I watched “La Niña” which is a Colombian, Spanish speaking tv show. It is about the life of a former guerrilla fighter. In the beginning of the first episode “Belky Bustamente” gets caught committing a crime and is sent to a human resources specialist. They suspect she is a minor and they later find out she is only 15 years old. She then is forced to join a social reintegration program. In the same episode we learn that she was taken as a child to go on and fight in the guerilla warfare.
Watch the trailer here:
Belky Bustamente alias “Sara” as a guerilla fighter.
The show is based in Bogota, Columbia (the poor suburban part of the city). There are many street vendors on the streets selling fresh vegetables, meats and foods. The actors speak a different Spanish but it is still understandable to the Spanish that I am familiar with. People of the poor class wear regular clothes and the middle and wealthier (rich) class wear nicer business like attire.
The first few episodes are about her life inside the social reintegration facility. It is not a fancy looking facility (there is a lot of graffiti) but they are offered everything they need as people who are socially reintegrating themselves into society. The economic situation outside of the facility is not the best because many people depend on their street vending businesses, growing their crops, etc.
Politically, the guerilla warfare militia rebelled against the Columbian military because benefits were often only given to those that had higher incomes the government didn’t help out the poor as much as they would to people that were already wealthy.
The similarities I found was that they value family. Here in the U.S for the holidays we gather with our families and have a big dinner and chat about life. The big difference I saw was the amount of street vendors selling foods to make an income. Here in the States not just anyone can sell food on the street, they all need to have a permit to sell food. Travel wise the actors would ride in motorcycles, bikes, vans, busses. The weather was often sunny and warm.
Later on, Belky realizes she has a passion for helping out others and falls in love with the medical field. She then joins a school of medicine to become a nurse.
Lastly, I highly recommend you all watch this show on Netflix (it offers subtitles in English) because it is based on a true story. It definitely expands your knowledge on guerilla warfare in Columbia and how many children are taken out of their will to go and commit crimes.
I think it is interesting that you chose to find the similarities and differences between the show and real life in the US. I think it is cool that they sell food on the streets to make an income for their families.