Better Late than Never

The US Department of Labor finally came around to honoring three Filipino American labor leaders in its Hall of Honor at the Francis Perkins Building in Washington, D.C. The three -- Larry Itliong, Philip Vera Cruz and Peter Velasco -- were leaders of the 1965 Delano Grape Strike in California, a five-year struggle that led to higher wages, better working conditions and a union health plan for farmworkers. Definitely a case of better-late-than-never, the November 20, 2024 event drew a crowd of 300 including PF contributing writer Titchie Carandang, who writes about this historic gathering.

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The rise in hate incidents all over the country, but with few convictions, begs the question -- when does, say, a random public assault against another person rise to the level of a hate crime? It's complicated, apparently, because there are prerequisites involved. Since hate crimes -- of the racial, gender, sexual orientation and disability varieties -- are here to stay, it's important to understand the legalities. Prominent San Francisco lawyer Lourdes Tancinco explains.                                                  

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Liquid inihaw? Is it even a thing? For those who are not (yet) as entrenched in Filipino cooking, here's one illuminating instructional for you from innkeeper/heritage advocate/culinary history geek An Mercado Alcantara. An's essay won first prize in the 2023 Doreen Gamboa Fernandez Food Writing competition.                                                

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If you're seeking to invest in real estate in the Philippines, you're strongly advised to look beyond Manila towards certain provinces that will give you more bang for your buck. Realtor Vlad Capistrano gives a bird's eye view of lucrative regional markets.

Read Agains:

Lulu’s Fifty-Peso Christmas Gift
Elizabeth Ann Quirino 

Delicious Dishes for Your Christmas Table
Staff

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In The Know

Bishop Ambo David takes oath as 10th Filipino cardinal
https://www.rappler.com/philippines/bishop-pablo-virgilio-ambo-david-takes-oath-10th-filipino-cardinal/

Who is Sofronio Vasquez, the first Asian winner of ‘The Voice USA?’
https://www.rappler.com/entertainment/music/things-to-know-sofronio-vasquez-the-voice-usa-winner/

Aglipayan Church, known for activism, hails Cardinal Ambo David
https://www.rappler.com/philippines/aglipayan-church-congratulations-cardinal-pablo-virgilio-david/

Wrong Guillermo: Cebu town mixed up patron saint for centuries
https://www.rappler.com/philippines/visayas/wrong-guillermo-cebu-dalaguete-town-mixed-up-patron-saint-centuries/

Jose Rizal's 'Josephine Sleeping' sculpture sells for a record P31.2 million
https://philstarlife.com/news-and-views/283484-jose-rizal-s-josephine-sleeping-sculpture-p31-2-million?L8Iykw5lgVYoyIckOdOvKlBw_aem_Mqa8HG68Uc0qSbFJbDaShg

‘Bona’: A Filipina Superstar Wreaks Vengeance in a Two-Fisted Melodrama
https://www.nytimes.com/2024/12/05/movies/bona-lino-brocka-metrograph.html? 

Man accused of duping Filipino churchgoers into investing in video Covid-test tech to plead guilty 
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/asian-america/man-plead-guilty-filipinos-video-covid-19-wire-fraud-rcna183428 

Kidnapped American YouTuber likely dead in Philippines
https://asamnews.com/2024/12/11/mindanao-zamboanga-del-norte-vlogger-southern/

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'Tis the Season to Be Peaceful

When the Hamas-Israel war broke out in October, the Philippine Embassy in Israel immediately went into crisis management mode, a familiar switch among diplomatic posts in unstable regions. With Filipino OFWs in almost 200 countries in the world, crisis-induced aid forms a major part of diplomatic work, as journalist Jeremaiah Opiniano writes in "PH Runs a Cycle of Crisis-Induced OFW Aid." In Israel today, the Philippine Embassy acts as guardian and succor to the almost 30,000 Filipinos in the country (about 130 in Gaza), most of whom have chosen to remain in their jobs (less than 300 have chosen repatriation) despite the threats they face as bystanders in the current war.

'Tis the season to be jolly nonetheless and what better way to celebrate than the traditional Simbang Gabi. Despite (or maybe because of) being away from the Motherland, overseas Filipinos nurture the holiday spirit, as first-time contributing writer Ronald Salazar reports from Wellington, New Zealand. Read "Simbang Gabi Abroad -- Our Faith and Our Music" because indeed, there's no taking the Filipino away from our Christmas traditions.

And what is Christmas without food? Our friend Micky Fenix, one of the leading lights in the Philippine culinary scene, takes us on a virtual tour of Iloilo City's gastronomic delights, a fitting tour d'horizon of the recently proclaimed UNESCO Creative City for Gastronomy.

Another food story to tickle your palates, "The Comforting Squidginess of Slow-Cooked Veggies" by Jeanne Jakob-Ashkenazi, a Filipino food researcher based in Valencia, Spain. This essay won the second prize in the 2022 Doreen Gamboa Fernandez Food Writing Award.

Finally, if you're lucky enough to have this Fil-Am movie showing in your area, here's a preview of "Asian Persuasion" starring KC Concepcion, Dante Basco and Paolo Montalban, among others, as directed by Jhett Tolentino. 

And for our Video of the Week, it's always a treat to watch Lea Salonga. This one is particularly poignant as she sings "Payapang Daigdig" with the Tabernacle Choir. The song composed by Felipe de Leon in 1946 is a paean to peace, something the world needs badly right now. 

Partner: “Remember Pearl Harbor… And The Philippines!”

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Anti-Asian Hate Watch

Brutal Attack on Elderly Asian Man Is Not a Hate Crime, Says LA County Sheriff’s Department
https://ethnicmediaservices.org/stop-the-hate/brutal-attack-on-elderly-asian-man-is-not-a-hate-crime-says-la-county-sheriffs-department/

Trial to be set for killing of Vicha Ratanapakdee, who’s death sparked ‘Stop Asian Hate’
https://asamnews.com/2023/12/09/trial-to-be-set-for-killing-of-vicha-ratanapakdee-whos-death-sparked-stop-asian-hate/

Lifting the lamp for AAPI New Jerseyans, 80 years after the Chinese Exclusion Act
https://newjerseymonitor.com/2023/12/06/lifting-the-lamp-for-aapi-new-jerseyans-80-years-after-the-chinese-exclusion-act/

Hate crime surge raises alarms, adds safety concerns for minorities
https://www.losangelesblade.com/2023/12/10/hate-crime-surge-raises-alarms-adds-safety-concerns-for-minorities/

Funding provided by the State of California.

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In The Know

Smaller boat in ‘Atin Ito’ convoy completes mission to Lawak
https://globalnation.inquirer.net/224180/smaller-boat-in-atin-ito-convoy-completes-mission-to-lawak

Gift-bearing convoy begins WPS voyage: ‘This is ours’
https://globalnation.inquirer.net/224001/gift-bearing-convoy-begins-wps-voyage-this-is-ours?utm_source=(direct)&utm_medium=gallery&fbclid=IwAR3TcS9QiYMchPoy3wjquvYdjCpH13rGltH4fHpy06xqHRts98T-XmtWCEc

79-year-old woman fulfills lifelong dream of visiting all 193 countries
https://nextshark.com/luisa-yu-visits-193-un-countries?fbclid=IwAR3k2btW0zJJu5rY7UoKeeGYtiPIeocdhxM75hQA3KP8gvqjHXQ_3-xnT-8

Bringing Filipino Cuisine to New York for Nearly 30 Years
https://guide.michelin.com/us/en/article/features/michlein-guide-only-filipino-restaurant-in-new-york-purple-yam?fbclid=IwAR0m_POUi7KEY9hQwVnpvemuB1edQKKRiVDtzqStEuWPbNfy33dJUjv_cJU

For 50 years, Oriental Mart has been a home for Filipino food in Seattle
https://www.seattletimes.com/life/food-drink/seattle-chefs-celebrate-a-beacon-of-filipino-food-at-pike-place-market/?fbclid=IwAR1eEKwrj5wUTPjlXlfJ0icOiF_RgzFuc-Hx-YrQFaiDeJU-aZnFWGzcrvg

Here's How Much It Costs to Stay at Amanpulo in Palawan
https://www.esquiremag.ph/life/travel/amanpulo-rates-palawan-sa00268-20210729-src-preview-lfrm2?utm_medium=Echobox-Esquire&utm_campaign=Echobox-Ownshare&utm_source=Facebook&fbclid=IwAR3WG5OvUa9WXk6hqjMBjnXN_uV-vvz1aroIJ1ucQz4DbHPwHVGFTucJfIY#Echobox=1701854157

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Audacious Women

A woman baker who's making it in New York with her silvanas and chocolate cake. A woman academic who authored a memoir in poetry. A group of  women journalists who didn't let dictatorship or harassment faze them. Stories about women by women marks our Women's Month celebration this week:

Agatha Verdadero profiles Ann Casimiro of New York, whose sweet delights has put a restaurant called Tsismis on the city's very competitive culinary map. ["Ann Casimiro's Sweet Success"] 

PF Correspondent Lisa Suguitan-Melnick focuses on recently retired academic Leny Mendoza Strobel who has come out with a poetic memoir entitled "Glimpses." ["The Scholar Unplugged”]

And from our Manila-based correspondent Criselda Yabes, her tribute to the Women Writers in Media Now (WOMEN), the group of journalists who never stopped fighting authoritarianism. Full disclosure: this is a self-serving feature. ["WOMEN, on the Verge of Another Breakdown"]

From a well-known woman foodie and PF Correspondent Elizabeth Ann Quirino, our Happy Home Cook recipe for Tuna Pasta.

Our In The Know links this week:

How Has the Philippines Managed to Contain the COVID-19 Outbreak?https://www.esquiremag.ph/life/health-and-fitness/how-has-the-philippines-managed-to-contain-the-covid-19-outbreak-a2099-20200306-lfrm?fbclid=IwAR2qp_2Im3A_biihwFUl4TYxjmxrvaDJjy2Fcyw9DtLy10-oToxzCCxo4dQ

11 Empowering Female Scientists Who Paved the Way for Filipino Women in Science
https://www.esquiremag.ph/long-reads/features/women-scientists-in-the-philippines-a00304-20200308-lfrm?utm_source=Facebook-Esquire&utm_medium=Ownshare&utm_campaign=20200308-fbnp-long-reads-women-scientists-in-the-philippines-a00304-20200308-lfrm-fbfirst&fbclid=IwAR21zvzVKzePOgjqiplQwL3OFN1koK3u48CIZHqmVhcFQkB2xIPgcDJQgT0

No matter the weather: Life as a solo mother
https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1238287/no-matter-the-weather-life-as-a-solo-mother?fbclid=IwAR2TwLb2Tb1Xm-6YgBAhIZEtWknWdVsLuza5WbxBzL0z9VjHvELCuFwhwTM#/

Why Doreen Fernandez’s Tikim is still THE book on Filipino food, 20 years after it was first published
https://news.abs-cbn.com/ancx/culture/books/03/03/20/why-doreen-fernandezs-tikim-is-still-the-book-on-filipino-food-20-years-after-its-publishing?fbclid=IwAR1SAP1uspssUPLu3TwTvhiAVmwG_3m_UUbOTQp8W7Ldht_Mn8e6pWKDMlc

Fried Chicken King of Asia Loses $2.9 Billion on U.S. Gamble
https://www.yahoo.com/finance/news/fried-chicken-king-asia-loses-210000270.html

This 'Tagalog Scrabble' May Help Improve Your Child's Filipino Vocabulary
https://www.smartparenting.com.ph/life/family-fun/salitaan-tagalog-scrabble-a00061-20200305?fbclid=IwAR1tL2HQi2I80zsYGBIViJexn1bNHVyR19iVUqiwBkdZDgG6DcRCJfZsrsw

For our Video of the Week, Youtube personality Mikey Bustos presents his latest cover “Stupid Cough,” a COVID-19 parody and safety reminder video set to Lady Gaga’s new song “Stupid Love.”