Talks

America’s suburbs are undergoing significant transformation. The traditional view of suburbs as predominantly white, middle-class areas no longer reflects reality. Today, they encompass a diverse mix of residents—rich and poor, Black, Latino, Asian, immigrants, and the unhoused. This shift is especially evident in Los Angeles, where many suburbs have become majority-minority. The New Suburbia explores the experiences of Asian Americans, Black Americans, and Latinos who moved into formerly exclusive neighborhoods.

America’s suburbs are undergoing significant transformation. The traditional view of suburbs as predominantly white, middle-class areas no longer reflects reality. Today, they encompass a diverse mix of residents—rich and poor, Black, Latino, Asian, immigrants, and the unhoused. This shift is especially evident in Los Angeles, where many suburbs have become majority-minority. The New Suburbia explores the experiences of Asian Americans, Black Americans, and Latinos who moved into formerly exclusive neighborhoods.

America’s suburbs are undergoing significant transformation. The traditional view of suburbs as predominantly white, middle-class areas no longer reflects reality. Today, they encompass a diverse mix of residents—rich and poor, Black, Latino, Asian, immigrants, and the unhoused. This shift is especially evident in Los Angeles, where many suburbs have become majority-minority. The New Suburbia explores the experiences of Asian Americans, Black Americans, and Latinos who moved into formerly exclusive neighborhoods.

America’s suburbs are undergoing significant transformation. The traditional view of suburbs as predominantly white, middle-class areas no longer reflects reality. Today, they encompass a diverse mix of residents—rich and poor, Black, Latino, Asian, immigrants, and the unhoused. This shift is especially evident in Los Angeles, where many suburbs have become majority-minority. The New Suburbia explores the experiences of Asian Americans, Black Americans, and Latinos who moved into formerly exclusive neighborhoods.

Join Mayor Karen Bass; Dr. Lura Daniels-Ball, President, Our Authors Study Club, Inc.; Arturo Chavez, General Manager of El Pueblo de Los Angeles Historical Monument; Los Angeles City Council President, Marqueece Harris-Dawson, Councilmember, Eighth District; Bob Blumenfield, Councilmember, Third District; Curren D. Price, Jr., Councilmember, Ninth District; Heather Hutt, Councilmember, Tenth District; the City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs (DCA); Yvonne Wheeler, President Los Angeles County Federation of Labor, General Chair, Our Authors Study Club 2025 African American Heritage Month; and, the Our Authors Study Club 2025 African American Heritage Month Committee for an engaging evening at the Pico Hotel.

In keeping with a new tradition that began in 2023, this evening pays tribute to the twenty-six founding families of African American descent who blazed a trail with other brave founders to establish what is now known as El Pueblo de Los Angeles by recognizing Los Angeles’s modern trailblazers with long-standing histories of accomplishment and impact. This year, in keeping with the national theme of African Americans and Labor, we honor a movement so powerful and organic that it brought a diverse coalition of people, professions, and visionaries together to form an organization to provide living wages and rights to security officers in Los Angeles.

Free RSVP is required to attend; please call 213.978.0254 to reserve a seat (space is limited).

Getting There: El Pueblo de Los Angeles Historical Monument is located in the heart of downtown Los Angeles, close to the cultural communities of Chinatown, Little Tokyo, and the Arts District. Just North of the U.S. Route 101 Freeway, the site is the historic birthplace of Los Angeles.  There are four nearby parking lots

Join us for Inspiring Journeys: African American Histories, a day of celebration for African American Heritage Month. The lineup of speakers, workshops, entertainment, and family activities is sure to spark joy and insight. From health and wellness to genealogy and technology to arts and crafts for all ages, there is something for everyone. Don’t miss out on this opportunity to celebrate African American history and culture.

Our Annual Black History Month Event features entertainment, culture awareness, speakers, a small business marketplace, and a fashion show.

Join Campo de Cahuenga in celebrating Dr. Jefferson’s recent book, Living the California Dream: African American Leisure Sites During the Jim Crow Era which was awarded the Miriam Matthews Ethnic History Award by the LA City Historical Society for its exceptional contributions to the greater understanding and awareness of regional history.

The book explores the significance of place within the African American experience in geography, California Dream mythology, Southern California outdoor culture, American history & identity, and contemporary heritage conservation efforts. Among other projects, Dr. Jefferson was a guest curator for the “Black California Dreamin’: Claiming Space at America’s Leisure Frontier” exhibition at the California African American Museum in Los Angeles. She and Phil S. Hart recently completed a new essay titled “Long Beach Airport and Southern California: A Brief New Aviation and Aeronautics History (1900s–1980s),” which illuminates histories of overlooked women and people of color who contributed to making Southern California a global center of aviation and aerospace over the last century.

Dr. Jefferson’s current projects include working on an in depth exploration of the Black Venice community of Los Angeles for a manuscript and an Applied Public History project which was helped along by a Getty Conservation Institution Scholar Residency. 

We hope to see you there! Reception with light snacks & beverages to follow. Books will be available for sale.

RSVP at rap-campodecahuenga@lacity.org or through Eventbrite 

America’s suburbs are undergoing significant transformation. The traditional view of suburbs as predominantly white, middle-class areas no longer reflects reality. Today, they encompass a diverse mix of residents—rich and poor, Black, Latino, Asian, immigrants, and the unhoused. This shift is especially evident in Los Angeles, where many suburbs have become majority-minority. The New Suburbia explores the experiences of Asian Americans, Black Americans, and Latinos who moved into formerly exclusive neighborhoods.

America’s suburbs are undergoing significant transformation. The traditional view of suburbs as predominantly white, middle-class areas no longer reflects reality. Today, they encompass a diverse mix of residents—rich and poor, Black, Latino, Asian, immigrants, and the unhoused. This shift is especially evident in Los Angeles, where many suburbs have become majority-minority. The New Suburbia explores the experiences of Asian Americans, Black Americans, and Latinos who moved into formerly exclusive neighborhoods.