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‘I saw the second plane slam into the south tower’
By R Sonny Sampayan-Sampayan I had just retired after 22 years in the United States Air Force and decided to move to New York City. I was drawn to the city lights, Central Park, Times Square, Wall Street, Brooklyn Bridge, and the many tall buildings like the Empire State building and the Twin Towers. Ten […]
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Celebrating the lives lost in 9/11
By Cristina DC Pastor Nenita Grijalvo walked up the stage and began to wipe a tear even before she could utter a word. “9/11 is the day that changed our lives forever,” began the widow of Ramon Grijalvo, the devoted Ilonggo husband who worked as a computer analyst at Blue Cross Blue Shield, which occupied […]
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‘The terror plan backfired; we Americans got closer’
By JV Tuazon It was the summer of 2001. I was a year fresh out of college and had just embarked on my path towards a doctorate degree — but those achievements would be overshadowed by the dark clouds that literally loomed ahead. That summer, I worked part time at New York Sports Club on […]
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‘9/11 was the scariest, darkest moment’
By Cristina DC Pastor Ten years after 9/11, FilAms look back on that day recalling the confusion, the disbelief, and the fear. Those emotions resurface — along with the smell and taste of a petrified New York — as they talk about the “worst day” of their lives. Ryan Songalia, boxing journalist I was 14 […]
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‘Amigo:’ An ambiguous friendship
By Elton Lugay John Sayles’s “Amigo” tackles a little known episode in history: the 1899-1902 Philippine-American War. “I felt like there was a kind of vacuum, that a conversation was not being had about this moment in both Filipino and American history that needed to be restarted,” said Sayles at a recent forum held at […]
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Those who came before us
By Cristina DC Pastor Was it Jose Rizal who paved the way for the hundreds of thousands of Filipinos in the New York area? Romantic thought there, but Rizal came here as a transiting tourist, not as an immigrant. “He didn’t stay, per se. Just a stopover,” confirmed Reme Grefalda, curator of the Asian-American Pacific […]
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‘Independence Day is not a time machine where you choose any day you like’
By R Sonny Sampayan, USAF-Ret. Several years before my father passed away, he once reminded me that Filipinos used to celebrate July 4th as our independence day. At 12:00 o’clock in the afternoon on Thursday, July 4, 1946, after 48 years of American sovereignty, the United States granted the Philippines its independence. Manuel L. Roxas […]
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IN THE MOTHERLAND: The American tour guide who mocked Lapu-Lapu
By Laurel Fantauzzo This week, Laurel Fantauzzo begins a series of essays on the Philippines. She is in the country on a Fulbright scholarship to research her journalism project, “Jolli Meals: The Rise of Filipino Fast Food.” The tour guide felt familiar to me at first. He was Midwestern American and proud of his father, […]
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A mural grows in Philly
A stained glass mural depicting Philippine history through its heroes and regular folks is being crafted in Greater Philly by noted muralist Eliseo Art Silva. Unfortunately, all work is on hold right now because the project is low on funds. “If I get partial funding by mid-May this year, it should be done by December […]