In 1937, tens of thousands of Haitians and Dominicans of Haitian descent were murdered by the Dominican army, many on the basis of their skin colour alone. The so-called “Haitian Problem” was an attempt to control the border between the two countries and whiten the Dominican population, led by a dictator obsessed with race.

In 2013, the Dominican Republic’s Supreme Court stripped the citizenship of anyone with Haitian parents, retroactive to 1929. The ruling rendered more than 200,000 people stateless, without nationality, identity, or a homeland.

Director Michèle Stephenson’s new documentary Stateless traces the complex tributaries of history and present-day politics, as state-sanctioned racism seeps into mundane offices, living room meetings, and street protests. Anyone defending marginalized groups faces threats of violence. In this dangerous climate, a young attorney named Rosa Iris mounts a grassroots campaign, challenging electoral corruption and advocating for social justice. As Rosa balances her congressional run with her dedication to her family and community, the full scope of her fight is revealed.

Haiti and the Dominican Republic share a torturous history dating back to colonial rule when France and Spain divided the Island of Hispaniola along cultural and racial lines. Despite historic cross-border solidarity and peaceful coexistence between Haitians and Dominicans, waves of state-sponsored violence have continued to ripple out in the form of forced deportations and racialized targeting. As people on either side of the border struggle to navigate a rising tide of nationalist hatred and vigilantism, a humanitarian crisis unfolds, echoing similar immigration catastrophes around the globe.

Filmed in chiaroscuro colours and shot through with elements of magical realism, Stateless combines gritty hidden-camera footage with the legend of a young woman fleeing brutal violence to flip the narrative axis, revealing the depths of institutionalized oppression.