La Kemster

undocumentary:

Illegal is the story of an undocumented youth whose fight for higher education and meaningful employment led to his civil disobedience arrest in a demonstration last September. This 10-minute video will be one of the centerpieces of my thesis project.

Summary
The undocumented status of Manuel Vasquez, 21, prevents him from pursuing higher education or gaining meaningful employment. Manuel works long hours selling wigs and beauty supplies to help support his parents and siblings in Raleigh, N.C., where he lives in a cramped house. Frustration with state and federal immigration policies drove him to risk his own deportation in a protest organized by the NC DREAM Team, a group of undocumented young adults lobbying for legal status in the U.S. This video illuminates the reality of an “illegal” immigrant’s limited options for the future, and the fight to become an American citizen.

Special thanks to Josh Stillwell for shooting 2nd camera at the protest and to Urmila Ramakrishnan for transcription.