PHILIPPINE President Rodrigo Duterte admitted he is struggling to address the pandemic in the country, particularly in securing vaccines against COVID-19. “I’m having a hard time. I’m grappling with the issue of COVID,” he said in a pre-recorded public address on Monday, March 29. “It takes most of my time actually. More than any other…
NEW York has lowered the threshold of vaccine eligibility starting Tuesday, March 30 as New Yorkers 30 years old and older will be able to get the COVID-19 vaccine. This eligibility will expand further to include all adults 16 years and older starting April 6, according to Governor Andrew Cuomo. This, as the state of…
MORE changes are coming to Alameda County as it’s the latest area to move into the less restrictive orange tier in the state’s reopening plan. The county joins most of the Bay Area in the orange tier, except for Napa, Sonoma, Solano and Contra Costa counties. As of Wednesday, March 31, Alameda loosened its measures,…
STAR for All Seasons and current Congresswoman Vilma Santos-Recto’s name has cropped up in a list for nominees for National Artist, according to an article in Inquirer.net by columnist Dolly Anne Carvajal. Administered by the National Commission for Culture and the Arts, the Order of National Artists is the highest national recognition given to Filipinos…
IN a previous article, I reported that on February 24, 2021, Pres. Biden revoked Trump’s immigration ban, which was set to expire at the end of March 2021. Because of that ban, most immigrant visa processing was suspended at the U.S. embassies around the world. That caused a lot of confusion, heartbreak, and sadness to…
Every Californian age 16 and older will be eligible for the COVID-19 vaccination on April 15. Vaccination is one of the most important ways to end the COVID-19 pandemic, and I urge everyone to get the vaccine when it’s their turn so they can protect themselves, their loved ones, and our community. While the COVID-19…
WHENEVER I hear the notorious excuse or description “Filipino Time,” I feel a grave insult is hurled at my people, even if the generalization is usually uttered by my fellow Filipinos themselves. The defensive rationalization is usually accompanied by a snicker or laughter, a demeanor that trivializes the seriousness of the behavioral impropriety and rudeness….
THE suspect in the brazen and unprovoked attack on a 65-year-old Filipino American woman who was walking to church in Manhattan’s Hell’s Kitchen neighborhood earlier this week has been arrested. The New York City Police Department on Wednesday, March 31 said that they arrested the suspect on charges including felony assault as a hate crime…
IN February 2020, Los Angeles-based social worker Maxie Villavicencio Pulliam took a trip to the Philippines to help with relief operations following the Taal Volcano eruption. While in Taal, Batangas, where her mother’s side of the family hails from, Villavicencio Pulliam noticed a main road and a monument dedicated to her great-great-grandmother: Gliceria Marella de…
California Dept. of Public Health ramps up community outreach to encourage more AAPIs to get vaccinated MORE groups in Los Angeles County are now eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine. As of Friday, March 26, gardeners and landscapers, housekeepers, and private child caretakers in LA County who work at least 20 hours a week can now…
TWENTY SIX governors, as well as several former Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) government officials, have denounced the disturbing rise in assaults and harassment toward the AAPI community in the United States. Governors from 26 states and territories on March 26 issued a joint statement calling for solidarity with AAPIs and condemning the recent…
Metro Manila, surrounding areas under quarantine until April 4 EXTENDING the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) over Metro Manila and its nearby provinces is an “absolute last resort,” according to Malacañang. Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque on Tuesday, March 30, made the statement, noting that the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases…
FOREIGN parents of Filipino citizens who have valid visas and are traveling with them may now enter the Philippines. The country’s Bureau of Immigration (BI) on Monday, March 29, announced the new guideline pursuant to the latest resolution issued by the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-MEID). However, Immigration Commissioner…
THE East West Bank Foundation is committed to supporting diversity and anti-discrimination efforts. To help stem the rash of violence against AAPIs, the East West Bank Foundation is contributing to nonprofit organizations which are on the frontlines responding to the hate. The East West Bank Foundation is supported through East West Bank, one of the…
THE Philippines and the United States have officially launched a bilateral campaign celebrating the 75th anniversary of their diplomatic ties. Philippine Ambassador to the U.S. Jose Manuel Romualdez and U.S. Acting Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Ambassador Sung Kim led the program held on Friday, March 26, at the Philippine…
FILIPINO American filmmaker Ronnie Del Carmen is writing and developing an original animated feature based on Filipino lore and mythology for Netflix. In an exclusive interview with Cartoon Brew, the Oscar winner and Pixar veteran shared that he has signed a deal with Netflix that covers animated series as well as films. He will also…
by Angela Hart and Samantha Young SACRAMENTO — California Gov. Gavin Newsom is framing the burgeoning effort to remove him from office as a fringe Republican movement backed by right-wing extremists, Trump supporters and QAnon conspiracy theorists. But Newsom isn’t telling the whole story about who supports his recall. Democrats and independent voters — who…
FORMER Philippine President Joseph “Erap” Ejercito Estrada has tested positive for COVID-19. In a Facebook post, former Senator Jinggoy Estrada announced Monday, March 29, that his father was rushed to the hospital and was diagnosed with the virus. “Nais ko pong ipaalam sa inyo na ang aking ama, na si dating pangulong Joseph Estrada, ay…
FOR the second year in a row, we are still in calvary, carrying the load of our cross brought by the escalating threat of the coronavirus pandemic. We thought it would be over by now. Some died still in denial that the pandemic even existed. But no matter how much we cry, complain or despair…
MANILA, 31 March 2021 – The Government of Japan pledged additional PhP190m to UNICEF strengthening its support to the Philippine Government’s COVID-19 immunization response. The pledge is part of the Japanese Government’s assistance to 25 countries in the Southeast and Southwest Asian and Pacific Island region amounting to a total of US$41 million. The funding…
The Philippines and the Department of Tourism (DOT) secure positions as nominees to the 2021 World Travel Awards (WTA), one of the most prestigious and comprehensive global recognition bodies that aims to “acknowledge, reward and celebrate excellence across all key sectors of the travel, tourism and hospitality industries.” “I am very excited to share with…
“The deepest definition of youth is life as yet untouched by tragedy.” —Alfred North Whitehead (Continued from last week’s issue…) Daedalus took off flapping his wings faster and faster to get vertical lift-off and escape gravity. Icarus followed suit and took off shortly after. As they flew, the people on the ground in Crete watched…
ARE you seriously in debt and don’t know what to do about your situation? Are you afraid that unless you do something about it, thing will just continue to get worse every day? When people are going through financial difficulty and are unable to pay their bills, their first reaction is often to ignore their…
The White House on Tuesday, March 30 announced several actions in response to the latest string of anti-Asian violence and racism in the United States. The move comes two weeks since the Atlanta mass shooting that left eight individuals dead, six of whom were Asian women, and as nearly 3,800 hate incidents have been reported…
Archbishop José H. Gomez will celebrate an outdoor Prayer Vigil for Racial Acceptance on Holy Wednesday, March 31 at 7 p.m. at Incarnation Parish in Glendale (1001 N. Brand Blvd., Glendale 91202) in solidarity with the Asian and Pacific Islander Americans, in light of the rising violence against that community. During the vigil, the faithful…
THE United States maintained that it “stands” with the Philippines amid the presence of Chinese ships at Julian Felipe Reef (Whitsun Reef) in the West Philippine Sea. “The United States stands with our ally, the Philippines, in the face of the PRC’s maritime militia amassing at WhitsunReef,” said U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken in…
ATTACKS on Asian Americans continue to happen unabated in New York City. This week alone, the New York City Police Department’s Hate Crime Task Force is investigating a few of these hate incidents, one a brawl inside the J train going to Brooklyn, an Asian female was struck by a male who made anti-Asian statements,…
We have asked Secretary Carlito Galvez Jr, the chief implementor of the country’s Covid-19 vaccination program, to widen the vaccination priority list for frontline workers of the tourism industry to include tour guides, operators and other accredited workers and service providers. The frontline nature of the jobs of these workers requires face-to-face interaction with individuals…
