Los Angeles (USA), (EFE).- The documentary “The First Step”, which hit theaters in the US this weekend, narrates the personal crusade of activist Van Jones until he succeeded in reforming some laws prisons and alleviate the saturation of the prison system in the United States.
Directed by filmmaker Brandon Kramer, the film follows in the footsteps of a well-known character in American society due to his facets as a social leader, political analyst and writer or thanks to his position as advisor to the Department of Sustainable Jobs, Business and Innovation at the White House with Democrat Barack Obama (2009-2017).
Van Jones’ effort, which lasted for years, paid off with the approval in the United States Congress of legislation called “First Step” during the Administration of Republican Donald Trump (2017-2021).
The law was promulgated in December 2018 after formalizing a draft that brought together the support of Justice Department workers, activists, religious leaders and different members of associations affected by the United States penal system.
“First Step” allowed the reduction of sentences for inmates who were addicted to drugs or alcohol at the time of committing minor crimes, and led to a decrease in the occupancy rate of the country’s prisons.
Up to 20,000 inmates have benefited in recent years from this law, according to data from the non-profit association Reform Alliance, founded by Van Jones himself.
Louis L. Reed, director of Alliances for the Reform Alliance, valued Kramer’s documentary in an interview with EFE as “a work that humanizes the victims of the prison system” so that they are not seen by society as “criminals”, but as “fathers, mothers or relatives who seek to reinsert themselves”.
However, before the law materialized, Van Jones found himself trapped in a spiral of partisan interests and political polarization that complicated any progress achieved in other sectors involved, such as religion or civil society.
Defined by his own protagonist as “a game of political chess” in the offices of the upper echelons of Washington, Jones is branded as a progressive by the Republicans and as a conservative by the Democrats.
Throughout this documentary, produced by the company Meridian Hill Pictures, faces as recognizable as Trump’s adviser and son-in-law Jared Kushner, Senator Bernie Sanders, the current vice president, Kamala Harris, businesswoman and “socialite” Kim Kardashian appear. Or Trump himself.
In fact, unpublished images of the momentous meetings with these personalities that preceded the approval of this legislation are revealed.
“The documentary is a story of hope and the power of the ability to create human relationships. (…) Even witnessing how divisive politics can be and how they isolate each other if they do not follow what is established”, argued the director of the film in statements to EFE.
Jones’s more professional side is complemented by a personal side through intimate recordings that reflect his relationships with friends and family during this stage of his life.
“It took a year of recording to trust Van Jones to be able to film these intimate moments, with his family or in meetings like the one he had with Jared Kushner. (…) It was logical that the last thing he wanted is for me to be there recording it, ”explained Kramer.
Both Reed and he concluded that, “despite the inspiration of the documentary,” this production also focuses on the lack of understanding of a fragmented American society in which “division continues” evident after Trump’s term.
Guillermo Azabal
