'Two Americans' Documentary Trailer: Watch Film On Sheriff Joe Arpaio, Anti-Deportation Crusader Kathy Figueroa On Al Jazeera

A documentary profiling two figures on opposite sides of the debate on immigration in the state of Arizona is set to air on Al Jazeera America this Sunday. "Two Americans", from filmmaker Daniel DeVivo and independent journalist Valeria Fernandez, "portrays the emotional and economic turmoil that raids and subsequent deportations have on the families of undocumented workers, and the law enforcement officials whose job it is to arrest them", according to a press release from the network. Scroll down to the end of the page to watch the trailer.

The press release goes on to say that the film "follows the story of one such family - and the sheriff who is enforcing the law." That sheriff - Joe Arpaio of Arizona's Maricopa County - has become a notorious figure among many immigrants and immigrant advocates for his taste for punitive measures against immigrants in the US without documentation. He was found by a district judge in May to have illegally racially profiled in his office's immigration-related operations, ruling that he and his deputies in the most populous county in Arizona could not target "particular communities, locations or geographic areas for targeted traffic enforcement based to any degree on the racial or ethnic composition of the community" and prohibited them from using race as a factor in whether or not to pull over vehicles to verify the occupants' legal status. "Why do I get all the heat because someone does something wrong and I use the word 'punishment', which nobody else will use?" Arpaio asks in the trailer. Why should they not be punished?"

The other side of the debate in the film is taken up by then-9-year-old Katherine Figueroa, whose parents are arrested in September 2009 when Arpaio's deputies raid a Phoenix carwash suspected of hiring undocumented workers - a raid which later sparked a federal investigation into the legality of it. As Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) begin deportation proceedings against her parents, Figueroa makes a series of videos directed at Congress and President Barack Obama, asking them to help keep her family together. The film traces her efforts in keeping her parents' plight in the spotlight. Four years after the raid, they won a provisional legal status which allows them to work and live in the country indefinitely.

Al Jazeera says the film "showcases both sides of one of America's most polarizing issues and provides an in-depth look at how immigration policy is affecting families and communities." To catch "Two Americans" when it airs, tune in to Al Jazeera America Presents on Sunday, October 27 at 9pm EST.