NFB documentary follows queer refugees seeking Last Chance in Canada

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      Their names are Trudi, Carlos, Jennifer, Zaki, and Alvaro. They're from countries as varied as Jamaica, Colombia, Lebanon, Egypt, and Nicaragua. But what they have in common is that they've all fled homophobic violence in their homelands. They have faced either rejection from their families, arrest, imprisonment, rape, torture, or death threats. And they're all seeking asylum in Canada.

      Halifax-based CBC journalist Paul Émile d'Entremont's documentary Last Chance follows their journeys and exposes the ordeals that they endure as asylum seekers. They dream of the freedom of being themselves in Canada, but first they must prove that they are in fact what they say they are.

      Although Canada was one of the first countries to accept asylum seekers on the basis of sexual orientation or identity, the film takes a close look at how Canada integrates refugees.

      Just prior to Human Rights Day (December 10), the National Film Board of Canada is releasing the documentary Last Chance online at the NFB website. It's being offered for free from Thursday to Sunday (December 7 to 9). (After that, it will be available for purchase as download-to-own or video-on-demand.)

      You can follow Craig Takeuchi on Twitter at twitter.com/cinecraig. You can also follow the Georgia Straight's LGBT coverage on Twitter at twitter.com/StraightLGBT.

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