"Estrellas de la Linea" (The Railroad All-Stars)

This film looks amazing -- it screened in Antigua on Saturday, but I was elsewhere. Chema Rodríguez' "Estrellas de la Linea," or "The Railroad All-Stars," documents the lives of a group of Guatemalan sex workers who work an area near the railroad that passes through Guatemala City on its way to the country's eastern and western boundaries. 

All of them dream of being treated with respect, and that the violence against them will end. In order to publicise their plight – that also includes regular police harassment – they decide to found a football team. After weeks of training, they register for a local championship. But they are barred from taking part – simply because they are prostitutes. Their disqualification unleashes some hefty controversy that has a significant effect on their lives.

“We are women and mothers first, prostitutes second”, is the pronouncement at the top of their list of demands.