‘Making noise’ in the nation’s capital July 22 to 25
By Jonathan Melegrito
Filipino American students and scholars, artists and healers, public officials and community leaders from across the United States are gathering this week in the nation’s capital for the 21st Biennial National Conference of the Filipino American National Historical Society (FANHS).
Framed by the theme “PiNoise on the Potomac: Monuments to Change,” the four-day event features films, presentations, round table discussions, and workshops on a variety of subjects, tours and exhibits. These conversations and connections will take place, according to organizers, in “a space that opens pathways for shared research, storytelling, and cultural memory.”
The gathering will take place at the Gateway Crystal Marriott in Arlington, VA from July 22-25.
Among the prominent Filipino Americans who will be addressing the conference are Maryland Delegate Kris Valderrama, New Hampshire State Representative Luz Bay, FAHNS Founder Dorothy Cordova, outgoing FANHS National President Kevin Nadal, and journalist Elaine Quijano.
‘Recognizing the moment’
Organizers chose the theme about “making noise” to recognize “the moment we are in as a nation.” As described in one workshop track, “Teaching Our Stories,” Filipino American history “faces renewed erasure threats in educational policy debates.”
Another workshop, “Refusing to Forget: Filipino America at the Smithsonian Institution,” examines the Smithsonian Institution as “a site of Filipino and Filipino American history-making, erasure, and reclamation.”
Recognizing how Filipino Americans have remade American history, organizers scheduled a pre-conference tour of the Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center exhibition, “How Can You Forget Me: Filipino American Stories.” This exhibition features Filipino farmworkers who contributed to the growth of California’s agricultural industry and paved the way for future generations of Filipino immigrants.
As aptly noted in the “Teaching Our Stories” track, the “manongs made noise through strikes, organizing, writing, and community-building, erecting monuments to make change not in marble but through labor unions, retirement villages, and legacies in steamer trunks.”
‘New narratives, new visions’
Throughout the conference, participants will discuss issues relating to power and politics, history and healing, student activism and civic engagement, immigrant rights and racial justice, cultural and historic preservation.
Speakers will also address the plight of Filipino World War II veterans, Filipino seafarers, detainees, Filipino nurses, and the challenges facing LGBTQ FilAms in social justice movements.
“Creative noises” are explored in workshop sessions on community-rooted approaches to archives, Filipino American voices in film, journalism, music and fiction, and Filipino cultural education.
One interactive, hands-on workshop, “Bahala Na: Exploration of Sikodiwa,” aims to bring the spirit of the conference to life through shared storytelling, laughter, and ritual, with a “look at the deep, ancestral wisdom and spiritual tools that help us navigate our lives and well-being today.”
A welcome reception will be held on the first night of the conference at George Washington University, with a special tribute to Joe Montano, a FAHNS member. Hailed by Filipino American leaders, civil rights advocates and elected officials as a committed public servant and passionate community activist, Joe Montano passed away peacefully in July 2016. He was 47 years old.
Among the sponsors of the FANHS conference are AARP, Rosie Abriam and Steve Lee, LVL-UP Strategies, Rita Cacas and Christopher Shove Cook, Kilusan Studios, FANHS Houston Chapter, University of Maryland Asian American Studies Program, and the Human Rights Campaign.
For more information about the conference, click on the link: www.fanhs-dmv.org/fanhsconference2026/
