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At TOFA-NY, win or lose they’re still Facebook friends
In the grand tradition of Filipino celebrations, the congratulations come with the cheers and the comical. The first Outstanding Filipino Americans in New York awards event held October 29 at Carnegie Hall was no different. (See trunk story on the right) You could tell the winners by the coterie of fans following them around, asking […]
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Gov. Cuomo: Empire State is ‘privileged’ to honor outstanding Filipinos
By Cristina DC Pastor On a night when it snowed in October for only the third time in 142 years in Manhattan, Carnegie Hall glittered as hundreds huddled to honor and fete 2011’s best Filipino Americans in New York, among them an undocumented immigrant journalist and a transgender woman. “The Empire State is privileged to […]
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‘Did it take moving to America to bring out leadership abilities in our people?’
By Ludy A. Ongkeko, Ph.D. There are organizations. And there are organizations. Almost always, what motivates people to form such groups is traced to various criteria: either from respective school origins, former work affiliations, professional ties, original homing grounds and other common bases for keeping themselves under one genre, or there may be no earthly […]
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Lost, then found, in translation
By Cristina DC Pastor She held on to my arm like a child tugs at her mother’s when in fear of strangers and unfamiliar surroundings. The elderly Asian woman who spoke no English had the look of fright on her face. “Brooklyn, Brooklyn,” she shook my arm with a sense of urgency. “What? You going […]
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Bloomberg hails TOFA-NY awardees for ‘contributing to city’s amazing energy and spirit’
By Cristina DC Pastor ‘It was like waiting for the ball to drop on New Year’s Eve.’ Filipinos in New York and elsewhere celebrated on Facebook the victories of former fashion model Bessie Badilla, U.S. Marshals spokesman Roland Ubaldo and nine others in the first The Outstanding Filipino Americans in NY awards honoring 12 notable […]
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PIDCI elects Martinez; Team United remains upbeat
Nurse Fe Martinez was elected the ninth president of the Philippine Independence Day Council, Inc., pummeling Rene Ballenas in an election that had his Team United crying “shameful display of outright manipulation of by-laws.” PIDCI organizes the yearly Independence Day Parade on Madison Avenue. The Philippine Consulate is their adviser. The final tally had Martinez […]
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In New York, October belongs to Filipinos
When the Filipino American National Historical Society (FANHS) established Filipino American History Month in 1988, October was chosen to commemorate the historic landing of the “Manila Men” in Moro Bay, California in 1587. In 2009, the FilAm community celebrated a victory when the Senate unanimously passed S. Res. 298 and the House of Representatives passed […]
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‘My lolo screamed at me: Why are you telling the family stories?’
By Jocelyn Gonzales I first met performance artist and activist Kilusan Bautista backstage at the Bowery Poetry Club several years ago. That night, he rapped and recited poetry about his family’s immigrant experience wearing a T-shirt emblazoned with sun-rays from the Philippine flag. The vibe was positive, educational, and the audience bobbed their heads in […]
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The immigration poster and our ‘unharmonized’ identity
By Steven Raga From Woodside to Chelsea, Jamaica to the Upper East Side, we find this advertisement seeping into all sections of New York City. It’s a transit poster of a young Filipina with the words “Born in the Philippines – Proud American. Now I am an important part of my community.” One can’t help […]