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Unwelcomed

At the end of 2021, sparked by an unprecedented influx of migrants from Venezuela, Chile experienced a remarkably violent anti-immigrant protest. The last decade’s economic collapse has driven close to 8 million Venezuelans to flee their country—the second-largest migration crisis worldwide and the first of its kind in South America. For those who chose to migrate south, traversing thousands of kilometres to the Andean Highlands and the Atacama Desert, a harsh reality awaited. Determined to preserve their lifestyle, an angry community made sure to make them feel “unwelcomed,” responding with violence and attacking families and children while the police turned a blind eye. This poignant chorus of testimonies floating over majestic cinematography sheds light on a new era in the history of migration: those fleeing conflict and economic uncertainty are treated as criminals, and their choices for a hopeful future are narrowing down.

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