A Good Neighbor is a feature-length documentary about Lucy Molina, a Latina single mother fighting against racism and climate change as she campaigns for city council in one of the nation’s most polluted zip codes.
The film begins with Lucy in the car, giving one of her famous “Toxic Tours” of the 80216 zip code – named the most polluted zip code in America in 2018. As she drives by factories, highways, and the looming oil refinery – she speaks tearfully and candidly about her children’s illnesses. “I moved here because of that park for my kids” she says at one point, “I didn’t realize I was killing them.”
Lucy’s family health struggles – leukemia, brain cancer, migraines, bloody noses, diabetes – combined with inaction from her local government, motivated her to run for city council. The film follows Lucy’s campaign, using community events and campaign speeches as jumping off points to discuss larger issues such as racism, sacrifice zones, climate policy, health bias, and just transition.
The doc culminates in a nail-biting finale as Lucy’s family and friends gather on election night to see the results. But whether she wins or not, Lucy’s intimate story highlights a global need for change, and creates empathy by putting a face to the realities of marginalized communities like Commerce City, Colorado.
