Press Street’s MiniPlex presents The Hand that Feeds

Sunday, September 6, 7:30 pm
Antenna Gallery, New Orleans
FREE and open to the public

Overview:

For a third year, Press Street’s MiniPlex presents a cinema program for Labor Day: “WE EAT ALL THE BIG FISH.” The program features two critically acclaimed documentaries about Labor issues within Latino communities along with tacos and an Open Screen event, inviting anyone to share their short films inspired by America’s Labor Day.

All MiniPlex screenings take place inside Antenna Gallery and are free and open to the public. Food and beverage will be available.

Program:

4:00 PM — Open Screen, New Orleans

5:30 PM — Tacos!

6:00 PM — Vida Propia (2014) *Filmmaker in Attendance

7:30 PM — The Hand That Feeds (2014)

The Hand That Feeds (2014), Dir. Rachel Lears & Robin Blotnick

At a popular bakery café, residents of New York’s Upper East Side get bagels and coffee served with a smile 24 hours a day. But behind the scenes, undocumented immigrant workers face sub-legal wages, dangerous machinery, and abusive managers who will fire them for calling in sick. Mild-mannered sandwich maker Mahoma López has never been interested in politics, but in January 2012, he convinces a small group of his co-workers to fight back.

Risking deportation and the loss of their livelihood, the workers team up with a diverse crew of innovative young organizers and take the unusual step of forming their own independent union, launching themselves on a journey that will test the limits of their resolve. In one roller-coaster year, they must overcome a shocking betrayal and a two-month lockout. Lawyers will battle in back rooms, Occupy Wall Street protesters will take over the restaurant, and a picket line will divide the neighborhood. If they can win a contract, it will set a historic precedent for low-wage workers across the country. But whatever happens, Mahoma and his coworkers will never be exploited again.

More information: http://press-street.org/film/