Fil-Am Bay Area entrepreneurs turn up the heat with hot chicken concept
THIS Valentine’s Day weekend, a South San Francisco pop-up by Filipino American serial entrepreneurs is daring couples to add some spice to their date night — with a hot chicken challenge. Love Burn, a play on the Nashville hot chicken craze, is hosting the “Truth of Burn” challenge for couples to video themselves as they…
Ready for the spotlight: Teen actress Laya DeLeon Hayes takes on her biggest project to date
If you stayed on CBS last Sunday night after the Super Bowl to watch the premiere of The Equalizer, then you saw a possible breakout star named Laya DeLeon Hayes. Hayes plays the role of Delilah, the teenage daughter of Robyn McCall played by the Academy Award nominee and multi-hyphenate Queen Latifah. It has been almost…
‘Fight for You’ by H.E.R. makes it to Oscars 2021 shortlist
“FIGHT For You” by R&B artist H.E.R. has made it in this year’s Oscar Original Song shortlist. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences on Tuesday, February 9, released its shortlists for the 2021 Oscars in nine categories — documentary feature, documentary short subject, international feature, makeup and hairstyling, original score, original song, animated…
[COLUMN] Julia Barretto dreams of becoming a ‘boss-housewife’
THE pandemic has made everyone’s lives topsy-turvy. We all have had to make adjustments with our everyday goings-on, our plans, our needs and our habits. Young star Julia Barretto, in an article in PEP.ph, revealed that because of the pandemic she feels that life is unpredictable at the moment. The actress said that she is…
[COLUMN] Essential health tips
DISCIPLINE and patience With COVID-19 (and variants) cases reaching almost 108 million and close to 2.4 million deaths in 219 countries (nearly half a million deaths in the U.S. and almost 12,000 fatalities in the Philippines), it behooves all of us to continue to be very careful and wear mask(s) in public, avoid crowds, and…
Citizen Pinoy celebrates Valentine’s Day this Sunday with another brand-new episode
LEADING U.S. Immigration Attorney Michael J. Gurfinkel presents the latest in immigration news and analysis, and provides the latest information and highlights from his YouTube immigration channel, US Immigration TV. Since it is Valentine’s Day, Citizen Pinoy celebrates “love” as Atty. Gurfinkel answers questions related to spouses and significant others on this week’s episode. Butch…
SF announces plan to expand vaccine eligibility to workers in education and childcare, emergency services, and food sectors
SAN FRANCISCO — Mayor London N. Breed and Director of Health Dr. Grant Colfax, in partnership with local healthcare providers, announced that starting February 24, COVID-19 vaccines will be offered to individuals identified as eligible in Phase 1B, Tier 1 of California’s population prioritization plan for vaccine administration. This includes people who work in the education and childcare, emergency services, and…
[COLUMN] NVC sending notices, but I’m in the US
DEAR Attorney Gurfinkel: I entered the U.S. in 2000 on a visitor’s visa and overstayed. My sister filed a petition for me (F-4) in early 2001 under Clinton’s LIFE ACT. I am now receiving notices from the National Visa Center (NVC), advising me that I need to log onto their website, pay various fees, and…
Senator Durazo, Commissioner Lara introduce legislation to protect health and safety of immigrants in private, for-profit detention facilities and prisons
SACRAMENTO — On Tuesday, February 9 Senator Maria Elena Durazo (D-Los Angeles) introduced legislation sponsored by Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara and the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights that would require private, for-profit detention facilities and prisons operating in California to uphold basic health and safety standards for people being detained in these facilities. SB 334, the…
Fil-Am Chanelle Molina joins WNBA training camp
FILIPINA American Chanelle Molina is one step closer to making it to the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA). The WNBA’s Indiana Fever this week announced that Molina has been signed to a training camp contract. The terms of the contract were not disclosed as per the policy of the team. Molina, for her part, took…
US, PH reaffirm defense alliance
THE Philippines and the United States have reaffirmed their commitment to the defense alliance through the Mutual Defense Treaty (MDT) and the Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA). In an introductory phone call made on Wednesday, February 10, Philippine Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana and his counterpart U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III discussed a number…
California’s largest vaccination site opens at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara
WITH live sporting events paused for now, California’s largest mass COVID-19 vaccination site opened this week at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara. The site was opened on Tuesday, February 9 by Governor Gavin Newsom, representatives of the San Francisco 49ers and Santa Clara County officials. On the first day, 500 vaccines were administered. The goal…
The Year of the Ox: How Filipinos celebrate Lunar New Year
FEBRUARY 12 will mark the biggest event on the Chinese calendar, ushering in the beginning of the Year of the Ox. Unlike the fixed new year of the Gregorian calendar commonly celebrated on January 1st, the date of the Lunar New Year varies, determined by the appearance of the new moon — which is why…
Suspect arrested in recent Bay Area attacks on elderly AAPI residents
White House responds to the attacks as AAPI communities share outrage over ‘hate crimes’ FOLLOWING a disturbing slew of violent assaults on elderly Asian residents in the Bay Area, Oakland police announced on Monday, Feb. 8 that it had arrested and charged a suspect for a savage assault on a 91-year-old Asian man in Chinatown….
[OPINION] My Valentine story
HAPPY season of love! Wherever we may be, we Filipinos are hopeless romantics, and therefore, Valentine’s Day is a month-long celebration for us talking about love and romance. “Humans of Pinas” (HoP), a Facebook page inspired by Humans of New York, has been showcasing Filipinos’ stories deemed to be empowering and/or inspiring. This Valentine’s month,…
Schools walk the tightrope between ideal safety and the reality of COVID
by Laura Ungar and Samantha Young CALIFORNIA mom Megan Bacigalupi has had enough. She wants her kindergartner and second grader back in their Oakland classrooms. But the coronavirus is spreading too quickly to open schools in Alameda County, based on the current state standards. And the local teachers union hasn’t agreed to go back —…
Why the US is underestimating COVID reinfection
by Jonel Aleccia KAITLYN Romoser first caught covid-19 in March, likely on a trip to Denmark and Sweden, just as the scope of the pandemic was becoming clear. Romoser, who is 23 and a laboratory researcher in College Station, Texas, tested positive and had a few days of mild, coldlike symptoms. In the weeks that…
Comelec urges Filipinos abroad to join internet voting test run
AHEAD of the 2022 Philippine general election, overseas Filipino voters are urged to participate in a test run of four internet voting solutions by different election systems providers. The country’s Commission on Elections (Comelec) Office for Overseas Voting (OFOV) is calling on overseas voters who have active and complete voter registration records to take part…
Fil-Am influencer Bretman Rock cooks igado, Pinoy spaghetti in premiere episode of MTV reality show
FILIPINO American internet star Bretman Rock is giving fans a closer look at his life — and sharing bits of Pinoy culture along the way — with a new MTV reality show. The first episode of “Following Bretman Rock,” which premiered on Monday, February 8, shows Bretman — along with his cousin-assistant Miss Kay, childhood…
Duterte won’t allow ABS-CBN to operate with a new franchise
PHILIPPINE President Rodrigo Duterte declared that he would not allow ABS-CBN to operate again even if Congress grants the network giant a new franchise. “Congress is planning to restore the franchise of the Lopezes. Wala akong problema doon kung i-restore ninyo (I don’t have a problem if Congress restores it),” he said Monday, February 8….
PH, US set to meet about Visiting Forces Agreement
THE Philippines and the United States will meet this month to iron out differences over the Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA) amid renewed regional concerns over China’s assertive maritime agenda, Philippine Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. said. “I am narrowing down the issues and soon we will meet…and iron out whatever differences we have,” the…
LA County to prioritize second vaccine doses this week
Region surpasses grim milestone of 18,000 deaths INDIVIDUALS who are ready for their second coronavirus vaccination will be prioritized in Los Angeles County this week while supplies remain scarce. County residents can only secure appointments to receive their second doses at the county-operated sites, starting Tuesday, February 9. The sites include the Pomona Fairplex, the…
Filipino American man slashed in the face while riding NYC subway
A Filipino American man received almost 100 stitches after he was slashed across the face by another passenger on the New York City subway last week. Noel Quintana, 61, was riding the L train to get to work in Harlem on Wednesday, February 3, when a man walked by and kicked the tote bag that…
Q&A: How Evereden CEO & co-founder Kimberely Ho is promoting care for moms, babies
With all the stresses that 2020 brought to the forefront, the pandemic underscored the importance of not just health, but also personal care and wellness. On the market today, there are products for nearly everything — from every part of the body to remedies to beat fatigue and stress. For Kimberely Ho, an Asian American…
[COLUMN] Our earnest desire for healing of mind, body, and spirit
Instead of dwelling on the “drudgery,” the “misery,” and the “troubled nights” of life that Job describes in the First Reading, let’s imagine Jesus putting his hands on us and assuring us of his care, love, compassion, and mercy. JESUS is the Great Physician. That’s how we hear fellow Christians talk about him during this…