Connections

The Internet has brought us an interconnected world where information is accessible to everyone who wants it and ignorance is no longer an excuse. Unfortunately, it also has given license to bigots and haters to vent their anger at a world that is not to their liking. One of the most recent—and ugliest—manifestations of bigotry and ignorance is that directed towards the newly crowned Miss America Nina Davuluri, whose ancestry is Indian, and who is only the second Asian American to win the title. The first was Angela Perez Baraquio-Grey, a Filipino American, who won the title in 2001 before Twitter and Facebook provided a public arena for bigots to rant, but who nevertheless got her share of racist put-downs.

In this issue, author Nöel Alumit gave us permission to re-post his interview (first seen in The Huffington Post) with Angela, who gives a hands-up to Nina and celebrates diversity in the pageant, which she says, is "a striking reminder of how diverse our country has become."

Interconnectedness is likewise the underlying thread in our other stories this week. Contributor Migs Bassig tells us about Erwin, a bartender in Coron, who dreams of seeing the world but who nonetheless chooses to remain rooted in his hometown where the world comes to him through the many stories he gets from the tourists that partake of his concoctions. From Hong Kong, Isabel Taylor Escoda, tries to make the connection between San Francisco's Golden Gate Bridge and her father's cement factory in Cebu.

Positively Filipino also wants to connect with you more. Please feel free to put down your comments on the stories we post (in the Comments section below each article), on our Facebook page, on Twitter, email and every other means you have to let us know you're there and reading. We love to hear from you.

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