For three years, the makers of this docuseries gained in-depth access to ICE and other government agencies to document the current state of the U.S. immigration system.
Immigration Nation looks at how ICE functions from within, but it also focuses on the human toll of its methods. When a migrant freezes to death, an officer calls his distraught father to notify him. It quickly becomes apparent that the officer is using the same call to try to establish if the father is in the U.S. legally or if he should be deported.
The show also makes an important point of noting that the harshness of the U.S. immigration system didn’t start with the current administration. “Prevention through deterrence” Clinton-era policies, for example, forced migrants towards desert routes, killing around 10,000 people from dehydration.
"Immigration Nation offers a more complete picture than anything we've seen before on immigration in the Trump era."
— Brian Tallerico
"Immigration Nation provides a damning indictment of the labyrinth systems that make ICE so powerful, and a wrenching examination of the human cost its policies have wrought."
— Caroline Framke
With unprecedented access to ICE operations, as well as moving portraits of immigrants, this docuseries takes a deep look at U.S. immigration today.
Spirit Awards
1 win
