Reflecciones Collection

Thanks to the collective efforts of the staff of the UCLA Chicano Studies Research Center(opens in a new tab), Professor Chon Noriega and the support of the John H. Mitchell Television Endowment, over fifty endangered videotapes of the Reflecciones series have been preserved by the UCLA Film & Television Archive.

Reflecciones (1972-74), a local public affairs program produced for Los Angeles television station KABC, provided a platform for Chicana/o/x perspectives. Mainstream network news sources often ignored or stereotyped people of color, so this outlet was pivotal in sharing the Chicana/o/x community’s marginalized voices. UCLA Distinguished Professor Chon Noriega describes the Reflecciones series as "unique in style as in its radical subjectivity … mix[ing] an eclectic coverage of current issues with cultural investigations, incorporating dramatizations and low-budget special effects into its documentaries."

Episodes of Reflecciones cover a diverse range of topics, but primarily focus on offering an inclusive view of communities within Los Angeles and beyond. Included in the series are episodes discussing United Farm Workers, Chicano prisoners of war in Vietnam, efforts to incorporate East Los Angeles, Native American perspectives on Wounded Knee, Nisei Week celebrations in Little Tokyo and issues facing people with intellectual disabilities.