Reel Justice Film Series: 'Which Way Home'

California Lutheran University will take its popular Reel Justice Film Series off campus for the first time, screening a documentary at Oxnard College about children attempting to immigrate to the United States.

This film, about children attempting to immigrate to America, will be shown at 6:45 p.m. in the college’s Performing Arts Center. A reception will begin at 6 p.m.

At 8 p.m., experts will discuss the experiences of undocumented immigrants. The panelists are Alicia Flores of La Hermandad Hank Lacayo Youth and Family Center, immigration attorney Vanessa Frank-Garcia, CLU political science professor José Marichal, and Jeannette Sanchez-Palacios, director for California State Assembly District 35.
 
The free event is designed to bring attention to the challenges faced by young immigrants and to provide an opportunity for community members, local leaders and experts to share their experiences with immigration issues.
 
“Which Way Home” shows the personal side of immigration through the eyes of children who face harrowing dangers with enormous courage and resourcefulness as they endeavor to cross the border.
 
The film follows several unaccompanied child migrants as they journey through Mexico en route to the U.S. on a freight train they call “The Beast.” Director Rebecca Cammisa tracks the stories of children like Olga and Freddy, 9-year-old Hondurans desperately trying to reach their families in Minnesota; Jose, a 10-year-old Salvadoran who has been abandoned by smugglers and ends up alone in a Mexican detention center; and Kevin, a canny, streetwise 14-year-old Honduran whose mother hopes that he will reach New York City and send money back to his family.

“Which Way Home” received the 2010 Emmy Award for Outstanding Informational Programming, the Robert F. Kennedy Journalism Award Grand Prize and a nomination for the 2010 Academy Award for Best Feature Documentary.