Growing Old in East LA

As part of the California Council for the Humanities, David Greenberger visited meal sites around East L.A. recording conversations with more than two dozen elderly residents of Los Angeles. The project is a multiyear initiatve to uncover the
personal and community stories that create a portrait of contemporary
California by exploring the lives of elderly Mexican-Americans. 

The stories explore universal themes: reflection in old age, the
dignity of the individual, and the bonds of community, family and
faith. These are first-person portraits of ordinary citizens often
overlooked in mainstream media. These are stories about the ways we
live our lives, the things in which we believe. At the core they value
the heart in the human voice, the evocative nature of sound, the
importance of subtext, and the art of storytelling.

The stories reveal not so much the parts elderly Mexican-American
residents of East Los Angeles have played in the history of the state,
but the part history plays in their personal narratives.

The project is available for radio broadcast through the Public Radio Exchange.

Growing Old in East LA