Creating Masculinity in Los Angeles's Little Manila : Working-Class Filipinos and Popular Culture, 1920s-1950s

Linda (Associate Professor Espana-Maram

ISBN 10: 0231115938 / ISBN 13: 9780231115933

Published by Columbia University Press Apr 2006, 2006

About this Item

Neuware - In this new work, Linda Espana-Maram analyzes the politics of popular culture in the lives of Filipino laborers in Los Angeles's Little Manila, from the 1920s to the 1940s. The Filipinos' participation in leisure activities, including the thrills of Chinatown's gambling dens, boxing matches, and the sensual pleasures of dancing with white women in taxi dance halls sent legislators, reformers, and police forces scurrying to contain public displays of Filipino virility. But as Espana-Maram argues, Filipino workers, by flaunting 'improper' behavior, established niches of autonomy where they could defy racist attitudes and shape an immigrant identity based on youth, ethnicity, and notions of heterosexual masculinity within the confines of a working class.

Seller Inventory # 9780231115933

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Creating Masculinity in Los Angeles's Little Manila : Working-Class Filipinos and Popular Culture, 1920s-1950s
• Publisher: Columbia University Press Apr 2006
• Publication Date: 2006
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0231115938
• ISBN 13: 9780231115933
• Binding: Taschenbuch
• Condition: Neu
• Dimensions: 229W x 152H x 0D millimeters 229 millimeters width by 152 millimeters height by 0 millimeters depth

About this title

Synopsis

In this new work, Linda España-Maram analyzes the politics of popular culture in the lives of Filipino laborers in Los Angeles's Little Manila, from the 1920s to the 1940s. The Filipinos' participation in leisure activities, including the thrills of Chinatown's gambling dens, boxing matches, and the sensual pleasures of dancing with white women in taxi dance halls sent legislators, reformers, and police forces scurrying to contain public displays of Filipino virility. But as España-Maram argues, Filipino workers, by flaunting "improper" behavior, established niches of autonomy where they could defy racist attitudes and shape an immigrant identity based on youth, ethnicity, and notions of heterosexual masculinity within the confines of a working class.

España-Maram takes this history one step further by examining the relationships among Filipinos and other Angelenos of color, including the Chinese, Mexican Americans, and African Americans. Drawing on oral histories and previously untapped archival records, España-Maram provides an innovative and engaging perspective on Filipino immigrant experiences.

About the Author

Linda Espana-Maram is associate professor of Asian American Studies at California State University, Long Beach.