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PHL, U.S. defense chiefs made it happen; bells are back in Samar Part 2
By R Sonny Sampayan, as told to The FilAm Around this time, Jean Wall was invited to attend the next Wyoming Veterans Commissioners meeting. She presented newly discovered facts but refused to take sides. After her presentation to the WVC, Sestak made a motion for the return of the two church bells and put it […]
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The bells of Balangiga: The politics and quiet diplomacy behind their long journey home Part 1
U.S. Air Force veteran, R Sonny Sampayan-Sampayan spent 21 years working on the return of the bells of Balangiga. The journey of the bells lasted 117 years. A grand-nephew of noted novelist Carlos Bulosan, he was born in Binalonan, Pangasinan and migrated to California at the age of 10 in 1969. Below is his account […]
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Veterans advocate Jerry Adevoso lauds FilAm community for lobby efforts
By Wendell Gaa For Jerry Adevoso, being an advocate for Filipino veterans is more than a 9-to-5 job. It is a lifelong calling. He remembers how in 1975 he was called to the room of his gravely ill father, Terry Adevoso, a guerrilla who fought the Japanese as commander of the Hunters-ROTC. There, he was […]
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Quiapo
Quiapo is the historic core of the City of Manila dating to Spanish colonial times in the 18th through 20th centuries. Originally, the residential quarters of the Manila elite, what used to be grand mansions are now decaying homes of low-income families. The area is also evolving due to an influx of Muslims from the […]
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More than 4 million Filipinos now call America home
By Rene Pastor From 3,912,921 Filipinos in the United States last year to 4,037,564 this year. We are now more than 4 million Filipino Americans. We comprise a solid 40 percent chunk of the Filipino diaspora around the world. In this country, we are the third largest Asian American subgroup behind the Chinese (5,219,184) and […]
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Dawn Bohulano Mabalon remembered as a progressive and inspiring mentor, a loyal friend
By Cristina DC Pastor To her best friend, Dawn Bohulano Mabalon was the always-knowledgeable older sister, the progressive mentor, and the giggly girlfriend who enjoyed her visits to NYC. Christine Capacillo’s memories of the historian, author, activist, and professor revolved around these expressive images of Dawn. According to reports, Dawn’s “sudden death” on August 10 […]
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Family announces passing of historian, community activist Dawn Bohulano Mabalon
By Cristina DC Pastor The family of Dawn Bohulano Mabalon announced the passing on August 10 of the historian and Stockton, California native while on vacation with her family in Hawaii. She was 46. The announcement was made on GoFundMe as the family requests assistance with funeral and memorial costs for the author of “Little […]
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‘Balangiga’ film: Amid the nightmare of war, a coming-of-age
By Joel David A small town (now a municipality) on the eastern part of Samar island in the Philippines, Balangiga [balan-HI-ga] was the site of the bloodiest conflict during the Philippine war of resistance against American colonization. In 1901, when Americans themselves believed that the war was nearing its end, Philippine revolutionaries succeeded in overpowering […]
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‘Mindanao the Legend’ unfolds centuries-old history of resistance and resilience
By Cristina DC Pastor On December 3, 2017, a lumad leader was killed by the military in Lake Sebu town of South Cotabato. Datu Victor Danyan was one of eight indigenous folks from the T’boli-Manobo tribe slain while defending their ancestral lands. Reports say he was killed in a “hail of bullets.” The theatre group […]