MESSAGE FROM OUR TEAM
May 10, 2021
We are back after a long – and much needed – hiatus from producing monthly newsletters, but this break didn’t come without good reason.
Just like the rest of the world, last March 2020, we made the difficult decision to cancel our 2020 Annual Fly Pinays a mere 8 days before our live event. After consulting with our Fly Pinays mentors, mentees, members and healthcare practitioners, we made the decision collectively and we’re glad we made the call when we did. One week later, the state of California and County of Santa Clara would issue a shelter-in-place order with a global shutdown ensuing weeks after.
Since the COVID-19 outbreak and in the past year, the members and families of L.E.AD Filipino haven’t stopped working and serving. Along 2020, we persisted in spite of canceling our in-person Annual Fly Pinays and opted to present a series of “Puso to Puso” talks. We hosted our first virtual Awareness in Action Program (AAP) and served a national audience of 40 students. At the height of the George Floyd era in June 2020, we partnered through our statewide FIERCE Coalition and hosted a Town Hall on Addressing Anti-Blackness in Filipinx Communities and Building with the Movement for Black Lives. The Town Hall drew in 500+ community members from across California.
On a local level, L.E.A.D Filipino redistributed thousands of dollars to low-income and undocumented Fil members of the San Jose community that were adversely impacted by the pandemic.
Together, we’ve adapted and reinvented our service to our members, students and families – and for that, we thank you.
Check out our “Look Back at 2020” video to hear directly from our organizers as they share their work. Read more below to check out our upcoming activities and ways that you can get involved!
NEW MEMBERS
Welcome to all of our new members!
On Sunday, 5/16 from 6pm-7:30pm, we’ll be hosting our New Member Gathering/Orientation to meet all of you and celebrate Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI) Heritage Month.
INITIATIVES
Pass AB 490, The Justice for Angelo Quinto Act of 2021!
Since February 2021, our organization has been convening with the statewide Justice for Angelo Quinto! Justice for All! Coalition. A collection of FilAm nonprofits and organizations from across California, we meet every two weeks in support to Angelo’s family and to coordinate direct legislative activities in Antioch and at the state level. L.E.A.D Filipino currently serves on the Coalition’s Policy Working Group committee. Read more here.
On April 28, L.E.A.D Filipino joined the statewide FIERCE Coalition to advocate for a series of Police Accountability bills, to retain the integrity of Ethnic Studies in California, and to save Philippines Studies at CCSF. Advocating for the immediate passage of AB 490, The Justice for Angelo Quinto Act of 2021 was core in our message to our 10 meetings with state legislators and their staff. Read more about the 2021 FIERCE Advocacy Day here.
The Delano Manongs Park in San Jose
In partnership with the local Santa Clara Valley Chapter of Filipino American National Historical Society (FANHS), we will be helping to launch a community-led “Delano Manongs Park Committee” this spring. The purpose of the Delano Manongs Park Committee will be to coordinate continued artistic development of the space and planning for the summer opening of the first park in San Jose to be named in honor of FilAm history, including performances, activities, and a larger program hosted in conjunction with the City of San Jose, specifically Councilmember Magdalena Carrasco. The first Delano Manongs Park Committee meeting will be Thursday, 5/13 from 7-8PM. Read more here.
Save Philippines Studies at City College San Francisco
CCSF has the only Philippines Studies program in the nation. Since its founding 50 years ago, the Philippines Studies Department has touched the hearts and minds of hundreds of thousands of students in the Department, its programs, community organizations, and at other higher learning institutions. Even after an exciting announcement that CCSF will begin conferring Associate Degrees and Certificates in Philippines Studies, Dr. Lily Ann Villaraza, the only full-time employee for the Department received a pink slip. We are currently calling on the CCSF Board of Trustees to #SavePhilippinesStudies. Read more.
Community Listening Sessions on Anti-Asian Hate
It’s not lost on us that Pinays have been disproportionately targeted as victims of anti-Asian violence and rhetoric in Santa Clara County. In the face of the surge of attacks and assaults, we confronted local headlines that a 26-year-old Pinay was sexually assaulted in broad daylight at the San Jose Diridon Caltrain station, a Pinay healthcare worker was ambushed from behind in Los Gatos, and a Lola was held at knifepoint in the Silver Creek neighborhood of San Jose. In partnership with the City of San Jose, our team hosted a series of small group listening sessions with our students, families and community partners. We plan to host more listening sessions throughout May and June.
UPCOMING EVENTS
2021 Lakbay Summit
Registration is now open for our inaugural Queer Lakbay Summit! Click here for tickets.
Date: Saturday, June 19
Time: 9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. (PST)
About: Lakbay is a journey you take away from your usual environment to reflect, explore, and better understand yourself. An anagram of Lakbay is Bakla. Bakla is the inward journey to wholeness where you find that you are complete within yourself. This wholeness allows you to share and bring gifts to your kapwa. Our Queer Lakbay Summit elevates the twin concepts of Lakbay and Bakla. Through tying Philippines society and openness with Queer communities, specifically our experiences, stories, and narratives, our 2021 Queer Lakbay Summit will focus on the powers of internal, transformative reflective journeys and how they influence your external moves.
Register: Buy tickets here
Sponsors:
FASTER | County of Santa Clara | Office of Supervisor Otto Lee | Elegant Villas
2021 Awareness in Action Program
Date: Wednesday evenings, starting June 23 through August 25
Time: 6:30 p.m. – 8:45 p.m. (PST)
About: Since 2016, L.E.A.D Filipino’s Awareness in Action Program (AAP) has served hundreds of students and families in providing accessible community-based education rooted in the disciplines of Filipino Studies and Civic Participation. AAP is a 10-week multidisciplinary course that looks at Philippines history, FilAm diasporic experiences, civil rights and civic activism, socioeconomics, and political education.
Register: Here
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