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Lawyer Dulce Valdes-Barangan is the new president of Ilocano association of N.Y.
By Cristina DC Pastor In the Barangan household in Long Island, the children of Caesar and Dulce Valdes-Barangan speak English as well as the Ilocano language of the northern Philippines. Somewhere in New York State’s multicultural quilt of young Americans, there’s Zack Barangan, who works in an advertising agency in Manhattan who speaks Ilocano, and […]
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A Mexi-Jewish, Trini-Filipino birthday feast in Queens
By Anne Noyes Saini Ruby Gonzalez and Lanna Andrews are celebrating their first birthdays together, with all the usual trappings: balloons, streamers, party favors, and cupcakes. But the real excitement isn’t opening the gifts—it’s the carving of the whole, spit-roasted pig. ‘Lechon’—slowly roasted over indirect heat until the pig’s outer skin is crisp and brown—is […]
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Gold exhibit in NYC: Pre-colonial Filipinos were not savages: organizers
By Cristina DC Pastor Once upon a time when the Philippines was just an assortment of scattered islands and each community was ruled by a ‘datu,’ there was evidence suggesting a craftsman way of life for the indigenous people. Using handmade tools, they hunted for food, built dwellings, and fashioned clothing from whatever they could […]
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June 28 PAFCOM parade a family, community celebration of PHL-U.S. friendship
By Jujo Conol The Philippine American Friendship Committee, Inc. (PAFCOM) is inviting Filipino Americans across the Tri-State to its 25th Philippine American Friendship Grand Parade to be held on June 28 in Jersey City. Jersey City has one of the biggest Filipino populations on the East Coast. PAFCOM wants to make the parade a family […]
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First-timers wait 4 hours for their Independence Day parade march!
By Cristina DC Pastor A dead man’s body ushered me to my first-ever Independence Day parade…as a marcher. The body, sprawled at the corner of 36th and Broadway streets, had a wound at the forehead from which a trail of blood had dried up. It was still early, not even 10 a.m. so I thought […]
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PIDCI addresses controversial issues, including Independence Day parade cost of $280K
By Cristina DC Pastor The Philippine Independence Day Council, Inc. (PIDCI) laid bare the logistics of organizing the annual Madison Avenue parade, billed as biggest annual gathering in June of Filipinos outside of the Philippines. Last year’s parade had a budget of $280,000, disclosed PIDCI President Fe Martinez during the “ConGen Hour,” a collaborative forum […]
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Philippine mayors to march in 117th Independence Day fest
Mayors of Philippine cities will be joining the Independence Day celebration on Sunday, June 7. This was announced by Philippine Independence Day Council, Inc. (PIDCI) President Fe Martinez in a statement. The mayors will be leading the parade march on Madison Avenue, together with Secretary of Foreign Affairs Alberto del Rosario, Ambassador to the U.S. […]
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Sylvia La Torre stars as Independence Day Parade goes for nostalgia
On its 25th year of organizing the Filipino Independence Day celebration in Manhattan, the Philippine Independence Day Council, Inc. (PIDCI) takes a trip down memory lane by inviting Queen of Kundiman Sylvia La Torre to headline this year’s lineup of musical performers. The “Waray-Waray” and “Sa Kabukiran” singer, who is also a TV, radio and […]
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AAPI Summit: A historic gathering, one lively party!
By Kiran Ahuja Executive Director White House Initiative on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders This week, on May 12, the White House Initiative on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (WHIAAPI) hosted the first-ever White House Summit on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in Washington, DC. Nearly 2,000 community members, federal officials, and guests from over […]