Maquilápolis

Carmen and Lourdes work in Tijuana’s maquiladoras, the multinationally-owned factories which came to Mexico for its cheap labor. Each day these factory workers confront labor violations, environmental devastation and urban chaos — life on the frontier of the global economy. In MAQUILÁPOLIS, Carmen and Lourdes reach beyond the daily struggle for survival to organize for change: Carmen takes a major television manufacturer to task for violating her labor rights. Lourdes pressures the government to clean up a toxic waste dump left behind by a departing factory. The women also use video diaries to chronicle their lives, their city and their hopes for the future. As they work for change, the world changes too: global economic crisis and the availability of cheaper labor in China begin to pull the factories away from Tijuana, leaving Carmen, Lourdes and their colleagues with an uncertain future. As promotoras – community advocates who fight for social justice – Carmen and Lourdes serve as role models for taking action in the face of adversity. The struggle for equitable labor practices on both sides of the border continues today, and MAQUILÁPOLIS remains as powerful an exploration as ever, twenty years after its premiere.

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