The iconic neon sign at the original Tommy’s Burgers location on Rampart Boulevard.
L.A. TACO is embarking on its biggest mission yet: to create a taco and food guide for every single neighborhood in Los Angeles! Along the way, we will also be releasing brief histories of each neighborhood to understand L.A. a little more and celebrate how each and every neighborhood makes our fine city the best in the world.
The best way to know your neighborhood is to walk your neighborhood. Photographing Filipinotown on 35mm film for the past half-decade, I sometimes feel like I've walked every inch of the neighborhood countless times. But while working on this photo essay, I found plenty of places that I was unfamiliar with, from offices, homes, and studio spaces to homeless encampments hidden from the road, new plants, flowers, and murals. The experience reminded me that neighborhoods are constantly changing, and you’ll never see everything.
The iconic neon sign at the original Tommy's Burgers location on Rampart Boulevard.The iconic neon sign at the original Tommy's Burgers location on Rampart Boulevard.Morning light hits one of my favorite store front signs.A Victorian-style house that's been converted into apartments with DTLA skyline views.An elderly man walks by a 20th century craftsman house as it's being demolished.A tree grows out of a wall in a parking lot.A tree grows out of a wall in a parking lot.A sign that's no longer around.A sign that's no longer around.The farmacia in this photo is now Brooklyn Bagels.The pharmacy in this photo is now Brooklyn Bagels.Craftsman homes on a residential street in Historic Filipinotown.A driver kills a man riding a motorized bicycle on a dangerous stretch of Beverly Blvd that has seen numerous fatalities and reckless driving incidents in recent years.A Victorian-style home with Halloween decorations outside.Businesses on the eastern edge of Historic Filipinotown.Body shop on Beverly Boulevard.A body shop on Beverly BoulevardA carniceria on Beverly Boulevard that also has a taco stand.A memorial for Karla Duarte, a young woman who was fatally shot in an abandoned home in Filipinotown.Pinay Coin Laundry.Historic Filipinotown at dusk.
Video shows a couple of agents piled on top of Randamaa, shoving his head to the ground as other community members watched in anger and horror. An 80-year-old attorney trying to advocate for the agents to get off Randamaa was pepper-sprayed in the face by one of the agents pinning down Randamaa with the signature Yoga Cobra Pose. As he was pepper-sprayed, you can see the lawyer throws his hands out while blinded, being eventually thrown to the ground by the Yoga agent.
So essentially what we’re seeing is that Border Patrol is still active down in San Diego, along with ICE. Here, ICE is operating out of their local offices in Santa Ana and San Bernardino. We also know that people are being taken in Los Angeles who show up for their check-ins. These incidents are hard to catch, observe, or document, but we've confirmed that they're happening.
From scallop tacos to fish machaca flautas to a smoked marlin gobernador, here is a taco crawl for our pescatarian friends, and those just looking to eat less meat.
L.A. woman-fronted punk band, Naked Aggression, was the first band to pull out. L.A. TACO confirmed that N8NOFACE is also withdrawing from the festival taking place in Vallejo, California, as of this morning. Other bands, like 8 Kalacas, are doubling down and still performing.
