Film shows right wing extremists’ abuse of refugees

Canadian film director Pier-Philippe Chevigny was inspired to create his film REBEL (RECRUE in French) by real events. In 2017, as the United States cracked down on would-be immigrants and refugees, thousands fled across the border into Canada.

Because of an agreement with the U.S., they would have been turned back if they had come through official border crossings. So, tens of thousands crossed elsewhere and critics labelled them “illegals.”  The truth is that while it is against the law to cross the border anywhere other than an official port of entry, once people are in Canada, it is legal for them to apply for asylum in an effort to gain refugee status. Chevigny said the crossings “ignited the fire of right wing extremism in Quebec” and he wanted to tell the story about it.

Since 2017, tens of thousands of people like these have crossed into Canada outside of official border crossings to avoid being sent back to the U.S. (Wilson Ring/AP Photo/Nov. 4, 2019)

Director sought ‘to challenge the perception that Canada is…very welcoming’

There were broader issues that the director wanted to address. “I wanted to challenge the perception that Canada is a very welcoming and progressive country,” said Chevigny in a promotional video. “It’s also about the international consequence of American policies. In 2017, the U.S. suspended the temporary protected status for migrants. All of a sudden, tens of thousands of migrants begin fleeing the U.S.”

The film is shot from the point of view of a six-year-old boy. His father takes him to a vigilante patrol in a forest to find incoming migrants. The lad feels something is wrong.

REBEL has won awards including the Audience Awards at DC Shorts, Best Short Film Award at the Tirana International Film Festival, and the Golden Spike Award for Best Short Film at the Social World Film Festival.

It will be screened at several upcoming festivals in the U.S., Brazil, Scotland and Colombia.

(YouTube)