Fil-Ams You Should Know

Aside from Mother's Day, the big celebration in the US in May is Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month (AAPIHM). Why May? Because the first Japanese immigrant to the US arrived on May 7, 1843 and the transcontinental railroad was completed by mostly Chinese immigrants on May 10, 1869. Filipino Americans have their own month to celebrate - October, since it is believed that the first Filipinos to reach American soil got here on that month. Nonetheless, we celebrate in solidarity with our fellow Asians because any occasion to honor the contributions of immigrants to this giant melting pot of a country is cause for celebration.

Get to know some famous -- and infamous -- Filipino Americans in the compilation spearheaded by our publisher Mona Lisa Yuchengco, the first of which is in this issue. ["Fil-Ams Among the Remarkable and Famous"]

Likewise, in our continuing salute to mothers this month, Lisa shares with us her tribute to her late mother, Paz Sycip Yuchengco. ["A Final Goodnight"]

Cultural writer Walter Ang introduces Cynthia Salaysay, a Filipino American author, whose first book Private Lessons, a young adult (YA) novel, is coming out this month. ["Cynthia Salaysay's Healing Heart"]

Some deaths are heavier than others as Manila-based PF Correspondent Criselda Yabes illustrates in her tribute to her good friend (and ours too), former secretary of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources Fulgencio Factoran Jr. ["Jun Factoran, A Friend Forever"]

Here's a timely Read Again that will make you feel good: Liana Romulo's account of her esteemed lolo's amazing feat. https://www.positivelyfilipino.com/magazine/2013/7/when-lolos-debating-team-vanquished-america

For the Happy Home Cook, let's dig up another comfort food from our archive: Binagoongang Baboy from Beth Romualdez. http://www.positivelyfilipino.com/magazine/the-happy-home-cook-binagoongang-baboy

Here are links to stories from other publications: 

Pandemic slashes remittance lifeline as overseas Filipino workers lose jobs
https://www.bworldonline.com/pandemic-slashes-remittance-lifeline-as-overseas-filipino-workers-lose-jobs/?fbclid=IwAR2ZbbTPIYw0LpqUFsh8vzsLSGFEUl7K1VkEaNvRy3tdxcMCianXJBPqeao

Five things to remember during Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month and beyond
https://www.adn.com/opinions/2019/05/24/five-things-to-remember-during-asian-american-and-pacific-islander-heritage-month-and-beyond/?fbclid=IwAR2jZorBTiALQj6TTSuWoG8_8vvAIJqqZvwIHsZbsW7FnytFlftX4kPea6M

In the Claws of a Police State
https://thebaffler.com/latest/in-the-claws-of-a-police-state-flores-fantauzzo?fbclid=IwAR07Jk2QrkXK74CLdhFltQGC2o08EG829-Uq2Qya-59Q3fZQnw-7LLdDVN0

“Similar to Times of War”: The Staggering Toll of COVID-19 on Filipino Health Care Workers
https://www.propublica.org/article/similar-to-times-of-war-the-staggering-toll-of-covid-19-on-filipino-health-care-workers?utm_source=pardot&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=majorinvestigations&utm_content=feature

Celebrity IOU: Michael Bublé fulfills grandfather's dying wish with home for his caretaker Minette
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-8287151/Celebrity-IOU-Michael-Bubl-fulfills-grandfathers-dying-wish-home-caretaker-Minette.html?fbclid=IwAR19mlzdhKtFDgjwFXybGLCl7hbynMdswyUZfA0SjGQZKjjZoMoPrHPYY0s#i-5912dad24a9fa0a6 

What Manila Looked Like The Year You Were Born
https://www.esquiremag.ph/culture/lifestyle/old-manila-vintage-photos-a00297-20200501-lfrm3?utm_source=Facebook-Esquire&utm_medium=Ownshare&utm_campaign=20200431-fbnp-culture-old-manila-vintage-photos-a00297-20200501-lfrm3-fbfirst&fbclid=IwAR3rDBH9HefUzse2Da5tbFqoe3AffarjJtkamXXsbO_w30FQ2bCgmdCA6H0 

For our Video of the Week, witness veteran journalist Howie Severino's documentation of his bout with Covid-19. 

Coping with Corona

The Duterte administration's draconian enforcement of stay-at-home orders during this coronavirus pandemic is adding to the stress of quarantine, especially among a large sector of the now-elderly population who experienced martial law. PF contributor Ernesto M. Hilario provides a timely situationer on the enhanced community quarantine that is in place until May 15. ["Fighting Fire with Fire Won’t Stop the Pandemic"]

In one country in the Horn of Africa where the pandemic is an added burden to an already dire humanitarian crisis, it's business-as-usual work albeit with tighter social restrictions for humanitarian aide worker Gerry Romay of Negros Occidental. Our Nairobi-based writer, Agatha Verdadero, reaches out. ["Horn of Africa: Social Distancing as a Lifestyle"]

More nimble than their brick-and-mortar counterparts, Filipino food trucks and pop-ups in California switch their focus to helping the frontliners and those in need. PF regular contributor Jennifer Fergesen reports. ["Filipino Foodpreneurs Keep on Truckin’ Amid Pandemic"]

They say if you have Covid-19, among the first signs are the loss of your sense of smell and taste. Well, if you cook Filipino food, as PF Correspondent Elizabeth Ann Quirino suggests, and you're savoring the aroma and the strong flavors, then you're okay. ["Stop and Smell the Power of Filipino Cooking"]

And what better way to test your taste buds than "Becugan," the Kapampangan bagoong, our Happy Home Cook recipe this week.  

For those waiting to immigrate to the US, here are the basic facts about President Trump's latest directive suspending immigration. San Francisco-based immigration lawyer Maria Lourdes Tancinco writes our Partner post.  

Here are links to more stories:

Job Losses Drain Overseas Money That Helps Fuel the Philippines
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/job-losses-drain-overseas-money-210000713.html

This 81-year-old was L.A.’s most devoted museum-goer until COVID-19 shuttered cultural institutions
https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/story/2020-04-23/81-year-old-ben-barcelona-lives-and-breathes-museums-but-what-happens-when-culture-collapses?fbclid=IwAR1H8Na5TIC2jMZMUtfV1SjzsMnTf88n23ibsaK8QpF6-Ue-seB7779eO0E

Supplier of World’s Nurses Struggles to Fight Virus at Home
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-04-23/philippines-sends-nurses-around-the-world-but-lacks-them-at-home?srnd=premium-asia&fbclid=IwAR1zyKW0MWrg11tG7uj0TnIGd5Lu2-vN_FNMT5hkTgZ8kDIlE0-asMums40

Love story that started Peyups.com revives it as pandemic ‘escape’
https://lifestyle.inquirer.net/361524/love-story-that-started-peyups-com-revives-it-as-pandemic-escape/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=Facebook&fbclid=IwAR3FCmpteDj_4XI3sfFqVgry1Yyy15saZWNjHq9Mqko05cMlODs2eSOKFeE#Echobox=1587778400

Nursing ranks are filled with Filipino Americans. The pandemic is taking an outsized toll on them
https://www.statnews.com/2020/04/28/coronavirus-taking-outsized-toll-on-filipino-american-nurses/?fbclid=IwAR3yLDwQM2HF9IH0gw5X-eqHZSMMNp5IKIC4xO6wjfH-Yogua_8e_wWcBRs

A ‘Filipino soul food’ restaurant is reborn as a community kitchen
https://www.latimes.com/food/newsletter/2020-04-25/tasting-notes-escarcega-bebot-filipino-soul-food-long-beach-tasting-notes?fbclid=IwAR13AtMwL35EEym_p_fpC0u4j0ps6ccL9-TeyjTod5D4Mjyba7v3ghQoKB0

For video of the week, in celebration of Asian Pacific American History Month, CAAM launched the trailer of its 5-part documentary “Asian Americans” which premieres on PBS on May 11 and 12, 2020.

House of Memories

If walls can speak, what colorful stories would have emerged from 2422 K St. in Washington DC, known in the mid-1900s as The Manila House, where Filipinos ate, gambled,sang, loved and quarreled. The building has since become Carwithen House but its rich history as a hangout of Filipinos in the area are immortalized in the stories of acclaimed author Bienvenido N. Santos. Contributor Titchie Carandang-Tiongson who, together with husband Erwin, was able to walk the halls of the building, writes about this historic landmark of Fil-Am history in Washington DC. Through the efforts of  The Philippine Arts, Letters and Media Council; the Philippines on the Potomac Project, the Rita M. Cacas Foundation and the Toribio Family,  the Manila House has been designated a Literary Landmark (one of only four in DC) and a plaque was installed last week in commemoration. 

It's Mother's Day once again so we'd like to circle back to some of our outstanding mother tributes:

PF Correspondent and cookbook author Elizabeth Ann Quirino shared with us her award-winning essay, "A Hundred Mangoes in a Bottle," about her mother teaching her about life through the techniques of food preservation;

PF publisher Mona Lisa Yuchengco paid tribute to her late mother, Paz Sycip Yuchengco, by organizing a concert of her musical compositions;

Our Manila-based contributor Cathy S. Babao tells us the experiences that defined her mother, the character actress Caridad Sanchez.

Our In The Know links this week includes some important information about Asian Americans, in time for Asian American History Month:

The Rise of Asian Americans
http://www.pewsocialtrends.org/asianamericans-graphics/

Six Interesting Facts About Asian Americans
https://www.thoughtco.com/interesting-facts-about-asian-americans-2834533

Israel's Invisible Filipino Work Force
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/03/magazine/israels-invisible-filipino-work-force.html?rref=collection%2Fsectioncollection%2Fmagazine&action=click&contentCollection=magazine&region=rank&module=package&version=highlights&contentPlacement=6&pgtype=sectionfront&_r=0

Elderly Gay Filipinos Who Perform In Drag to Survive
https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/the-elderly-gay-filipinos-who-perform-in-drag-to-survive

From Chicagoland, PF Correspondent Rey de la Cruz gives us a taste of Adeline's Catering where Cebu lechon reigns.

From Adeline's Catering's chef Victor Ricolcol, his version of the classic Pork Belly Adobo for our Happy Home Cook.

For Video of the Week, NBC presents 26 emerging Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders who redefine what it takes to be an American of Asian and Pacific Islander descent today.