Empowered Filipinas

In many countries, across a wide expanse of professions and vocations, Filipina women are smashing barriers and blazing trails, a phenomenon that has been assiduously documented by the Filipina Women's Network (FWN) with its annual Most Influential awards. This week, Positively Filipino is featuring the first batch of 12 awardees representing six countries who are elevating Filipino womanhood to new levels of excellence. [Read part 1 of "Filipina Movers and Shakers" as compiled by our publisher, Mona Lisa Yuchengco, from FWN's roster. Parts 2 and 3 will be in the next issues of PF.]

It's not an easy book to read. It will shock you, anger you. A nightmare or two is not far-fetched. But if there's one book that a Filipino should read today, if only to be aware of what our Motherland just went through and might go through again, it's Some People Need Killing by Filipino ace journalist Patricia Evangelista. The book lists in both the New York Times' and President Obama's rankings as one of the best published in 2023, which is a first for a Filipino author. PF book reviewer Patricio Abinales provides a guide to ease one's way into the book's 429 pages without getting drained by the sadness and your rage. 

What does it take to raise a future Attorney General of California? Ten years ago, Cynthia Bonta, mother of Rob (Robbie for her), talked to PF Correspondent Cherie M. Querol Moreno about her family's journey that shaped the trajectory of her children's careers. Read Again https://www.positivelyfilipino.com/magazine/model-mom for a parenting guide.

Africa-based PF writer Agatha Verdadero found out the hard way the secret to making friends with Africans, specifically the proud Somali people, with whom she spent years as an international aide worker. "It was from them that I learned one of the most important truths about working in Africa: Never go to the continent with the romantic notion of being a messiah, of helping its people. You are not needed and wanted that way. Instead, be a trustworthy friend. Everything else flows from that fundamental relationship." Read Again her  article https://www.positivelyfilipino.com/magazine/friendship-worth-ones-life for some illumination. 

[Video of the Week] Asian Pacific America: Larry the Musical Premieres at Brava Theatre


Anti-Asian Hate Watch

'You brought the 'kung flu' here': Man pleads guilty to hate crime, assault at UC
https://www.wcpo.com/news/crime/you-brought-the-kung-flu-here-man-pleads-guilty-to-hate-crime-assault-at-uc

Racist note left on receipt at Asian restaurant in North Carolina sparks outrage
https://news.yahoo.com/news/racist-note-left-receipt-asian-174213584.html

Suspect in Manhattan subway hammer attack charged with hate crimes, threatened to kill police: court docs
https://www.aol.com/suspect-manhattan-subway-hammer-attack-232400157.html?guccounter=1

Fear of Anti-Asian Hate as an International Medical Graduate
https://journals.lww.com/academicmedicine/fulltext/2023/04000/fear_of_anti_asian_hate_as_an_international.5.aspx

Funding provided by the State of California.


In The Know

What we the Filipino audience lost when Jaclyn Jose died
https://www.thediarist.ph/what-we-the-filipino-audience-lost-when-jaclyn-jose-died/

In Pictures: 15 Manila Spots That Signal Beginnings of a Larger Walkable Heritage Zone
https://www.spot.ph/newsfeatures/culture/108008/manila-best-history-and-heritage-spots-a6883-20240210-lfrm?

Financial Adviser: 5 Business Lessons Everyone Can Learn from 'The Pretzel King' Mikkel Paris, CEO of Auntie Anne's Philippines
https://www.esquiremag.ph/money/industry/auntie-annes-philippines-mikkel-paris-ceo-business-lessons-a2334-20230725

Here's How Much It Costs to Live in Manila's Most Exclusive Villages 
https://www.esquiremag.ph/the-good-life/pursuits/manila-exclusive-villages-price-and-perks-a1868-a1910-20190625-lfrm10?

Spot Stays: This Palawan Resort's Water Villas Are Worth the Splurge
https://www.spot.ph/things-to-do/the-latest-things-to-do/107767/palawan-resort-setir-new-salepan-villas-a5138-20240117?


Glory Day on Ice

A 24-year-old Fil-Am ice skater Isabella Gamez and her partner Aleksander Korovin achieved a feat that has never been done before: be the first Pairs figure skaters representing the Philippines to quality for the International Skating Union World Figure Skating Championships that starts today in Saitama, Japan. PF Correspondent Myles A. Garcia provides us a primer on Pairs vs. Ice Dancing, explains how a Russian skater came to represent our homeland, and introduces Gamez who has illustrious athletic creds: she's the granddaughter of basketball legend (and former senator) Freddie Webb.

Sure to make your mouth water and get you in the kitchen is Chef Claude Tayag's The Ultimate Filipino Adobo: Stories Through the Ages, a cookbook and culinary history book that serves up luscious stories about our national dish. PF Correspondent Elizabeth Ann Quirino, herself a cookbook author, stirs up our palates with her review of this must-have foodie treasure. 

Sidney Sheldon? Literature? You would think the name and classroom subject couldn't be used in the same sentence but popular PF contributor Ian Layugan did just that in his recall of his high school reading choice, "How Sidney Sheldon Taught Me How to Read."

More women stories and writing for Women's History Month:

A woman shines in Spain:

The Stunning Isabel Preysler — Positively Filipino | Online Magazine for Filipinos in the Diaspora

Women Reign in Pampanga:

Why Women Rule Pampanga — Positively Filipino | Online Magazine for Filipinos in the Diaspora

A famous Filipina artist writes about her adopted hometown in France:

Limeuil — Positively Filipino | Online Magazine for Filipinos in the Diaspora

It may not be adobo but only a Kapampangan chef can do a genuine Sisig:

The Happy Home Cook: Sizzling Sisig — Positively Filipino | Online Magazine for Filipinos in the Diaspora

[Video of the Week] 'Lihim ng Casa Sulipeña,' dokumentaryo ni Kara David | I-Witness