The Filipino American Library collection consists of materials owned by the Filipino American Library in Historic Filipinotown that were transferred to the University of Southern California Special Collections in 2017. The collection is currently divided into two categories: (i) digitized material and (ii) minimally processed material. The digitized material consists of lantern slides, bound volumes, photographic prints, maps, and other materials that the USC Digital Library digitized and described at the item-level beginning in 2017. The minimally processed material consists of various types of material that have not been digitized or described beyond this finding aid. Types of material grouped under the minimally processed series include published books and periodicals, spiral-bound course readings, library routing requests, newspaper clippings, photocopies of legal proceedings, unpublished manuscripts for journal articles, conference materials, brochures, pamphlets, travel guides, newsletters, teacher and student workbooks, meeting minutes, correspondence, photograph albums, administrative records, subject files, and audio and video recordings.

The Filipino American Library (FAL) was founded in a church basement in 1985 as the Pilipino American Reading Room and Library (PARRAL) in a neighborhood close to Echo Park by Helen Agcaoili Summers Brown, affectionately referred to as "Auntie Helen" in the local community. In January of 2000, PARRAL moved to a new location on Temple Street and was renamed the Filipino American Library. At the time, FAL comprised the largest collection of Filipino and Filipino American reading materials--at more than 6,000 titles--and promoted literacy and cultural engagement through many community programs and exhibits. When FAL closed its doors, its collections were dispersed among the USC Libraries and the Echo Park Branch of the Los Angeles Public Library.

48.17 Linear Feet 49 boxes

All requests for permission to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the Department of Special Collections at specol@usc.edu. Permission for publication is given on behalf of Special Collections as the owner of the physical items and is not intended to include or imply permission of the copyright holder, which must also be obtained.

COLLECTION STORED OFF-SITE. Advance notice required for access.