Walkout

...meaning her father is Filipino and her mother is a Chicana? Or is she full-blooded Filipina, because the real Paula looked totally Malay to me?

BTW...There are Filipinos of Mexican(Indios and Meztisos)ancestry so having a Latino looking Filipino father is not so far off...how you say? Nueva Espana(Mexico) governed the Philippines for over 300 years with most of the colonizers from Mexico. Philippines culture has a distinctly Mexican flavor...The Virgen De Guadalupe is the Philippine's Patron Saint... Filipino language is peppered with Nahuatl words...customs and traditions are Mexican/Spanish in origin (Dia De Los Muertos, e.g.)

I give the actor credit with the somewhat Filipino accent ("I'm prum the Peeleepeens")

I enjoyed the movie, even though it was kinda fluffy. It should have been more gritty and blood-spattered(come on, they were hit with batons on the head!)

Over all, it was a stirring movie that made me want to go out protest something!

I am 41 years old. I went to Griffith Jr. high and graduated from Montebello HS in 1982. (I barely graduated, got pregnant and married by age 19, typical story of a non-informed, non-motivated Mexican/American youth). My best friend went to Roosevelt HS and my boyfriend (at the time) went to Garfield HS. I am amazed and outraged that I had never heard of this "walk out" until just last night (3/22/06). I just happened to be scrolling through the movies to watch on HBO. I read the description of the movie and was intrigued. Why was this not in the history books? or even spoken to us as students in the community from our teachers, counselors, mentors, etc? It's just another kick in the #@%! This movie should be shown to all students in Jr. High and High school, especially in heavy Chicano communities. As a matter of fact, I am going to sit through it again with my two nieces (8 & 11 years old) and my 21 year old daughter (she graduated "magna cum laude" from La Salle HS, is now graduating next June from Cal Poly Pomona and will be entering Pepperdine University to accomplish her Masters Degree…how proud is this (divorced) mother! ..a "former" non-informed, non-motivated Mexican/American youth).

Yes, the movie itself wasn't the best, the acting was okay, the SUV in the background (…1968)…..But lets look at the bigger picture. The story. The true story and it's meaning. It is such an important part of our history, so profound and full of inspiration.

First of all, this is the first movie ever about the Chicano civil rights movement. And as many Latinos know, the Chicano civil rights movement created some better opportunity for our people.

The cast is almost entirely Chicano, which is amazing within itself, seeing that Latinos only make up 2% of Hollywood. It gives us a chance to play Characters, and not only the "Brown person".

A piece of history is being told, which has been totally written out of History by the mainstream media & educational institutions. All of the police beating scenes in this movie were re-creations of archived material from TV Stations, which were not allowed to broadcast in 1968.

The protagonist is a young woman who is half Filipina & Mexicana. This is great because revolutionary leaders are usually only seen as tough men. This also shows that oppression crosses all color lines, the issues come down to a class struggle, and this can be a catapult for different ethnicities working together on common issues.

I feel that we should embrace this movie, and create others also, with stories of our peoples struggle. There are several movies about the Jewish struggle, the African American movement for equal rights, women's rights, but this is so far, the only one speaking of the Chicano civil rights struggle.

These kids not even old enough to VOTE: With Determination-Organization-UNITY were able to make some changes for themselves and future generations. We can learn from that, their parents learned from them. To many people feel what can I do..its best not to make waves...just shut up and do your job. Its really not when there is injustice, prejudice and racism involved.

Movies like this: Empower people to Unite, Organize and have a Voice!!! Under any circumstances or oppressed situation. The timing of its release was right on target-with the Marches, boycotts and Demonstrations going on in this Country at the time in protest Racism!

I recommend parents watch this Movie with their kids. Well made, good acting and a part of History.

"Walkout" tells the story of the students in Los Angeles high schools in 1968, who stage a boycott of their schools in order to improve the quality of education for Chicanos. The film was skillfully directed by Edward James Olmos, who presents the story in a simple, direct way. There was an especially frank portrayal of the unacceptable educational standards in the schools attended by the young Chicano students.

The focal point of the story is the character Paula Crisostomo, an exceptional student, who risked her graduation to participate in the Lincoln High School walkout. A dedicated high school history teacher, Sal Castro, was instrumental in instilling idealism in his students, which resulted in their united efforts for a peaceful protest.

The film captured the passion of Paula in an emotionally-charged relationship with her parents, who strongly resist, but slowly come to understand, their daughter's activism. The entire cast, especially the young performers playing the students, was convincing as an effective ensemble in this fine film.

"Walkout" is another outstanding HBO project that tackles an important subject and provides an exceptionally high-caliber film. From 1968 to 1969, there was a substantial increase in enrollments of Chicano students in American universities, and this change was due to the consciousness raised by people like Paula Crisostomo and her teacher Sal Castro. In this film, Olmos and a superb cast deliver an important reminder about how a small group of young, passionate individuals have the potential to truly make a difference in their world.