George Rivera Productions presents a one-hour documentary that explores what it’s like to be poor in America through the eyes of a single family living in the Pacific Northwest.  Their compelling story will lay the groundwork for improving understanding, communication and interaction between the 36 million people living in poverty and the rest of the country. Plans for the program also include an extensive outreach effort through local PBS stations and partnerships with organizations whose mission is to help people move out of poverty.

What makes Invisible Nation unique is that it will refocus perspectives and counter stereotypes in order to encourage new ways of thinking and acting when it comes to confronting poverty.  At the program’s center is Donna Beegle, Ed.D., a high school dropout, married at fifteen, who, through sheer determination, has successfully “crossed the border” to become highly visible as an advocate on behalf of people mired in circumstances not unlike those of her own family.  Her consulting firm, Communication Across Barriers, organizes national conferences with a focus on providing information to those who need it most, shattering common myths about people who live in poverty, and offering strategies for improving relationships across the divide. She travels widely for speaking engagements and hands-on work with communities struggling to tackle related issues.

Beegle’s life chronicles the many social ills associated with poverty: its all-encompassing culture, the perils of climbing out, poor role models, bad decisions, and the constant dream of a better life.  In Invisible Nation we also meet her chronically ill mother, who followed her own mother in supporting her family as an itinerant fruit and cotton picker; her close-knit band of five brothers, all of whom have at one point been in prison; and her mother’s brother, David, who has lived in his van for years.  Each member of this American family has a poignant tale to tell of life in their Invisible Nation.

In the mid-19th century, Benjamin Disraeli, writing about his native England as it reeled from the effects of the Industrial Revolution, identified “two nations, between whom there is no intercourse and no sympathy, who are as ignorant of each other’s habits, thoughts and feelings, as if they were...inhabitants of different planets.”  Today, Disraeli’s words continue to ring true in describing the relationship between the two nations of the United States, the haves and the have-nots.  The 2005 US Census says 12.6 percent of Americans live in poverty, up from 11.7% in 2001.  Nearly 25% of African-Americans live in poverty, as do 21% of Hispanics; 9.8% are Asian, 8.6% white.  When these percentages are converted to absolute numbers, the largest group of poor people is actually white – more than 16 million – while roughly the same number is split equally among blacks and Hispanics. (Children’s Defense Fund, 2004)  Together, this Invisible Nation is equal in size to the population of Canada; among the 17 leading industrialized nations, America ranks number one with the largest percentage of its people living in poverty.  Many more are just one step away. 

By looking at Donna Beegle, her family and her work, Invisible Nation takes us closer to people who struggle daily with the simple things that so many of us take for granted – food on the table, adequate schooling, stable relationships, a safe, warm place to call home – and the overarching challenge of crossing the border to visibility.

OUTREACH

The goal of the outreach effort surrounding the broadcast of Invisible Nation will be to increase the visibility of the growing number of poor among us and compel the more fortunate to effect change within their communities.  The approach is twofold: First, the Website for the program will provide links to partner agencies where viewers can go to learn more about what they can do locally, either through donations or volunteer involvement.

The second primary objective is the creation of supplementary programming for a minimum of 25% of PBS stations across the country.  Such programming will aim to:

•Put a face on poverty in local communities, from the children to the elderly

•Dispel stereotypes and provide an accurate, factual portrait of the poor, especially in the context of particular geographical areas

•Educate viewers on policy and structural issues, both local and national

•Identify opportunities to get involved

•Establish partnerships with service providers to improve their effectiveness

Outreach partners located within the markets that air the supplementary programs will most likely be called upon to cooperate with the producers in identifying compelling stories, serving as interview subjects or studio guests, and perhaps answering phones, should the station feel that a dial-in fundraising campaign is appropriate.  Several member agencies of the national Community Action Partnership and United Way have already stepped up to serve as partners in their respective states.

ABOUT GEORGE RIVERA PRODUCTIONS

With over fifteen years of success in the highly competitive New York City market, and a national reputation for excellence, GRP has built a proud and distinguished record creating content for broadcast in the areas of news, documentary, children’s, music, and original dramatic programming, as evidenced by its numerous industry awards. In addition, GRP is increasingly being called upon by corporate and not-for-profit entities to create presentations, training materials, fundraising videos and image campaigns.

A veteran of public and network television, George Rivera launched GRP in 1991 with a firm commitment to the development of television and film programming of the highest quality.  He began his television career at WGBH-TV in Boston, where he rose through the ranks to become Producer and Director of a wide variety of programs.  After returning to his New York home, he spent four years at WCBS-TV as a Documentary Producer before joining ABC News and Nightline, for which he was often part of the first wave of journalists to critical situations of armed conflict abroad. He also produced a number ABC News Specials and garnered five Emmys for his work.  At the helm of his own company, Mr. Rivera has produced a broad range of programs for air on PBS and NBC stations.

Fulfilling a longtime goal of controlling its own space, and to better accommodate its staff and the work that they do, GRP recently acquired and renovated a 10,000 square foot warehouse in New York’s East Harlem, which contains state-of-the-art studio space and edit suites, as well as Digital Laundry, a groundbreaking analog-to-digital conversion service.