April 07, 2021

Bullseye on our Backs?

April 07, 2021/ Gemma Nemenzo

Where are our martial arts warriors when we need them?

I heard someone ask this question when the video of a 65-year old Filipino woman being assaulted last week in New York's Times Square in broad daylight became viral. Sure, it's a stereotype and a myth that Asians are Bruce Lees but with the almost daily stream of verbal and physical assaults on Asian Americans, can't we call on our ninja warriors for protection? Or at the very least, assistance? The video of Vilma Kari didn't show anyone coming to her aid; in fact, security guards at the building closed the doors on her (they've been fired). It was only a few days later that Vilma's daughter posted that a person across the street "yelled and screamed to get the assailant's attention" thereby disrupting the vicious attack. No one else helped; NYPD didn't even get a 911 call.

Few of us can be as badass as the Chinese lola Xiao Zhen Xie in San Francisco who fought back. Or as lucky, since there was a wooden board handy that she picked up to whack her assailant with which landed him, not her, in the hospital.

It's gratifying to know that Asian American groups, including the National Federation of Filipino American Associations (NaFFAA, see Partner post below), are calling for the consolidation of efforts to address this issue of hate crimes against Asians. Doubly gratifying that the Biden administration has our backs, rhetorically and policy-wise.

In the real world however, we continue to be vulnerable. I was in New York last week at the time of Vilma Kari's assault and I admit that the very normal NYC activity of taking a walk felt like there was a bullseye on my back. This is no way to live.

What can we do to protect ourselves while we wait for all the organizing and the concerted efforts to take effect?

Our Stories This Week

Fil-Ams Among The Remarkable And Famous, Part 17 By Mona Lisa Yuchengco

A Child Forever By Rey E. de la Cruz

‘Stand The F**K Up’ By Corin Ramos

[Partner] NaFFAA To Develop Hate Crimes Task Force In Response To Anti-Asian Attacks

Read Again: In The Heat Of The Night: The Exeter And Watsonville Riots 1929-1930 By Alex S. Fabros, Jr.

The Happy Home Cook: Gising Gising (Seafood Extreme)

[Video of the Week] World War II in the Philippines, the Forgotten War

In The Know

Filipina mom grateful for extraordinary act of kindness in small-town Alberta
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/filipinos-rural-alberta-1.5965398?cmp=rss&fbclid=IwAR2P9YD4Bul5zBjhzK-yCprbMQsE28LcaYhgVy9q1xvZPzB_dHufzQ9Uh7s

The Best Books About Asian American Identity, According to Experts
https://nymag.com/strategist/amp/article/best-books-about-asian-american-identity.html?__twitter_impression=true&s=04&fbclid=IwAR0Lj1NvHcNu1LuOhYHYPcSQzvT_dn3OrnwfB_0QMKoTNGv-1lfktOSt2X0

Gliceria Marella-Villavicencio: A revolutionary figure you’ve probably never heard of
https://nolisoli.ph/66528/gliceria-marella-villavicencio-csanjose-20190826/?fbclid=IwAR14fApK1p2eI_s_tclC4DJIOqVufT93iJXhYpl5qnqWTQYxSyZALx5UxFE

Meet the hidden Filipino treasure that is dulce prenda
https://www.sbs.com.au/food/article/2021/03/17/meet-hidden-filipino-treasure-dulce-prenda?fbclid=IwAR3Tdbuo7lsCzrGJGsEe1fmFKF2wZ4ywaiHHpSJ4cgYBsnuLf9teCDJmlWc

March 31, 2021

Unsung Heroes

March 31, 2021/ Gemma Nemenzo

We end this year's Women's History Month with two unheralded Filipino women who played remarkable roles in our motherland's history, although in different centuries. Coincidentally, both hail from the province of Pampanga.

Sor Martha de San Bernardo battled and triumphed against racial discrimination in 1632 to become the first Filipino nun ever. Kapampangan cultural historian Robby Tantingco introduces us to this religious pioneer who we think should be known and rightfully.honored by the Catholic church. ["Give This Pampangueña a Memorial in the West Philippine Sea"]

From more contemporary times, Remedios Gomez-Paraiso, aka Kumander Liwayway, scared the daylights out of the Japanese army during WWII and later, the Philippine military as her exploits as a Hukbalahap warrior became the stuff of legend. She was captured multiple times and triggered a lot of public interest because she defied the warrior stereotype by going into battle with red lipstick and perfume. Ana Maria "Princess" Nemenzo shares with us her talk on "Kumander Liwayway; The Feminine Warrior."

On an entirely different topic, PF Correspondent Anthony Maddela profiles Lord Maynard Llera, a product of the Culinary Institute of America, who currently hones his Filipino recipes via a pop-up restaurant in his garage in a Los Angeles suburb. Lucky patrons can savor his specialty, Pancit Chami, the famous noodles of Quezon province. ["Praise Kuya Lord"]

The UP Film Institute celebrates National Women's Month and the 66th birth anniversary of multi-award winning film director Marilou Diaz-Abaya (March 30) with a free screening of Mona Lisa Yuchengco's documentary "Marilou Diaz-Abaya: Filmmaker on a Voyage," which will run until April 4, 2021.

Stories This Week

Kumander Liwayway: A Feminine Warrior By Ana Maria Nemenzo

Give This Pampangueña A Memorial In The West Philippine Sea By Robby Tantingco

Praise Kuya Lord! By Anthony Maddela

"Marilou Diaz-Abaya: Filmmaker On A Voyage" Free Screening

[Read It Again] Our Man In California's Capitol By Prosy Abarquez-Delacruz, J.D.

[Cook It Again] The Happy Home Cook: Shrimps And Vegetables With Quail Eggs By Elizabeth Ann Quirino

Video of the Week: Who Were The First Filipinos In America?

In The Know

Farmworkers fight shaped California attorney general nominee
https://news.yahoo.com/farmworkers-fight-shaped-california-attorney-000831310.html?soc_src=social-sh&soc_trk=ma

5 Women Entrepreneurs You Need To Know In The Philippines
https://ph.asiatatler.com/society/women-entrepreneurs-philippines?utm_source=Tatler+Asia&utm_campaign=4d976e7e87-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2020_10_28_03_45_COPY_01&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_737ae4d4af-4d976e7e87-83577313

This 22-year old vlogger’s life will make you want to relocate from Manila to the countryside
https://news.abs-cbn.com/ancx/culture/spotlight/03/05/21/this-22-year-old-vloggers-life-will-make-you-want-to-relocate-from-manila-to-the-countryside?fbclid=IwAR0_I06sqMvPWx0BnRorN9iWsbFZ0HDMoGIM99hbp14dJhCNI53TiEsXr6g

The weekend idea: Why a stroll around the newly reopened Paco Park is a must
https://news.abs-cbn.com/ancx/culture/spotlight/03/12/21/the-weekend-idea-why-a-stroll-around-the-newly-reopened-paco-park-is-a-must?fbclid=IwAR3eI85SclJBInlQTgUZtJRCE3Uwxuua957N1TfHAZQHZtd6TM0spKhUxSM

March 24, 2021

A Season of Hate

March 24, 2021/ Gemma Nemenzo

The escalating number of violent assaults against Asians in America seems to have reached its apex with the mass murder in Atlanta of eight people, six of whom were Asian American women. While most of the world is enraged both by the act itself and the deliberate statement by one of Atlanta's police saying the gunman was "just having a bad day," there is no reason to think that we have seen the end to this "season of hate."

Positively Filipino condemns in unequivocal terms all manifestations of hate against Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPI) which includes our Filipino American communities nationwide.

We stand solidly alongside not just our AAPI brothers and sisters but with all communities of color who find themselves at the receiving end of unchecked mental health issues rooted in white supremacist insanity and who are now united in seeing to it that all racist violence must stop.

Likewise, we stand staunchly with women victims of sexism and misogyny, who are fighting for gender justice and equality.

Racism and sexism are twin scourges that are deeply rooted in American society, but history has also shown that they are not the formidable forces that they are believed to be.

Evil thrives when there is no effective force to counter it. And that force is a united front consisting of individuals forming communities, and communities working together as allies.

Each one of us can do our part. Trite as it may sound, it's true that we are all in this fight together and it is only by working together that we will win.

On a happier note, our webinar last Monday with five dynamic "Filipino Women Warriors in the Pandemic Front Line," was a big hit. Here's the recording, in case you missed it. http://www.positivelyfilipino.com/magazine/webinar-video-filipina-power-warriors-in-the-pandemic-front-line