On May 13, 2013, the Asian & Pacific Islander Legislative Caucus is hosting the 2013 Asian & Pacific Islander Heritage Month Gala to celebrate the accomplishments of Asian & Pacific Islander Americans and to benefit the new Asian Pacific Islander Legislative Caucus Foundation, a 501c3 Non-Profit Organization (FEIN 46-1937273).

One of the honorees is Sammy Lee, who could only use a pool in Pasadena only on the one day of the week designated as the ‘non-white’ day. In 1948, he became the first American of Asian descent to earn an Olympic gold medal by winning the men’s platform.” You can read more of his story on the Los Angeles Times Web site at http://articles.latimes.com/2011/may/30/sports/la-sp-crowe-20110530.

The event starts at 5:00 PM. If you would like to go, please register online at http://apilcfgala.eventbrite.com/. Tickets are $100. You can request information by writing to apilcf@gmail.com.  

Other honorees include:

Leadership & Vision Award

John A. Pérez, Speaker of the Assembly

And

APIA Heritage Month Honorees

Excellence in Law

Goodwin Liu, Associate Justice, California State Supreme Court

Excellence in Education

Frank Wu, Chancellor & Dean – UC Hastings School of Law

Excellence in Public Service

Sharon Hoshida, Acting Director, UC Santa Barbara Women’s Center

Excellence in Labor

Angie Wei, Legislative Director, California Federation of Labor

Excellence in Sports

Sammy Lee, U.S. Olympic Double Gold Medalist In Diving

President Obama proclaimed May 2013 Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month. In the proclamation, he wrote:

“NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim May 2013 as Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month. I call upon all Americans to visit www.WhiteHouse.gov/AAPI and www.AsianPacificHeritage.gov to learn more about the history of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders, and to observe this month with appropriate programs and activities.”

An interesting read is the comprehensive inventory of the Public Laws, Presidential Proclamations, and congressional resolutions related to Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month on the Library of Congress Web site at http://www.loc.gov/law/help/commemorative-observations/asian.php.

If you knew me, you would know that I am Filipino American and that I graduated with a BA in Asian American Studies from the University of California, Davis (UCD). If you really knew me, you would know that I only became shallowly aware of my Asian American identity my sophomore year of high school, when I did a project on the landmark Lau v. Nichols Supreme Court case regarding bilingual education, and then in my senior year when I learned that Filipino World War II veterans were denied their benefits from the United States Armed Forces, even though they were conscripted into those same armed forces during World War II. Then, at UCD, when I got involved with the different Filipino American organizations Today, I encourage you to take a look at May from a different perspective, because Asian American history is American history.

Here is a description of the commemoration from the Asian American Pacific Heritage Month Web site at http://asianpacificheritage.gov/index.html:

“May is Asian-Pacific American Heritage Month – a celebration of Asians and Pacific Islanders in the United States. A rather broad term, Asian-Pacific encompasses all of the Asian continent and the Pacific islands of Melanesia (New Guinea, New Caledonia, Vanuatu, Fiji and the Solomon Islands), Micronesia (Marianas, Guam, Wake Island, Palau, Marshall Islands, Kiribati, Nauru and the Federated States of Micronesia) and Polynesia (New Zealand, Hawaiian Islands, Rotuma, Midway Islands, Samoa, American Samoa, Tonga, Tuvalu, Cook Islands, French Polynesia and Easter Island).

“Like most commemorative months, Asian-Pacific Heritage Month originated in a congressional bill. In June 1977, Reps. Frank Horton of New York and Norman Y. Mineta of California introduced a House resolution that called upon the president to proclaim the first ten days of May as Asian-Pacific Heritage Week. The following month, senators Daniel Inouye and Spark Matsunaga introduced a similar bill in the Senate. Both were passed. On October 5, 1978, President Jimmy Carter signed a Joint Resolution designating the annual celebration. Twelve years later, President George H.W. Bush signed an extension making the week-long celebration into a month-long celebration. In 1992, the official designation of May as Asian-Pacific American Heritage Month was signed into law.

“The month of May was chosen to commemorate the immigration of the first Japanese to the United States on May 7, 1843, and to mark the anniversary of the completion of the transcontinental railroad on May 10, 1869. The majority of the workers who laid the tracks were Chinese immigrants.”

I respectfully request your support for the naming of Leo Giron Drive in Stockton, CA.

Reliable sources have indicated they are hearing that San Joaquin County officials feel there may not be enough support to name the street leading to the new VA hospital in Stockton “Leo Giron Drive.”

As many of us in the Filipino American community know, Leo Giron:

• was handpicked by General Douglas MacArthur to parachute behind enemy lines in the Philippines during World War II.
• was instrumental in providing tactical intelligence behind enemy lines that allowed for the US Armed Forces to defeat Japanese forces in the Philippines during World War II.

• received a Bronze Star for service to the United States of America.
• returned to his community of Stockton, California.
• was one of few Escrima masters who brought the fighting art to America, allowing others to learn and appreciate the art.
• created Bahala Na Martial Arts in Stockton which has spread throughout America and internationally.

Of course, that’s just a few of his accomplishments.

Time is of the essence. The length of the letter is not as important as the amount of support the San Joaquin County Board of Supervisors need to see. Even just a letter that says “I support the naming of Leo Giron Drive” would be sufficient. Please send and fax your short letter to:

SJC Board of Supervisors
Attn: Supervisor Carlos Villapudua
44 N. San Joaquin St.
Sixth Floor, Suite 627
Stockton, CA 95202

Fax number: 209-468-3694

Thank you in advance for your support.

On this first day of Filipino American History Month (FAHM), 2012, I invite everyone to peruse the newly revamped Filipino American National Historical Society (FANHS) Web site at http://www.fanhs-national.org/index.html. There is a section on the site that focuses on FAHM, shares commemoration ideas, and lists some activities that are going on throughout the country that FANHS chapters are organizing in celebration of FAHM.

According to a Merriam-Webster dictionary, one of the meanings of life is “the quality that distinguishes a vital and functional being from a dead body.” Therefore, life is what distinguishes a vital and functional being. What is that in your existence? While you are here on earth, what are you doing to maximize your vitality and functionality? Are you living an extraordinary and powerful life? If there is one thing I know about life, it is that you cannot get out of it alive. Everybody knows their birthday, but nobody knows their death day.

Today, I learned about two young women dying today. Kathryn Anne Samson, aged 26, was the cousin of one of my fraternity brothers. Joyce de Guzman-de Asis, aged 25, was a friend of acquaintances at UC Davis, and is survived by two children. While I did not know either of these women, I saw their photos and read what others are writing about them and they seem to have lived life with vitality. I hope you are doing the same.

If you would, please think a kind thought, send a good vibe, or say a sincere prayer for their families and friends.

This song really speaks to me. Lyrics:

I’m a square peg for a round hole.
I am sunshine. I’m a lighting bolt.
I’m not what anybody thinks I am.

So they’ll try, they’ll try to undermine me,
But I know there’s magic inside me.
I’m not giving up.
I’m not giving up what’s right.

I’m a fighter.
Bring the fire.
Fighting for the light.

And I’ve got miles to go before I get there.
And I’ve got miles to go before I’m home.
I’ve got miles to go before I get there.
I will get there, I know.
But I’ve got miles to go.

If they think I’m gonna get running,
.. then they’ve got another thing coming.
I know what I can do and who I am.

So I’ll push and prove as I’m flying,
.. that I’ve got the heart of a LION.
I’m not, I’m not afraid.. not afraid of the dark.

Chorus

I’ve been changing.
My world’s not what it used to be.
So, I’ll start with my heart.
And know that I am on my way.

Chorus

Watch it at http://youtu.be/CsUjj_D1-nU.

Yesterday, I was reflecting and realized that as a caregiver for my mom, my lola, and now my uncle, I have a protracted perspective on aging, dementia, and alzheimers. However, I could never articulate it as well as Frances H. Kakugawa in her book Breaking the Silence: A Caregiver’s Voice. She writes:

For our loved ones, what must seem at first a few strange moments, turns into an eternity of decline: the gradual disappearance of the self as a monster-sized eraser slowly sweeps the brain cells, leaving large, empty spaces. Fear and confusion replace simple uncertainties as more and more faces and objects become nameless and meaningless. Being treated as helpless and incompetent, feeling the shame of having to be so dependent, finally gives way to living in a world of bewilderment, terror, helplessness, and sadness….

This is the reality we are familiar with, and unlesss we are there ourselves, we will not fully understnad what it’s liket o become dependent on others. If they could speak, perhaps this is what they would say:

Emily Dickinson, I Am Somebody

If I cold speak, this is what
My voice would say:

Do not let this thief scare you away.
Do not let this thief intimidate you
Into thinking I am no longer here.

When you see me, tell me quickly who you are,
Do not ask me, “Do you know me?”
Help me retain my own dignity by not forcing me
To say, “No, I don’t know who you are.”
Save my face by greeting me with your name
Even if the thief has stolen all that from me.
It shames me to such indignities to know
I do not know you. Help me
In this game of pretension that the thief
Has not stolen your name from me.

My words have all forsaken me,
My thoughts are all gone. But do not
Let this thief forsake you from me.
Speak to me for I am still here.
I understand hugs and smiles and loving kindness.
When I soil my clothing or do something absurd,
Do not ask me “Why didn’t you?”
If I could, I would.
I know I have turned into a monstrous baby,
If I could, I would not allow this thief
To let you live and see what he
Has stolen from me.

I know my repeated questions
Are like a record player gone bad,
But my words are gone and this is
The only way I know to make contact
With you. If is my sole way of saying,
Yes, I know you are here. This thief has stolen
Everything else except for these questions
And soon they, too, will be stolen away.

I am still here
Help me remain a human being
In this shell of a woman I have become.
In my world of silence, I am still here.
Oh, I am still here.

Black History Month, which begins today, dates back to 1926 when educator and historian Carter G. Woodson started a weeklong observance in February, the birth month of Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass. The event was expanded to a month in 1976 by President Gerald Ford. The theme of this year’s observance is “Black Women in American Culture and History,” and I hope everyone takes the time to look at the number of amazing Black women role models in our past and present.

The greatest hero against systemic and institutional problems is an individual empowered to succeed beyond their own dreams and ambitions. That individual is you. Your ancestors and supporters empower you to massively succeed.

I just came from an amazing four days of pure empowerment at the Filipino American National Historical Society (FANHS) conference. To see the Filipino American community of Seattle, with Rizal Park, Rizal Bridge, memorial for Carlos Bulosan, Filipino Community Center, the National Pinoy Archives, and so many other prominent individuals to make it what it is showed me once again, what is possible through cooperation and collaboration.

I reconnected with a man who presented an original recording of and original letters from Larry Itliong. He read one that was quite revealing about the situation in the United Farm Workers (UFW) Union during his departure from it. These stories need to be disseminated.

My reconnections also led me back to see Jeanne Barroga, whose work Buffalo’ed looks to be an event not to be missed. If I can help in bringing the show to Sacramento, the community would surely benefit from

I also reconnected with a filmmaker who is working on the documentary Delano Manongs: Forgotten Heroes of the United Farm Workers about the leaders of the Delano Grape Strike. We have a goal of $120,000 to make that vision a reality.

New connections included members of the Katipunan ng Demokratikong Pilipino (KDP), whose passion and dedication to the larger Filipino community many people benefit from today, including myself. Another new connection was officially meeting Mona Pasquil, who gave a keynote speech that challenged me to make a difference and, as she put it, “change a family’s story.” She reminded me why we celebrate wholly and fully, in this instance celebrating the nomination of the Honorable Tani Cantil-Sakauye for Chief Justice of the California Supreme Court.

Meeting and reconnecting with so many wonderful individuals is at the heart of empowerment.They provide me examples of individuals to emulate, excellent work that can be expanded, and treasures to be found in the unlikeliest of places. We just have to keep our hearts and minds open to the possibility. I needed to be reminded of that.