El Norte

El Norte is a film about a brother and sister’s journey from a small Guatemalan village north to the US, where they hope to have a better life. While there they face many of the problems Latin American immigrants face in the US. To migrants, the US provides the opportunity of work and some degree of safety while at the same time the US actively creates barriers for immigrants. This was displayed in the movie by Enrique and Rosa not having official documents which greatly limited their job opportunities and limited where they could live. ICE was also a constant threat to Enrique and Rosa along with the people they worked with, such as Enrique’s coworker who reported him to immigration. Later generation migrants tend to contribute to an idealized version of the US that was portrayed by the villagers’ more positive description of the US. In this idealized version, immigration to the US is an easy process and once in the US wealth is abundant for those who try hard. In reality, living in the US for migrants can be incredibly difficult due to government institutions and discrimination. 

Comments

  1. Catherine BolzendahlMarch 11, 2023 at 2:15 PM

    Good observations on the film, but other than describing some key summary points, this post is not going further but bringing in any analysis, reading, or bigger picture thought. Where is your voice? How would you see this film as fitting into the issues we discussed in class or in this term as a whole?

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