PETER’S PINOY PATTER — JUNE 2018

Bridge Generation News

(Today’s Bridge Generation — now in their 70s, 80s, and 90s — are a rapidly declining population. Over the years, most members of these American born children of the first wave of Filipino immigrants have passed away.  In order to remember their contributions to the history of Filipinos in America, a deceased BG individual will be a recurring feature of this blog beginning with the life of Francisco Deceimo Andrade 1932-2009).  Dec, as he preferred to be called, was born on December 11, 1932 in the tiny Monterey Bay town of Aromas CA to Filipino immigrants Ana Magsayo of Maria, Siquijor Province and Doroteo Andrade of Nabas, Aklan Province, Philippines.  (The municipality of Nabas is the nearest town to Borocay Island, the tourist destination known for its pristine beaches.)  The youngest of five children, Dec was doted on as was the wont of Filipino parents of the time.  One might even say he was spoiled.  Regardless, this did not seem to deter him in life.  Dec was innately intelligent, street smart, athletic, good looking, and possessed a charming personality few people could resist.  His growing up years were spent working in the fields in nearby Salinas — the salad capital of America. At school, the popular Dec served as class president, played saxophone in the school band, and became a renowned four-sport athlete at Salinas High School and Hartnell College.  Perhaps his best known athletic feat came in 1948 when, in a preliminary competition, he almost defeated Bob Matthias — the eventual decathlon  champion of the 1948 Olympics.  In 1999 he was honored by the “Salinas Valley Californian” as a finalist for Salinas Valley Athlete of the Century. Following two years in the U.S. Army during the Korean War, he married pert pinay Vi Reyes of Salinas in 1956.  In short order, they became parents to five boys — Randy Ray, Joseph Bradley, Jeffery Edward, Rodney Ben, and Andrew Deceimo.  After graduating from Cal Poly and Healds Engineering College, Dec worked as a civil/design engineer for various companies in the Bay Area. Dec didn’t neglect his Filipino roots.  As a teenager, he was a member of the Salinas Filipino American Youth Club of Sacred Heart where he starred on its basketball team.  As a youth, he became active with the Filipino Federation of America — a quasi-mystic mutual aid organization that gained popularity among Filipino farm workers during the Great Depression.  He quickly rose to the position of President of the Junior FFA,  traveling the state to recruit young pinoys and pinays.  As a retiree, he served as founding president of the Monterey Bay Chapter of the Filipino American Historical Society.  Because of his relationships with many BG members during his long tenure as President of the Junior FFA, Dec was named to several old timer Grand Reunion committees by Chairperson Terrie (Romero) Jamero. The ensuing reunions drew the most attendees in reunion history.  Fittingly, his 2009 funeral and reception at the cavernous Salinas Sports Complex is considered to be one of the largest send-offs for a Bridge Generation Filipino American.  Dec was a proud pinoy and a personal pal.  He will continue to be missed by his family and his multitude of friends…………. Since meeting Filipina American historian Barbara Posadas of Northern Illinois University nearly 40 years ago, I’ve been impressed with her dedication to the history of Filipinos in America. Consequently, it was nice to learn from UC Berkeley Professor Catherine Ceniza Choy that Barbara and her husband/collaborator, Roland Guyotte, attended the April 13 Organization of American Historians National Conference in Sacramento. Author of the seminal book on post-1965 immigration The Filipino Americans (1999) and a native of Chicago, Barbara also wrote extensively on the history of Filipinos in the Windy City………… BG Trivia Question — Who was the pinay who appeared in the WWII movie “They Were Expendable” starring John Wayne?……………..  Happy June Birthdays: Joe Cabrillas, Virginia (Velez) Catanio, Manuel Viernes.

Pinakbet — News Across America

Fans of prize-winning author and Seattle native Peter Bacho:  Your support is requested to keep the dream alive of turning ‘CEBU’ — Bacho’s award-winning novel into the ground-breaking ‘CEBU’ — the film.  Additional funding is critically needed for development funds.  The project has already raised more than one-third of the budget for the filming but needs additional money to help with travel expenses to Manila and Cebu, meet with talent, look at potential location sites, and complete legal documents required for an international film project. Please contribute any amount you can to its website: https://www.gofundme.com/cebu-the-motion-picture-fund.

CEBU – the novel, tells the story of a young guilt-ridden priest who returns to Seattle from his mother’s funeral in the Philippines to find himself clashing with gangs, his own beliefs, forbidden desires, and death.  The book won the American Book Award in 1991. The  screenplay adaption was a finalist at the Beverly Hills Film Festival.  CEBU — the film, has the potential to appeal to a world-wide audience. Never before has there ever been a movie that tells the story of the people of the Philippines in mid 20th Century. The time has come to showcase Filipino and Filipino American talent to a mainstream audience. CEBU is a family historical drama, a love story, and an action/adventure film, that must be made.  Please share this project with your family and friends………… On April 25, for the second time in four years, Mark E. Pulido, 51, was elected as mayor of Cerritos CA.  He was first elected to the city council in 2011 when he drew the most votes recorded in the city’s history.  In 2013, he served as Mayor Pro Tem before becoming the city’s first Filipino American mayor in 2014.  A year later, he was re-elected to the city council, and became Mayor Pro Tem again in 2017. Filipinos make up a significant portion of the city’s majority Asian community — Filipinos, Chinese, and Koreans each comprise 14% of the city’s population. Mark was also the first Filipino American to serve as UCLA student body president. He went on to earn a Master of Public Policy degree from the University of Chicago as a Woodrow Wilson National Fellow…………… Did you catch the electrifying performance of the TNT Boys singing Beyonce’s “Listen” on the Little Big Shots television show on April 20?  With host Steve Harvey beaming, the three pre-teens from the Philippines whose voices have yet to change, brought down the house…………… Astrid Tuminez, 53, was named President of Utah Valley University on April 23.  UVU serves more than 37,200 students and is the largest public university in the predominantly Mormon state.  Not only is Dr. Tuminez the first Filipino/a American to hold the position, she is also its first woman president……………. On April 23 several hundred Filipino Americans protested at the San Francisco airport in support of Filipino peace activist Jerome Aba.  Despite holding a valid visa to enter the U.S., he was accused by the Border Patrol of being a terrorist and a Communist, stripped naked, tortured, and held in a freezing room before deported.  Aba was on his way to speak at a convention of faith leaders about human rights abuses perpetuated by strongman Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte’s war on drugs that reportedly has killed upwards of 8,000 persons……………. ……………. The documentary film “ULAM: Main Dish” premiered at the San Francisco International Film Festival on April 7.  The film documents the continuing global popularity of Filipino food predicted by TV culinary stars Anthony Bourdain and Andrew Zimmern as it depicts eleven chefs’ stories — allowing each to have their own voice to show the connection between the chefs, their food, and their Filipino culture.

Musings

Our children will lead us: I’m so proud of the Parkland FL students.  Not only did they hold non-violent protests in the wake of the February mass shooting at the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School,  they also inspired the nationwide non-violent protests on March 14.  My only regret is that I did not personally protest in my home area.  The protests have resulted in common sense changes to gun laws in various state and local governments.  Let’s hope that the Trump Administration, Republican members of Congress, and the National Rifle Association – all opponents of sensible gun laws – do likewise…………….. When reading about the April 13-22 hugely popular Music and Arts Festival in Coachella CA, I couldn’t help remembering Coachella was where the Agricultural Workers Organizing Committee led by Filipino labor leader Larry Itliong successfully went on strike in 1965 before moving on to the larger and better known Delano strike.  During the 1920s-50s Coachella was where exploited Filipino farm workers labored in the brutally hot sun.  Today, Coachella is where similarly exploited Latino farm workers toil.    According to the Los Angeles Times the economic impact of the Coachella Festival (often referred to as a “hipster hoedown” where 39% of the local population live in poverty) — was $704 million.  I wonder — do exploited present-day farm workers directly benefit from the festival’s gigantic profits?……………… Countdown: Minus 2 months – For the FANHS Board of Trustees, who have program and fiduciary responsibilities, to provide critically needed financing to assure keeping open its FANHS National Museum in Stockton — the historic center of Filipino immigration.

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