What Makes a Hero?

/

Today, August 30, marks the 160th birth anniversary of the Philippines' other National Hero, Andres Bonifacio. Last Monday, August 28, our motherland celebrated National Heroes Day as a national holiday, an omnibus celebration that covers all the country's heroes, regardless of generation. National Heroes Day began as a commemoration of the Cry of Pugad Lawin (aka Cry of Balintawak), when Bonifacio as the leader of the Katipunan (KKK), tore his cedula and declared the beginning of the Philippine war of independence against Spain. That happened on August 23, 1896. 

So many historical transitions have taken place since then, of course, and so many heroes and heroines have passed through. Even the term itself - heroism- has undergone multiple definitions, many of them self-serving or partisan, thus often undeserved or untrue.

What makes a hero then, in this day and age? Perhaps instead of bestowing the title of hero to a person, which would beget intense scrutiny likely to unearth non-heroic elements, it would be better to use a description -- "heroic" to label a life commitment for a cause beyond one's self-interest. No more heroes, just heroic deeds. 

Today would have marked the 72nd birthday of a woman who defied convention and chose to lead an altruistic life. Two days from now (September 1) is her first death anniversary. Nelia Sancho was more than just a beauty queen/activist as she was popularly labelled. Manila based artist/illustrator Lynett Advincula-Villariba tells us more about her sorority sister and lifelong friend. 

Since September 1 is Labor Day in the US and September 8 is the 58th anniversary of the beginning of the Grape Strike in California, we pay homage to the Filipino farm workers who, in addition to working the fields, organized labor unions to fight for their rights. Read "From Spain to Delano: The Radical Roots of Farm Workers Unions" by writer/photographer David Bacon. 

Stories This Week

Nelia Sancho: The Last Conversations by Lynett Advincula-Villariba

From Spain To Delano—The Radical Roots Of Farm Workers Unions by David Bacon

Jollibee Invades North America by Anthony Maddela

The Postmodern Barong Tagalog By Barge Ramos by Charlize Mendez Legaspi

Read Agains:

Andres Bonifacio, The Other National Hero by Penélope V. Flores

We Stand On Their Shoulders, Part 1 by Mona Lisa Yuchengco

[Make It Again] The Happy Home Cook: Atsarang Repolyo (Pickled Cabbage) by Nina Ines Garma

[Video of the Week] Clark International Airport

In The Know

[ANALYSIS] Brace yourselves for higher rice prices under Marcos

https://www.rappler.com/voices/thought-leaders/analysis-brace-higher-rice-prices-marcos-jr-administration/?utm_source=piano&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=3969&pnespid=qrDOmYMOuKmX9rfouRG0sqRH_EEOvyMskAJ5HUZooxCVC2asPCq5FJqMXgCGDdUgt9hSNXtV&fbclid=IwAR23f4fFWB8ulfRdHB3OCXmDIJEIqy0ulRvPo1rTr9PldZUOujXISUxEsc8

The Genius of Eduardo Masferré: Father of Philippine Photography

https://www.esquiremag.ph/long-reads/features/eduardo-masferre-father-of-philippine-photography-a00007-20230811-lfrm?utm_source=Facebook-Esquire&utm_medium=Ownshare&utm_campaign=20230813-fbnp-long-reads-eduardo-masferre-father-of-philippine-photography-a00007-20230811-lfrm-fbnew&fbclid=IwAR0imovAJH6o2vqmR7uWv5acqW7lwMivOUsWsH1uXNseF5dqoZODzxQk20o

Sarangani village comes alive with roasted flavors of Pinadapla

https://www.rappler.com/nation/mindanao/sarangani-datal-batong-comes-alive-roasted-flavors-pinadapla-festival-august-25-2023/?utm_source=Facebook&utm_medium=Social&utm_campaign=SocialFlow&fbclid=IwAR3tWz3SDL81JjNExMlbDqc2Vg61QZjMKLaJ7D-yTIoEbp9QIOSoqwaTZr4

Video: Filipino American bride shares how she incorporated Filipino culture into her wedding

https://nextshark.com/filipino-american-wedding-tiktok

Ube Just Keeps Getting More Popular

https://www.pastemagazine.com/food/ube/ube-just-keeps-getting-more-popular?fbclid=IwAR1e-3k99ZDz_FkY-AR3nW2aF01c2I89p-g-4cZDKrFDHPJqvCXgCkcAyFY

How a Streetwear Designer Shifted the Culture of Import Drag Racing

https://www.popularmechanics.com/cars/a44820090/how-a-streetwear-designer-shifted-the-culture-of-import-drag-racing/?utm_source=facebook_ign&utm_medium=cpm&utm_campaign=ign_remarketing&fbclid=IwAR3018Lj7mVWNuhHMziDpRC_AWErPjQ_YK1CyJcmUG2bhK7YEh6ryqMOcMQ

/ /
, , , , , , , ,

Staff

Fateful August

/

August, particularly its third week, can trigger some somber memories among Filipinos of a certain age who were living in the Philippines during the administration of the first Ferdinand Marcos.

Fifty-two years ago, on August 21, 1971, the bombing of the miting de avance of the Liberal Party at Plaza Miranda happened. This heinous crime, which permanently injured some of the LP's leading lights, led to the suspension of the writ of habeas corpus, a precursor to martial law.

Forty years ago, on August 21, 1983, Benigno "Ninoy" Aquino was assassinated a few minutes after his plane landed at the Manila International Airport, another heinous crime that eventually resulted in the downfall of the Marcos dictatorship. [See our stories below on Ninoy Aquino.]

The killings have not stopped. Our lead story this week is about a concert tribute that poet/journalist/arts and culture impresario Pablo A. Tariman mounted last week to honor the memory of his daughter Kerima and her husband, Ericson Acosta. Both were felled by government bullets on August 20, 2021 and November 30, 2022, respectively.

A sad/horrific story but with a new twist: AsAm News reports that the Smithsonian Institute has arranged to return the remains of 64 Filipinos from the early 1900s that were unethically collected by an American anthropologist for his research (unsubstantiated) to prove that White people are genetically superior to other races. Take a deep breath before reading this story. 

This issue is not all grim, however. 

We have a delightful story about a 72-year-old who went paragliding and sky jumping. And lived to tell the tale.

Then there's this young Filipino artist who paints raindrops. 

This week, we are also posting a new section called Anti-Asian Health Watch that provides links to stories on Asian hate incidents. With our Act Against Hate section, Positively Filipino continues to be an information resource for California's anti-Asian hate campaign.

Anti Asian Hate Watch

Funding provided by the State of California.

Free program offers legal services to Californians facing racial discrimination in the workplace

https://www.abc10.com/article/news/community/race-and-culture/program-california-employees-victims-racial-discrimination-workplace/103-b5afc674-fd7b-4d45-bc1b-9d4f95a8ff90 

Discrimination during pandemic significantly harmed Asian American students’ mental health: study

https://nextshark.com/discrimination-during-pandemic-significantly-harmed-asian-american-students-mental-health-study

16-year-old girl charged with assault for viral attack on Asian family riding NYC subway

https://nextshark.com/teen-girl-assault-charge-nyc-subway-attack-asian-family

/ /
,

Staff

Lahaina on Our Mind

/

It's Hawaii on our minds these days as we watch with horror and sadness as the devastating wildfire in Maui wiped out the historic town of Lahaina, which used to be the capital of the Kingdom of Hawaii. Our sorrow, however, can't come close to what our Toronto-based writer Odette Foronda is going through. She has a personal connection to Lahaina; it is where her Ilocano father was born. She visited some years back to research on her family history there. Odette shares with us her photos, which are now enduring visual testaments to the significance of the place to the Filipino farm workers of the early 20th century.

Another historical piece on Filipinos in Hawaii is our repost from Honolulu Civil Beat of Jessica Terrell's story about how Filipino plantation workers were wrongfully accused of being part of the insidious Ku Klux Klan in 1922. Though the accusation was completely false, its repercussion led to the demonization of the Filipino workers by Hawaiians at that time. An early instance of hate against FilAms.

When Leo Jaminola wrote a personal essay to celebrate his graduation at the University of the Philippines (UP), he didn't expect it to go viral on social media. But his story about his struggle to attain a higher education while working multiple jobs to support his family resonated with thousands who appreciated his heart-rending, thought-provoking (and hopefully action-inducing) indictment of the uneven educational opportunities in the Philippines. We're reposting the essay here because it is a must-read. We hope you share it with your networks as well.

As Barbie-mania spreads across the globe, a long-time FilAm collector of Barbie dolls allows a rare exhibit of her private collection. The exhibit, called MDCT Vault, runs for a limited time in West Hollywood. PF Corrrespondent Anthony Maddela was there to report on Mary Knight's of vintage dolls, sure to make every Barbie-loving heart a-flutter.

We're on the 50th edition of the first-of-a-kind list of remarkable, accomplished and famous FilAms and there's no end in sight. If you know anyone who deserves to be on the list, let our publisher, Mona Lisa Yuchengco, know by sending her the person's credentials. 

 

Have you or someone you know experienced an instance when you felt targeted and afraid? When and where did it happen?  How did it happen?  Do you think you were targeted because you're Asian? Tell us about it by clicking this link: actagainsthate@positivelyfilipino.com. If you feel that you are a victim of a hate crime, report it to https://stopaapihate.org/ 

/ /
, , ,

Staff