October in Review
Stephanie Jamilla
31 October 2016
It would be an understatement to call October an eventful month for the Filipino and Filipino-American communities. Perhaps it was fitting, as October is also Filipino-American History Month after all. From President Obama writing a message in acknowledgement of FilAm Month to NBC canceling a show about a Filipina mail-order bride to a typhoon leaving devastation in Northern Luzon, there is much to review. So, let’s begin.
FilAm Month started out on a high note as the White House published a message from President Obama to the Filipino-American community in which he recognizes the importance of Filipino-American History Month and expresses his enthusiasm in participating. In the message, he addresses how the first Filipinos came to the US in the 1500s at Morro Bay, California and how, since then, “Filipino Americans have long played an integral role in shaping the life of our country.” President Obama then addresses how his administration began the Filipino World War II Veterans Parole program, which allows FilAm veterans to request their families join them in the US while waiting for their green cards. He ends with saying, “As we mark this special month, we celebrate the ways Filipino Americans have lent their unique voices and talents to changing our country for the better. Their immeasurable contributions to our Nation reaffirm that as Americans we will always be bound to each other in common purpose and by our shared hopes for the future.”
Close after, news broke over NBC’s announcement that they will be canceling the show Mail-Order Bride after originally buying the comedy from writer-producer Jackie Clarke, director-executive producer Ruben Fleischer, and executive producer David Bernad. It was meant to be loosely based on Clarke’s family, depicting a widowed father who orders a bride from the Philippines to fly to the US and help take care of his two daughters. NBC’s decision to cancel the show comes from backlash from the FilAm and Asian-American communities, criticizing the show of making light of the serious problem of human trafficking and stereotyping Asian women.
The Filipino Veterans Recognition and Education Project also published an update on the Congressional Gold Medal Legislation. The bill is authored by Senator Mazie Hirono of Hawaii and, if successful, will allow 260,000 Filipino and Filipino-American veterans who served in the US military during World War II to receive the Congressional Gold Medal. The Filipino Veterans Recognition and Education Project posted an update on the project reporting that 306 cosponsors from the House of Representatives have now signed the bill in support, surpassing the 2/3 majority (290 co-sponsors) needed. Since the Senate previously passed the bill earlier this year in July, now the next step is getting Speaker Paul Ryan and eight other House senior leaders to approve this legislation for a House vote. If the bill passes then it will be sent to the White House for the president to sign. According to the FILVETREP website, “Since Congress is on recess for the election campaign, we don’t expect action on this legislation until they return on November 15.” They are getting closer to making this bill a reality, and you can read the whole report here: http://www.filvetrep.org/update-on-the-congressional-gold-medallegislation-october-2016/
Across the Pacific two typhoons of very different kinds hit the Philippines (almost concurrently, too). The first was an actual typhoon: Typhoon Haima or Lawin, which hit northeastern Luzon, specifically Cagayan province. Winds reached up to 225 km/h and 100,000 people evacuated the area. Tuguegarao City in particular was hit badly with the provincial government claiming the possibility that 100% of houses were either fully or partially damaged. The storm additionally left at least 13 people dead.
The other typhoon came from Filipino President Rodrigo Duterte’s announcement that he intends to separate from the United States, “both in military, not maybe social, but economics also. America has lost." This statement came out of his visit to Beijing meeting with Chinese President Xi Jingping, where the two signed 13 bilateral deals on topics including trade, investment, tourism, crime, and drug prohibition. President Duterte’s words of American separation and Chinese support caused much confusion and shock here in the US. A couple days later he clarified that he was not advocating a severance of ties with the US but rather a “separation of foreign policy.” The Philippines and the United States have cultural, economic, and military ties that run deep, along with the Philippines being the US’s closest ally in the region for the last 70 years. President Duterte’s office has also offered clarifications, saying that the President meant to assert Philippine sovereignty and independence while seeking to strengthen relationships with China and other ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) states. What’s to come next? Nothing is certain.
As October wraps up, it’s interesting to consider what’s in store for the future, for the FilAm community, for the Philippines, and beyond. I’m planning to make monthly review articles for the rest of the year, so tune in at the end of November for the next rundown of current events. I hope everyone had a great Filipino-American History Month and an equally great Halloween.
Origins of Filipino-American History Month
Robin Rodolfo
18 October 2016
Filipino American History month is celebrated during October. The month commemorates the many ways in which Filipino Americans have contributed to American history, particularly during World War II and during the labor movements of the latter part of the twentieth century.
In the year 2009, both houses of Congress officially recognized October as Filipino American History Month in the United States. Various states, counties and cities in the U.S. have since followed suit and have established proclamations and resolutions declaring observance of Filipino American History Month in their regions. During last year’s Filipino American History Month, on October 2, the White House hosted its first-ever Celebration of Filipino American History Month, in order to commemorate the “rich history, heritage, and culture that bond the Filipino American community with the larger mosaic of the American immigrant story.” More than 175 Filipino American leaders from almost 25 states, dressed in traditional Filipino clothing, attended the historical event.
October’s significance as Filipino American History Month is due to the first recorded presence of Filipinos in the continental United States on October 18, 1587. The first Filipinos, then known as “Luzones Indios,” came from the Philippines aboard the Spanish galleon Nuestra Senora de Esparanza and landed at what is now known as Morro Bay, California. What followed suit would be an extensive history interlinked with the growth and development of America’s own history.
The Filipino American National History Society declared as the theme of this month “1946: A Turning Point.” The theme was chosen to commemorate the 70th Anniversary of several notable events and pieces of legislation that transformed the lives of Filipinos in the Philippines and in the United States in 1946. Here are some events that have been highlighted during this month’s commemorations.
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Philippine Independence from the United States was declared on July 4, 1946.
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Following Filipino service in the American military during WWII, Congress passed the Rescission Act in March of 1946, which effectively barred Filipino veterans from receiving GI aid and benefits. This bill had been heavily protested and lobbied against for nearly thirty decades. In the year 2009, however, President Barack Obama signed a bill that gave the surviving veterans a one-time $15,000 payment ($9,000 for Philippine citizens). Full equity for Filipino veterans, however, is still being attested.
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In the spring of 1946, more than 6,000 Filipino men and women were recruited to work in the sugar fields of Hawai’i in order to fill in the labor gaps that occurred in light of an upcoming labor union strike. These newly arrived workers joined in on what would later be known as the Great Sugar Strike of 1946. The strike was victorious, and strikers won significant gains, including union recognition, higher wages, job rights, political freedom, pensions, homeownership, and an end to the white supremacy and paternalistic culture of the plantations. 1946 would mark the last major Filipino worker migration before the declaration of Philippine independence later that same year.
According to Dr. Dawn B. Mabalon, an Associate Professor and SFSU National Scholar, the year 1946, in sum, “brought access to naturalization for the Filipina/o American community and ended Filipino exclusion, independence for the Philippines, and union recognition for Filipina/o sugar workers who had created immense wealth, three long-awaited victories for the community.”
If you haven’t been able to make it out to any of our FilAm Month events so far, don’t worry, we still have two more to go! We have our GBM (coupling as a movie night) this week on Thursday at 7pm in District room B117 and a Barrio Festival on the 30th at 12pm in Grand Ballroom.
“175 Filipino American leaders from across the country gathered for the first-ever White House Celebration of Filipino American History Month, October 2, 2015. Photo by Bessie Chan, White House Initiative on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders.”
Join Us for FilAm Month!
Juliana Curry
2 October 2016
This month me and Robin Rodolfo, the Cultural Affairs Coordinators (or “Co-coords” for short), have a lot of fun events planned for October aka Fil-Am History Month!
First, we have an ice cream social next Monday October 3rd from 3-5 pm, at Mid-Campus Quad with Filipino ice cream flavors. Yum!
Second, I am personally really excited for the lechon party with GW Brazillian club on October 6th. For those of you who don't already know, lechon is roast suckling pig, a dish served at big events and celebrations in the Philippines. Come by District House room B205 from 7:45-9:30 pm!
Third, we’re also having our monthly General Body Meeting on October 20th in District House B117 from 7-9:30 pm where we will screen a movie that highlights Filipino history, this is a great event for everyone but an especially good opportunity for you to meet people if you weren't able to attend our first GBM.
Lastly, the final big event on October 29th is going to be our version of a Barrio Festival. It’s going to be at Square 80 from 12-4 pm, and we’re inviting neighboring Filipino clubs to come join us to put on performances and partake in various fun activities! Please sign let us know if you would like to perform! The Barrio Festival will also include different stations with fun activities for everyone to try. Overall it will be a good time along with our other Fil-Am Month events so come check it out!
For more information you can email pcsculturalshow@gmail.com or contact me at 407-970- 0189 or Robin at 646-709-0439. See you there!
Welcome to The Balita
Stephanie Jamilla
2 October 2016
Hi everyone, this is the 2016-17 Public Relations Officer, Stephanie Jamilla, here. If you’ve been with PCS for awhile, you’re probably familiar with The Balita. For those who don’t know about it, The Balita is a monthly newsletter distributed at general body meetings (GBMs). It consists of short articles written by the executive board, who cover topics ranging from upcoming events, politics, and sometimes even the occasional free verse poem. The Balita has been a central part of PCS for many years now, and you can even look back at some of the past Balitas from 1994 in the Archives section of our website!
This year, I’m changing up The Balita a bit. It’s now going to be an online blog, integrated into our website! Articles aren’t going to be available exclusively online, and there are plans to have printed versions at certain GBMs. I just want to explain the reasons behind this decision.
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There’s a waste problem with The Balita, namely in how they’re treated once distributed at GBMs. People enjoy flipping through them while waiting for the activities of the meeting to start, looking at the pictures included in the articles, and maybe even using them as fans to cool off after playing a particularly intense game of costume relay. However, after this, a majority of Balitas tend to lay discarded on the floor after everyone has left the meeting. Even for those who do take The Balita with them most likely will either shove it away in a drawer somewhere or throw it in (hopefully) a recycling bin. This isn’t what we want for The Balita, and by no means do I mean to use this as a “you should feel ashamed of yourself for treating The Balita like this!” tactic. It’s understandable that when you feel like you’re done reading or have no more use for The Balita the next step is to get rid of it. (I mean, one of my drawers last year was just filled with all The Balitas from the past year.) By making The Balita an online blog instead, we would be reducing that waste and not have people awkwardly hang onto them for the rest of the meeting, not really sure what to do with it.
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The Balita only reaches members who attend meetings. By putting it online, I can boost articles on social media, hopefully reaching a wider audience.
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As a blog, we can publish articles more regularly, keeping our members engaged and our online accounts active.
So, there you have it. Articles will be published biweekly (or weekly, if we’re having an eventful month) and are written by E-board members. Also, if you have anything you’d like to submit to The Balita whether its an opinion piece about an issue pertaining to Filipino- Americans or a paper you wrote for history class about the Japanese occupation of the Philippines or anything in between, let me know! Email me your contribution at stejamilla@gwu.edu. Thanks for understanding this change, and I hope you all have a great year!