The Brief

What is “homeboy culture”?

Filmmaker Brandon Loran Maxwell defines it as that of the pachucos, cholos, and lowriders who’ve long been a part of Los Angeles’ fabric. And his documentary American Homeboy, explores insider perspectives of “homeboy culture” and how its history is intertwined with the city.

“American Homeboy” from film newcomer Brandon Loran Maxwell offers deep insider perspectives

The documentary combines interviews and archival footage to explore the rich history of pachuco and cholo culture, set against the backdrop of the Chicano and Mexican American experience that gave rise to it, in L.A. and around the Southwest.

• Related: The film delves into other slices of L.A. Chicano history, like the lowrider car culture that became synonymous with Whittier Boulevard and other local cruising strips. In 2022, we wrote about the rise of lady low-rider car clubs in the city.

Loran Maxwell sifted through 50 hours of archival footage to make the film, and interviewed a dozen-plus experts — lifelong cholos, lowriders, artists, a former law enforcement officer and a full-body tattoo “collector” to name a few.

Read the full story here.

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Revisiting Student Loan Repayment

An illustration of a girl with hands on top of her head at a desk.

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Maria Grejc for NPR

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A few newsletters ago (Sept. 7 to be exact) I wrote about the return of student loan repayments. And here’s another reminder that repayment starts — checks my calendar — in just a few days on Oct. 1. In that newsletter, I shared a story that breaks down what you need to do, but you’re in luck because now there’s an audio version!

This How To LA episode goes into all the questions you may have about student loan repayment, what’s going on with loan forgiveness and the history of student loans in the US. Host Brian De Los Santos is joined by NPR’s Cory Turner and LAist’s Julia Barajas. Listen to the episode here.