Educational Media Reviews Online

Though the title is plural, the focus here is really on a devoted mother, Yolanda Garcia, a Mexican-American who works incredibly hard to give her children a better life, even at the expense of her own. Every night for the past two decades, she and her husband have scoured the garbage bins of Venice Beach, California, collecting cans and bottles to sell at redemption centers. They’ve made enough money to send a son through MIT, are putting a daughter through college, and will keep on working so their teenage daughter may one day attend college. The Garcias manage to collect $1800 each month in bottles and cans, receive $600 more in government assistance, and live frugally, yet with a mortgage and car payment are still in debt.

Yolanda’s health is a greater concern. She suffers from high blood pressure - a condition that killed her mother and, her doctor bluntly predicts, will kill Yolanda too. The nature of her work also carries hazards. She wears rubber gloves when scouring the garbage bins, and in one scene discovers a handful of used hypodermic needles. Almost in passing, she mentions having been stuck by needles twice before and subsequently taking HIV tests each time. Yolanda seems fearful about her shaky health only to the extent it will deprive her family of a breadwinner. Retirement never enters into the discussion. From her son, whom we see graduating from MIT, she expects nothing, though she still feels obligated to him. His graduation is the heart of the film and a study in contrasts: protestors have gathered outside to picket the commencement speaker, a World Bank official, whose organization represents to them the exploitation of working people like Yolanda. Yet Yolanda herself quietly attends the graduation ceremony inside. It’s only later, talking to her doctor, that she confesses to feeling indifferent during the ceremony – not at its politics, but at the very notion of her son graduating from college after all their hard work.

Though only 21 minutes in length, Parents of the Year does a good job depicting the struggle of today’s working poor, a large segment of the population that nevertheless remains invisible to many. It’s also a solid contribution to the “American Dream” mythos. In fact, the film would have benefited from a bit more length, and especially more exploration of Yolanda’s past. But as is, Parents of the Year is a great discussion-starter and recommended for public, school, and academic libraries.