkeley. Includes drama students enacting plays about racial conflicts and intolerance on campus. The film also examines the debate in California over a series of social studies textbooks which are under fire from critics, who charge that they do not adequately reflect California's multicultural heritage. 1991. 60 min. Video/C 6790

Recalling Orange County
Once regarded as a wealthy, white, conservative enclave, Orange County has become less predictable, less tidy, more diverse, more interesting. In a word, Mexican. Filmmaker Myl`ene Moreno, whose family moved there in the seventies, returned to reflect on her youth as a daughter of immigrants and to see how much things have changed. She discovered Orange County was in the midst of a furious battle, a divisive campaign to recall school district trustee Nativo Lopez from the Santa Ana Unified Board of Education. Dist. Cinema Guild. 2006. 58 min. DVD 6421

Recordar (To Remember).
Joe Castel captures the changing circumstances and customs of four generations of a Mexican-American family living in Silvis, Illinois through interviews, photographs, home videos and motion pictures related to his own family. 28 min. Video/C 1581

Redlining: It's Not Just for Housing Anymore
By looking at cultural representations of stereotypes, this program examines diversity related topics, and what lies below the surface regarding the language and policies of immigration and culture assimilation. Written and produced by Dan Banda. 2003. 57 min. DVD X102

Requiem-- 29.
This riveting film documents the chilling inhuman treatment of 50,000 Chicanos by police and the death of L.A. Times journalist Ruben Salazar at the Chicano National Moratorium in Los Angeles on August 29, 1970. Film includes footage of the mass march, police tactics used to disorganize and disperse the demonstrators, scenes from the inquest hearing into the death of Ruben Salazar and interviews with then "La Raza" editor, Raul Ruiz. 31 min. DVD 3473 (preservation copy); also VHS Video/C 5137

Noriega, Chon A. "Requiem for our beginnings." (Documentary film 'Requiem-29') Aztlan - A Journal of Chicano Studies Fall 2000 v25 i2 p1(10)

El Regreso de un Borreguero (A Sheepherder's Homecoming)
Follows a Mexican sheepherder whose solitary existence in the United States is juxtaposed to his homecoming in Mexico. Narration based upon "A seventh man" by John Berger. c1996. 40 min. Video/C MM588

Retratos (Portraits)
Follows the life stories of four individuals from New York City's Puerto Rican community, each of whom has attempted to assimilate to life in America, but also have maintained strong ties to their cultural heritage. c1983. 53 min. Video/C 7953

Rick Najera's Latinologues
Presents a compilation of comedic and poignant monologues by the world's funniest Latino comedians. Brilliantly captures the Latino American experience while mocking stereotypes with outrageous characters such as border patrol agent redneck Buford Gomez, a lusty busboy who prefers blonds, Miss East L.A., a pregnant "Virgin of the Bronx" and an illegal immigrant racing for the border in the Third World Olympics. 2005. 120 min. DVD 4032

Rick Najera's Latinologues 2
This award-winning collection of gut-busting monologues from a broad range of characters brilliantly captures the Latino experience with outrageous humor and touching poignancy. 2005. 64 min. DVD 4384

Rights on the Line: Vigilantes on the Border
This documentary shows the men behind the Minuteman Project and the continuum between official Mexican-American border militarization and vigilante action. It tells the story of border tensions from the point of view of those affected and reveals the underlying motivations of the vigilantes through interviews and footage of their nighttime patrols. Consists of three discs, each with the main program (26 min.). The English version and the subtitled version also include an abridged program (13 min.) along with program extracts (4 min.). 2005. 43 min. DVD 6537

[Rodriguez, Luis J.] Luis J. Rodriguez.
Luis J. Rodriguez is a poet, journalist and publisher who grew up in Watts and East Los Angeles. His writings give voice and dignity to those whose lives are scarred by violence, racism and poverty. On December 8, 1992 in Los Angeles, he read from his books of poetry, The Concrete River and Poems Across the Pavement, and from his memoirs, Always Running, La Vida Loca: Gang Days in L.A. and talked with Michael Silverblatt. 60 min. Video/C 3491

[Rodriguez, Luis J.] Luis J. Rodriguez: Lunch Poems, 3/6/03
Mexican American author and poet Luis Rodriguez reads from his works. Rodriguez has published eight books of poetry and is also widely known for his memoir of gang life, Always running: La vida loca, gang days in L.A., and for founding and directing Tia Chucha Press. Program held in the University of California Doe Library, Morrison Room on March 6, 2003. 40 min. Video/C 9473

Romantico
Tells the story of Carmelo - car wash employee by day, mariachi musician by night in San Francisco's Mission District. This verite view of an undocumented alien subculture is a deeply personal, bittersweet story of famly, fatherhood, identity and survival. A film by Mark Becker. 2007. 84 min. DVD 7965

Routes of Rhythm.
Traces the origins of Latin music from Spain and Africa to the New World (program 1). Focuses on pop music developed in Cuba and examines how North Americans began to discover this island's musical treasures (program 2). Shows how Spanish-African music has become the basic part of popular musical culture of the U.S. (program 3). 58 min. ea. DVD 692; Video/C 2535

Salsa: Latin Music of New York and Puerto Rico.
Salsa has influenced jazz and pop, while Latin musicians have been influenced by jazz. Places Salsa in the socio-political context of the Puerto-Rican communities in New York City and Puerto Rico. Video/C 1490

Salt of the Earth.
A semidocumentary of the year-long struggle by Mexican-American zinc miners in New Mexico. When an injunction is issued against the workers, the wives take up the battle with a fury, leaving the husbands to care for home and children. 94 min. Video/C 999:266 Also on laserdisc Video/D 78

Sandra Cisneros
Sandra Cisneros, the author of The House on Mango Street and Woman Hollering Creek and Other stories, is a Mexican-American poet and author, self described as a "terrorist, anarchist" and a "Chicana feminist." Here she reads from her story "Eleven" and other works and is interviewed by poet and novelist Dorothy Allison. Recorded on October 8, 1996. 1999. 60 mins. Video/C 8980

Santeros= Saintmakers.
Documents the lifestyle and attitudes of five New Mexican artisans who continue the 300 year-old traditions of the earliest santeros. Directed by Ray Telles. 1986. 33 min. DVD 9258; vhs Video/C 1341

School Colors.
This in-depth documentary looks at a turbulent year at Berkeley High School in California, focusing on teachers, students, and parents struggling with the question of whether diversity will enrich American society or tear it apart. 143 min. Video/C 3596

Goodman, Walter. "School Colors." (television program reviews) New York Times v144 (Tue, Oct 18, 1994):B3(N), C20(L), col 1
Leonard, John. "School Colors." (television program reviews) New York v27, n42 (Oct 24, 1994):70.

Seguin.
A docu-drama based on the life of one of Texas' unsung heroes, Juan Nepomunceno Seguin, a leader in San Antonio who raised an army to fight the Mexican forces of Santa Ana at the Alamo. Written and directed by Jesus Salvador Trevino.

Performers: A. Martinez, Henry Darrow, Rose Portillo, Pepe Serna, Danny De La Paz, Enrique Castillo, Lupe Ontiveros, Edward James Olmos. 68 min. Video/C 5133

Fregoso, Rosa Linda. "Seguin: The Same Side of the Alamo Bilingual." In: Chicano Cinema: research, Reviews, and Resources Edited by Gary D. Keller. pp: 146-152. Binghamton, N.Y.: Bilingual Review/Press, c1985. (UCB Main PN1995.9.M49.C47 1985; UCB Moffitt PN1995.9.M49.C47 1985)
Morales, Alejandro. "Expanding the Meaning of Chicano Cinema: Yo soy chicano, Raices de sangre, Seguin." In: Chicano Cinema: research, Reviews, and Resources (see above for call #)

Selected films and Shorts
Selected films and shorts by Osa Hidalgo-de la Riva. Her works explore the representation of Chicanas in films and videos and lesbianism in various cultures. Contents: Disc 1: 1. Amor en Aztlan (1987, 5 min. musical montage) / U.C. Santa Cruz with Ruben Blades music "Motherland" -- 2. Primitive and proud (1992, 17 min., In English) /Part II of Mujeria sequel -- 3. Olmeca rap (1990, 5 min.) / Part I of Mujeria sequel -- 4. Two spirits: native lesbians & gays (1992, 26 min.) / co-produced with Deep Dish TV, Royal Eagle Bear Productions, Mona Smith and Third World Newsreel -- 5. Primitive and proud (1992, 17 min., In Spanish) / Part II of Mujeria sequel -- 6. Transformation (1989, 5 min.) / found footage experiment with Nona Hendryx music "transformation" -- 7. Zone 4: a prison poem (1998?, 5 min.) -- 8. Marginal eyes: or Mujeria fantasy #1 (2000?, 17 min.) -- Disc 2: The power of 13 (Re-generations), (2006, 3 min.) Directed by Osa Hidalgo-de la Riva. 100 min. DVD X1086

Shades of California
Presents the stories of Californians of varied racial and ethnic backgrounds through personal photographs which they share with the viewer along with their family histories. Based on the book "Shades of California," edited by Kimi Kodani Hill (Bancroft pfF862.S521 2001 Non-circulating; may be used only in The Bancroft Library). c2003. 54 min. Video/C MM29

Shattering the Silences.
Documentary explores issues of faculty diversity in American higher education in the mid-1990s, focusing on the professional and personal experiences of eight minority scholars in the humanities and social sciences at various institutions. 86 min. Video/C 4707

The Shrine.
A documentary investigating why El Santuario de Chimayo, a small adobe church thirty miles from Santa Fe, N.M., attracts the largest religious pilgrimage in the United States. c1990. 60 min. Video/C MM901

Los Siete de la Raza
Newsreel footage of interviews with Mexican American immigrants to the Mission District of San Francisco in which they express their social and economic struggles and the discrimination they experience. Film examines the creation of Los Siete de la Raza, a self-help political organization organized to fight for the rights of "Brown people." Originally produced in the 1960s. 30 min. Video/C 5856

Skin Deep.
A diverse group of college students reveal their honestfeelings and attitudes about race and racism. Students from 3 major universities are interviewed alone on topics including the climate toward talking about race on campus, self separation of ethnic groups, discrimination, affirmative action policies and individual responsibility for change. Concludes with a diverse group of 23 students from 6 major American universities who spent 3 days together to collectively challenge one another with dialogue focusing on such topics as the concept of individual responsibility, feeling separated from each other, wanting others to understand and what can be done to move awareness to action. 53 min. Video/C 4055

So What!: Young Queers United for Empowerment
DVD X786

Soldados: Chicanos in Viet Nam
Recounts the experiences of five Chicano soldiers, whose first journey outside the cotton fields of their hometown of Corcoran, California was to the war-ripped rice paddies of Vietnam. They all grew up working in the fields alongside their parents and siblings, and Summary: (cont'd) shared values not much different from their forebears. But their insulated lives were changed as they learned "They took our farm workers to go fight their farm workers." A film by Sonya Rhee and Charley Trujillo. Based on the book by Charley Trujillo. c2003. 28 min. DVD 2025

Songs of the Homeland.
An exuberant journey into the history, heart and soul of Tejano music which originated in South Texas. Filmed on location throughout Texas, this documentary features images of the past and present and includes performances and interviews with musical pioneers of Tejano music. 1996. 60 min. Video/C 5177

Sonia Sanchez.
Sonia Sanchez, poet, teacher, and activist, reads from her books of poetry and talks with students at Georgetown University on September 17, 1990. She is interviewed by Lewis MacAdams in Washington D.C. 60 min. Video/C 3487

Spanish-Speakers and Bilingualism.
Examines the different kinds of Spanish spoken in the U.S. and their relationship to the Spanish of San Juan or the Dominican Republic. Dist.: Films Media Group. 19 min. Video/C 2867

Split Decision
Chronicles the rise of Jesus "El Matador" Chavez through the professional boxing ranks to number one contender for the World Championship when the U.S. government enacted two tough immigration laws that ordered the immediate deportation of all non-U.S. citizens with a criminal conviction. Despite his clear rehabilitation Jesus with a prior conviction for armed robbery, was deported to Mexico. A compelling documentary that exposes the failings of current immigration policy and questions the implications of the prevailing "tough-on-crime" and one-size-fits all criminal justice system. Produced, directed and edited by Marcy Garriott. 2000. 78 min. Video/C 7871

Description from Icarus Films catalog

The Status of Latina Women.
This program looks at the differences between the U.S. Latina and her Latin American and American counterparts. Examines how Latino men regard successful Latina women, and the myths and mystique of machismo. Dist.: Films Media Group. 26 min. Video/C 2635

Substance Abuse Among Latinos.
Looks at culturally-specific approaches being generated within the Latino community to combat drug and alchohol abuse. 28 min. Video/C 2869

Taking Root (Echando raices)
Two identical one hour films (one in English, one in Spanish) discussing the factors that bring immigrants to the U.S., beliefs and assumptions about immigrants, the systematic exploitation of immigrants, and what people can do to collectively work for social justice. Created as a resource for education and organizing, the film shares stories from some of the immigrant community organizations that work in partnership with the American Friends Service Committee. c2002. 60 min. each Video/C MM1106

Talking About Race.
A diverse group of college students reveal their honest feelings and attitudes about race and racism. In part 1, students from 3 major universities are interviewed alone on topics including the climate toward talking about race on campus, self separation of ethnic groups, discrimination, affirmative action policies and individual responsibility for change. In part 2, a diverse group of 23 students from 6 major American universities spend 3 days together to collectively challenge one another with dialogue focusing on such topics as the concept of individual responsibility, feeling separated from each other, wanting others to understand and what can be done to move awareness to action. 25 min. Video/C 4054

Teatro!
Documentary of grass roots Hondurian acting troup,Teatro la Fragua, founded by Jesuit priest, Jack Warner. Company members are shown performing in three plays, conducting an acting workshop in the town of Salama, and on a retreat to Copan, an ancient Mayan center. 58 min. Video/C 4050

Tex-Mex: Music of the Texas Mexican Borderlands.
Tex-Mex music is an exuberant style with a Mexican soul and a rock'n'roll heart. It combines styles of corrida, norteno and others, is full of joy and energy, but carries significance through its lyrics about social problems. Musicians are shown in performance and conversation. DVD 983; also VHS Video/C 3453

Texas/USA: Border Injustice.
The third segment segment examines abuses by border agents against illegal aliens captured crossing the Mexican-American Segment from the television program Rights & wrongs broadcast August 25, 1993. 27 min. Video/C 6701

That Old Gang of Mine.
A video by Carlos de Jesus A portrait of growing up in New York city's El Barrio in the late 1940's and '50s set against that neighborhood as it exists today. Film includes archival footage and interviews with four generations of New Yorkers of Puerto Rican heritage. 1996. 56 min. Video/C 5007

Description from Filmakers Library catalog

Third World Strike, U.C. Berkeley, 1969.
Third world strike panel, U.C. Berkeley, 1989, 20 Years After. Video/C 1403

Tierra o Muerte (Land or Death).
Examines the history of the Tierra Amarilla land grant and the fight of the heirs to the Chama Valley of northern New Mexico for property rights and economic and cultural survival. Written and edited by Army Armstrong and Carolyn Hales. 1991. 60 min. DVD X1219 [preservation copy]; vhs Video/C MM589

Los Trabajadores (The Workers)
"We build the buildings, we do the hardest jobs, and still they don't want us." Los Trabajadores tells the story of immigrant day laborers, placing their struggles and contributions in the context of the economic development of Austin, Texas. Through the stories of Juan from Nicaragua and Ramon from Mexico, and through the controversy surrounding the relocation of a day labor site from downtown to a residential neighborhood, the film examines the misconceptions and contradictions inherent in America's dependence on and discrimination against immigrant labor. As Juan says, "they say Austin is growing, but thanks to whom?" Produced, directed, edited by Heather Courtney. Dist.: New Day Films. 2003. 48 min. DVD 6655

The Trail North.
Follows anthropologist Robert Alvarez and his ten-year old son as they re-create the journey made by their Mexican ancestors when they immigrated to the United States. 28 min. Video/C 1478

Transnational Fiesta, 1992
The film documents the multicultural and transnational experiences of Quispes, a family of Peruvian Andean immigrants living in Washington D.C., who return to their hometown, Cabanaconde, to sponsor the annual patron saint fiesta. The North American members of this extended family, as well as other migrants from the community living in Washington, also participate in the Virgin of Carmen celebration, where the complexities of cultural production, religious syncretism, inter-ethnic marriages, migration, and racism all converge. The story follows the migrants back to their "new world" (Washington D.C.) where they constantly "discover" and reinvent their plural identities in their daily lives as nannies, janitors, college students, and other occupations, and in the special events sponsored by the 300 plus members of the Cabanaconde City Association. c1992. 60 min. Video/C 8324

The Trials of Juan Parra.
Records presentation of the play and interviews of Parra, some actors and audience on the firing of Parra from Watsonville Canning & Frozen Food Company. 28 min. Video/C 1399

Troubled Harvest.
Examines the health and safety hazards which confront America's agricultural laborers. 30 min. Video/C 3353

Twenty Years After: The Third World Strike.
Original footage from the Third world strike and a discussion on what happened, why it happened, and what has happened since, with Carlos Munoz, Jr., Anthony Garcia, Octavio Romano V, Troy Duster. DVD 1188; also VHS Video/C 1403

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The Unwanted.
This award winning documentary was the first program to explore the problem and issues of illegal entry into the United States by Mexicans. Presents the viewpoints of both the Mexicans and the U.S. Border Patrol and how the latter works. Includes a brief history of Mexican immigration into the U.S., from the refugees from the 1910 Mexican Revolution to the 1970's increase in illegal entries. Produced and directed by Jose Luis Ruiz. 1975. 50 min. Video/C 5134

Vaquero: The Forgotten Cowboy.
Focuses on the lives of "vaqueros," Mexican American cowboys of the American West and shows how a changing industry has made their lifestyle obsolete. Shot on location in South Texas, this documentary pays tribute to this breed of men that history has overlooked as it focuses on the present day lives of these proud men who continue a trade from an era gone by. 1987. 28 min. Video/C 7852

Uno Veintecinco.
1962 documentary film by Harvey Richards. Shows the Agricultural Workers Organizing Committee (AWOC), AFL-CIO, strike to get lettuce pickers in California $1.25 / hour. Reviews history of labor organizing in California's fields. A film by Harvey Richards. 20 min. 1962. DVD 4247; also VHS Video/C 2796

Visiones: Latino Art and Culture
Captures contemporary Latino artists in the United States reinventing rich traditions and creating new art forms that challenge, provoke and entertain.

Episode 1: Museums of the streets -- Nuyorican spoken world -- Cartoonista. -- Episode 2. Miracle on 47th Street -- Santeros -- Remembering Selena -- Episode 3. Born into theatre -- Ceremony of memory -- Dreams in 8 mm -- Soapbox artist. Captures contemporary Latino artists in the United States reinventing rich traditions and creating new art forms that challenge, provoke and entertain. Performers: Judith Baca, Amelia Mesa-Bains, Ray Patlan, Carlos Tortolero, Carlos Cortez, Gamaliel Ramirez, Raul Salinas, Piri Thomas, Juan Gonzalez, Pedro Pietri, Lalo Lopez Alcaraz, Miriam Colon, Jorge Merced, Sabine Ulibarri, Sylvia Rodriguez, Charles Carillo, Nicholas Herrera, Deborah Paredez, Selena, Luis Valdez, Cesar Martinez, Willie Varela, Carlos Cortez. 78 min. DVD 3095

Episode 4: Hip hop nation -- Miami sound -- Rudy Perez -- Episode 5. Taco shop poets -- Carpas -- Art of performance -- Episode 6. House of dreams -- Prima ballerina -- Lydia Mendoza -- Father of Chicano music. Performers: Raquel Rivera, Willy Chirino, Lissette, Raul Murciano, Rudy Perez, Sasha Anawalt, David Avalos, Evelyn Cruz, Amparo Garcia, Peter Haney, Paulina Sahagun, Tomas Benitez, Carolina Ponce de Leon, Amalia Mesa-Bains, John Santos, Evelyn Cisneros, Anthony Randazzo, Lydia Mendoza, Yolanda Broyles-Gonzalez, Lalo Guerrero.78 min. DVD 3095

Visions of a Common Good: A Conversation on Race, Ethnicity, and American Common Ground
Nathan Glazer, Ronald Takaki, Robert Pickus. William Simmons, moderator. Professors Glazer (Harvard) and Takaki (UCB) seek to define a common cultural ground for an America that is diverse, united and fulfills the best of its founder's values. Co-sponsors, World Without War Council, James Madison Foundation and the Center for Teaching and Study of American Cultures." Joint lecture delivered 4/26/94 at the University of California Berkeley. 90 min. DVD 4221; Video/C 2713

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Viva La Causa!
An introduction to the history of the Mexican American people from their origins in Europe's invasion of the American continent up through World War II, through the Chicano Movement years to the present day. Includes archival footage and lively music ranging rom corridos to rap. 46 min. Video/C 4071

Voces del Campo (Voices of the Fields)
Documentary follows farmworkers from California's Salinas Valley who have returned to their roots in the fields of rural Mexico, where they recount their everyday struggle on family farms to cope in the midst of the globalization of agriculture and the impact of NAFTA. 1995. 45 min. Video/C 6856

Walking the Line
Offers a harrowing view of the chaos, absurdity and senseless deaths of Mexican illegals along the U.S. - Mexico border because some American citizens are taking the law into their own hands. Southern Arizona has become the most highly trafficked area for immigrants in the world -- and one of the most dangerous. A shift in the border policy forces migrants to cross the unforgiving desert where thousands die. Those who make it across face volatile, often armed, civilian militias. Standing in opposition to the vigilantes are humanitarians, organized to prevent migrant deaths. Confronting the growing crisis, they too find themselves on the wrong side of the law. A film by Jeremy Levine and Landon Van Soest. 2006. 58 min. DVD 6517

Description from Filmakers Library catalog

Wars and Images
Contents: Gringo (29 min.) -- Greaser (30 min.) -- Amigo (28 min.) -- Illegal (29 min.).

Four documentaries exploring different aspects of the history of visual representations that the United States and Mexico have created about each other, focusing on wars in which both countries have been involved. Gringo: Shows the U.S.-Mexico war of 1846-48 as portrayed in drawings, lithographs, daguerreotypes and personal chronicles. Greaser: Presents the Mexican Revolution of 1910-1920 as portrayed in newsreels and postcards. Amigo: Looks at the influence of U.S. interests in Mexican nationalistic and propaganda films during the "Good neighbor policy" and World War II. Illegal: Critical examination of the role played by independent video and mainstream media in the creation of a war zone on the Mexico-U.S. border. Produced and directed by Gregorio Carlos Rocha. 1999. Video/C 9216

Watsonville on Strike.
Relates events of strike of Mexican American frozen food workers in Watsonville California, commencing September 1985 and lasting 18 months. English and Spanish. 65 min. Video/C 1400

Wetback: The Undocumented Documentary
Follows several migrants from Central America and Mexico on their journey to North America. The film begins in Nicaragua and takes the viewer through five borders. Border control tightens as the migrants move North. Gangs in Mexico and vigilante groups in the USA are some of the perils the migrants might have to face on their way to the American Dream. Of the more than 3,000 Latin Americans who embark upon this journey every day, less than 300 make it to their destination. Written and directed by Arturo Perez Torres. 2004. 92 min. DVD 5160

What's Race Got to Do with It?
This program "chronicles the experiences of a new generation of college students, in this case over the course of 16 weeks of intergroup dialogue on the U.C. Berkeley campus. As they confront themselves and each other about race, they discover they often lack awareness of how different their experience of campus life is from their peers, to the detriment of an inclusive campus climate. Special features (46 min.): Optional audio commentaries and excerpted interviews with Dave Stark & Jerlena Griffin-Destra (course goals & objectives, creating a space for dialogue, students' lives as the curriculum, course history : how conflict emerges, socioeconomic disparities, assessing the process, facing issues that arise). Written, directed and produced by Jean Cheng. 2006. 49 min. DVD 6626

Description from California Newsreel catalog

Whose America Is It?.
This hard-hitting invesigation examines the massive influx of legal and illegal immigrants to the United States. Looks at such problems as the dispute over language in Dade County, Fla., and the illegal immigration and employment issue in Texas and California. CBS Reports. Host, Bill Moyers. 1985. 46 min. Video/C MM798

Why Braceros?
Council of California Growers. 1959. 19 min. DVD 4845

The Wrath of Grapes.
Presents interviews with workers and farm owners on the use of pesticides on commercial grape orchards. Workers discuss the health problems involved in working in various pesticide environments. 16 min. DVD 7102 [preservation copy]; Video/C 1643
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Yo Soy.
Many Mexican Americans in the fields of business, education, labor and politics, tell and show how they have been active in today's society, responsible in dealing with some of its problems, while retaining their Chicano heritage and identity. 54 min. Video/C 1248

Yo soy Boricua, pa'que tu lo sepas! (I'm Boricua, Just So You Know)
Explores the complex history between Puerto Rico and the United States. Both revealing and humorous, the themes of family, language, and racism are put into historical perspective as the filmmaker uncovers the side of Purtro Rico absent from the U.S. history books. Directed by Rosie Perez. 2006. 85 min. DVD 7634

Yo Soy Chicano.
Examines the key issues, problems, and concerns of the Mexican-American community in the United States, reviews the progress Chicanos have recently made in politics, education, labor, and economic development, and summarizes the ways they are responding to the challenges of the future. 58 min. Video/C 2548

Maciel, David R.. Racho, Susan. "'Yo Soy Chicano': The Turbulent and Heroic Life of Chicanas/os in Cinema and Television." In: Chicano renaissance : contemporary cultural trends / edited by David R. Maciel, Isidro D. Ortiz, Maria Herrera-Sobek. Tucson: University of Arizona Press, c2000. (UCB Bancroft E184.M5 C4531 2000; UCB Main E184.M5 C453 2000)
Morales, Alejandro. "Expanding the Meaning of Chicano Cinema: Yo soy chicano, Raices de sangre, Seguin" In: Chicano Cinema: research, Reviews, and Resources Edited by Gary D. Keller. pp: 1121-137. Binghamton, N.Y.: Bilingual Review/Press, c1985. (UCB Main PN1995.9.M49.C47 1985; UCB Moffitt PN1995.9.M49.C47 1985)

Yo Soy Hechicero (I Am a Sorcerer)
It's all in a day's work for Juan Eduardo Nunuz, a Cuban refugee who leads a religious congregation in a backyard garden shed in a subdivision near Atlantic City, New Jersey. This neopagan religious cult deals in spirit possession, animal sacrifice, mythic storytelling and physical healing. Juan Eduardo's wife, a Pentacostal, claims that her husband is an instrument of Satan. directed by Ron Stanford and produced by Ivan Drufovka,is an intimate look at one expression of contemporary Afro-Caribbeanreligion. All events are presented on theirown terms, without explanatory voiceover narration. Directed by Ron Stanford. 48 min. Video/C 4669

Yo Soy Hechicero web site

Yo Soy Joaquin (I Am Joaquin).
A dramatization of the Chicano poem of the same title by Rodolpho "Corky" Gonzales about the Mexican-American experience from Cortes to the current farm workers' struggle, emphasizing the problems of the oppressed and exploited Mexicans. Originally produced as a motion picture in 1969. 19 min. DVD 7174 [preservation copy]; Video/C 4202

Hinojosa, Rolando. I Am Joaquin: Relationships between the Text and the Film." In: Chicano Cinema: research, Reviews, and Resources Edited by Gary D. Keller. pp: 142-145. Binghamton, N.Y.: Bilingual Review/Press, c1985. (UCB Main PN1995.9.M49.C47 1985; UCB Moffitt PN1995.9.M49.C47 1985)
Martinez, Eliud. " I Am Joaquin as Poem and Film: Two Modes of Chicano Expression." Journal of Popular Culture, vol. 13, 1980: 505-515.

Zoot Suit Riots
Racial tensions between the Anglo and Mexican American communities in Los Angeles, California erupted into violence after the conviction of Henry "Hank" Leyvas and seventeen other Mexican American youths for the murder of Jose Diaz in what was perceived as an unfair trial in 1943. Lorena Encinas, a witness to the murder, kept the real killer's identity a secret until the end of her life. Prominent members of the Los Angeles community worked to fund an appeal for the defendents, even as battles between unruly US Naval personnel and Mexican Americans rocked L.A.'s barrios. Surviving family members of the seventeen convicts, riot witnesses and members of the Sleepy Lagoon Defense Committee tell the story of the riots, which is highlighted by photographs of the riots, the trial and their participants.Originally broadcast as an episode of the television program The American Experience. 2002. 60 min. Video/C 9050

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