Made in L.A. People's Summit Film Showing/Discussion, May 15, 7:00pm

[XXPANTHAXX]

For Immediate Release

Media Advisory

Event: "Made in L.A." Documentary Film/Fundraiser
Date: Friday, May 15, 7:00-9:00 p.m.
Location: 5920 Second Avenue, Near Antoinette (WSU Area)
Contact: 313.671.3715, 887.4344
E-mail: ac6123@wayne.edu
URL: People's Summit - June 14-17, 2009
Film: Made in LA: Welcome
Donation: $5 or what you can afford

People's Summit Planners Highlight Immigrant Workers Struggle in
Groundbreaking Documentary to be Shown on May 15, 7:00-9:00 p.m.

Made in L.A. is an Emmy award-winning feature documentary (70 min) that
follows the remarkable story of three Latina immigrants working in Los
Angeles garment sweatshops as they embark on a three-year odyssey to win
basic labor protections from trendy clothing retailer Forever 21. In
intimate observational style, Made in L.A. reveals the impact of the
struggle on each woman’s life as they are gradually transformed by the
experience. Compelling, humorous, deeply human, Made in L.A. is a story
about immigration, the power of unity, and the courage it takes to find
your voice.

Lupe Hernandez, a five-foot tall dynamo who learned survival skills at
an early age, has been working in Los Angeles garment factories for over
15 years since she left Mexico City at age 17. Maura Colorado left her
three children in the care of relatives in El Salvador while she sought
work in L.A. to support them. She found that the low-paid work came with
a high price - wretched conditions in the factories and an
"undocumented" status that deprived her of seeing her children for over
eighteen years. María Pineda came to Southern California from Mexico in
hopes of a better life at 18, with an equally young husband. Twenty
three years later, substandard working conditions, a meager salary and
domestic abuse have left her struggling for her children's future and
for her own human dignity.

These three women, along with other immigrant workers, come together at
L.A.'s Garment Worker Center to take a stand for their rights. Against
all odds, these seemingly defenseless workers launch a very public
challenge (a lawsuit and a boycott) to one of the city's flagship
clothiers, calling attention to the dark side of low-wage labor north of
the U.S.-Mexico border and revealing the social fault lines of the new
globalization.

As seen through the eyes of María, Maura, and Lupe, the workers'
struggle for basic economic justice and personal dignity yields hope and
growth, but it is also fraught with disappointments and dangers. As the
campaign drags on through three long years, meetings at the Garment
Worker Center become more contentious and the women undergo dramatic
moments of conflict and discouragement. But then the story takes a
surprising turn, and the three women find the strength and resources to
continue their struggle.

For Lupe, Maura and María, the long campaign is a turning point from
victimization to empowerment, and each makes life-changing decisions
that they never could have envisioned. Overlooking the city of Hong
Kong, where she has traveled after she's hired as an organizer, Lupe
reflects on her journey: The more I learn, the lonelier I feel.
Ignorance somehow protects you. But then I say, I've come this far, and
nothing can take that away from me.