Let the Games Begin

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The Olympic Games is about to begin in Paris from July 26-August 11; the Paralympics on August 28, also in Paris. For the first time, a bumper crop (28 in both competitions) of Filipino athletes are participating and some actually have a path to winning. Watch out for these names: EJ Obiena (pole-vaulting), Eumir Marcial (boxing), Carlos Yulo (gymnastics- men), and Kayla Noelle Sanchez (swimming). 

2024 marks 100 years of Philippine participation in the Olympics and PF Correspondent Myles Garcia, a member of the International Society of Olympic Historians, gives us a brief history. The country's medal haul, however, is meager: 2 golds and a smattering of bronzes in the Olympics, and 1 medal in the Paralympics. Let's hope Paris will work its magic on our athletes in this year's games.

*****

Van Cliburn is arguably one of the greatest pianists that ever lived, a rock star in the classical music world with sold-out concerts worldwide, screaming fans and a ticker tape parade in New York City that dwarfed those of beauty queens and sports champions. In the 1970s, during the martial law years of Marcos the first, Van Cliburn was a mainstay in the multinational coterie of first lady Imelda. Read cultural writer Pablo Tariman's account of this great pianist's Philippine connections.

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There are more than 8,000 Filipinos living in beautiful Victoria, British Columbia in Canada and the community mounts one of the most colorful and collaborative celebrations for Victoria Day and Philippine Heritage Month (June, as declared by the Province of British Columbia). Fil-Can writer Megen Quigley reports. 

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Continuing our recurrent feature on the Bridge Generation of the Fil-Am community, the generation's chronicler Peter Jamero features Joe Talaugon, born in 1930, raised and settled in California. Joe's mother was Chumash Indian and he is active in both the Fil-Am and Native American communities. 

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We round up this issue with an op-ed piece by author/educator/activist Walden Bello on the high-stakes political divorce of the Marcos dynasty of the north and the Duterte dynasty of the south. 

[Video of the Week] Stockton Museum Showcases Filipino American Heritage

In The Know

Why Asian Americans care about China’s maritime aggressions
https://asamnews.com/2024/07/04/indo-pacific-diasporas-in-america-against-chinese-expansion/

A trans immigrant living with HIV finds hope and sanctuary in San Francisco

https://www.sfaf.org/collections/status/a-trans-immigrant-living-with-hiv-finds-hope-and-sanctuary-in-san-francisco/

Leonardo DiCaprio supports call to protect Masungi Georeserve
https://news.abs-cbn.com/entertainment/2024/7/3/leonardo-dicaprio-supports-call-to-protect-masungi-georeserve-632? 

Online rumours of civil war in Philippines tied to China’s covert agenda
https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3266870/online-rumours-civil-war-philippines-tied-chinas-covert-agenda?

Butaka chair, Baliwag mesa altar, and more: Here are things you must know about Filipino heritage furniture
https://www.tatlerasia.com/homes/architecture-design/filipino-heritage-furniture?

Anti-Asian Hate Watch

EXCLUSIVE: At least 13 Bay Area senior citizens robbed or attacked in neighborhood in 1 week
https://abc7news.com/post/exclusive-least-13-oakland-senior-citizens-attacked-robbed/15026452/?

Lost Kinjo: Anti-Japanese hate reached a fever pitch in Oakland
https://asamnews.com/2024/07/05/how-oaklands-two-japantowns-disappeared-in-the-face-of-racism/

‘Just the beginning:’ Las Vegas police establish AAPI Alliance
https://asamnews.com/2024/07/01/las-vegas-police-implemented-new-aapi-alliance/

Funding provided by the State of California.

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Staff

A Bridge Forgotten

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While the stories of the Manong generation -- the first group of Filipino migrant farmworkers to Hawaii and the US West Coast who arrived in the early 1900s -- have been and continue to be documented, their offspring who have dubbed themselves as the Bridge Generation have not been as lucky. This according to one of its stalwarts, Peter Jamero, who has written a book and several articles appealing for more research and documentation on the narratives of his contemporaries -- Filipino Americans born in the US before 1945. The Bridge Generation is unique because unlike their parents who never shed their Filipino-ness despite having resided for decades in the US, they grew up Americans. Yet they were never accepted completely as such. Jamero's impassioned plea this week should resonate among historians, cultural torchbearers, journalists and story gatherers.

We likewise feature two cultural torchbearers: the artist Stephanie Syjuco whose ongoing exhibit assembles valuable and otherwise ignore archival photos of the American colonial period in the Philippines; and acclaimed movie director Erik Matti, whose inspired and disturbing film, On the Job: The Missing 8, documents a dark period in Philippine contemporary history.

And we continue to join the chorus against the continuing injustice of keeping former senator Leila de Lima in jail, despite the key witnesses against her recanting their testimonies. 

[Cook It Again] The Happy Home Cook: Easy Tuna Pasta With Vegetables by Elizabeth Ann Quirino

[Video of the Week] Ilocandia

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Staff

Most Challenging U.S. Election in a Lifetime

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I think all of us agree that this 2020 US presidential election is the most chaotic, dangerous and ultimately impactful in our lifetime (and among us who have had a long lifetime, that statement is not an exaggeration). For the approximately four million-strong Filipino American community, the stakes are high.  Especially if in the next four years one has to deal with such fundamental issues as health care, employment, retirement and immigration. It is immensely important that the US citizens among us vote and vote wisely, to protect our interests, to make our voices heard and ensure a better future for our children.

For those who are still on the fence about voting, I hope you join us for Positively Filipino's next webinar this coming Monday, October 12 at 6 pm Pacific/9 pm Eastern (and in the Philippines, 9 am October 13). Like our past webinars, it will be exciting, lively and thought-provoking. To register, click here: http://bit.ly/filamvote

And speaking of past webinars, the last one we had on the Bridge Generation of Filipino Americans got a lot of raves for the insights and new knowledge that our three guests -- community treasures, as moderator Lloyd LaCuesta called them -- shared. If you missed it or want to listen to it again, here's the recording: The Bridge Generation of Filipino Americans

This Week’s Stories

Raising The Curtain On Filipino American Theater’s Past By Walter Ang

A Forgotten Fil-Am Activist Helped Shape Today’s Social Movements By Tim Salaver and Sherelle Johnson

A Sunny Side Up Kind Of Journey By Harvey I. Barkin

The Happy Home Cook: Dad’s Tortang Giniling By Chef Alvin Cailan

Video of the Week: Breaking the Tabo, the first episode of One Down’s documentary series on the glass ceiling for Filipinos in Hollywood.

[Partner] Happy Pilipinx American History Month! PAHM 2020

Read Again: The Boogie Woogie Boys By Alex S. Fabros, Jr.

Read Again: [Partner] A National Museum Of Filipino American History Opens In Stockton, California
By Richard Tenaza

In The Know

The Horrors Of The Philippine-American War You Weren’t Taught In School [PHOTOS]
https://allthatsinteresting.com/philippine-american-war?fbclid=IwAR0tDUaS5Gj02QonfgZgGibS52Dq4mzaFTXM6G7vNWvzLUEvZsEyiTPMagg

Tribesmen's Chief Gagaban, the First Filipino to Fly as a Passenger
https://www.facebook.com/groups/FAXRP/permalink/2848738425354074/

Top 50 Most Popular Filipino Dishes
https://www.tasteatlas.com/50-most-popular-dishes-in-philippines?fbclid=IwAR3p_qHufnkMTXLC0WipyCqRPJPLitNUu_21HHnDQ9xBtTcEIN8J04z4PzM

‘Let Men Die to Make Us Rich:’ How Mark Twain Used Poetry To Oppose the Philippine-American War
https://www.esquiremag.ph/long-reads/features/mark-twain-philippines-a00304-20200104?fbclid=IwAR2VoK8Ia_rIcc2brTF2ITS8ISGaecMjp_jWqYiHJwD4cndk3AB35PHRh-8