Filipino Heritage Mural

After our delicious lunch at Samantha's Filipino and American Diner, we set out to find a particular mural in Lompoc.

I happened to like the look of this neon sign. It's The Rice Bowl, an Americanized Chinese place that, according to some of the yelp reviews, is stuck in a 50's time warp. Well, we didn't go in to check for ourselves, for right around the corner was the mural I'd been wanting to see...


Lompoc is a small agricultural city which is part of Santa Barbara County and located in the Central Coast (bigger than Guadalupe though). The word "Lom Poc" comes from the native American Chumash word, "Lum Poc" which means "stagnant waters". It is home of the Flower Festival as well as to a series of murals scattered throughout the town.

This was one of the first murals we saw, which had a variety of scenes from Lompoc  such as the nearby Purisima Mission, flower fields, and the beach.


That wasn't the mural I was looking for however. As we walked further down the block, we saw this "Golden Fist" in front of a martial arts studio.

Finally, around the corner next to a bike shop was the mural that my friend, the FANHS Trustee told me about. Being the Filipino American History nut that I am, we just had to stop by and take a quick look. The mural was commissioned, painted, and completed in 2006 by Carlos Cuellar, a Hispanic muralist from Santa Barbara. According to articles I've read, the artist is a veteran muralist and did research on the historical figures featured in his mural titled "Pagpapahalaga" (Pride).

This section of th mural has a couple of Filipino labor leaders. You can see part of Philip Vera Cruz cut off on the far left. He was a co-founder and former Vice President of the United Farm Workers (UFW). The gentleman in the glasses is Larry Itliong (leader of the AWOC), who was also from the UFW. Formed in the mid 1960's, the UFW was a merger between the largely Filipino Agricultural Workers Organizing Committee (AWOC) and the Mexican organization, the National Farm Workers (NFW). Both groups joined forces for the 1965 Grape Strike in Delano. Below is American author and noted Anti-Imperialist Mark Twain. I'm not sure who the woman is though. Definitely NOT Imelda Marcos!

Another view of Vera Cruz and Itliong. Philippine boxer Manny Pacquaio is also featured in the center of the photo. Below Vera Cruz is Filipina heroine Gabriela Silang who fought against the Spanish colonists in 1763. On a side note, there is a Filipino owned coffee shop in downtown Oakland named Cafe Gabriela. The men in hats are Filipino peasants. The flags at the top represent the relationship between the U.S. and the Philippines. The flag crest also has a shield and Kris sword.

Notable Filipinos figures and scenes that I recognized in the mural include the Banaue Rice Terraces at the extreme left (considered "The Eighth Wonder of the World"), General Emilio Aguinaldo, the first President of the Philippine Republic (lower left), colorful Vinta sails, a thatched "bahay kubo" (or "nipa hut") at the top, depictions of tribal peoples, a beauty queen at the far left, and labor leader/activist and author Carlos Bulosan (the face in the center). Bulosan was a former resident of Lompoc (as well as San Diego) and wrote the seminal  Asian American classic, "America is in the Heart".

As TC and I were admiring the mural, Bert snapped this shot from across the street. An older fellow who was walking his dogs passed by and remarked, "I didn't know about all this stuff until I read that" (referring to the placard). He asked if I was Filipino to which I replied I was "second generation". His name was Dave and he shared that his father was Filipino who came to the U.S. after fighting in World War II. He met and married his mother in the U.S.. Dave is of Filipino and German American heritage. He was so genuinely friendly and interested in our visit. He is a longtime resident of Lompoc and was happy to hear that we were visiting from afar.

We even asked him to take a few group shots of us in front of the mural. It was really cool meeting him. Nowadays people don't even want to strike up any sort of conversation with others, especially with strangers. Somehow he felt compelled to chat with us and share his story and for that I am truly glad to have briefly met his acquaintance.  [update - I forgot to mention that he bore more than a passing resemblance to Stoner comedian Tommy Chong]

The Filipino Heritage Mural is located on the corner of J Street and 225 Ocean Avenue.

More links:

• Map of the Murals of Lompoc
• Article - "Mural Honors Filipino Heritage" - by Neil Nisperos, Lompoc Record (February 28, 2006)
• A brief mention in "Summer Road Trips 2006" in the AACP Newsletter (page 2)
• and a few more pics from the flckr account of Maarte_Stewart (a play on words - "Maarte" which means "coquettish" or "flirty" or it could also mean "Drama Queen" or even "perfectionist")

Our next stop - senior citizen land, otherwise known as Solvang!