Radio Pulso

In this episode of Radio Pulso, we explore the key issues shaping the 2024 elections through the voices of our Boyle Heights community. Join hosts Jaret Chavez and Ismerai Calcaneo as they share insights from local residents about their concerns and priorities. We’ll also dive into the contentious CD-14 election, featuring thoughts from our dedicated Boyle Heights Beat reporters. Tune in to hear h...

Boyle Heights Beat is a bilingual community news project produced by youth, offering “noticias por y para la comunidad,” or “news by and for the community.” Koreatown Storytelling Program is an intergenerational , multilingual and multiethnic oral history and digital media program that teaches high schoolers how to document, investigate, and interpret the stories of marginalized members of our com...

After being accepted into UCLA, Janelle Quintero was in utter shock and beyond grateful but after those emotions settled, creeped in the anxiety and uncertainty. As a first generation college student, she had no idea what to do. After some thinking, she decided it would helpful to reach out to an academic counselor at UCLA and speak with a UCLA alumnus to alleviate some of her fears.

In this episode we talk to Roosevelt High School student, Ismerai Calcaneo, about her experience being featured in the Oscar -Winning Documentary Short Film, "The Last Repair Shop." The film highlights Los Angeles as one of the last American cities to provide freely repaired musical instruments to its public schoolchildren, a continuous service since 1959. In the documentary she tells her story ab...

For this episode, we’re going to be talking about how the pandemic affected us (high school youth) in our academics and what we could have done differently.  Radio Pulso is partnering with the Latino Equality Center, a non-profit in Boyle Heights who advocates for equity, safety, and wellness of the Latinx LGBTQ+ community. 

The Rainbow Education Coalition of Los Angeles (RECLA) is a grassroots campaign that focuses on advocating for safer and more inclusive resources for queer and trans students in the Los Angeles Unified school district. In collaboration with Boyle Heights Beat, in this episode RECLA will be discussing the current LAUSD school climate and how LGBTQ+ students are being affected.

On today’s episode we’re excited to have Felipe Esparza… Felipe is an up-and-coming comedian from Boyle Heights and grew up in Pico Gardens. Winning the last comic standing in 2010 was a major milestone. Felipe has gained a lot of attention since then. He’s currently on tour all over the country and also has his own podcast called, What’s Up Fool, with over 450 episodes.

Shelcy Alfaro, a 17 year old Lincoln HS student and Intern at Legacy LA, has lived in Ramona Gardens since she was 8. Since 2020, Shelcy has been a part of the substance abuse campaign through Legacy LA where she works for the journalism team. Community-driven and always striving to help others from the neighborhood she calls home. She says her passion stems from her neighbors. A boba-loving Capri...

Robert Martinez was born and raised in Ramona Gardens, a community he still calls home decades later. A single father for 15 years, Martinez has long been a guiding presence for youth over the years, including a decade-long career coaching students in a variety of different sports and his current role as a van driver for Legacy LA, a center dedicated to supporting those from the local neighborhood...

Growing up in Boyle Heights in the late 80s and early 90s, Daisy Chávez-Mendez found herself coming of age in a less accepting community. Now in her early 40s, she’s spent the past two decades using her experience to work with others creating a more welcoming environment for all in the barrio.

In and out of foster homes while coming to terms with her sexuality, there was a time when Jaci Cortez found herself facing unique struggles tied to her intersectional identity. When the Boyle Heights Beat first spoke to her in 2018, she was a student at East Los Angeles Community College studying American Sign Language while dealing with housing insecurity. Since then, Jaci has graduated from Rio...

Since it is Women's History Month, let's take a moment to recognize the powerful, intelligent, and resourceful women in our lives. We should be celebrating them each and every day not just this month. There are so many amazing women who have done such great things for the community of Boyle Heights. Martha Ambriz is the leader of Ballet Folklórico Resurrección and an advocate for youth. She talks...

It’s December and we’re ready to get into the holiday spirit. Earlier this month we participated in the Boyle Heights Christmas parade and we had community members share their holiday traditions with us. Tamales are a big part of holiday traditions in Latine culture. And speaking of tamales in this episode we talked to Boyle Heights resident, Marlene Aguilar, who offers plant based options includi...

Happy Halloween! For this episode we have David Fernandez who was born and raised in Boyle Heights. David is here to share his experiences with paranormal activity which he’s had since the age of 7. While his family were looking for homes they discovered that the home he would live in had a hospital bed but didn't think too much of it. Little did he know, he was about to live among the supernatura...

Being that we are in Boyle Heights it’s important that we highlight the accomplishments and work that our people are doing in the community. It’s also important to support small businesses and upcoming artists from our community! In this episode we from Miguel Estrada and Daniel Romo from the band, Ear Ringers and Elianet Romero, from Las Niñas Fresitas.

Highlighting the history of the Self Help Graphics & Art space as they come to their much deserved renovation. Founded in 1970, Self Help Graphics & Art established itself in 1973 as a non-profit art organization dedicated to the production, interpretation, and distribution of prints and other art media by Chicana/o and Latinx artists. In addition, their multidisciplinary and intergenerati...

While there was much excitement about the bridge opening in the beginning, it later turned to a safety issue after ongoing cases of illegal and unsafe activity on the bridge. There were numerous street takeovers, graffiti, crashes, parked cars and dangerous social media stunts during the first couple of weeks that it opened. For now things seem to be doing better but there are other safety concern...

For this episode we will be highlighting and honoring queer folks in the community. Today we will be interviewing youth activists for the Latine/x LGBTQIA+ community, Alex Medina, who also happens to be a former youth reporter.

Please note that this episode contains many pacted themes surrounding, mental health: such as suicide, self harm, violence, and death. We want y’all to stay safe, so if you or anybody you know is in need of help please make sure to visit our IG account @rrradiopulso for a list of resources.

In this episode we are highlighting the important of street vendors more specifically on flower vendors for Mother's Day. We all know how important flower vendors are on Mother's Day (and every other day), we all go support them on buying flowers so we can show our moms some type of appreciation. We went out to the block on 4th and Indiana in Boyle Heights to catch some of these flower vendors in...

In this episode we are focusing on highlighting local small business and restaurant owners. We interviewed Ralph Walde, Co-Owner of Aymara Peruvian Kitchen and Julian Anguiano, Owner of Mystyx Kafe. Aymara Peruvian Kitchen is a genuine Peruvian concept located in East LA serving flavorful Peruvian cuisine, using only fresh ingredients. The menu has a variety of tasty dishes including ceviche, sign...

For Women’s History Month , we highlighted two women that have made an impact in the Boyle Heights community, whether it’s through activism, entrepreneurship, music, and/or in educational settings. Roxana Dueñas is an Ethnic Studies and History teacher at the Math, Science and Technology Magnet at Roosevelt High School in Boyle Heights. It is her gender and ethnic studies coursework that inspired...