In 1994, a Clinton administration initiative forced migrants to take deadlier routes through the Sonoran Desert to cross from Mexico into Arizona. Starting in 2016, the Trump administration pursued even more intense policing measures at the border, resulting in the arrests of volunteers who provided food, water and shelter to migrants. The short documentary USA v Scott chronicles how, in 2018, a geography professor and volunteer humanitarian aid worker named Scott Warren was arrested under a law that had previously been used to target smugglers, and faced the potential of a 20-year prison sentence. Following Scott as he continues to help migrants while preparing for his trial, the film ponders the boundaries between country and country, and law and morality.
Directors: Ora DeKornfeld, Isabel Castro
Producers: Marie-Hélène Carleton, Micah Garen
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Political philosophy
The radical activist couple who fought for social change in the courtroom
21 minutes
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Human rights and justice
When a burial for slave trade victims is unearthed, a small island faces a reckoning
29 minutes
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Ecology and environmental sciences
GPS tracking reveals stunning insights into the patterns of migratory birds
6 minutes
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Space exploration
The rarely told story of the fruit flies, primates and canines that preceded us in space
12 minutes
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Film and visual culture
A lush animated opus evokes the frenzied pace of modern life
4 minutes
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Family life
The precious family keepsakes that hold meaning for generations
10 minutes
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Archaeology
What did the first people who entered Tutankhamun’s tomb see?
5 minutes
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Information and communication
Coverage of the ‘balloon boy’ hoax forms a withering indictment of for-profit news
17 minutes
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Childhood and adolescence
Marmar is living through a devastating war – but she’d rather tell you about her new dress
8 minutes