Coronavirus is here.  We’re all required to practice social distancing.  For many of us, this type of isolation is normal, for others, not so much.  Despite these government mandates, we here at TFAL must continue, if only for our own sanity.  This past week, Elaine, Joe, Ryan, and Producer Mike came together virtually and streamed…

Documentaries are essential for our community.  There are certainly a number of good films that document the Filipino and Filipino American experience – Delano Manongs, The Fall of the I-Hotel, Imelda, The Learning, Bontoc Eulogy, to name a few.  These films are so important in spreading awareness of our people’s history and culture and keeping…

In this mini episode the TFAL crew get to know artist and musician Greg Narvas. Greg Narvas is the creator of the zine “I Was a Teenage Filipino Skinhead” and is the drummer and percussionist for the ska band Hepcat. Inspired by AZN FLUSH, a drinking game, Greg realized that there could be a Filipino…

CORRECTION: Contrary to what was discussed in the episode, there is no “long” or “short” form in the Census. The 2020 Census will only have nine questions. The “long” and “short” form discussed refers to the American Community Survey (ACS), not the 2020 Census. Additionally, the 2020 Census will NOT ask for income. Apologies for…

Homelessness is an issue that affects us all, but it’s especially felt in TFAL’s home base of Los Angeles.  Last year, thanks to a mix of housing unafforadability, stagnant wages, and the effects of past and present systemic inequities, on any given night, nearly 59,000 people in Los Angeles did not have a permanent place…

  Earlier this month the Los Angeles Times ran the column Here’s how HiFi, or Historic Filipinotown, got its name by Frank Shyong. In the column Frank quotes TFAL’s Joe Bernardo and mentions Episode 85 – Filipino Ethnic Enclaves: Do They Exist? Do We Need Them? Head to the LA Times and read the full…

Ever leave flyers out and hope that it reaches someone out there? In this episode Producer Mike and Elaine learn how leaving TFAL flyers out in a Zia Records in Las Vegas inspired Jean Munson and Rose Trinidad of Bruha Baddies. Bruha Baddies is a Filipino/a/x podcast meant to create a space of healing, and…

Many Filipinos and Filipino Americans tend to identify as such without question or sense of history of how these categories emerge historically.  In this TFAL episode, Joe speaks to his advisor and mentor in graduate school, Dr. Vicente Rafael, about the various formations and iterations of Filipino and Filipino American nationalism.  Dr. Rafael is a…

What happens when a Marine combines their passion for coffee with their Veterans organized humanitarian mission non profit? In this episode the crew talks with Joseph Zoleta and learns how a humanitarian trip to the Philippines turned this marine/paramedic into an entrepreneur with Black 6 Coffee Trading Co. Joseph Zoleta is the President of Black…