A FILIPINO nurse was convicted Monday, May 18, of two counts of murder in the United Kingdom. Victor Chua, 49, was found guilty of murdering Tracy Arden, 44, and Alfred Weaver, 83, by a Manchester Crown Court jury that had been deliberating for 11 days. While working at Stepping Hill Hospital in Stockport (200 miles…
PRESIDENT Barack Obama is cutting back on shipments of military equipment to local police forces, nine months after multiple complaints about officers using riot gear and armored vehicles to confront protestors after the events in Ferguson, Mo. Obama’s new policies countering the “militarization” of local law enforcement will ban the Pentagon and other federal agencies…
OVER 2,000 Asian-American national leaders, advocates, artists and community organizers gathered in Washington, DC on Tuesday, May 12 for the first-ever White House Summit on AAPIs—the groundbreaking gathering for the White House Initiative on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders since its re-establishment in 2009. The all-day program included panel discussions featuring community organizers and cabinet…
LOS ANGELES officials voted Tuesday, May 19 on a fiercely debated plan to hike the city’s minimum wage to $15 an hour. Under a plan endorsed by a key panel of City Council members, Los Angeles will increase its required wage year-by-year for the next five years to reach a minimum of $15 hourly by…
The U.S. House of Representatives on Wednesday, May 13, overwhelmingly advanced a bill that would cease the National Security Agency’s bulk collection of phone records. The USA Freedom Act, bipartisan legislation approved in a 338-88 vote, would alter the Patriot Act to prohibit the NSA from mass collecting metadata associated with telephone calls made by…
The Food and Drug Administration is outlining its plan to end the nation’s lifetime ban of blood donations from gay and bisexual men, a policy in place for 32 years that many medical groups and gay activists say is “no longer justified.” The FDA released proposed guidelines on Tuesday, May 12 for screening blood donors…
3 AAPI organizations recognized IN celebration of Asian Pacific American Heritage Month (APAHM), the City of Los Angeles recognized three organizations on Friday, May 8, for their contributions to advancing and empowering Asian and Pacific Islander Americans in media arts and entertainment. Visual Communications, Kollaboration and The Coalition of Asian Pacifics in Entertainment (CAPE) received…
3 AAPI organizations recognized IN celebration of Asian Pacific American Heritage Month (APAHM), the City of Los Angeles recognized three organizations on Friday, May 8, for their contributions to advancing and empowering Asian and Pacific Islander Americans in media arts and entertainment. Visual Communications, Kollaboration and The Coalition of Asian Pacifics in Entertainment (CAPE) received…
HE was a shy, timid, introverted young man who wanted to be a missionary. But his superiors did not believe that he could make it. “Out in the missions you have to be outgoing, energetic, and filled with excitement,” his superiors told him. He insisted on saying that God is calling him to work in…
Do you constantly scratch your head thinking, “Wow I really do not understand young people these days.” Do you look at kids and wonder why they can’t go anywhere without their phones? I would like to think it wasn’t that long ago when I was one of those young people that was misunderstood. The truth…
Client No. 1 CLIENT is 52 years old with a son in college. She is an R-Nurse with annual gross income of $80K. She comes to see me with a person I thought was her husband. But apparently is not. He could be a potential suitor. Client is slim and has maintained herself well and…
WE often hear about women being denied a job, a promotion, or higher pay because the employer preferred to give the job, promotion or more money to a man. In the Los Angeles Police Department’s (LAPD) an opposite scenario unfolded. Peter Bakotich, Michael Fanning and Debbie Guerrero worked as senior detectives assigned to LAPD’s Fugitive…
SENATOR Grace Poe used to be a darling, not only in the entertainment world which saw her being raised by her adoptive parents movie icons, Fernando Poe Jr. and Susan Roces. She was also very much liked in politics, especially after she topped the senatorial race in 2010. In fact, suddenly, many politicians wanted to…
THERE is little to compare with the excitement over the Los Angeles-Makati Sister City, Inc. Induction Ball on Sunday, May 3. What are we looking at beyond the choreography of the Grand Ball? Image thinkers and labor makers that swath the Filipino-American community are quick to say that we have yet to see a perfect…
It appears that the most heavily used apps on smartphones these days are those that allow users to socially engage with one another, according to findings released by analytics company App Annie. In a new survey on Q1 mobile app use, App Annie found that Android smartphone users across five countries – the United States,…
Facebook is pushing to secure higher pay and better benefits for contract workers who support its employees, including janitors, receptionists, security workers and cooks. In a blog post on Tuesday, May 12, Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg announced a new minimum hourly wage of $15 for contractors and vendors working with the company, at least 15…
To protect consumers against fraud and cyber-theft, JPMorgan Chase is planning to update more than 70 percent of its credit and debit cards with new microchip technology by the end of 2015, the bank announced on Tuesday, May 12. Chase is the latest US bank to convert its debit cards from those with the traditional…
THE state Senate approved a controversial bill on Thursday, May 14, that would eliminate California’s personal belief exemptions for vaccinations and require that schoolchildren be immunized. The measure, introduced by Democratic Sens. Richard Pan of Sacramento and Ben Allen of Santa Monica, would allow for medical exemptions but deny those based on personal and religious…
A non-profit organization headquartered in Las Vegas has partnered with Manny Pacquiao’s foundation, the Emmanuel and Jinkee’s Heart Foundation, to deliver six tons of educational supplies and medicine to the Philippines. The organization, Another Joy Foundation, established its relationship with Pacquiao in February on the same day he signed the contract for his fight against…
FILIPINO shadow play performer group El Gamma Penumbra was named the first-ever winner of the first season of “Asia’s Got Talent,” the pan-Asian talent search based in Singapore. The group closely beat their rivals, Mongolian ethnic band Khugsugtun. Herminio Coloma, a spokesman for President Benigno Aquino III, congratulated El Gamma Penumbra as a glowing symbol…
A FEDERAL jury sentenced Dzhokar Tsarnaev to death on Friday, May 15 for his role in the 2013 Boston Marathon bombings. He will be transferred to a super-max federal prison and will face death by lethal injection. For several weeks, the 12-member jury in the Boston Marathon bombing trial heard testimony to deliberate whether to…
STUDENTS at the University of California are getting a two-year reprieve from threats of tuition increases, as a result of a large infusion of new state funds to the 10-campus university system in Governor Jerry Brown’s spending plan proposal. UC officials confirmed the two-year freeze of tuition for state residents as the “highlight” of an…
The June 2015 Visa Bulletin continues to provide disappointing news for Filipinos, as the priority dates in the employment based categories (EB-3 and Other Workers) retrogressed (moved backwards) yet again, all the way back to January 1, 2005. (In April 2015, the priority date was already at October 1, 2014. Then in May 2015, it…
“Mature love is composed and sustaining…a celebration of commitment, companionship and mutual trust.” – H. Jackson Brown, Jr. During last Sunday’s Catholic Action of Mary’s (CAM) 37th Santacruzan Presentation Ball at Double Tree by Hilton Hotel in Newark, New Jersey, a couple effortlessly caught the attention of the curious crowd when they were honored with…
Between April 1 and April 7 of this year, USCIS received a staggering 233,000 applications for H-1B visas. The downside? There are only 85,000 H-1B visas available every year, meaning that close to 150,000 people will find their applications rejected by USCIS. The H-1B application process can often seem unfair as USCIS randomly conducts a…
Convictions for certain criminal offenses could cause denial of a visa or lead to removal. Under INA 101(a)(48)(A), the term conviction, with respect to an alien, means: (1) a formal adjudication of guilt entered by a court; or, (2) if adjudication of guilt is withheld: (a) a judge or jury has found the alien guilty…
The homeless population in Los Angeles County rose 12 percent in the past two years to more than 44,000, due to high unemployment, low wages and skyrocketing rents, according to a report released Monday, May 11. Among one of the most striking findings in the report was an 85 percent jump in the number of…
A $20 million budget proposal to assist California’s immigrant community would be economically beneficial to the state, leaders of California community organizations say. Under the proposal, ONE California, $20 million would be appropriated to the Department of Social Services to help lawful permanent residents obtain citizenship and undocumented immigrants who are eligible for deferred action…
Retail giant Walmart will begin testing an unlimited shipping service for online customers this summer that will cost half as much as what Amazon Prime charges, the company said Wednesday, May 13. At $50 per year, the Walmart said orders would arrive in three days or less. “We’ve heard from customers that they want shipping…
What in sunlight is beneficial and harmful to us? The sun and its light are not only beautiful but vital to our life and survival on this planet. Without the sun, life forms on earth will cease to exist as we know it today. About 75% of our body’s supply of Vitamin D is generated…
