The Crossroads: Inside US - Mexico Trade

Who wins from trade between the United States and Mexico? It is one of the world’s largest trade relationships, and lately, one of the most contentious as well. Many on both sides of the border blame NAFTA, a trade agreement between the two countries and Canada, for disrupting traditional economic opportunities. Meanwhile, politicians increasingly present the relationship as a zero-sum game, with one side always winning, and the other, losing.

About the Film

This documentary by Samuel George investigates the issue from both sides of the border. In Philadelphia, the film follows a former factory worker through a tour of his abandoned factory, one of many shuttered production facilities in the city that could no longer compete in an era of global trade. In rural Oaxaca, we meet farmers whose corn revenues have been undercut by cheaper produce coming in from the United States. In El Paso, Texas, we meet a community concerned by the impact of a new border wall, while, across the Rio Grande in Juarez, the film shares heart wrenching interviews with maquiladora workers, earning a pittance despite working punishing hours.

Overall, the investigation suggests that the notion of clear winners and losers of a massive and complex trade relationship is overly simplistic. This sweeping documentary adds nuance, context and humanity to one of the pressing debates in North American economics.