Economics

Over half of the Latin American labor force works in the "informal economy," creating their own forms of income and employment through hard work and ingenuity. This documentary celebrates the resourcefulness of impoverished people throughout the developing world for whom economic necessity is truly the mother of invention.

Examines the controversial issue of Latin America's `external debt' to the U.S., focusing on the ways it affects children, including malnourishment, lack of medical care,

Reveals the plight of landless peasants in Guatemala, where property ownership is restricted to a small percentage of the nation's most wealthy citizens.

Examines the phenomenon of the Cuban "balseros," those Cuban citizens who in the summer of 1994, in response to the island's deepening economic crisis, took to the sea in flimsy, homemade rafts in a desperate attempt to reach Florida.

This documentary examines the human side of Mexico's informal economy, which is estimated to comprise some two-thirds of the country's working population. Featuring interviews with five street vendors and a resident economics scholar, the video will stimulate discussion on government regulation, economic sustainability, environmental health, and the NAFTA debate.

This documentary follows farmworkers from California's Salinas Valley back to their roots in the fields of rural Mexico, where they recount their everyday struggle to cope in the midst of the globalization of agriculture and the impact of NAFTA.

Examines the situation of women coal miners in the U.S., their struggle to be hired, their day-to-day lives in the mines, the economic necessity that first made them seek work as miners, and the opposition they face from their families, the community and their male coworkers.

Examines the history and present-day reality of Puerto Rico, including the history and the contemporary relationship between the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and the U.S.; the impact of industrialization on the island's economy, ecology and social life; economic exile and life in New York City; and the history of the Puerto Rican independence movement.

Examines Puerto Rico's `Operation Bootstrap,' the highly vaunted economic development plan undertaken in the 1950s to provide a role model for economic development throughout Latin America.

This documentary, featuring interviews with industrialists, economics, and government officials, analyzes the economic development of Puerto Rico, from 1940 through 1994, including the impact of NAFTA on the Commonwealth's economy.

This documentary examines the situation of Dominican immigration into New York City, detailing the economic pressures of unemployment and poverty in the Dominican Republic which have led to a rapidly growing Dominican community in New York, primarily in Brooklyn and the Washington Heights area of Upper Manhattan.

Examines the plight of a Kentucky tobacco farmer and his family in the face of uncertain government price support programs and a growing national antismoking campaign.

This expose of the plight of undocumented Mexican workers in the U.S. also provides a comprehensive overview of the complex issue of Mexican immigration, including interviews with prominent scholars, attorneys and organizers.

Particularly recommended as a teaching tool regarding issues of Latino Studies, Chicano Studies, Immigration, and Cultural Studies.

This video offers an in-depth historical examination of Connecticut's Naugatuck Valley brass industry, from its heyday to its present decline. From the mid-19th century to its peak during WWI, 'Brass Valley' produced more than half of America's brass goods, from buttons and belt buckles to auto parts, pistols and cannon shells.

This video tells the story of a hardworking, self-sufficient, fiercely independent community of fishermen and women working the waters of Virginia's Chesapeake Bay.

From executions in Nigeria to riots in Indonesia, this video examines the impact of "globalization," the economic engine that is rocking financial systems worldwide, and questions whether or not economic trade can be linked to human rights and democracy, whether it is possible for profits and principles to coexist.

This video shows constructive ways ordinary people around the world are addressing the impact of globalization on their communities, workplaces, and environments.

Surveys the work of plastic artists in Puerto Rico during the 20th century, as well as significant forerunners in the 18th and 19th centuries, focusing on the artists' expression of national identity. The video combines illustrations of hundreds of art works with interviews with a dozen major contemporary artists and commentary by art critics.