On Friday, the Filipino community and San José community members gathered outside of City Hall to celebrate Filipino American History Month where the flag of the Philippines would be raised.
The event featured LEAD Filipino, Bayani Ng Kabataan Filipino School of San José, Filipino American National Historical Society Santa Clara Valley Chapter, and Filipino Youth Coalition and was a free and family-friendly event.
The event showcased cultural dances from Bellarmine Preparatory School as well as resources for their community members.
Filipino American History Month is celebrated in October where the rich history of Filipino Americans and their contributions, according to the University of Washington.
Although established in 1992 it was not recognized by the U.S. Congress until 2009, according to the same website.
Food trucks, music, and speakers were present at this event, according to a website from LEAD Filipino.
A Filipino food truck was parked on the cub of City Hall where those in presence could enjoy Filipino food. While the event was waiting to startDJ Chrstvn played music.
LEAD Filipino is an organization for the Filipino community that provides resources for their community as well as encourages community action, according to the same website.
Marnelli Canosa, health equity & outreach coordinator for LEAD Filipino, was tabling and sharing resources to those who visited the event.
Canosa also talked about other impacts that affect the Filipino community.
“High pressure is a prevalent issue in our community. (LEAD Filipino) is also getting community members ready for the upcoming election,” Canosa said, “As a community, we have contributed a lot to the local scene in San José and nationally. For me personally, I didn't grow up with the Filipino culture that my parents did back home and it took me a while to find my community.”
Finding resources from Canosa’s community helped her find out who she is and what her values are. Canosa talked about finally finding her community during her time at San José.
Akbayan, an organization in San José, was also present at the flag-raising. This organization works to bring more awareness to the Pilipinx/Pilipinx-American community and aims to help members learn more about their culture, according to Akbayan’s website.
Marc Angelo Sanna, a third-year aerospace engineering student who is part of Akbayan, said this event reflects one of Akbayan’s pillars of culture.
“Being out here in the community is fun not just at SJSU, but because we are in the heart of downtown we can go to these events where we can learn about culture and learn from the outside community as well,” Sanna said.
Canosa started the event by introducing a series of speakers as well as directing those in attendance to their seats.
The first speaker that was introduced was Ariana Lacson, a fourth-year biomedical engineering major and president of Associated Students.
“All the core values from my culture and family values have motivated me to be a passionate advocate for others,” Lacson said.
Lacson comes from a situation in which her family immigrated from the Philippines at a young age to support themselves. To Lacson, having a vital leadership role breaks down stereotypes not only for women but also for women of color.
During her speech, Canosa said she remembered the efforts done by what was known at the time as the National Farm Workers Association, now known as the United Farm Workers.
The National Farm Workers Association were farm workers who came together to demand higher wages and working conditions, according to a web page from the Library of Congress.
The association started one of the largest and most well-known Chicano movements and César Chávez is known for being an important leader in one of these movements, according to the same web page.
Filipino farm workers at first joined together to strike for higher wages but ultimately joined Hispanic workers becoming one union, according to United Farm Workers.
César Chávez is commemorated on campus at the Arch of Dignity, Equality, and Justice, but Filipino farm workers were not included in the design when the monument was built.
Arch of Dignity, Equality, and Justice on San Jose’s campus sits as a reminder of the hard work and dedication to fight for better conditions that were denied, according to SJSU’s Public Art
“I am proud to say that the university has donated $25 thousand for the project and Associated Students has passed the resolution, and also donated for the mural project as well,” Canosa said.
More speakers presented their own experiences within the community and the continued efforts being made to give back.
Commissioner of Art for District Three Analyn Bones works to preserve cultural art pieces not only in San Jose but all across California.
“Art when you do look at it gives out curiosity, and when you have curiosity you want to learn more about the Filipinos here at San Jose,” Bones said.
