Four years ago, the Boyle Heights nonprofit Las Fotos Project was about to celebrate its 10-year anniversary with a new campaign called, “Era of the Girl.” But staff noticed a change – one that had never once been spoken of before.
Up until then, the program’s mission was centered on empowering young teenage girls from communities of color through photography. When asking students for consent to share their artwork, some told staff they were no longer identifying as a girl. Students also began to advocate on behalf of their peers’ gender identities because they wanted a space where they could feel a sense of inclusion.
From that point forward, the staff decided to create a more inclusive program for its students.
“We started to introduce new language such as working with gender-expansive youth, and kind of opening to who could take our classes,” said Diego Torres-Casso, who has been the photo education manager at Las Fotos since 2023.
When first founded in 2010, the program focused on catering to young girls in L.A. to offer them “a skill that could help build their confidence and self-esteem.”
Eric V. Ibarra, a photographer when he founded the project, ran Las Fotos until his retirement in 2020. He was inspired to start the non-profit organization after leading a photovoice-style workshop with a group of middle school students in downtown L.A.
“The first group was all girls, and it was special to see them connect on a personal level—they felt comfortable with each other. So I decided to keep the group girl-centered and add women photographers to continue mentoring them,” said Ibarra.
As Las Fotos Project will soon celebrate 15 years, it now offers its classes to people who identify from all over the gender spectrum. “Esta Soy Yo” is a unique part of its year-round programming that focuses on the different components that intersect in our identities, and allows students to connect their creative artwork to an exploration of the students’ self. Through photography and mentoring, students are able to document their journey to finding their true selves.
“The program is one of self-discovery – that self-discovery with gender, that self-discovery with careers, that self-discovery with family, culture, and religion. Students are able to explore what that means and what their identity means to them,” said Torres-Casso.
Alé Vargas, 18, a freshman at UCLA, has participated in Las Fotos since their sophomore year of high school. Before aging out of the program, they would commute all the way from Ontario, after school, taking public transit to Union Station and then taking a bus into Boyle Heights.
“I think the program just welcomes everyone… It’s a very safe environment. I never understood what people meant by a third place [home], or finding a safe place until I was in Las Fotos because the students and everyone is just so welcoming,” Vargas said.
In 2020, the program became entirely women-led when Lucia Torres became the executive director. Torres said she joined Las Fotos because she saw the importance of having space where students could let their imaginations run wild.
“And for me, it drew me in.. because when I was younger, I didn’t feel like I had a lot of support for exploring my creative outlet,” Torres said.
For students, different classes and curriculum can provide insight into the numerous ways they can grow and manipulate their art. It has also given them a space where they can express their gender-expansive identities and reflect on their future careers.
As a non-binary person, Torres-Casso has also used their role to support students in order to pave a way into a gender-inclusive space at LFP.
“We have students who just come in using the name that they were assigned at birth, and throughout the program, they maybe change their name, or use different pronouns, or you know we see a student who’s just there for fun, and then ends up wanting to pursue photography as a career,” said Torres-Casso.
For Torres-Casso, working in a gender-inclusive environment is very important because they believe that women haven’t been supported in our world and that gender-inclusivity comes from supporting everyone in general.
“It changes who gets to be storytellers, who gets to be in front and behind a camera, we’re just allowing space for our real stories to be told and shared. And I think that’s really really important to be in charge of our own stories,” said Torres-Casso.
Astrid Sanchez, now 19 and a Pasadena City College student, has participated in Las Fotos since they were 12 years old. Also a gender-inclusive student, they say the program has helped both their art and their personal development.
“There was a point in my life where my art kind of felt really bland and boring. I think it’s helped me a lot as a person and an artist because I have made so many connections and relationships with my photos,” Sanchez said.
Artwork by Astrid Sanchez. Courtesy of LFP.
Even though Sanchez has now aged out of the program, they continue to participate in workshops and field trips that Las Fotos offers and still engage with the community of Boyle Heights.
For gender-diverse students like Vargas and Sanchez, being in a gender-inclusive environment has also allowed them to form meaningful connections with their peers.
“I feel like it has helped me even more because everyone is so open to learning about what gender is, or they’re accepting of it. And because of that I’ve met more queer people, and I’ve made more friends and I just connect with people like way more,” said Vargas.
Las Fotos also provides resources to their community as a whole. The community engagement program run by Alanna Araujo, offers field trips, workshops, free clothing swaps, and food drives to Boyle Heights. Students at LFP are also given the opportunity for social enterprise which allows them to get hired as photographers for different photoshoots.
In the future, Las Fotos hopes to expand its gender-inclusivity and reach more people with different backgrounds. Inspired by all the support Las Fotos has given, Vargas plans to pursue photography at UCLA with the hope of becoming a high-school photography teacher.
“And I know I’ll be okay 10 years from now, or 15 years from now because I see myself in them [their mentors at LFP] and I’m like, I will always be trans and I will always be queer. Because of Las Fotos, I found a place where I can be safe, for as long as it stands. It’s very nice and comforting to see other queer people around me,” said Vargas.
Editor’s note: Diego Torres-Casso has been the education manager at LFP since 2023, not 2020. This story has been updated.
