The US is one of the nations where racism rampancy is becoming a problem in a political, social and economic sense. The rampancy nature of racism is as a result of the increasing population of immigrants. Most of the states consider such immigrants as invisible, thereby not recognizing the significant role they play in society. The A Day without a Mexican film explores the issue of racism in California and depicts it in a way that the white community does not usually see. The plot development in such a way manages to paint a picture of a society that cannot progress without the contribution of immigrants. A Day without a Mexican film successfully manages to satirically demonstrate to the white audience about racism as a problem in California and the rest of America through the lens of human diversity, structured functionalism as well as economic discrimination associated with Hispanic identity.
In the context of identity, the film portrays human diversity in California society by successfully demonstrating how racial discrimination affects people differently. In such regard, the film depicts how Senator Steven Abercombie character is racially biased, refusing a nanny from the Mexican community. Through the role, the rest of Americans, especially the whites without knowledge of what immigrants go through gets to understand the impact of such discrimination. The act of the senator locks out other potential individuals who could have used the opportunity to progress themselves economically. More so, the senator also had to ensure the nanny was legal. Such a case, therefore, illustrates how diversity is affecting immigrants, especially when the issue of identity locks them out of employment opportunities.
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As well, racism also pushed Mexicans to opt for menial labor, but some became successful even to take up political roles. In such regard, most of the immigrants get to the US with the objective of securing employment even in low paying sectors and menial jobs. The film demonstrates in such sense demonstrates why the Mexicans, as well as Latinos, have stereotypical roles. Some even go to the extent of changing the identity to secure jobs. The character of Lila Rodriguez, the TV reporter, demonstrates this by changing her name to Lyla Rod to avoid being racially discriminated using the name. Such cases, therefore, confirm the Americans are still racially biased and needs to understand the impact of the problem through the film’s plot to change.
Some of the immigrants are, however, able to beat the effect of stereotyping to become successful in American society. In a real-world context, Ileana Ros-Lehtinen beats stereotyping to become a successful Latino politician. The character beats the odds to become a representative of 27th congressional districts in Florida and progressed to become the most senior by the end of the tenure. Ros-Lehtinen's success is, therefore, a perfect demonstration to the white Americans that sometimes the society can look beyond the racial factors and progress.
Furthermore, the film also demonstrates racism in the context of functionalism. In such regard, Mexican workers worked hard as well as for long hours without many noticing. The commitment of the Mexicans to such productivity is share among other immigrants. The Americans, however, do not understand this as most only seen the immigrants as a burden in the sense of taking advantage of US services such as the undocumented immigrants using the healthcare system without coverage. More so, the reality only hits the Californians when the Mexicans disappear, leading to an economic halt. Such is a demonstration that a change in the social structure, would significantly affect the rest of Americans. For example, a change in the status of the immigrants now under the presidency of Donald Trump is affecting Americans. The handling of immigrants on racial grounds such as limiting resources and access to America is leading to a reduction in their population across America. Functionalism, therefore, helps white viewers to understand the importance of Mexicans.
Besides, the film also paints a picture of the impact of economic racism in California. One of the cases the film uses in demonstrating racism is how the authority takes advantage of the immigrants. In such regard, the film shows that Senator Steven Abercombie and the wife call on illegal immigrants to provide labor. The illegal immigrants are at risk of not getting fair compensation. Such a case proves that the senator has access to legal workers but opts for the immigrants who he can easily take advantage of and benefit. More so, the film also demonstrates how the immigrants provide labor almost in every sector, thereby contributing more significantly to the economy. The Americans, however, do not understand this and gets to racially discriminate them until they disappear, leaving the economy in disarray.
The troubled economy also demonstrates to the rest of Americans that the Mexicans bear the burden of changing the economic status of America. The 2014 statistics point out that up to 16% of the 146.3 million employees in the US were Hispanics and Latino. Such data demonstrate that Mexicans suffer the burden of ensuring the economic success of the US, but Americans do not understand, therefore ending up discriminating immigrants.
In conclusion, A Day without a Mexican manages to depict the racial conditions faced by the Hispanic community in California society. The film does so by describing how deep racial discrimination is rooted in the city after the disappearance of Mexicans. The events depicted before and after the disappearance of the community shows that the rest of the population discriminates the Mexicans economically, in terms of identity as well as functionalism. Such cases are relatable to real-world problems. In such regard, the white viewers can, therefore, understand the racial setup of American community differently than before.
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