The Trump administration’s family separation policy has been a subject of outraged conversation among political figures and celebrities alike in the past few days, but the writers’ rooms of Netflix series One Day at a Time and Starz series Vida are here to show that it’s not just talk.
According to Vanity Fair, the showrunners and writers of both shows are coming together to raise money to donate to the cause. They’re giving their money to RAICES Texas, an organization dedicated to raising money to post bail for immigrant parents that are arrested at the border.
One Day at a Time & Vida are teaming up to end family separation at the border. Donate here to directly support legal services for detained separated parents and funding for their release. #onevidaatatime#keepfamiliestogetherhttps://t.co/GN9YMqjsAMpic.twitter.com/f3MQzv2Cj2
— Gloria Calderón Kellett (@everythingloria) June 19, 2018
Both One Day at a Time and Vida follow Latinx protagonists: One Day at a Time is about a Cuban-American family, and Vida stars two Mexican-American siblings. It makes sense, then, that this issue would hit particularly close to home for the shows’ writers, and it’s awesome to see them use their platform for good.
Tanya Saracho, the executive producer of Vida, and Gloria Calderón Kellett, the co-showrunner of One Day at a Time, both took to social media to announce the collaboration. They used the hashtags #onevidaatatime and #keepfamiliestogether to spread the message, and have had support from others on Twitter who decided to donate.
Just donated to a group of legal services for immigrants at the boarder. Keep up the pressure!!!
— Amy Pietz (@AmyPietz) June 20, 2018
Variety pointed out that in her Instagram caption, Saracho had a pretty specific call-to-action, too: “We challenge the writers of @cwjanethevirgin and @grandhotelabc to donate and support detained families reunite #keepfamiliestogether,” she said. Jane the Virgin on The CW and the upcoming Grand Hotel on ABC both take place in Miami and follow Latinx characters as well, so it’s clear why Saracho and Kellett hope they notice this callout and get involved.
Of course, not only Latinx people should be responsible for the fight against this awful policy. If you can, I sincerely recommend checking out RAICES Texas and donating even just a little bit to the cause.