We've been burning the midnight oil in our Oakland editing room to bring you preview scenes from our next PBS film, NIOT III: The Patchogue Story.
It's the story of a small Long Island community where Marcelo Lucero, an Ecuadorean immigrant, was murdered in November 2008 in an attack by seven high school students who were looking for "Mexicans" to beat up.
NIOT film crews have made more than a dozen visits to Patchogue. We've gotten to know the Lucero family as well as civic leaders and elected officials, who tried to bring the community together in the aftermath of this shocking hate crime.
Why did we choose this story as our film's centerpiece?
"People around the country have seen the escalating rhetoric and violence against immigrants," says NIOT CEO and Executive Producer Patrice O'Neill. "This is just an extreme case. And what was important for us is that the tragedy awakened many good people in Patchogue-- including the Mayor and other local leaders, who are trying to make their community safer."
In addition, O'Neill says, Marcelo's brother Joselo has proven to be a powerful voice for many people, especially immigrants, who feel increasingly vulnerable.
NIOT III: The Patchogue Story will be presented on PBS stations nationwide in 2011.
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