Low-income households will be receiving between P5,000 to P8,000 in cash under the Philippine government’s coronavirus relief program, the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) said on Thursday, April 2. The cash will be given along with the food packs it is distributing to beneficiaries, according to DSWD Secretary Rolando Bautista. “In cash na…
UC, CSU cite mass disruptions to K-12 schools in decisions to change requirements for 2021 and incoming fall 2020 students In response to the novel coronavirus outbreak that has upended the lives of students in California, the University of California (UC) and California State University (Cal State) systems announced they would be relaxing its admissions…
The new coronavirus, and the ways in which it has drastically capsized daily life for people across the world, has become the most pressing, quite literally life or death, issue of the new decade. Global pandemics affect everyone regardless of demographic markers, but in a world where justice and equity aren’t guaranteed, some communities are…
THESE are challenging times for California small businesses. Restaurants, retail stores, and other services sustained (and continue to sustain) coronavirus-related losses. Their damages resulted from severe business interruption, event cancellation, loss of supply chains, and loss of customers among other damages. However, business owners may seek to obtain payments for losses if their business insurance…
This Passion/Palm Sunday is the beginning of Holy Week. Sadly, we will not able to celebrate Holy Week in our churches because of the carnivorous pandemic. It’s a huge cross that we all need to carry. We can’t gather as communities of faith to get our palms blessed and celebrate the Triduum Masses (Holy Thursday,…
The fight against the C-19 pandemic is a war, a war of global proportions. It is World War III, although it does not follow our stereotypes of combat in wartime; think World War II, or even, the many regional conflicts since. World War III does not follow our familiar paradigms about war. We do not…
THE WAR against the coronavirus pandemic that has caught the world by surprise in January has made us all feel like the normal, free, and vibrant life we lived just three months ago feel like ages ago. No matter how much we resist it, no matter how uncomfortable and vulnerable it makes us feel, this…
A LOT of people in debt often already know what they need to do once they realize that bankruptcy is their only way out. But they usually delay the decision to file because they try their best to avoid it if at all possible and will only rush to act when they face an immediate…
THE U.S. Trustee has recently instructed bankruptcy trustees to conduct debtor hearings telephonically to comply with social distancing guidelines to fight the coronavirus. The Chapter 13 trustee in Riverside, California has just informed counsel about how that will be implemented in his jurisdiction. Appearances will be done telephonically and/or with video for hearings starting mid-April….
US Embassy Manila visa interviews temporarily ceased SIMULA Marso 18, 2020, ang USCIS ay nagsuspende ng mga routine in-person service sa mga USCIS field office, asylum office at Application Support Center para pabagalin ang pagkalat ng COVID-19. Ang pagsuspende ng operasyon hanggang Abril 1, 2020 ay extended hanggang Abril 6, 2020. Ayon sa USCIS, ang…
THE COVID-19 Pandemic has changed our lives almost overnight. Not only has it changed our lives in terms of our daily routine, jobs, lifestyle, but also our relationship with our family members under the Stay at Home orders in place in major cities such as Los Angeles, Divorce caused by financial and emotional stress China…
IN United States vs. Windsor, 570 U.S. (2013) (Docket No. 12-307), the Supreme Court held that Federal restrictions of the terms “marriage” and “spouse” to marriages between a man and a woman were unconstitutional. The Court invalidated Section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), which did not allow Federal Government recognition of same-sex…
The U.S. Department of State on Tuesday, March 31, said that it has provided approximately $18.3 million in emergency health and humanitarian assistance to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) member states, including the Philippines. The local government received nearly $4 million, or approximately P200 million, in health assistance to help the government prepare…
NEVADA Governor Steve Sisolak this week issued several directives, including a formal “stay at home” order and the extension of nonessential business and school closures until April 30. Announced on Wednesday, April 1, the directive instructs the state’s 3 million residents to not leave their homes unless it’s for necessary activities, such as going to…
Nevada Senator Catherine Cortez Masto recently released a guide for residents seeking assistance, from unemployment insurance to health care services, during the coronavirus pandemic. The senator’s guide came alongside the passage of the historic $2.2 trillion relief bill last Thursday, March 26, which was subsequently signed by President Donald Trump. The plan will send direct payments…
A Filipina American detective of the Santa Rosa Police Department, who became California’s first line-of-duty death related to the novel coronavirus, was honored with a procession of patrol cars through the North Bay on Friday, April 3. Marylou Armer, 43, was a 20-year veteran of the department and succumbed to the illness on Tuesday, March…
By Harold Clavite/Contributor AT the end of a long work shift, Filipino nurse Jiggz Tabuclin would make it home in time to put his daughter to bed. But amid the coronavirus outbreak, this is no longer the case. Tabuclin instead parks his minivan outside of the house, then prepares a makeshift bed out of a sleeping…
Medical experts urge lawmakers to practice treatment equity, call for more tests to be administered to lower-income areas ONE month ago, lawmakers across the United States, including President Donald Trump, questioned the veracity and severity of the novel coronavirus within the U.S. despite warnings from the medical community. Back then, there were only a handful…
Jersey City, the city with the most diverse population in New Jersey, has more positive coronavirus cases than any other town or city in the state. The city now has 820 confirmed COVID-19 cases and six fatalities, including a DPW worker who was a part-time hospital security guard according to Mayor Steven Fulop. In a series…
The coronavirus that has caused a worldwide pandemic has killed more than 3,400 and infected more than 213,000 people in the United States, according to Johns Hopkins University, both figures surpassing those reported by China. Some people who were tested positive have begun their way to full recovery. After 17 days in the hospital, including…
FILIPINO American chef Rodelio Aglibot died over the weekend of an apparent heart attack and tributes and testimonials continue to pour. He was a man who wore many hats: as a chef, restaurateur, TV host and personality, entrepreneur and food consultant. “Our hearts are broken. We learned yesterday that my big brother, favorite chef, best…
THE Department of Foreign Affairs on Wednesday, April 1, announced that there are a total of 401 confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) among overseas Filipino workers. Of the number, 270 are currently undergoing treatment, 118 have recovered while 13 have died. According to the agency, the OFWs who contracted the disease are from…
THE Department of Science and Technology on Monday, March 30, announced that at least 120,000 locally-developed test kits for the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) will be rolled out this week. According to the agency, its priority is the production of 26,000 test kits for field implementation and distribution to certain hospitals that can do the testing…
CALIFORNIA Senator Kamala Harris denounced the rise of anti-Asian violence and discrimination in the United States and called on more protections for vulnerable populations, including front-line workers. Harris, the first South Asian American senator, said she’s confronted members of the Trump administration on its usage of calling the coronavirus, the “Chinese Virus” or “Wuhan Virus,”…
WITH the advent of the COVID-19 pandemic, along with “stay-at-home,” “shelter in place,” quarantines, travel bans, etc., there has been a profound effect on immigration. Here are some of the latest restrictions, limitations, and changes as of March 30, 2020. This is not an exhaustive list, and is subject to change literally on a daily…
A STEPPARENT may file an immigrant petition for a stepchild even without the stepparent having to legally adopt the stepchild. However, before a stepparent may be able to file an immigrant petition for a stepchild, the stepparent–stepchild relationship should have been created before a stepchild turns 18 years old. This means that the stepparent and…
