17 & Unidentified

A film about Deivei Medina, a 17-year-old kid from the Dominican Republic who goes to school without a birth certificate. He struggles to find his own identity.

Filmmaker Alicia Wade attended the Global Potential cultural exchange program during the summer of 2009 in the Dominican Republic. Global Potential provides urban youth with the skills and perspective that enable them to effect positive change in their lives, communities, and the global community, through engagement in leadership training, social entrepreneurship, international cultural exchange and service learning. www.global-potential.org

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Category:

Nonprofits & Activism

Tags:

• global
• potential
• gp
• globalhood
• bateyes
• batey
• cuchilla
• quisqueya
• dominican
• republic
• haiti

[leelee72993]

@spyderhog73 thank you and thanks so much for coming i appreciate it =)

[spyderhog73]

I really enjoyed this film. I saw you at Lincoln Center today! Thanks for helping find your video. I wish you much luck in the future.

[leelee72993]

and you have a us born friend without a birth certificate not a friend who doesnt live in the us without a birth certificate its way different

[leelee72993]

@RVqueen you look pretty old enough to know some things because this is youtube i cant explain the way i want to. take a plane to the dominacan republic travel to the bateys and talk to the people there they will tell you all there is to problems and to answer your question the goverment. teachers. etc. his way of life him living is needed to have a birthcertificate the goverment makes these decission theres PROBLEMS LIKE DESCRIMINATION LEAD TO THESE PROBLEMS

[RVqueen]

Maybe you should try to discuss with me what "the problem" is and enlighten me.

Who told this young man that his identity is defined by paperwork or the lack of it?

I have US a born friend without birth certificate, by his parent's choice, to avoid the problems of government interference.

[leelee72993]

@RVqueen i dont know wat it is that you do but you are obviously blind to the problem & wat effects it has on dievi and others. when you explore another type of place other than the u.s or decide to not make retarted movies on youtube. then comment something

[upfromflames]

Papers. Its amazing the extent to which they control our lives. What many in the US call "illegal aliens" or more aptly called "sin papeles". Your whole existence is outlawed for lack of a paper. You captured this reality very well here, Alicia!

[RVqueen]

The problem is not that these people are missing documentation, but that governments require documentation. Of course this guy was born, we don't need a certificate to know that.