Las Abogadas: Attorneys on the Front Lines of the Migrant Crisis

From Director Victoria Bruce:

After learning that attorneys Rebecca Eichler and Charlene D’Cruz drove a VW bus to intercept 5,000 migrants in central Mexico and offer legal advice in 2018, the protagonists for a new documentary became clear. With the rhetoric in Washington increasing to a fever pitch around the subject of refugees coming to the southern border, it was important for me to be a part of bringing a humanitarian face to the crisis.

By centering the film around brave women attorneys often working for non-profits or completely pro bono, we could show true modern-day heroes standing up to insurmountable odds. The narrative of Las Abogadas centers around these brilliant women, all of whom gave us access to their lives and their law practices. Women who were trained to use the law to protect the most vulnerable were having their tools systematically twisted, canceled, and pulled out from under their critical work. Among their clients, we were given permission to film heartbreaking and heartwarming refugee stories as well.

As a filmmaker, it’s important to understand a film’s subjects on an emotional level. I am of the same age and socioeconomic class as the women attorneys I follow in this film. A major purpose in making the film was to reach other people in my demographic and educate them about the true faces of migration. But I also want to inspire viewers to act, to tell others, to help create change. Many documentary films are driven by advocacy, and I believe the most successful are those with intimate and human stories told in simple and compelling ways.