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Gubernatorial candidate Cynthia Nixon wants driver’s licenses for all New Yorkers
By Rene Pastor Cynthia Nixon sat listening intently at the head of a table as dozens of students poured out their frustrations at what they described as an overbearing police presence in their schools. She had come to the Center for Popular Democracy in Troutman Street in Brooklyn, a road festooned by colorful graffiti covering […]
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Will Gina Ortiz Jones become the first Filipina American in Congress?
By Rene Pastor A Filipina American is running for a Congress seat to represent the 23rd district in Texas in November. Gina Ortiz Jones, 37, who won the Democratic primary runoff, is a former Army intelligence officer who served in Iraq. She and her sister were raised by Victorina Ortiz, a single mother who graduated […]
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The Keystone Cops behind Duterte’s war on drugs
By Cristina DC Pastor Ever heard of the tokhang victim who rose from the dead? How about the riding-in-tandem assassin who fell off the bike? Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Manny Mogato of Reuters shared some of the grim and hilarious episodes he has learned covering Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte’s brutal ‘war on drugs.’ Almost 7,000 suspected […]
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Aries Dela Cruz: Not interested in becoming NYC mayor
By Cristina DC Pastor The appointment in April of Aries Dela Cruz as Manhattan Regional Representative for Governor Andrew Cuomo was both good and bad news for the Filipino community of New York City. Bad, because he had to step down as president of the emerging Filipino American Democratic Club, which he founded in 2016. […]
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PHL ambassador defends extravagant Trump Hotel, promises ‘meaningful’ Independence Day
By Rene Pastor What do Kuwait, Bahrain, and the Philippines have in common? Aside from human rights, all three countries have decided to celebrate their national days at Trump International Hotel in Washington, D.C. It’s the second time for Kuwait, only once for Bahrain, and the first time for the Philippines. All three countries are […]
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Cora Reyes honored on Nurses Week by Gov. Cuomo
By Cristina DC Pastor Gov. Andrew Cuomo has issued a proclamation making May 6-12, 2018 as Nurses Week and honoring New York State’s nurses who are the “leading advocates of public health.” The proclamation certificate was awarded to Cora Reyes, a staff nurse at JPMorgan Chase for 36 years, on May 9. Cuomo’s Manhattan Regional […]
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Chancellor Richard Carranza: ‘Students don’t want schools to look like prisons.’
By Rene Pastor Schools Chancellor Richard Carranza believes all NYC students should have access to the public school system, especially those who do not enjoy the benefit of wealth and private tutoring. “Integration is the law of the land,” said Carranza, the son of a Mexican sheet metal worker and a hairdresser. “As Chancellor of […]
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It’s not fun when billboards are vandalized: Tourism Attaché Susan del Mundo
By Cristina DC Pastor It’s “very sad,” said new Tourism Attaché to New York Susan del Mundo, that people would vandalize Philippine tourism billboards. “Sad because effort ito ng mga Pilipino,” she told members of the FilAm media in a press conference. “We would like to promote our country to have a very good image. […]
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Duterte is 1st Asian leader to face charges at ICC; ‘inner circle’ also liable
By Rene Pastor President Rodrigo Duterte is the first Asian leader to face possible charges of crimes against humanity before the International Criminal Court (ICC), according to international lawyer Ruben Carranza. He said officials in Duterte’s inner circle may also face charges for the murders committed under his brutal drug war. Carranza, the senior staff […]