All About Independence

Philippine Independence Day is once again upon us and Filipino communities worldwide are celebrating in various ways to convey to their children the richness of their historical roots and to remind themselves of their Filipino-ness.

Positively Filipino Contributing Writer Myles A. Garcia channeled his nostalgia for his ancestral home and discovered an uncanny historical link to the women who sewed the original Philippine flag in1898. "The Flag of Their Forebears" traces some complicated affinities and provides a brief lesson on the evolution of the Philippine flag.

A story of valor and courage is a must for an Independence Day issue so Read Again historian John Silva's "A Valiant People's Army" featuring rare photos of Filipino soldiers fighting the Filipino-American War at the turn of the 20th century.

Switching now to the 21st century, Daniel Olivan of Kalibrr, a Manila-based recruitment tech startup, profiles Karen Batungbacal who he calls the "mother" of the business process offshoring (BPO) industry in the Philippines. "Touch of Gold" introduces an amazing woman and gives us a primer on one of the most important engines of the Philippine economy.

And in Silay, Negros Occidental, architect and urban planner Nathaniel von Einsiedel takes us on a tour of the "green" house he built for his family.

Our Happy Home Cook recipe this week is for Batangas-style Bulanglang with the famous Batangas fish, tawilis.

With our Video of the Week, we join the world in commemorating the life of the late great Muhammad Ali with a short documentary on the Thrilla in Manila, his 1975 historic bout with Joe Frazier at the Araneta Coliseum. 

Heroes, Food and Special Women

Memorial Day in the US has come and gone, but honoring our war veterans knows no deadlines. We are posting an article from Ben de Guzman, first published in Huffington Post.

Filipino cuisine seems to be gaining a foothold in the United Kingdom as British Filipino chefs, eager to celebrate their roots and put some British twists to their culinary creations, set up pop-ups and even regular restaurants to promote and share their food. One of them is Rex de Guzman, aka Le Happy Chef, who is profiled here by culinary journalist Jacqueline Lauri.

In the US, the Quesada family of Ramar Food International is one of the primary proponents of the Filipino Food Movement. Read Again the story of how the family business, the biggest Filipino frozen food manufacturer and distributor in the Western hemisphere, came about in "Healthy, Fancy, Trendy: Quesada Trio Bring Filipino Tastes Mainstream."

Meanwhile, renowned author and academic Luis H. Francia writes about two awesome women who have published notable books: Gemma Cruz Araneta (yes, the first Filipina Miss International) and his late sister, Sr. Myrna H. Francia of the ICM congregation. Gemma's Hanoi Diary is a historical account of her and her then-husband's visit to North Vietnam at the height of the Vietnam War. Sister Myrna, whom her brother describes as not really a "goody goody" person, shocked everyone including her family when she decided to become a nun. She wrote The Party's Over: A Nun for Modern Times before she passed away. Both books are still commercially available and definitely worth reading.

Our Happy Home Cook feature this week: Le Happy Chef's recipe of his Anglicized version of our beloved sisig.

In our Video of the Week, Kristiane Hill shot an 8 mm film during her travels to Manila and Asia around the end of 1920's till early 1930's. Her grandson, Kim Skaarup, uploaded the video.

Prickly Heat

As spring morphs into summer, the political heat is also rising in the US, what with the November presidential election looming large. How are Asian Americans reacting to the increasingly unnerving rhetoric of Donald Trump and his fans? A survey report from the Asian and Pacific Islander American Vote reveals that Asian Americans demand "Inclusion, Not Exclusion," and a full 40 percent of the 1,200 respondents who are registered voters say they will not vote for the candidate who spouts exclusionary rhetoric.  Candidates take heed. The full report can be found here: http://www.apiavote.org/sites/apiavote/files/Inclusion-2016-AAVS-final.pdf

Two very different men who are nonetheless similar in their ethnicity and their cultural advocacies are in our lineup this week:

Mamerto (Lagitan) Tindongan draws on his strong Ifugao roots for inspiration as a woodcarver, energy healer and a qigong and tai chi teacher. Regular contributor Lisa Suguitan Melnick writes, "The Spirit Carver," about this 8th-generation mumbaki (shaman) who is now based in Ohio.

In San Francisco, Filipino American Dean Dario conveys his thoughts and worldview through hip hop and is reaping success, as reported by Manzel Delacruz in "Shooting for the Stars."

Milwaukee, Wisconsin is probably not the first place you have in mind when seeking Filipino food in the Midwest. But a mobile Filipino restaurant called "Meat on the Street" serves up yummy fare for comfort food seekers in that neck of the woods.

And since it's summer, here's a refreshing and easy-to-make "Salad for All Seasons," from France-based artist Ofelia Gelvezon Tequi.

For our Video of the Week, NowThis features Hernando Guanlao who turned his home into a free library so that kids can learn to read.