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Families affected by 2018 Grainger County ICE raid gather to watch new Netflix documentary about the aftermath

A year and a half later, watching the new Netflix documentary 'After the Raid' brought a lot of people back to the worst days of their lives.

RUTLEDGE, Tenn. — About 30 people gathered in Rutledge Thursday night for a screening of the new Netflix documentary "After the Raid."

It looks at life in Bean Station after one of the biggest ICE raids in state history.

In April 2018, ICE agents raided the Southeastern Provision plant in Grainger County.

Ninety-seven people were detained.

To this day, all of them are still waiting for a judge to formally decide their fate.

Until then their lives are on hold. They can't leave the country or legally work in the U.S. to support their families.

RELATED: One year later: Families wait with uncertainty following Grainger Co. ICE raid

A year and a half later, watching "After the Raid" brought a lot of people back to the worst days of their lives.

Many didn't come to the screening because they said it's too emotional, too hard to watch.

"People who aren't involved with the slaughterhouse, their lives have moved on, this is an old story. But for those in my congregation it's still a fresh story," said Father Steve Pawelk, pastor at St. John Paul II Catholic Mission in Rutledge.

He arranged them movie screening and is the person who's been most involved in helping the hundreds of people affected by the raid.

RELATED: Released ICE detainee recalls Grainger County raid

"I know all the stuff that's not on the film," said Pawelk. "I know all the struggles that have happened since the filming and where the struggles are today."

The documentary looks at how Bean Station and surrounding communities are rebuilding.

Many of the workers detained were deported back to places like Mexico and Guatemala.

Others, like Macario Bohovquez, are waiting for court dates years down the road.

He's in the film, and his family came to see it and talk with director Rodrigo Reyes who answered questions over video chat.

RELATED: Families wait for answers after ICE raid in Grainger County

"I think the movie does a good job of putting you in that space without telling you how to feel, without trying to convince you of one idea over the other," said Reyes.

He and Pawelk hope the documentary can show the human side of the ICE raid.

"My hope is that it creates a human dialogue," said Pawelk. "That we look at the people who have been affected and pray and review this issue without politics."

RELATED: Slaughterhouse owner who used illegal immigrants sentenced to 18 months in federal prison

"After the Raid" is now streaming on Netflix.

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