Latin Alternative band La Santa Cecilia puts faces to the issue of immigration reform

By Hilda GabrielaApril 9, 2013Music Videos
By Hilda Gabriela | April 9, 2013

la santa cecilia hielo

With the debut of its music video for its single “Hielo” (ICE), La Santa Cecilia draws attention to the daily fear Latin American immigrants in the US face when they step foot outside their home to try to achieve “the American dream”.

The video is released as the first single from the band’s upcoming album “Treinta Dias”, which is out on April 30, 2013. Directed by Alex Rivera, the video portrays real-life scenerios of different undocumented immigrants living in the United States, and shows how their lives – and that of their family’s – are drastically changed when they are arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), hence the title of the song.

The video features Erika Andiola, a national leader in the Dreamer movement whose mother was taken away when their home was raided by ICE. It also shows how a young Katherine Figueroa witnessed her own parents’ detention live on television at age 9.

With perfect timing, the music video debuts worldwide at the same time Congress returns from spring break Monday and with immigration reform at the top of its agenda. Hispanics across the country, including La Santa Cecilia, whose accordion player, Jose Carlos, decided to reveal his previously undocumented status, are hoping the votes that were cast this past November in support of President Barack Obama’s promise to tackle immigration reform, will be fulfilled, and that Congress establish a path to citizenship before any more families are torn apart.

The video is a collaboration with the National Day Laborer Organizing Network and the abc* (Americas Business Council) Foundation’s Healing Power of Music Initiative.


video uploaded by: LaSantaCeciliaVEVO