How To LA: Pachuco And Cholo Culture And Their Place In LA History (And Other Headlines)

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.

How To LA

We’re here to help curious Angelenos connect with others, discover the new, navigate the confusing, and even drive some change along the way.

Listen Now

More news

(After you stop hitting snooze)

• Los Angeles County is offering free COVID-19 vaccines to people who are uninsured or underinsured. The shots will be available at public health pods set up in Ted Watkins Memorial Park in South L.A. and Obregon Park in East L.A.
• Spiny lobster fishing season could be delayed in some areas of Los Angeles and Orange counties. High levels of domoic acid were found in some samples of the crustacean tested by public health officials.
• After years of pandemic declines, enrollment at California’s community colleges may finally be starting to rebound in a significant way. 
• Warren High School and Downey High School will take their decades-long rivalry to the Friday night lights of Sofi Stadium. 
• Similar to grief circles or other types of peer-support groups, informal gatherings are helping people work through the emotional distress of living in a climate emergency.
• The new season of the LAist Studios podcast Imperfect Paradise debuted Wednesday with Nury & The Secret Tapes, the story of how a secretly recorded conversation, leaked to journalists online, exploded into the largest political scandal in recent Los Angeles history and exposed deep-seated issues over race and politics.

  Wait... one more thing

Revisiting Student Loan Repayment

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

(

Maria Grejc for NPR

)

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.