A Spanish-language reality series on Los Angeles station KRCA-TV, Channel 62, is kicking up harsh criticism from legal advocates and at least three members of Congress, who say it exploits and possibly endangers immigrants. But station managers vowed Thursday that the show will go on.
The series, "Gana la Verde" (Win the Green), dangles the promise of immigration assistance for contestants who agree to perform on-camera stunts such as lying in a sealed plastic coffin with 500 rats or eating live beetles. The show, which is produced by Liberman Broadcasting, a Houston-based independent company, premiered on July 1 and borrows heavily from the format of NBC's unscripted hit "Fear Factor." In the case of "Gana la Verde," the winner walks away with one year's worth of paid assistance from experienced immigration lawyers who work to expedite the winner's residency process. The series is broadcast daily in Los Angeles, San Diego, Houston and Dallas.
A front-page story about the show in The Times on Aug. 4 drew the attention of immigration advocates, some of whom worry that it could jeopardize participants. Some contestants are undocumented immigrants who, advocates claim, are in danger of being detained or deported after being exposed on television. Others have visas and are in the process of becoming residents. Some contestants compete to win legal aid to help loved ones.
Representatives from six immigration legal and advocacy organizations held a news conference Thursday to demand that KRCA pull the show off the air. The groups were the American Immigration Lawyers Assn., California La Raza Lawyers Assn., Central American Resource Center, Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles, the Latina Lawyers Bar Assn. and the Mexican American Bar Assn.
"Obviously, the concern here is the immigrant community and more specifically the contestants," said Victor Niebles, a member of the board of governors of AILA and an adjunct professor of law at Loyola University. "The community-based organizations and lawyer bar associations which have contacted us are outraged at the false promises given on the show daily. With the immigration climate that we live under right now, these contestants face great danger. More importantly, we are concerned about what these attorneys are actually promising these individuals in regard to green cards and legalization."
