Historic Filipinotown
“Gintong Kasaysayan, Ginton Pamana” (1)
The center of the journey is the miracle of murals, “Filipino Americans: A Glorious History, A Golden Legacy” (2). It is located at Unidad Park in the middle of Los Angeles’ Historic Filipinotown. This mural is the largest mural in the United States that depicts Filipino and Filipino American history. The mural was painted in this place before it became designated as Historic Filipinotown.
As stated in Wikipedia, “Historic Filipinotown is a district of the city of Los Angeles, California... The space ‘was created by a resolution proposed by city council member Eric Garcetti on August 2, 2002. The district is bounded by Hoover Street on the west to Glendale Boulevard on the east, Temple Street on the north, Beverly Boulevard on the south side”’ (3). Although, Wikipedia gives a good account of the political argument for the creation of this space into an historic Filipino place, but is it really? Examine the history.
During the 1920’s and 30’s there was a Filipino community known as Little Manila. “The district, which housed restaurants, barbershops, tailors, and boarding houses, was roughly bounded on the east by San Pedro Street, south - Sixth Street, west -Figueroa Street, and north - Sunset Boulevard” (4). These businesses served the migrant agriculture Filipino workers and Filipino domestic workers and students. Also, in this space, the Filipino newspaper was published and it housed the Caballeros de Dimas-Alang, a renowned Filipino organization. A People’s Guide to Los Angeles, states that due to the Philippines being a colony of the United States, Filipinos were free to enter the U.S. space. However, like many other Asians, they were restricted from living outside of, i.e. making a place outside of, the central districts. Little Manila was “formed largely through exclusion and restriction. Nonetheless, Little Manila thrived as a multiracial center of working-class recreation, political information, and social networking. Virtually all of Little Manila was destroyed by urban renewal and the construction of the 110 freeway in the mid 1050’s” (5).
Politically something had to be done to recognize the Filipino’s community contribution to Los Angeles. “I still remember that day clearly: 13th District Councilmember Eric Garcetti reciting his motion, local community leaders offering testimony, Filipino American World War II veterans…The community designation sign was unveiled, marking the culmination of the dreams of an ethnic community that had sought for years to be recognized”, writes one Filipino journalist on the 10th anniversary of Filipinotown (6). The city council designated a space. Perhaps they took a cue from the movie, Field of Dreams’ lament: “build it and they will come” (7). Did they come making this a Filipina/o place or was this just a political attempt to appease? Criticisms still echo from 10 years ago. “Still, many visitors and even residents lament the community's lack of "there" there; Hi-Fi still doesn't quite have the visible cultural impact that its fellow Asian designated communities possess” (8). We leave it up to the reader to ponder.
References:
(1) en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Historic_Filipinotown,_Los_Angeles.
(2) Ibid.
(3) Ibid.
(4) Pulido, Laura; Barraclough, Laura; Cheng, Wendy; “A People’s Guide to Los Angeles” (Berkeley and Los Angeles, University of California Press, 2012) p. 26.
(5) Pulido, Laura; Barraclough, Laura; Cheng, Wendy; “A People’s Guide To Los Angeles” p.26-27.
(6)Trinidad, Elson; L.A.'s Historic Filipinotown Turns Ten: What's Changed, (2012).
http://www.kcet.org/updaily/socal_focus/commentary/los-angeles-historic-filipinotown-turns-ten-whats-changed.html
(7) Robinson, Phil A.; Kinsella, W. P., “Field of Dreams” (1989).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Ay5GqJwHF8&hd=1
(8) Trinidad, Elson; L.A.'s Historic Filipinotown Turns Ten: What's Changed, (2012).
http://www.kcet.org/updaily/socal_focus/commentary/los-angeles-historic-filipinotown-turns-ten-whats-changed.html
1. Critical Map Video
Our journey took us from Wilshire and Westwood to Historic Filipinotown. We ventured by bus and foot. Travel time was approximately 1 hour. Our eyes saw Asian, Black, Brown and White people. We smelled the aroma of coffee, hamburgers, kimchi and enchiladas. We heard Spanish, English and Cantonese. We saw one of the richest shopping streets in the world and a family coming from the food bank. On our journey we did not find the home of the free and the brave as much as the home of the economically enslaved. We found ourselves on the turf of the economically very poor and extremely wealthy, the kingdom of the serfs and noble persons, and the land of the masters and the slaves.
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