June 01, 2022

Real History, Real Heroes

June 01, 2022/ Staff

In her commencement address at Kenyon College which honored her with a doctorate, honoris causa, Columbia U journalism professor Sheila Coronel was painfully honest about the failures of our generation to protect the earth and preserve the gains of democracy. Yet her speech was inspirational and motivational to the class of 2022, part of the generation that has to deal with the quadruple whammy of the pandemic, racial unrest, natural disasters and the rise of populism.

In such a topsy-turvy world, the natural human tendency to search for heroes is palpable. Thus the emergence of authoritarian figures that present themselves (dangerously) as saviors. Coronel offers a blunt warning against these false gods: "They are hyper-masculine and larger than life. Propelled to power by myth and lies, they do not live in the world of facts. They use our broken information system to deny their crimes and to propagate false narratives of victimhood."

A real hero, however, as ace journalist/editor Jo-Ann Q. Maglipon contends in her tribute to the late National Artist for Literature Bienvenido Lumbera, is selfless, devoid of self-proclaiming bravado, yet unflinchingly brave when time and circumstance call for it.

We are not without genuine heroes past and present. What we need to do is make sure their stories are preserved and that real history remains free of distortion for generations to come. These tasks are ours; in the face of orchestrated disinformation, we can no longer afford to fail.

This Week’s Stories

Democracy – A Promise To Keep by Sheila Coronel

For My Hero, Doc Bien by Jo-Ann Q. Maglipon

Bongbong Marcos’ Bid For Legitimacy by Randy S. David

Longganisa, Jazz Variations On A Theme by Jose Ma. Lorenzo Tan

[Partner] ALLICE 2022 “A-List” Honors Front-Liners by Cherie M. Querol Moreno

[Cook It Again] The Happy Home Cook: Longganisa With Apples And Asian Pear by Voltaire Gungab

[Video of the Week] Libingan ng Alaala

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In The Know

Hello Dolly! This Filipina went from decades of playing bit roles to Cannes sensation
https://news.abs-cbn.com/ancx/culture/movies/05/26/22/dolly-de-leon-from-bit-player-to-cannes-sensation

Speedy and Upbeat, Leylah Fernandez Is Going Deep at the French Open
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/05/29/sports/tennis/fernandez-gauff-stephens-french-open.html?fbclid=IwAR0jBdnKD2s3_b-estpEMIJ-7jsoI05KIUO7kL77KOu7Vq_F0FsheC5o7Yk

The Bloody History of Balangiga and the "Howling Wilderness" It Turned Into
https://www.esquiremag.ph/long-reads/features/balangiga-massacre-howling-wilderness-history-a2212-20180819-lfrm?utm_source=Facebook-Esquire&utm_medium=Ownshare&utm_campaign=20220516-fbnp-long-reads-balangiga-massacre-howling-wilderness-history-a2212-20180819-lfrm-fbold&fbclid=IwAR3xKAtOMa-FaejgxIlUlNSwPPBErAfjO_jqUapLpRpsfwWuOiJF1W7j-Jg

[Ilonggo Notes] Why Iloilo should be the museum capital of the Philippines
https://www.rappler.com/voices/thought-leaders/ilonggo-notes-why-iloilo-museum-capital-philippines/?utm_medium=Social&utm_campaign=Echobox&utm_source=Facebook&fbclid=IwAR1nS70NaNuNSWp5-TUf_h_odMHYJHvQiws7oTPKKoOB7SdDqBQKdRS_nZo#Echobox=1652796378

How Philippine Education Contributed to the Return of the Marcoses
https://thediplomat.com/2022/05/how-philippine-education-contributed-to-the-return-of-the-marcoses/?fbclid=IwAR2VGJjjS3VfdU7TPxYsu7YB34wSMIaEMGIf1IAuByDPQ3majT0ti4ac3yA

'I Am Filipino': A Son Gives Us a Glimpse Into the Private Life of National Artist Federico Aguilar Alcuaz
https://www.esquiremag.ph/culture/books-and-art/national-artist-federico-aguilar-alcuaz-a00203-20211110-lfrm2?utm_source=Facebook-Esquire&utm_medium=Ownshare&utm_campaign=20220522-fbnp-culture-national-artist-federico-aguilar-alcuaz-a00203-20211110-lfrm2-fbold&fbclid=IwAR1G6WQwwwKE-lvlnkX9Ncg_uQM-ffRK_t5lf06qxXsDI6GijAYR-jCBj-s

The Man Who Wrote The Greatest Filipino Christmas Carol Ever
https://www.esquiremag.ph/culture/music/levi-celerio-and-the-greatest-pinoy-christmas-carol-ever-a1707-20171222?utm_source=Facebook-Esquire&utm_medium=Ownshare&utm_campaign=20220515-fbnp-culture-levi-celerio-and-the-greatest-pinoy-christmas-carol-ever-a1707-20171222-fbold&fbclid=IwAR13b5U30hKeDi3xLsVqiF9mOzULW680XFrOqW3sZCnqj_DQAmT2fWRoZek

May 25, 2022

We win some, we lose some

May 25, 2022/ Staff

Five days ago, the US Secretary of the Navy Carlos del Toro announced that a still-to-be-built Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer, the type considered the backbone of the US Navy's surface fleet, will be named after Telesforo Trinidad, the Navy fireman 2nd class whose extraordinary heroism also made him the only Filipino in the US Navy awarded the Medal of Honor. In January 1915, Trinidad was aboard the USS San Diego when an explosion occurred and the ship quickly caught fire. Even as he was injured, Trinidad braved the flames to rescue two of his fellow crew members.

Why did it take more than a century to garner this honor for this Filipino serviceman? It was through the combined efforts of various individuals, and civilian and military groups in the US and the Philippines (among them the Bataan Legacy Historical Society which started the ball rolling in this campaign) that the Navy bigwigs took notice of this historical lapse. The number of Filipinos who have served in the US Navy for a century can fill up an entire US city, and this win is theirs as well. A good reminder that change can happen when there's unity.

The death of a beloved icon of Filipino movies, Susan Roces, this week brought a flurry of tributes from many who grew up idolizing her. But there was more to her than being "the face that refreshes." Following the questionable "defeat" (remember "Hello Garci?") of her husband, movie king Fernando Poe Jr. in the 2004 presidential elections and his subsequent sudden death, Susan Roces became a feisty, outspoken critic of then-President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. To pay tribute to the wholeness of her presence in Philippine cultural history, we are reprinting a story on her from Filipinas magazine.

Also featured in this issue: an expansion of a historical landmark in Quezon City, our continuing series on remarkable Fil-Ams, and profiles of a Filipino priest who worked among the Amazon tribes and a Fil-Am cultural historian in Seattle.

And if you haven't yet, do sign up for PF's next webinar on June 2. It will be an interesting discussion on an intrinsic Filipino trait that has been both boon and bane to our culture.

This Week’s Stories

Fil-Ams Among The Remarkable And Famous, Part 31 by Mona Lisa Yuchengco

Thorns And Roces by Gemma Nemenzo

MiraNila: Glimpses Into A Gracious Age by Glenna Aquino

A Pinoy Priest In The Jungle by Harvey I. Barkin

At A Museum Of Memories by Anthony Maddela

[Cook It Again] Classic Turon

[Video of the Week] The Manila Film Center Tragedy

In The Know

Hawaii lawmakers back effort to bring Filipino curriculum to public schools
https://www.hawaiinewsnow.com/2022/05/06/hawaii-lawmakers-support-effort-bring-filipino-curriculum-public-schools/?fbclid=IwAR2er990XH3JjAU7TOHgYSRCavwqcpGLgJv2NatXNPn9vj4hiT7vmdscr1Y

The story of Jacksonville's Filipino community
https://www.thejaxsonmag.com/article/the-story-of-jacksonvilles-filipino-community/?fbclid=IwAR3czV9ThGlSYrEVbZRb6dicSF5xuHvudumPrGO1GgX9AJYePUWRYYrAuxM

From glamor and grace, to guts and glory
https://lifestyle.inquirer.net/37435/from-glamor-and-grace-to-guts-and-glory/?fbclid=IwAR2GZUEtEev56Ui3K87XfM-h6pfAa5r5sF0Wl2MLXg73a6AnMvGdKRq4VQs

Nellie and Paz: The Women Who Drove the Luna Brothers Mad
https://www.esquiremag.ph/long-reads/features/nellie-and-paz-the-tale-of-the-luna-women-a1729-20191119-lfrm2?utm_source=Facebook-Esquire&utm_medium=Ownshare&utm_campaign=20220515-fbnp-long-reads-nellie-and-paz-the-tale-of-the-luna-women-a1729-20191119-lfrm2-fbold&fbclid=IwAR2wXUAqmBBZGs9FkpYrnShjFQkIs5N4nSIFBVxKnDNMIDn2Ppgwaa2Xovk

‘Kaya natin:’ The philosophy behind Orlando’s newest Filipino restaurant
https://www.clickorlando.com/news/local/2022/05/09/kaya-natin-the-philosophy-behind-orlandos-newest-filipino-restaurant/?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=snd&utm_content=wkmg6&fbclid=IwAR0lo9FFd7MXOteZWZ2qchKybWXVFv5eGbil6WUN3qG2Qpd-Ak3PzLDqwtQ

Liwayway Gawgaw: From Cornstarch Company to a Global Behemoth
https://www.esquiremag.ph/long-reads/features/history-of-liwayway-marketing-corporation-a00293-20200202-lfrm?utm_source=Facebook-Esquire&utm_medium=Ownshare&utm_campaign=20220508-fbnp-long-reads-history-of-liwayway-marketing-corporation-a00293-20200202-lfrm-fbold&fbclid=IwAR3ibV_BQaAWX_O2-XCFv5qvemD9b5e-BRXP6fiWkL4Lj6XDzlkq3ENa6yc

Former College Dropout, Now a Successful Lechon Belly Business Owner
https://www.businessnews.com.ph/former-college-dropout-now-a-successful-lechon-belly-business-owner-20211228/?fbclid=IwAR0i3E3-nLCNuozmGZCUMaoQ6odwmVIBBrmxQ10U_61eZY65ukvKq5SgpgQ

May 18, 2022

Feelings

May 18, 2022/ Staff

Political hatred.

Such is the state of our current world that this phrase is now being uttered in public more frequently. And felt privately by many. Ukrainians in the midst of war with Russia feel it, citizens of Middle Eastern countries have been suffering through it for decades, Filipinos still reeling from the results of the recent elections are working their way out of it, and yes, a growing number of Americans are acting on their toxic feelings with tragic consequences.

Already. there have been 198 mass shootings in the US in the 19 weeks of 2022, the latest of which was perpetrated by an Asian man against fellow Asians in a church in Southern California last weekend. The stats are truly scary: a 339 % increase of crimes against Asian Americans including Filipinos in 2021 (compared to the previous year). Not a happy thought for this Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Heritage Month of May.

What causes someone to snap and run amok? It's a highly complex brew of mental, psychological and yes, political (including racism) issues that only trained mental health professionals can mitigate. But we can help by being vigilant in recognizing early indicators: if someone you know is exhibiting signs of extreme distress and unbridled emotions, it is time for an intervention. Getting that person to seek mental health treatment is important, but equally important is to make sure the person has no access to firearms. Or poison.

May is not just AAPI Heritage Month, it is also Mental Health Awareness Month. Let's do our part in celebrating both.