November 13, 2024

The New Exodus

November 13, 2024/ Staff

"When elephants fight, it is the grass that suffers." The truth of this popular African proverb is starkly illustrated by the mass suffering in Gaza right now following the October 7, 2023 attack by the terrorist group Hamas against Israel. The latter's superior war machine has since been relentless in its goal of obliterating Hamas; civilians, infrastructures and the Gazan way of life be damned.

In this backdrop of unending war, Filipinos who resided in Gaza and married Palestinians had to flee. With the help of the Philippine Embassy in Jordan, under stressful circumstances, many of them chose to return to the Philippines with their families in tow.

This week, we have an exclusive and extensive report by veteran journalist Chupsie Medina who visited a new community now called "Little Gaza" in Quezon City. There the Gaza refugees have organized themselves informally but effectively.

Chupsie was able to talk to some of the more vocal community members, saw how they lived, and heard their stories about their escape from war, what they perceived as a re-victimization by Philippine groups who collected money on their behalf but didn't share the collection with them, and how they see their future.

Poignant, heartbreaking but ultimately a triumph of the human spirit. That's what our story, "Leaving Gaza" is all about.

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What does the election results in the US say about Asian-American voters? University of San Francisco professor James Zarsadiaz dissects the outcome.

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Once upon a time, a Fil-Am psychologist dreamt of his Ilocano great grandfather who he never met. This ancestor who lived in the early years of the 20th century had hand-written stories of his life and times in a cuaderno (notebook), which was handed down through generations. Alvin B. Gaerlan, the great grandson, has since published the contents of the cuaderno into a book or two. Read about how this cuaderno took a life of its own in “My Great-Grandfather’s Memoir: From Notebook to Book”

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Our Partner post this week is from the National Federation of Fil-Am Associations (NaFFAA) which lists the Fil-Am winners of this year's elections.

Video of the Week: Nostalgic Filipino Cookies

In The Know

Undocumented Filipinos urged to return home
https://asamnews.com/2024/11/09/undocumented-filipinos-us-repatriation-advisory/

Museum spotlights rich Filipino Farm Center history
https://stocktonrecord-ca.newsmemory.com/

Ex-Philippine President confirms existence of personal ‘death squad’
https://asamnews.com/2024/11/06/rodrigo-duterte-death-squad-drugs-crime-crackdown/?jetpack_skip_subscription_popup

November 06, 2024

Breathe In, Breathe Out

November 06, 2024/ Staff

The nail-biting US election is over.

Meanwhile, here are our stories for the week:

A brief visit to President Roxas town in Capiz to talk about drugs (the use of, the fight against, the politics and social science surrounding the issue) gave PF contributing writer Robert Francis Garcia some memorable encounters with regular folks and fresh scallops. ["Captivating Capiz"]

The Florence Finch is the newest U.S. Coast Guard Fast Response Cutter named after Florence Ebersole Smith Finch, a Filipino American woman who assisted the United States during World War II. We're reposting NextShark's' story on this singular honor accorded to one of us.

The 7th Fil-Am Book Festival in San Francisco recently was an exhilarating experience for Kyla Crisostomo, a young writer who was in Cloud 9 as she listened to well-known Fil-Am authors and perused the wide variety of Fil-Am-authored books in the marketplace.

Twelve young, accomplished Fil-Ams are visiting the Philippines as immersion delegates under the 2024 Filipino Young Leaders Program (FYLPRO).

Our Video of the Week: an interview with Katrin de Guia, originally from Germany who has adapted the Philippines as her second homeland.

In The Know

Jollibee to take over Michellin-starred restaurant
https://asamnews.com/2024/11/05/flagship-chinese-food-store-worldwide-acclaimed-restaurant/?jetpack_skip_subscription_popup

Duterte’s jarring testimony into drug killings in Philippines relives a nightmare for many
https://apnews.com/article/philippines-duterte-drug-killings-testimony-448d440e057506e5a9cbe615372ccd45?

Here's one of the only places you can ride in a Filipino jeepney
https://www.npr.org/2024/10/27/nx-s1-5135715/filipino-jeepney-san-francisco?

October 23, 2024

A Cardinal for These Times

October 23, 2024/ Staff

In a largely Catholic country like the Philippines, the papal designation of a new Filipino cardinal is cause for celebration. A total of ten Filipino bishops have been elevated to the cardinalship, the latest being Kalookan Bishop Pablo Virgilio David.

Apung Ambo (as he prefers to be addressed, instead of the traditional His Eminence), 65, is a standout among the nine other Filipino cardinals. Born in Betis, Pampanga, the 10th of 13 children, exposed to and appreciative of folk traditions, radicalized by martial law, honed by advanced theological studies in Belgium, tempered by his assignments to marginalized communities, the new Cardinal lives true to Pope Francis' call to "go to the periphery."

Even if the going means putting his life in danger, as Bishop Ambo soon found out when he was assigned to Kalookan, virtually ground zero for former President Rodrigo Duterte's war on drugs. For his active and vocal resistance to the extrajudicial killings, Bishop Ambo got a direct and top-level warning, "isang bala ka lang" (you're just one bullet's worth).

To know more about the very interesting Apung Ambo, PF contributor Paulynn Paredes Sicam spoke to the cardinal-designate's oldest brother, UP professor and Inquirer columnist Randy David, and their youngest sister, Marivic. Read her story here.

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Part of the fun of Fil-Am History Month involves unearthing little known Fil-Ams who are nonetheless notable in their fields. Here we feature the artist Wayne Lacson Forte, who bills himself a "religious painter" whose reconnection to his Filipino heritage was a long but fruitful struggle. PF contributing writer Virgilio Reyes Jr. sent in this feature on Forte.

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Last week we wrote about the Filipino food truck, Master BBQ AVL, in Asheville, North Carolina which was destroyed by Typhoon Helene. The owner/chef Paul Pike writes this week about how his small business came to be and why he is asking for help.

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Two permitted reposts from two very different publications: From KQED, a delightful story on "How a Buffalo Soldier Changed the Life of Latin Jazz Master John Calloway" by Andrew Gilbert.

From the PREDA newsletter, PREDA founder Fr. Shay Cullen presents a disturbing picture of child abuse in the Philippines and issues a call for justice for the victims.

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Our Video of the Week gives us a preview of the 3-part Emmy-nominated series by MG Montemayor, a broadcast journalist in Waco, Texas. The series honors the Filipino fighters of WWII.