The Xavi's stolen years: child [un]protection

The Spanish child protection system has serious deficiencies. The goal of this project is to generate the debate needed to improve it. This documentary will feature testimonials from parents, children removed from their families by social services, who are now adults, lawyers, journalists and activists, who will give their vision of how the system is affecting lives of so many Spanish families.

This is the video trailer for the documentary on Xavier Vallejos's story, who was taken away from his home in 1985, during a momentary absence of his mother, up for an irregular adoption. We also will deal with Francisco Cardenas, president of the Association for the Defense of Children, Aprodeme, and hundreds of this NGO fellows.

(...) Are torn from their homes because the social officers believes they are at risk when the parents ask for help to social services, usually for economic reasons. Meanwhile, the local children's centers receives about 4,000 euros a month for each child. Experts (...) warn that covert adoptions might be occurring.
[Article in Interview, July 8, 2013)]

HOW WE WILL USE THE MONEY?

The money raised through this website will be used for documentary production costs, such as transportation, editing and distribution, as well as it broadcast through the differents free screenings options and aimed for all organizations and working groups related to this matter. With your help you can be part of the change: the socialization of this film is essential to give visibility to a problem that usually is only know by the affected.

WHEN YOU WILL WATCH THE DOCUMENTARY?

Production: three months after ended the campaign in Verkami.

Rewards: three months after ended the campaign in Verkami.

Socialization: three months after ended the campaign in Verkami.

ABOUT US

Xavier Vallejos: is one of the few people who has gone through the child protection system and has had the courage to tell his story on camera. He is 35 years old and lives at Palamós, 117 kilometers from Barcelona, and during years he was looking for their biological parents, to know that they were unsuccessfully searching for him too, since a social services officer took him from home illegally from home in 1985.

{Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/gustavo-franco-cruz/programa-vidas-robadas-decimo}

Francisco Cardenas: is the president of the Association for the Defense of Children, an NGO created in 2009 along with dozens of parents who feel mistreated by the Spanish social services. He published in 2012 the book "Es mi hija", which relates how an abusive administrative decision separated him forever from his three-years old daughter, his fight to get her back, and his proposal to improve the child's protection system. His case was mentioned in the Ombudsman 2009 annual report, as an example of "irregularity in the monitoring of host process" and "Administration need to review in depth the procedures and instructions of the family integration institutions."

www.esmihija.es
www.aprodeme.org
Facebook.com / asociaciondefensamenores
Twitter.com / eslamevafilla

Gustavo Franco Cruz: Investigative journalist (newspapers such El País, Público, Ara), author of "Molly, historia sobre centros de menores en Cataluña" (Ediciones Carena, 2010). This book was the result of a year research, along with journalist Jesús Martínez, including more than 30 interviews with parents, educators, psychologists, lawyers, politicians, officials and activists. Is currently in its third edition.

Twitter.com / gustavo_franco_
Gustavofrancocruz.wordpress.com