This is the story of "The Fighter", Alicia Torres Don, a Mexican luchadora and a resilient warrior in life.
Torres Don is also known as "La Aguila Dorada", or "The Golden Eagle" in English, a luchadora character she created for the battles she faces, in the ring and for undocumented youth living in the U.S.
"In Mexico, the luchador is this whole other persona," says Torres Don. "They're our heroes, like our Spidermans and our Supermans."
"The Fighter" documents Torres Don's campaigns against deportations and in favor of the DREAM Act, as well as her own personal struggle as an undocumented immigrant in the U.S. The film is part of The Undocumentary, a multimedia project about undocumented immigrant youth living in North Carolina produced by Josh Davis.
"The entertaining events have caught on in a big way, but more importantly, they've been another way for young Latino activists to get their message out about the Dream Act," wrote author Paul Cuadros about the Luchadoras crusade in a blog for The Huffington Post.
"Now female members are donning masks to get in the ring and literally grapple with their opponents to help raise support for their cause," he wrote.
Alicia Torres Don came to the U.S. from Mexico at the age of six with her parents in search of a better life. The Torres Don family settled in Austin, Texas where Torres Don struggled to finish school because of her legal status, but managed to work her way through it by earning money translating and babysitting.
When her mother was diagnosed with kidney disease, mother and daughter moved to North Carolina where her mother would be able to receive proper medical care without a social security number.
In North Carolina, "La Aguila Dorada" became an active member of the N.C. Dream Team. In the documentary, we see Torres Don campaigning in favor of the DREAM Act and organizing anti-deportation campaigns for undocumented youth.
"I fight for justice and for what is right," says Torres Don.
CORRECTION: This article has been updated to include the origins of "The Fighter" as part of "The Undocumentary" multimedia project.
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