The film “A Day Without a Mexican” turned 20 this year, and its political message remains relevant at a time when anti-immigrant hysteria still reigns.
Directed by Sergio Arau, the mockumentary addresses the unexplained disappearance of Mexicans in California, causing economic chaos due to worker shortages in various industries including construction, maintenance, agriculture, law enforcement, education and more.
Before its release in 2004, a controversial promotional poster in a Hollywood parking lot attracted attention: “On May 14, there will be no Mexicans in California,” the poster read.
“It sounded like maybe [Gov.] “Pete Wilson was planning to return to politics, but the ad was actually a promotion for an upcoming pro-immigrant film,” said Steve Lopez, a reporter for the Los Angeles Times. wrote in 2004.
The poster offered limited context for the film, apart from a web link, but sparked controversy among passersby, who called it “offensive.” Hours later, the $10,000 poster was removed. Below for fear of a riot, according to the filmmakers.
“People thought it was the Minutemen, the Ku Klux Klan,” Arau tells The Times, though he notes that another ad targeting that group in Spanish read: “On May 14, the gringos are going to cry.”
Contrary to the public frenzy, the 2004 film was a response to the wave of anti-immigrant rhetoric that swept California in 1994 with Proposition 187, which was supported by then-Governor Pete Wilson. The ballot measure sought to establish a system of citizenship screening and bar undocumented immigrants in the state from accessing health care, public education and other social services.
Although Thousands of protesters In 1994, before the elections, protesters marched to oppose the measure; the measure passed with a comfortable majority.
Arau, a political cartoonist and son of acclaimed director Alfonso Arau, complained to his wife and actress Yareli Arizmendi (“Like Water for Chocolate”) about politics. She also appears in the film.
“I can’t stand this,” she said. “Why are they so aggressive?”
As a Mexican foreign citizen living in San Diego, he felt attacked by politics, but calls it the “trigger” for his creative endeavor.
Arizmendi, a byproduct of Luis Valdez's El Teatro Campesino who sees theater as a political tool, suggested that they act against xenophobic politics and create something that can demonstrate the economic value of migrants, i.e. Mexicans, in the state.
“She said we should have a day without Mexicans,” Arau recalled, and the idea stuck.
Arizmendi, who co-wrote the script with Arau and Sergio Guerrero, played on the xenophobic rhetoric pushed by Wilson, whose campaign ads sparked anti-immigrant hysteria.
—So, let's suppose we leave. What do you do without us? —said Arizmendi. We already know [what would happen if we leave].”
The independent filmmakers received an advance fee from the National Museum of Mexican Art in Chicago to finance and present their short film before making the feature, they said. “A Day Without a Mexican” became a contender at several film festivals, including the Los Angeles Latino International Film Festival in 1997.
The 28-minute short film showed the mixed reactions of several non-Mexican Californians who were suddenly confronted with their desire to be free of Mexican immigrants. The film sarcastically thanked Wilson in the credits scene.
“There was a lot of talk at the festivals,” Arizmendi said. “Everyone was saying, ‘I’ve always wondered what would happen if we left.’”
By the time the independent short gained traction at film festivals in 1998 — and financial backing from A Televisa Cine to produce it as a feature — the anti-immigrant ballot measure had already been struck down by a federal judge who deemed it unconstitutional under the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment, which protects any individual regardless of citizenship status.
Still, interest in the film grew over the years, and in 2001 an article appeared in the LA Times stating“It's a shame that a comedy film being developed in Los Angeles won't be ready to be shown when President Vicente Fox of Mexico meets with President Bush in Washington this week.”
Arau and Arizmendi rushed to finish their film for fear of losing relevance by taking a stand on the delays in immigration reform.
“Bush wanted to push through immigration reform, and we were like, ‘Oh my God, we’re going to be too late,’” Arizmendi recalls. “And of course, here we are, 20 years later, and it’s still happening and nothing has changed.”
Although the satire received mixed reviews upon its release in 2004, a planning editor at the LA Times called The film, which cost $1.8 million to make, exceeded financial expectations and grossed $10.1 million at the box office.
Twenty years later, Arau and Arizmendi are celebrating the film's anniversary with a series of screenings across the country. The tour has opened their eyes to stagnant immigration policies and anti-xenophobic rhetoric that remains relevant long after Prop. 187.
“When we did a projection a month ago, someone called me a prophet,” Arizmendi said. “Because that’s exactly what Trump is saying today.”
At the Republican National Convention, former President Trump promised unprecedented mass deportations.
“The Republican platform promises to launch the largest deportation operation in the history of our country,” Trump said. saying.
TO Free screening The performance of “A Day Without a Mexican” will take place at the Plaza de Cultura y Artes in Los Angeles at 7 pm on Saturday.
