On Saturday, March 5, leaders of the Filipino community and local dignitaries will join California State University, Dominguez Hills (CSUDH) faculty and representatives of the university’s Gerth Archives and Special Collections to celebrate the launch of the CSUDH Filipino American Digital Archive (FADA). The event, which will take place from 1 to 2 p.m. in the Archives on the fifth floor of the CSUDH University Library, will double as a chance for members of the local Filipino American community to bring in their own materials to add to the archive.
“With Greater Los Angeles home to the third-largest population of Americans with Filipino ancestry in the United States, this new archive will be an important addition to the Gerth Archives’ growing list of special collections that document, preserve, and make accessible the histories of the many cultures and people in the South Bay region of Greater Los Angeles,” says Gerth Archives Director Greg Williams.
CSUDH Assistant Professor of Asian-Pacific Studies Mary Talusan Lacanlale says the community was the impetus behind establishing the new digital archive. “Several years ago, members of Filipino American organizations in Carson approached Greg Williams and I about creating an archive to document the important work of Filipino Americans in our area,” she recalls.
Lacanlale, Williams, and the staff at the Gerth Archives agreed and got to work setting up a database with initial contributions by local Filipino leaders.
Among the first contributors to the archives were Florante Ibanez, author of Filipinos in Carson and the South Bay, and Linda Nietes-Little, founder of the Philippine Expressions Bookshop in San Pedro and an icon of the Filipino American community–both of whom will be featured speakers at the launch event. Ibanez donated boxes of his photos, newsletters, and other collected items, and Nietes-Little is donating memorabilia along with a collectible copy of Carlos Bulosan’s America is in the Heart.
To help grow the archive, organizers of the March 5 event are inviting community members to bring their own photos, videos, meeting notes of organizations, and any other material they would like to submit to be preserved for safekeeping in the archives.
“The Gerth Archives is pleased to coordinate another community history project,” says Williams. “FADA has already allowed the Archives to include local Filipinos in the archives. We will continue to gather source material for this important history that is local, national, and international in scope.”
In addition to Lacanlale, Williams, Nietes-Little, and Ibanez, the launch event will feature an array of guest speakers, including Mayor of Carson Lula Davis-Holmes, Congresswoman Nanette Barragan, Consulate General of the Philippines Edgar B. Badajos, Carson City Councilmembers Arleen Bocatija Rojas and Jim Dear, Representative of Assemblymember Mike Gipson’s office Moises Jun Aglipay, author Roselyn Ibanez, and Donna Nicol, chair of CSUDH Africana Studies.
The Filipino Cultural School Rondalla Ensemble will provide a musical performance of traditional Filipino music.
CSUDH is at 1000 E. Victoria St., Carson, Calif. For directions and a map of campus, visit csudh.edu/visit-us. Parking in campus lots is $9 and can be payable through yellow kiosks in each lot. Lot 7 from the east and Lot 6 from the west are the lots closest to the library.
The Gerth Archives is recognized for its extensive list of individual special collections documenting the people and cultures that make up the South Bay region of Los Angeles.
The CSUDH Filipino American Digital Archive launch will take place on Saturday, March 5, at 1 p.m., at the Gerth Archives and Special Collections office, located on the fifth floor of the University Library. Register for the event here.
Campus events will require attendees to show proof of vaccination or a negative COVID-19 PCR test taken no more than 48 hours prior to the event date as a condition of entry. This important measure will further increase our ability to safely gather.
Please contact the Gerth Archives and Special Collections for additional event information at (310) 243-3895 or archives@csudh.edu.
