031221 - New York & New Jersey Edition

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MARCH 12-18, 2021 Volume 14 - No. 19 • 16 Pages

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DATELINE

USA

FROM THE AJPRESS NEWS TEAM ACROSS AMERICA

Chess champion Wesley So becomes US citizen SUPER Grandmaster Wesley So is now a United States citizen.

The 27-year-old U.S. chess champion was sworn-in as a citizen on Feb. 26, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced in a social media post on Friday, March 5.

Also published in LOS ANGELES, ORANGE COUNTY/INLAND EMPIRE, LAS VEGAS, NORTHERN CALIFORNIA

CDC releases guidelines for fully vaccinated people

by RITCHEL

MENDIOLA AJPress

AMERICANS fully vaccinated against COVID-19 can now gather with other fully vaccinated individuals indoors without wearing

a mask or social distancing, according to new guidelines set by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

A person is considered fully vaccinated two weeks after receiving the last dose in a two-dose series (Pfizer or Moderna) or two

weeks after receiving a single-dose vaccine (Johnson & Johnson and Janssen).

“As more Americans are vaccinated, a growing body of evidence now tells us that there are some activities fully vaccinated

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Duterte: AstraZeneca COVID-19 jabs to boost PH vaccination program

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by RITCHEL

MENDIOLA AJPress

Wesley So is now a naturalized U.S. citizen.

Photo courtesy of USCIS

House approves $1.9T COVID-19 bill with $1,400 checks, vaccine funding

Following congressional approval, the bill will be sent to Biden for signature

by KLARIZE

MEDENILLA

AJPress

DAYS after the Senate approved President Joe Biden’s sweeping coronavirus bill over the weekend, the House of Representatives passed the $1.9 trillion relief package on Wednesday, March 10, marking a significant political victory for Biden and Democrats.

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VAX ROLLOUT IN BACOOR. Head of Bacoor City’s health office, Dr. Ivy Yrastorza (left), administers the CoronaVac vaccine to Dr. Ruby Ephraim Rubiano (seated), director of the Southern Tagalog Regional Hospital, during the vaccination rollout in Bacoor City, Cavite on Wednesday, March 10. The national government has delivered some 352 doses of the Sinovac-manufactured CoronaVac for the city’s health care workers.

PNA photo by Avito C. Dalan

PHILIPPINE President Rodrigo Duterte on Thursday, March 4 personally welcomed the arrival of AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccines under the COVAX facility.

The KLM commercial flight carrying 487,200 doses of the British-made vaccine landed at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport at around 7:20 p.m. The shipment was then transported to the Villamor Air Base for the welcoming ceremony.

Duterte expressed his gratitude to the World Health Organization, the COVAX facility, and COVAX donor countries.

“I don’t know how to express my gratitude to the donor countries that you remembered

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Innocent Fil-Am driver killed Pope to lead rites for 500 years during fiery sheriff ’s pursuit in LA of Philippine Christianity

by CHRISTINA

M. ORIEL AND RITCHEL MENDIOLA AJPress

AN innocent Filipino American driver was killed on Tuesday night, March 2 when a Los Angeles County sheriff’s pursuit ended in a fiery crash in Los Angeles’ Fairfax District.

Jeeves Tangonan, a chef at the West Hollywood EDITION, was driving home

by ROBERTZON

RAMIREZ

Philstar.com

from work when another driver crashed into his vehicle at the intersection of Third Street and Fairfax Avenue, across the street from The Grove and the Original Farmers Market.

The impact of the crash caused Tangonan’s vehicle,

POPE Francis will lead the Filipino community in Italy in celebrating 500 years since the arrival of Christianity in the Philippines, the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) announced yesterday.

In an article, the CBCP said that Fr. Ricky Gente of the Filipino Chaplain-

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Pope Francis

Philstar.com photo

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GoFundMe launches #StopAsianHate 74-year-old Filipino dies after initiative to benefit victims, being attacked for ‘no apparent community organizations reason’ in Phoenix, Arizona

WITH the rise in violence against Asian American and Pacific Islanders (AAPIs), GoFundMe this week launched the #StopAsianHate initiative, a centralized hub of fundraisers that will benefit the community.

The GoFundMe page (gofundme.com/AAPI) features verified fundraisers from across the country that will benefit victims of violence, organizations that provide resources for those affected and increased protection in communities, as well as support for neighborhoods and AAPI-owned businesses.

Some examples of vetted fundraisers include campaigns for: Noel Quintana, a Filipino American who received almost 100 stitches after being slashed in the face on the New York subway; assistance with medical expenses for Marc Quidit, a Fil-Am store owner in Vallejo, California who was shot multiple times during a rob-

bery; a volunteer group to watch San Francisco Chinatown’s residents and merchants; and restoration for the Higashi Honganji Buddhist Temple, which was recently vandalized in Los Angeles’ Little Tokyo.

Meanwhile, tax-deductible donations to the AAPI Community Fund will help organizations address” the urgent issues that face the AAPI community as well as broader, systemic problems.”

“The recent attacks against the AAPI community have catalyzed a strong response among a diverse cross section of society. The feedback from those who want to effect change has been clear: what can I do, and where do I go? Working closely with Phillip Lim, and other leaders in the community — we knew we could help by doing what GoFundMe does best — connecting those who need help, with

those who are willing and able to do so,” GoFundMe CMO Musa Tariq said in a statement. “Together, we can help those facing immediate needs in addition to organizations working to address long term, systemic issues.”

In addition to designer Phillip Lim, supporters of the initiative include big names in fashion, media and entertainment, and sports.

Among the Filipino American leaders and personalities are Away co-founder Jen Rubio; journalist and immigration activist Jose Antonio Vargas; and actors Manny Jacinto and Joel De La Fuente.

As of this writing, the AAPI Community Fund GoFundMe raised $544,790 and increased its goal to $1,000,000.

Individuals can also start their own GoFundMe for over a dozen identified AAPI

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AMID the uptick in violence against older Asian Americans, an elderly Filipino man was killed last month in an unprovoked attack in Phoenix, Arizona.

Juanito Falcon, 74, was out on a morning walk on February 16 when he was punched in the face by a man for “no apparent reason,” the Phoenix Police Department said in a statement.

Officers responded to reports of an assault around 11:20 a.m. at a Kentucky Fried Chicken parking lot near 17th Avenue and Bethany Home Road in Phoenix.

When they arrived, they found Falcon with head injuries from falling on the ground and hitting his head on the pavement. Falcon was initially believed to have suffered only abrasions and contusions to the face.

However, when he was taken to the hospital, doctors found he had a skull fracture and that he needed surgery. Falcon ultimately died from his injuries two days later on February 18.

“It is in such great sorrow that we are mourning my father’s passing. I have a lot of questions. Nobody should experience what happened to my father. I want this incident to be a cause of awareness to everybody,” Malou Acunin, Falcon’s daughter, told 12 News.

“I don’t want the same incidence of violence and crime to happen to anybody, especially to the elderly,” she added.

The detectives found probable cause to arrest 40-year-old Marcus Williams in connection to the homicide, according to ABC15.

Williams was taken into custody on Wednesday, March 3, after an autopsy identified that Falcon’s cause of death was blunt force trauma.

Court documents stated that Williams fled in a car after attacking Falcon. Witnesses were able to provide a partial license plate and description of Williams’ car, leading to his arrest.

He was booked into Maricopa County Jail for one count of murder.

Juanito Falcon, a 74-year-old grandfather, died from injuries on February 18, two days after being punched in the face while on his morning walk.

The Phoenix Police Department said there were “no indications” that the attack on Falcon was motivated by race.

“If information is discovered, that will be part of the investigation,” said the department.

Falcon’s family has set up a GoFundMe page (https://gofund.me/7234e6b2) to help with expenses.

“We will always remember him as a loving man, always attentive to the needs of others. He was an avid gift giver, willing to go out of his way to make someone’s day.

He was a man of sacrifice, especially for his family and us, his grandchildren,” the page said. (Ritchel Mendiola/AJPress) n

Google Doodle honors Filipina suffragist Rosa Sevilla de Alvero

by Ritchel

Mendiola AJPress

GOOGLE Doodle is celebrating the 142nd birthday of Rosa Sevilla de Alvero, a women’s activist who fought for the suffrage of Filipinas, with a doodle on its Philippine homepage.

The March 4 doodle features an illustration of De Alvero in a Maria Clara dress casting her vote in a ballot box, with the arms of other Filipinas from succeeding generations doing

the same act.

De Alvero was born in 1879, in Tondo, Manila. In addition to being a journalist, educator, and activist, she widely considered to be one of the most influential suffragists in Filipino history.

A profile on the Google Doodle page recounted her early life as a child sent to live with her aunt, an educator who hosted Filipino patriots and intellectuals at her home.

“Sevilla often eaves-

dropped on their conversations about battling educational colonialism — revolutionary discussions that helped mold her beliefs,” it said.

At 21, De Alvero founded the Instituto de Mujeres (“Women’s Institute”) of Manila, one of the first schools for women in Filipino history. Today it is known as the Rosa Sevilla Memorial School.

“The institute became a hotbed for progress under

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From the Front Page

CDC releases guidelines for fully vaccinated...

Jeeves Tangonan is pictured with his wife of eight years, Stephanie. Tangonan, 37, was the casualty in a sheriff’s pursuit in LA’s Fairfax District on Tuesday night, March 2.

Contributed photo

Innocent Fil-Am driver...

PAGE 1 a blue Toyota RAV4, to jump onto the sidewalk and come to a stop when it was wedged between a tree and the wall of the Citibank at the corner of the intersection.

The 37-year-old, who is originally from the Philippines, was pronounced dead at the scene. He leaves behind his wife of eight years, Stephanie Tangonan.

“She’s still heartbroken and devastated. It’s the worst pain we’ve ever felt because it’s a family member of ours.

I don’t wish this for anyone to go through,” Tangonan’s brother-in-law, Marlon Chavez, told the Asian Journal.

The suspect, identified as 28-year-old Alex Lopez, was being chased by Los Angeles County Sheriff’s deputies after he assaulted a deputy during a routine traffic stop.

He was also reportedly under the influence of alcohol.

The short pursuit ended at approximately 10:30 p.m. when the suspect crashed into Tangonan’s car.

The suspect’s vehicle, a gray Chevrolet Malibu, immediately caught on fire upon impact. Lopez was taken into custody after Los Angeles Fire Department crew members rescued him from the flames.

It took five minutes for firefighters to pull Tangonan out of the vehicle through the passenger side and again through the roof, a Fox 11 Los Angeles report said.

Lopez pleaded not guilty on Thursday, March 4 to one count each of gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated, assault on a peace officer and fleeing a pursuing peace officer’s vehicle and two counts of DUI causing injury, according to the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office.

The suspect is in jail in lieu of a $205,000 bail and will have another court appearance on April 29. Tangonan’s family is now seeking justice and hopes that more drivers aren’t at risk during police pursuits.

“I think a lot of these chase pursuits need to stop, especially in the streets, because a lot of innocent drivers like my brother-in-law have died or pedestrians have gotten run over,” Chavez said. “[Lopez] needs to pay for what he did because if he’s out in four or five years, he can go back out there and do the same thing again.”

Tangonan is remembered for his love of food and hospitality and for being a loving husband.

“His love of food was out of this world… He had a love for cooking meals for every single human being that came into the door of that hotel,” Chavez said. “He was very inspiring, motivated, and happy. I never saw him disrespect my sister and he treated her perfectly as a husband should.”

According to his Linkedin page, Tangonan graduated from De La Salle University with a bachelor of science degree in hotel and management. He migrated to the United States in his early 20s and worked as a cook at the Four Seasons Hotel for several years.

Tangonan’s parents still live in the Philippines and he would send them money every month, Chavez said.

Chavez set up a GoFundMe page (http://gf.me/u/zk6fp5) to help his sister with funeral expenses.

“Any donations will be greatly appreciated… The most priceless thing is if everybody could keep [Jeeves] and my family in their prayers,” he said. n

PAGE 1 people can do,” CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky said at the White House briefing on Monday, March 8.

The new CDC public health recommendations said fully vaccinated people can: • Visit with other fully vaccinated people indoors without wearing masks or staying six feet apart; • Visit with unvaccinated people from one other household indoors without wearing masks or staying six feet apart if everyone in the other household is at low risk for severe disease; • Refrain from quarantine and testing if they do not have symptoms of COVID-19 after contact with someone who has COVID-19.

This means fully vaccinated grandparents can now gather with their unvaccinated grandchildren indoors without wearing masks or physical distancing, provided none of the unvaccinated family members are at risk of severe COVID19.

“COVID-19 continues to exert a tremendous toll on our nation. Like you, I want to be able to return to everyday activities and engage with our friends, families, and communities. Science, and the protection of public health must guide us as we begin to resume these activities. Today’s action represents an important first step. It is not our final

destination,” said Walensky.

“As more people get vaccinated, levels of COVID-19 infection decline in communities, and as our understanding of COVID immunity improves, we look forward to updating these recommendations to the public,” she added.

However, the CDC maintained that fully vaccinated people should wear masks, maintain physical distance, and practice other prevention measures when visiting with unvaccinated people from multiple households. They should also continue to wear masks and social distance in public settings and avoid medium-sized to large gatherings.

On traveling, the CDC has yet to change its recommendations, urging people to delay travel and stay home.

While 30 million people in the U.S. have received their vaccines, the country still averaged more than 60,000 cases per day over the last seven days, as reported by Johns Hopkins University.

“I want to stress that we continue to have high levels of virus around the country, and more readily transmissible variants have now been confirmed in nearly every state, while we work to quickly vaccinate people more and more each day, we have to see this through,” said Walensky.

She stressed, “Let’s stick together. Please keep wearing a well-fitting mask and taking the other public health actions we know work to help stop the spread of this virus.” n

Duterte: AstraZeneca COVID-19 jabs to boost...

PAGE 1 the poor nations [it] is in fact already a plus for humanity. And [on] behalf of the Republic of the Philippines and of the people, and all, I’d like to say again that we felt the gratitude in our hearts and may God bless you for your benevolence,” he said.

According to him, the latest delivery would boost the country’s ongoing vaccination program.

He also urged the public to cooperate and get vaccinated, assuring that the COVID-19 jabs are safe.

“The need for international solidarity and cooperation cannot be made clearer than this pandemic because no one is safe globally until everyone is safe,” said Duterte.

“On this note, I would like to appeal to all our kababayans (fellow countrymen), please get vaccinated against COVID-19 and be the government’s partner in preventing the further spread of the disease. I encourage you to get vaccinated at the soonest possible time. These vaccines are safe and they are the key to reopening our society,” he added.

Meanwhile, WHO Representative to the Philippines Dr. Rabindra Abeyasinghe noted that the arrival of the AstraZeneca vaccines is a “testament to the strength of collaboration, coopera-

LIFE-SAVING DOSE. President Rodrigo Duterte holds a vial of the AstraZeneca vaccine, shortly after a total of 487,200 doses, through the COVAX Facility, arrived in the country Thursday night, March 4. Duterte, senior government officials, and members of the diplomatic corps personally welcomed the KLM commercial flight carrying the vials from Belgium that landed at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 3 at past 7 p.m.

PNA photo by Joey O. Razon

tion, and compassion.”

The initial delivery will be followed by up to 4.5 million doses of AstraZeneca vaccines scheduled to arrive before the end of May in batches.

“Standing together in solidarity has indeed made us stronger. We honor the government of the Philippines for the strong leadership provided under the leadership of President Rodrigo Duterte throughout the response and the dedicated team of the Department of Health,” said Abeyasinghe.

Top COVAX donors welcome AstraZeneca vax arrival The United States and the European Union — both of which are major contributors to the WHO-led COVAX facility — welcomed the arrival of AstraZeneca’s vaccines in the Philippines.

In a tweet, the U.S. Embassy in Manila said: “The U.S. welcomes the arrival of 487,200 doses of AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine from the COVAX facility in the Philippines on Mar. 4.”

“The U.S., through

USAID, has donated P97.2 billion ($2B) to COVAX as part of a total $4 billion U.S. donation,” it added.

U.S. Chargé d’Affaires John Law also said that the U.S. will continue supporting the Philippines’ vaccination efforts.

“The United States is proud to be the largest contributor to COVAX, and we welcome the successful arrival of the first tranche of AstraZeneca vaccines in the Philippines.

As we fight the pandemic together, the United States will continue to support the Philippines’ vaccination and COVID-19 mitigation efforts,” he said Friday.

Meanwhile, the EU Delegation in Manila said the bloc has so far provided P130 billion (€2.2 billion) to COVAX. “Team Europe is proud to contribute to the COVAX facility to help provide affordable and fair access to vaccines for Filipinos. Under COVAX, the Philippines will receive vaccines for 22 million Filipinos,” said EU Ambassador to the Philippines Luc Véron.

According to Véron, the EU has “both a responsibility and interest to make vaccines available to all.”

“The European Union has maintained its goal to work in solidarity for vaccine cooperation and multilateralism — none is safe until everyone is safe,” he added.

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OPINION

Women in the time of COVID

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FEATURES

WITH COVID-19 affecting the entire planet, some governments are doing better than others in pandemic response. And several of those with the best responses – as gleaned from both the health and economic indicators – are New Zealand, Taiwan, Denmark, Finland and Germany. They happen to have one thing in common: their governments are led by women.

Such performance in a once-in-a-century catastrophic crisis says a lot about the leadership capabilities of women. This is being recognized in this year’s theme for International Women’s Day on March 8: “Women in leadership: Achieving an equal future in a COVID-19 world.”

Women also account for a substantial number of those in the frontlines of the battle against COVID: nurses, caregivers, doctors, scientists, social workers as well as those providing health care for persons suffering from psychological and emotional distress arising from the pandemic. The lockdowns have also seen a spike in domestic violence against women and girls as well as online sexual exploitation of children.

While the leadership capabilities of women have been recognized, the United Nations reports that women are heads of state or government only in 22 countries, and account for only 24.9 percent of national parliamentarians. At this rate, the UN estimates that it could take 130 years before gender equality is achieved among heads of government.

And while many women are health frontliners in the pandemic, the UN reports that on average, they are paid 11 percent less than their male counterparts for the same work. A study of COVID teams in 87 countries found only 3.5 percent with gender parity.

This month the 65th session of the Commission on the Status of Women will be held.

Its theme gains more urgency in the pandem-

Editorial

The Fil-Am Perspective GEL SANTOS-RELOS YOU, yes, you. You and all the ordinary hardworking Americans will finally get the much-needed help to defeat COVID-19, save more lives and rebuild our nation -- after a year of death, destruction and desperation brought by the coronavirus pandemic.

Yes, YOU, and not just the millionaires and billionaires and corporations of America,

Philstar.com photo

ic: “Women’s full and effective participation and decision-making in public life, as well as the elimination of violence, for achieving gender equality and the empowerment of all

women and girls.” While there have been significant gains in women empowerment worldwide, there is still much work ahead.

(Philstar.com)

After a year of coronavirus pandemic: Help is on the way to the American people to save more lives and rebuild our nation have so much to look forward to in order to rebuild your livelihood that was disrupted by the pandemic. Despair no more.

This will be made possible by the $1.9 Trillion coronavirus relief that “allocates money for vaccines, schools, small businesses and antipoverty programs such as an expanded child tax credit that would mean new monthly payments to many parents,” the National Public

Radio (NPR) reported.

Following the process of passing legislation, the American Rescue Plan that the House of Representatives passed was sent to the Senate. The Senate, in turn, had to make some changes, which the NPR explained, are needed to satisfy Senate budget rules and to gain bipartisan support.

This process required negotiations and compromise.

No one party could get all

that they wanted. This paved the way to the vote on the budget resolution which, the NPR reported, “set in motion a decades-old budget rule called reconciliation to get around the 60-vote threshold to end a filibuster and pass the legislation with a simple majority.”

The Democrat-led Senate was able to pass the bill because they have the numbers for a simple majority to do so even without Republican

support to move the bill back to the House of Representatives.

The Republicans refuse to support the bill which they contend is too broad, and does not just fund COVID-related urgent needs.

The Democrats, on the other hand, counter-argue that “the bill takes a holistic look at the entire American economy and how it was affected by the pandemic.”

“The major pieces of the

bill — payments to individuals, extended unemployment, money for states and localities, money for schools — all of those things were in the COVID package that passed last year that all the Republicans voted for. So they were OK then, but they’re not OK now, and I frankly can’t really figure out that argument,” Maine’s Independent Senator Angus King pointed out.

President Biden’s legislaPAGE 10

The views expressed by our Op-Ed contributors are solely their own and do not necessarily reflect the predilection of the editorial board and staff of Asian Journal.

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Dateline PhiliPPines

After curfews, checkpoints 4.5 million Filipinos jobless threaten to stage a comeback in 2020; highest in 15 years

by Franco Luna

by Ben

o. de Vera Inquirer.net

Philstar.com

MANILA — After curfews and lockdowns, a common sight in tighter movement restrictions is “most likely” to stage a comeback: checkpoints.

The police are not ruling out manning the roads again if and when called as part of a fresh effort to bring down coronavirus cases in Metro Manila. But at this early, industries blocked by checkpoints last year are raising red flags the same may incur double the pain this time.

On Friday, the Philippine National Police (PNP) signaled authorities are ready to put up checkpoints in areas where localized lockdowns are in effect. “If the movement of people and goods is affected since the economy reopened...Most likely what

Members of the Quezon City Police District keep their post on Jose Abad Santos Street at Sitio 5, Barangay Sta. Lucia in Quezon City after it was placed under a special concern lockdown on Tuesday, March 9.

Philstar.com photo by Michael Varcas

happens is an increase in personnel and checkpoints,” Police Brig. Gen. Ildebrandi Usana, spokesperson, said in a phone call.

This has already started.

On Friday afternoon, the

Muntinlupa local government announced checkpoints would be re-installed in barangay boundaries, coupled with a stricter enforcement of 3 a.m. curfew. Usana said PAGE 9

MANILA — Some 4.5 million Filipinos were jobless last year for an average unemployment rate of 10.3%, the highest in 15 years, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) said on Monday, March 8.

In 2020, the Philippines imposed the longest and most stringent lockdown in Southeast Asia to contain the spread of COVID-19, which, however, plunged the country into its worst postwar recession.

Citing the preliminary results of its annual estimates for the quarterly labor force survey rounds conducted last year, the PSA reported that of the 73.7 million in the labor force population or those age 15 and above, only 43.9 mil-

lion or 59.5% were working or actively looking for a job, down from 61.3% in 2019.

“This translates to three in every five of the population 15 years and over who were either employed or unemployed. This annual labor force participation rate is lowest since the adoption of the new definition of unemployed in April 2005, reflecting the effect of the various community quarantine restrictions, business closures, and physical distancing measures that were put in place in the Philippines starting March 2020 amid the COVID-19 pandemic,” the PSA said.Underemployment It added that the number of Filipinos with jobs last year also dropped to 39.4 million from 42.4 million in 2019 while the underemployment rate worsened to 16.2%

compared to 13.8% in 2019.

The PSA defines underemployed as “employed persons who express the desire to have additional hours of work in their present job, or to have [an] additional job, or to have a new job with longer working hours.”In 2020, 6.4 million Filipinos considered themselves underemployed, up from 5.9 million in 2019.

While the prolonged lockdown halted the provision of nonessential services to promote social distancing and prevent the further spread of COVID-19 last year, the services sector still accounted for the biggest share of workers at 56.9%, although down from 58.4% in 2019.

“Among the workers in the services sector, those engaged in the wholesale and retail trade, and repair of moPAGE 9

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House approves $1.9T COVID-19 bill with $1,400 checks...

PAGE 1 The bill — dubbed the American Rescue Plan — will now be sent to Biden for his signature, meaning that within a few weeks, millions of Americans will receive their stimulus checks.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) described the president’s coronavirus relief bill as the most crucial piece of legislation of her career since the Affordable Care Act more than a decade ago.

“It is one of the most transformative and historic bills any of us have ever had the opportunity to support,” Pelosi said after the House vote. “Today we have a decision of tremendous consequence, a decision that will make a difference for millions of Americans, saving lives and livelihoods.

The massive $1.9 trillion COVID-19 bill includes provisions for $1,400 checks to millions of American taxpayers, $300-a-week federal unemployment benefits, and more funding toward vaccine distribution.

The package also allocates billions to help schools and colleges reopen.

“This nation has suffered too much for much too long,” Biden said from the White House on Saturday, March 6.

“Everything in this package is designed to relieve the suffering and to meet the most urgent needs of the nation and put us in a better position to prevail, starting with beating this virus and vaccinating the country.”

The $1,400 checks, which were promoted as an add-on to the $600 stimulus checks approved by the federal government in late 2020, are expected to be distributed to an estimated 17 million Americans by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) later this month, Biden said on Saturday.

Because the Senate made numerous amendments to the original legislation — including the deletion of the federal minimum wage increase to $15 an hour — the House still has to approve the amended bill.

Though the House hasn’t officially passed the revised bill as of press time, the Democrat-controlled chamber passed a significant procedural measure on Tuesday evening that will allow House members to debate for two hours before voting.

Approving the American Rescue Plan has proved to be a laborious effort for Democrats, whose seats are likely to be challenged in the 2022 midterm elections. Historically, the party in power tends to lose seats in Congress in the midterm election, but Democrats are hopeful that the passage of the COVID-19 relief bill will secure their House majority.

“Anytime you’re delivering for the American people, you’re strengthening your position politically. So this is going to strengthen us because it’s good policy,” Rep. Sean P. Maloney (D-N.Y.) said in an interview as quoted by NBC News. “We should shout it from the rooftops that we are passing historic legislation that will reboot the economy and end the pandemic.”

As previously reported in the Asian Journal, the American Rescue Plan seeks to expand pandemic-related benefits, including a per-child cash payment of at least $3,000 for one year and an expansion of health care subsidies from the Affordable Care Act for two years.

The unemployment benefits would be extended through Sept. 6. Regarding the $1,400 stimulus checks, couples who file jointly would receive double that and an additional $1,400 for each dependent.

The stimulus checks apply to individuals earning up to $75,000 a year and married couples whose combined income does not exceed $150,000 a year.

However, the check’s amount would decrease for those who make more than these benchmarks with a strict cutoff at $80,000 for individuals and $160,000 for married couples.

Most Americans will receive the full amount from the IRS; according to the U.S. Census Bureau, the median household income in the country was $68,703 in 2019.

The bill also allocates $130 billion in federal aid to K-12 schools, specifically to reduce class sizes and adjust classrooms to comply with social distancing and personal protective equipment guidelines.

The bill also creates a new $25 billion aid program to businesses hurt by the pandemic, granting up to $10 million per company with a limit of $5 million per brick-andmortar location. n

Pope to lead rites for 500 years of...

PAGE 1 cy in Rome disclosed that the celebration of the Philippines’ 500 years of Christianity will be highlighted with a mass to be celebrated

by Pope Francis at St. Peter’s Basilica at 10 a.m. on March 14.

Gente said that only a limited number of people will be allowed to attend the mass physically inside the basilica due to the COVID19 pandemic, but he said it will be livestreamed from the Vatican to reach Filipinos worldwide.

“Join us in Rome to pray, praise and thank God for his gift of the Christian faith,” Gente said.

He said former Manila Archbishop Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle, prefect of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples, will be present during the mass along with Cardinal Angelo de Donatis, the pope’s vicar of Rome.

Gente said the Catholic faithful can receive blessings from Pope Francis as he will also lead the traditional Angelus prayer in St. Peter’s

Square at noon shortly after his mass at Vatican Square.

The Philippines will be celebrating 500 years of Christianity, CBCP said, with most dioceses launching the year-long commemoration on April 4, Easter Sunday.

Papal Nuncio Archbishop Charles John Brown said Pope Francis has a special place in his heart for the Filipino people as he recalled his visit to the Philippines in 2015, two years after Super Typhoon Yolanda hit Tacloban City.

For his part, Brown urged

the Filipino faithful to be proud of their religion not only because of the 500 years of Christianity, but because of their strong Catholic character as he appreciates their efforts to spread the word of Jesus Christ wherever they are around the world.

“Rejoice in your Catholic heritage; be proud of your Catholic character,” Brown said.

Brown said the quincentennial of Christianity is a gift for the Filipino faithful to commit themselves to evangelization. n

Google Doodle honors...

PAGE 2 Sevilla’s leadership — educating women on topics such as suffrage, vocation and Tagalog,” said Google.

De Alvero also collaborated with notable Filipino Tagalog poets to present the first balagtasan (a debate held in poetic verse), which sparked a movement for Tagalog to become the national language.

In 1916, she left Manila to rally women across the country in her fight for suffrage, later founding the Liga Nacional de Damas Filipinas (“National League of Filipino Women”) to support her cause. Filipinas were granted the right to vote on September 17, 1937.

“Thanks in part to Sevilla’s tremendous call to action, vot-

ing rights were granted to Filipino women in 1937,” said Google. “Happy birthday, Rosa Sevilla de Alvero!”

Google Doodle has honored pioneering Filipinas in recent months, including artist and activist Pacita Abad and Fil-Am Olympic Gold Medalist Vicki Manalo-Draves. n

COVID-19 SALIVA TEST. A staff of the Philippine Red Cross confirms the online appointment of a driver who will undergo saliva testing for coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) inside his vehicle at the drive-through testing site in Araneta City Bus Port in Quezon City on Tuesday, March 9. Those without a vehicle can get tested as long as they booked an appointment, completed other processes, and made an online confirmation before their visit to the testing center.

PNA photo by Robert Oswald P. Alfiler

GoFundMe launches...

PAGE 2 organizations, such as Filipino Advocates for Justice, Asian Health Services, Asian Pacific Environmental Network, and Gold House. Beyond monetary aid, supporters are also encouraged to help amplify the messages.

Stop AAPI Hate — an online reporting center started by the Asian Pacific Policy and Planning Council, Chinese for Affirmative Action and San Francisco State University’s Asian American Studies department — received over 2,808 firsthand accounts from March to December 2020 of antiAsian hate ranging from shunning to physical attacks.

In recent weeks, several incidents involving older Asian Americans have come to light, including the death of Vicha Ratanapakdee, an 84-year-old Thai immigrant, who was fatally shoved to the ground while out on his morning walk in San Francisco.

“These hate crimes are up by 1,900% and are a symptom of a larger issue rooted in systemic racism. It is a direct result of the xenophobia and colonialism that has existed in America for decades,” Lim said.

Individuals who have experienced an incident can go to the Stop AAPI Hate website (stopaapihate.org) and file a report in English or an Asian language, including Tagalog.

(Christina M. Oriel/AJPress) n

Chess champion Wesley So...

PAGE 1 So, who was born in Bacoor, Cavite, remarked that the “amazing spirit” of the U.S. motivated him to naturalize.

“I want to give back to a country that has been so good to me. From the moment I landed here I was encouraged and enabled to become better than I was. I like this attitude and the tremendous generosity of American culture,” So told the USCIS. The three-time Philippine chess champion first came to the U.S. in 2012 as a freshman recruit for Webster University, and is now a world top-ten player, current World Fischer

Random champion, two-time US Champion and a member of the 2016 Team USA squad that brought America its first Olympic gold medal since 1976, according to the U.S. Chess Federation.

He lives in Minneapolis, Minnesota with his adoptive family.

“I got so hyper and excited I was talking kind of loud all day. It was literally a dream come true. I am now a part of the American Dream. I am part of the most successful country on earth, ready to make my own contribution and have my own legacy here,” So added. (AJPress) n

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MARCH 12-18, 2021 • NEW YORK AND NEW JERSEY ASIAN JOURNAL

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Duterte: AstraZeneca... After curfews, checkpoints...

PAGE 4 AstraZeneca jabs for elderly health workers According to Philippine vaccine czar Carlito Galvez Jr., the AstraZeneca vaccines may be allocated for senior healthcare workers since Sinovac Biotech’s “CoronaVac” vaccine was not recommended for those over 59 years old.

“May mga doctor po na nagsasabi, priority natin yung mga senior healthcare workers. So yung deployment po nito, sa mga hospital pa rin po (Some doctors are saying that we have to prioritize senior healthcare workers. So its deployment will still be in hospitals),” he said Thursday.

“Ang recommendation po nila, considering na may limitations tayo ng 18-59 po na age group ang ating Sinovac (Their recommendation was, considering that we have limitations of [the] 18-59 age group for Sinovac), we want to accept those limitations by having this AstraZeneca available to our senior citizens,” he added.

However, Galvez noted that this move would still be reviewed by members of the National Immunization Technical Advisory Group (NITAG). “‘Yun po ang tinitignan po namin na anggulo para at least well protected po yung vulnerable, senior healthcare workers (This is the angle we’re looking at to protect our vulnerable, senior health care workers),” he said.

Over 9,000 individuals have been vaccinated since Monday, March 1.

The government aims to vaccinate all health care workers by the end of March or April.

Meanwhile, the vaccine rollout for the general public may begin in late April or May. “Our projection for the general public as well as the senior citizens, poor families and vulnerable communities, we will start general public inoculations more or less late April or May,” said Galvez.

The Philippines previously set a goal to vaccinate 50 to 70 million Filipinos in 2021, with up to 200,000 individuals receiving jabs every day. n

PAGE 6 the police would be guided by guidelines from pandemic task force, but the job on containing the latest surge highly rests on cities, municipalities and provinces.

The return of checkpoints also creates a mismatch on national government rules.

Under government quarantine levels assessed every month, checkpoints are not supposed to be put up in areas under general community quarantine or looser, which the entire archipelago is at, at least until March 31 before President Rodrigo Duterte comes up with a new order.

“Just like before, we should just make sure that checkpoints won’t impede the flow of goods and cargoes, and

workers,” Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez said in a Viber message when asked to comment about the likelihood of checkpoints.

Checkpoints are following a granular approach to lockdowns. San Juan and Caloocan re-imposed curfews, while Quezon City placed 2 more areas under tight watch. Manila locked down three barangays said to have 10 or more recorded infections to prevent their spread, and Mayor Francisco “Isko” Domagoso told ANC he “will not hesitate” to expand that if needed.

Indeed, COVID-19 cases had seen a resurgence with over 3,000 cases for the three of the past four days nationwide, while Metro Manila saw a spike in hospitalizations. But

while smaller lockdowns were preferred, reinstituting checkpoints may be another matter, and something likely to prohibit more than what is acceptably restricted, including food and essential supplies.

“That’s really a law enforcement and public health issue, but they should think about how to implement the freeflowing of goods…The real issue here if the delivery of goods is delayed, people think something’s wrong,” Paul Santos, chair of the Philippine Retailers Association, an industry group, said in a phone interview.

“There are a lot of unforeseen effects,” he added.

Back to square one?

There is basis to this. Almost at the same time last

9

year, retailers such as supermarkets were struggling to fill up grocery shelves after the draconian quarantine was swiftly implemented without proper planning. That happened after COVID-19 cases, initially thought to have been under control, spiked with more testing that came later than most of our Southeast Asian peers.

This time, lockdowns, curfews, and now even potentially checkpoints— basically the recipe of 2020 pandemic response blamed for economic deterioration— are likewise coming on the heels of something else that is delayed: vaccination. It also came after presidential spokesperson Harry Roque assessed that the Philippines excellently handled the pandemic, without citing any basis.

PAGE 10

4.5 million Filipinos jobless in 2020...

PAGE 6 tor vehicles and motorcycles made up the largest proportion (20.5%) of employed persons,” the PSA said.

The agriculture sector cornered 24.8% of the employed in 2020, a larger

share than 22.2% in 2019.

The industry sector, meanwhile, accounted for 18.3% of last year’s jobs, lower than 19.3% in 2019.

Among the employed, wage and salary workers remained the biggest class, ac-

counting for 62.9% of the total, of which 48.9% worked in the private sector compared to 9.5% in government and state-run corporations, 4.2% in private households, and 0.3% in family-owned businesses.

In work hours, the number of full-time workers as a share of total employed people fell to 55.9% last year from 69.3% in 2019, while parttime employees climbed to 34.5% last year from 2019’s 29.9%. n

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After a year of coronavirus pandemic...

MAKING ENDS MEET. One corner of a sidewalk on Quirino Highway, Quezon City serves as a place of business for a female vendor on Tuesday, March 9. Whatever food items she’s selling will be enough for minimum wage earners who, like her, try to make ends meet for their families. PNA photo by Oliver Marquez

After curfews, checkpoints...

PAGE 9 Worse, checkpoints, and their inadvertent effect of restricting goods flow, may end up worsening an already-elevated inflation because supplies end up getting choked in these areas. “It’s basically a risk,” Santos said.

Steven Cua, president of Philippine Amalgamated Supermarkets Association, a group of community markets, agreed. “One example is pork. There is lack of pork supply and that started last year and when we checked, essentially what happened was pork from other provinces are being blocked in Metro Manila,” he explained.

That can potentially be a

problem now that more localized lockdowns are being enforced. “Last year, the problem was some were worried of allowing travelers from other areas to enter because of the virus,” he said by phone.

There may be cases that businesses have already adopted to ever-changing restrictions and checkpoints may be easily handled, but for Cua, the broader economy is the most at risk with the return of prohibitions.

“Most supermarkets would have adjusted by now, but nobody wants to go back to lockdown. We want consumers out,” Cua said.

Aside from goods, em-

ployees too The bad government record on implementing lockdowns had also made employers worried about their workers now that checkpoints are again being considered. “Whether we like it or not, localized is okay ... For us, nothing will really change because there are passes,” said Sergio Ortiz-Luis, president of Employers Confederation of the Philippines.

“It’s just too expensive (for businesses). We have to shuttle our employees of course.

Also hopefully the implementation of lockdowns across borders will be uniform if they have checkpoints,” he said. n

PAGE 5 tive agenda aims to help the American people and the nation “build back better,” a campaign promise he aims to fulfill with the support of Congress.

Time is of the essence, especially for Americans who depend on the help coming from the enhanced unemployment benefits to pay for the basic needs of their families. Congressional leaders urgently push to get the bill to President Biden before March 14 — the date when current enhanced unemployment benefits are set to expire.

ALL of us need to do our share to tell our representatives in Congress how important it is for them to do their job and pass this bill so it gets to President Biden’s desk for his signature to make this legislation final and executory.

As reported by NPR, the American Rescue Plan will provide: Direct payments The bill allocates funds for a third economic impact payment to qualifying Americans.

Individuals earning up to $75,000 and couples earning up to $150,000 would receive the full direct payments of $1,400 per person. Individuals will also receive an additional $1,400 payment for each dependent claimed on their tax returns.

Senate Democrats agreed to lower the income cutoff at which payments phase out from $100,000 to $80,000 for individuals, and from $200,000 to $160,000 for couples filing jointly, following demands from moderate Democrats.

Unemployment benefits Under the Senate version, federal unemployment insurance payments will remain at $300 per week — down from $400 per week in the earlier package passed by the House. The benefits will extend through Sept. 6. The Senate’s bill makes the first $10,200 in unemployment payments nontaxable for households with incomes under $150,000.

Child tax credit The legislation would temporarily expand the child tax credit, increasing the amount to $3,000 for children ages 6 to 17 and $3,600 for children under age 6.

The amount is gradually reduced for couples earning over $150,000 and individuals earning over $75,000 per

year. Families eligible for the full credit would get payments of up to $300 per child per month from July through the end of the year.

Congressional Democrats and the White House may want to figure out how to make the credit permanent.

Paycheck Protection Program The bill includes $7.25 billion in new money for the small-business loan program known as PPP and would allow more nonprofits to apply, including those groups that engage in advocacy and some limited lobbying. It also allows larger nonprofits to be eligible.

Education There are over $128 billion in grants to state educational agencies, with 90% allocated to local educational agencies, plus $39 billion in grants to higher education institutions. Nearly $15 billion in funds are directed to the Child Care & Development Block Grant program to help support child care facilities, particularly in highneed areas.

The Senate version added a provision to make any student loan forgiveness passed between Dec. 31, 2020, and Jan. 1, 2026, tax-free — rather than having the forgiven debt be treated as taxable income.

Support for low-income families The bill includes $4.5 billion for the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program, known as LIHEAP, to help families with home heating and cooling costs.

One provision would give the agriculture secretary the authority and funding to temporarily boost the value of cash vouchers for the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) up to $35 per month for women and children for a four-month period during the pandemic.

There is $1.4 billion in funding for programs authorized under the Older Americans Act, including support for nutrition programs, community-based support programs and the National Family Caregiver Support Program.

The bill provides $37 million to the Commodity Supplemental Food Program for low-income seniors.

Public health The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is set to receive $7.5 billion to track, administer and dis-

tribute COVID-19 vaccines.

Another $46 billion would go toward diagnosing and tracing coronavirus infections, and $2 billion would go toward buying and distributing various testing supplies and personal protective equipment.

Industry support There’s a variety of provisions in the legislation to offer support to different industries. The Small Business Administration would get $25 billion for a new grant program for “restaurants and other food and drinking establishments.” Grants would be up to $10 million per entity and $5 million per physical location, with a maximum of 20 locations.

The legislation sets aside $5 billion of the total money to be targeted to businesses with less than $500,000 in revenue in 2019. The bill includes another $1.25 billion for the Small Business Administration’s Shuttered Venue Operators Grant program.

To support the transportation sector, the bill allocates nearly $30 billion for transit costs, including payroll and personal protective equipment; $8 billion for airports; $3 billion for a temporary payroll support program to help support the aerospace manufacturing industry; and $1.5 billion to recall and pay Amtrak employees who were furloughed because of the pandemic and to restore various daily routes. Another $15 billion would also be allocated to support workers in the airline industry.

Rental assistance There is $25 billion for emergency rental assistance, including $5 billion for emergency housing vouchers for people experiencing homelessness, survivors of domestic violence and victims of human trafficking. *** The opinions, beliefs and viewpoints expressed by the author do not necessarily reflect the opinions, beliefs and viewpoints of the Asian Journal, its management, editorial board and staff. *** Gel Santos Relos has been in news, talk, public service and educational broadcasting since 1989 with ABS-CBN and is now serving the Filipino audience using different platforms, including digital broadcasting, and print, and is working on a new public service program for the community. You may contact her through email at gelrelos@icloud.com, or send her a message via Facebook at Facebook.com/Gel.Santos.Relos.

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COMMUNITY Journal

11

What are motions to reconsider and reopen?

Immigration Corner Atty. MichAel Gurfinkel, eSQ WHEN a person has been placed in deportation/removal proceedings, they would ordinarily receive a decision from the immigration judge (IJ), or, if they appeal, a decision from the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA). If the decision is unfavorable, they possibly could file either a motion to reconsider or a motion to reopen.

What is a motion to reconsider and a motion to reopen?

What are the requirements?

What are the filing deadlines?

When are they available?

Motion to reconsider: A motion to reconsider requests “that the original decision [by the IJ or BIA] be re-examined in light of additional legal arguments, a change of law, or an argument or aspect of the case that was overlooked.” In other words, reconsideration of a decision based on legal aspects: overlooked law, new law, additional law, etc. The motion must specify the errors of law or fact in the previous decision, supported by relevant legal authority/caselaw.

A person is ordinarily allowed only one motion to reconsider, which must be filed within 30 days of a final administrative order of removal.

Motion to reopen:

A motion to reopen is a request to have the proceedings reopened “so that new evidence can be presented and so that a new decision can be entered.” In other words, a motion to reopen is based on new facts coming to light that could have a bearing on the outcome of the case. If those facts existed at the time of the original decision, they would not be considered “new.”

For example, an issue in the removal proceedings may have involved “extreme hardship” to certain “qualifying relatives” such as a spouse or parent. Later, that relative came down with a severe ailment that could affect their hardship. Perhaps the case could be reopened.

Ordinarily, a person may PAGE 12

MORE QUESTIONS FROM KAPAMILYA AROUND THE U.S. WILL BE ANSWERED ON A BRAND-NEW EPISODE OF CITIZEN PINOY THIS SUNDAY. Leading U.S. Immigration Attorney Michael J. Gurfinkel (top left) answers questions from Kapamilya in Texas, California, and Washington. Rey of Abilene, Texas (bottom left) wants to know what the fastest way is to bring an adopted child to the U.S. Christian of Antioch, California (bottom right) has a friend who is a green card holder. He returned to the Philippines in 2013, but his re-entry permit expired in 2015. Can he still return to the U.S. before his green card expires in 2022? Arlene from Vancouver, Washington (top right) has a daughter who got her green card in 2004. However, the daughter has been in the Philippines for many years and her green card expired. Can the daughter still renew her expired green card? Find out the answers to these questions on a brand-new episode of “Citizen Pinoy” this Sunday, March 14 at 5:30 pm PT (8:30 pm ET thru select Cable/Satellite providers).

(Advertising Supplement)

Liza Soberano, Shay Mitchell to voice Alexandra Trese in upcoming Netflix anime series

By Ritchel

Mendiola AJPress

ACTRESSES Liza Soberano and Shay Mitchell have been cast to voice supernatural detective Alexandra Trese in the upcoming Netflix original anime series “Trese.”

Soberano and Mitchell will be lending their voices for the titular character of the highly-anticipated anime series, Netflix Philippines announced on Monday, March 8.

The series is based on the Philippine graphic novel created by Budjette Tan and KaJO Baldisimo.

NEW YORK & NEW JERSEY Pinay actresses Liza Soberano and Shay Mitchell will voice Alexandra Trese in the upcoming Netflix original anime series “Trese.”

“Call Alexandra… cause I’ve got news. It’s official, @lizasoberano [and] @ shaymitch are Alexandra

Trese!!! May strong women always lend a voice to one another, especially when PAGE 12

EVERYDAY

9:00am - 11:00am

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MARCH 12-18, 2021 • NEW YORK AND NEW JERSEY ASIAN JOURNAL

Health@Heart PhiliP S. Chua, MD, FaCS, FPCS A CAveAT to remember when it comes to drugs/ medications/vaccines: There is no drug or chemical compound in the entire medical formulary that has no potential side-effects, due to people’s individual tolerance.

All drugs, including a most common household pill, aspirin, have side-effects, some mild and not obvious, others clinically apparent. Here are a few samples of valuable, effective, and safe medications and their potential side-effects.

COVID-19 vaccines All vaccines known not man have potential side-effects, like the vaccines for COvID19, which could include pain at the site of injection, tiredness, fever, headache, which are temporary. Among those with a history of allergies, there could be mild to severe reaction. These individuals

Side effects

are advised to consult with an allergist prior to getting the vaccine. Comparing the risk for potential side-effects of the vaccines and the risk of death from COvID-19, it is now clinically obvious around the world that deaths from the vaccines are rare while the deaths from COvID-19 are in the millions, 2.6 million plus so far. WARNING: Those who refuse to get the second shot are NOT adequately protected. They are still in danger since they still have 48 percent risk of getting COvID-19. The second dose provides the added protection up to 95 percent. Since the first shot went well, the second dose would likely be the same. Be wise; be safe.

BP pills and erection Medications for hypertension (high blood pressure), especially the ones classified as beta blockers, are notorious for their side effect of causing poor erection in men. Fortunately, pills for male erectile dysfunction (eD) are now available, like

viagra, Levitra and Cialis.

Other possible side-effects of BP pills among some people are broncho-constrictive (asthma-like) effect, exacerbation of heart failure, or pains in the leg when walking. However, these are not very common adverse effects. Taken as directed, BP meds are basically safe and effective, a life-saver.

Statins and muscle pains Some of the cholesterol lowering drugs called statins can cause myopathy (muscle aches and pains), especially in the lower extremities.

Some of them more than others. This is due to rhabdomyolysis (a type of muscle damage), which is an adverse reaction to the enzyme called HMG-CoA reductase inhibitor in the medication. Some people on the statins may experience myopathy earlier than others. When this happens, it is best to consult with your physician, who might discontinue the medication for a while or shift to another PAGE 15

Liza Soberano, Shay Mitchell to...

PAGE 11 there’s an aswang or two around. Happy International Women’s Day,” the streaming platform said in a tweet.

Soberano will voice Alexandra Trese in the Filipino language version of the series. She took to Twitter to share her excitement over the project.

“Screaming on the inside!!!!!! It’s an honor to be the voice of an iconic character such as Alexandra Trese.

I’m a huge fan of Budjette and KaJO’s award-winning Trese comics. Maraming salamat! excited nako (Thank you so much! I’m excited)!” she said.

Filipina-Canadian Mitchell, who previously starred in “Pretty Little Liars” and Netflix’s “You,” will voice the female lead character in the english version.

“I’m so excited to be a part of a unique and amazing project like Trese, and to voice a character as brilliant as Alexandra Trese. Philippine folklore is rich and fascinating, and I am thrilled to be a part of the team bringing this story to life,” she said.

“Trese” tells the story of Alexandra Trese, who protects Manila from threats of the supernatural kind such as tikbalang and kapre. It is executive produced by Jay Oliva and produced by Shan-

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Questions on adoption and expired green cards will be answered this Sunday on Citizen Pinoy THe latest developments in U.S. immigration reform will be discussed by leading U.S. Immigration Attorney Michael J. Gurfinkel, as featured on his YouTube channel, US Immigration Tv. Atty. Gurfinkel will also be answering questions from Kapamilya that involve adoption of a relative, an expired re-entry permit, and an expired green card while outside the U.S. Rey and his wife Maryann of Abilene, Texas want to adopt the son of Rey’s sister

whom they have treated as their own since birth. Baby Carl is now six years old.

What is the fastest way to bring Carl to the U.S.?

Christian of Antioch, California has a friend who has a green card that will be expiring in 2022. The friend returned to the Philippines in 2013 but his re-entry permit expired in 2015. Can he still return to the U.S. before his green card expires?

Arlene from vancouver, Washington has a daughter who got her green card

through the daughter’s U.S. citizen father in 2004. However, the daughter was sent back to the Philippines and her green card has expired.

Can the daughter still renew her expired green card? How can Arlene help her daughter?

Answers to these questions and more on a brandnew episode of “Citizen Pinoy” this Sunday, March 14 at 5:30 pm PT (8:30 pm eT thru select Cable/Satellite providers).

(Advertising Supplement)

Bruno Mars debuts new song with Anderson .Paak

By AJPress

GRAMMY Award winners Bruno Mars and Anderson .Paak have joined forces under the moniker Silk Sonic to debut the smoothsounding new single, “Leave the Door Open.”

The song was released on Friday, March 5, along with an intro track featuring “special guest host” Bootsy Collins — both of

which will be included in the forthcoming album “An evening With Silk Sonic.” “even though the classic R&B sound the pair evokes is a decade older than they are, both the song and the arrangement are pitchperfect, with swooning strings, honeyed backing vocals and even a glockenspiel — think Delfonics, the Chi-Lites and basically everything on the Philadelphia International label,”

variety said of the song.

“Leave the Door Open” was produced by Mars and D’Mile, and written by Mars, .Paak, D’Mile and Brody Brown.

Mars and .Paak announced their collaborative effort last week.

“We made an album!!

Y’all get the first song next Friday 3/5!! Rocket emojis and all that!!!” .Paak wrote on his Instagram.

PAGE 13

What are motions to...

Alexandra Trese is a supernatural detective from the Philippine graphic novel created

by Budjette Tan and KaJO Baldisimo.

Photo courtesy of Netflix

ty Harmayn and Tanya Yuson of BASe entertainment, a Jakarta and Singapore-based studio.

Oliva, a Filipino American, is an executive producer, director, and showrunner for several animated series as well as the founder and CeO of Lex and Otis animation studio. He directed “Batman: The Dark Knight Returns” 1 and 2, and worked as a storyboard artist for live-action films such as “Man of Steel.”

In a release to the media, he admitted that casting Alexandra Trese was going to be challenging.

“It is important for the voice talent to embrace the layered character to fully become Alexandra Trese,” he said.

“My concerns went away

as soon as Shay Mitchell stepped into the recording booth. Shay’s Alexandra exceeded my expectations and she delivers a performance of strength, determination and family duty that is at the very core of the character,” he added.

Oliva also praised Soberano’s casting, saying he was a “big fan” of hers.

“If that wasn’t enough, imagine my delight when we confirmed Liza Soberano joining the Filipino voice cast! I am a big fan of hers and she fits the character so well. Having Liza play Alexandra Trese for the series makes this project even more special to me and my team!” he said.

“Trese” will be released on Netflix later this year.

PAGE 11 file only one motion to reopen proceedings within 90 days of the date of entry of a final administrative order of removal.

If you are subject to a final order of removal, and now have a new basis or way to legalize your status, or new facts have come to light that could have a bearing on your case, you should consult with an attorney who can evaluate your case and eligibility for a motion to reconsider or reopen. Remember, ordinarily you have only one chance.

So, you don’t want to try to do it yourself and have it denied, because then you’ve already used up your one motion. Also, if you are subject to a final order of removal, you cannot file a new adjustment with USCIS, as the Immigration Court, not USCIS, would have jurisdiction over the case. You would have to reopen the case.

In addition, even if you are past the 30 or 90-day filing deadlines, in some cases it could be possible to bring a motion to reconsider or reopen beyond those deadlines, such as if you never received notices, the trial attorney agrees to a joint motion, or the judge, on his or her own motion (sua sponte), decides to reopen proceedings.

Moreover, with Biden being elected president, and his efforts to “halt” deportations, have the government once again exercise prosecutorial discretion, and generally be more lenient when it comes to deporting/removing people, you should definitely consider consulting with an attorney to evaluate your options. *** Michael J. Gurfinkel has been an attorney for over 40 years and is licensed, and an active member of the State Bars of California and New York. All immigration services

are provided by, or under the supervision of, an active member of the State Bar of California. Each case is different, and results may depend on the facts of the particular case.

The information and opinions contained herein (including testimonials, “Success Stories”, endorsements and re-enactments) are of a general nature, and are not intended to apply to any particular case, and do not constitute a prediction, warranty, guarantee or legal advice regarding the outcome of your legal matter. No attorney-client relationship is, or shall be, established with any reader.

WEBSITE: www.gurfinkel.com Follow us on Facebook.com/ GurfinkelLaw, Twitter @GurfinkelLaw and YouTube: US Immigration TV Call Toll free to schedule a consultation for anywhere in the US: 1-866-487-3465 (866) – GURFINKEL Four offices to serve you: LOS ANGELES ∙ SAN FRANCISCO ∙ NEW YORK ∙ PHILIPPINES

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NEW YORK AND NEW JERSEY ASIAN JOURNAL • MARCH 12-18, 2021

‘Float,’ Pixar’s first short featuring Filipino characters, reaches 20M views on YouTube

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By rITCHeL

MeNDIOLA AJPress

PIXAR Animation Studios’ “Float,” written and directed

by Filipino American storyboard artist Bobby Alcid Rubio, has garnered over 20 million views since its February release on YouTube.

First released in November 2019 on Disney+, “Float” is the first Pixar short to feature Filipino characters.

The seven-minute animated film tells the story of a father trying to keep his infant son’s special ability to fly a secret.

The animated short is based on Rubio’s relationship with his son Alex, who is on the autism spectrum.

He submitted it to Pixar’s SparkShorts, an immersive storytelling program that gives studio employees six months and a budget to develop animated short films.

On Tuesday, March 9, Rubio took to Twitter to express his excitement over the short’s milestone.

PSYCHIC

Silk Sonic’s Bruno Mars and Anderson .Paak “Float” tells the story of a Filipino father who discovers his infant son has the ability to float.

“20 MILLION vIeWS. 720K Likes. Just a week has passed and the response has been overwhelming positive! #PixarFloat’s message to #CelebrateOurDifferences is much needed right now and I am glad that it has resonated with people all across the world!” he wrote.

Pixar on February 27 released “Float,” along with “Wind,” another animated film by Korean director edwin Chang amid the recent spike of violent attacks against Asian and Asian

American communities in the United States.

“Pixar Animation Studios and the SparkShorts filmmakers of FLOAT are in solidarity with the Asian and Asian American communities against Anti-Asian hate in all its forms,” the studio said.

“We are proud of the onscreen representation in this short and have decided to make it widely available, in celebration of what stories that feature Asian characters can do to promote inclusion everywhere,” it added.

SERVICES

Photo courtesy of Pixar

As of this writing, “Float” has amassed 22,295,329 views and over 735,000 likes on YouTube.

“At the end of the day, [‘Float’] is about the bond between father and son. It’s about unconditional love, especially amongst family members and amongst everybody. I want that to be the end thing that people get. It’s about love and acceptance and hopefully, that will resonate,” Rubio told the Asian Journal in a 2019 interview.

Image courtesy of Atlantic Records

Bruno Mars...

PAGE 12 For his part, Mars said: “We locked in and made an album. The band’s called Silk Sonic. First song drops next Friday.”

But this isn’t the first time Mars and Paak have worked together.

In 2017, they toured extensively together, with .Paak serving as the supporting act on the european leg of Mars’ “24k Magic” world tour.

Mars hasn’t released an-

SERVICES

other album since 2016’s “24K Magic,” which earned him six Grammy Awards including the coveted Album of the Year. His wins marked the first time a Filipino-American has won multiple accolades in the major categories at the Grammy Awards. .Paak’s 2019 album “ventura” won the 2020 Grammy Award for Best R&B Album, marking his first-ever win in an album category.

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MARCH 12-18, 2021 • NEW YORK AND NEW JERSEY ASIAN JOURNAL

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• (212) N E W http://www.asianjournal.com YO R K / N E W J E R S EY 655-5426 MARCH 12, 2021

people events arts culture entertainment

‘I’M NOT GOING TO BE A STATISTIC’ How Noel Quintana’s faith led him to the path of healing T

by MOMAr

G. VIsAYA / AJPress

HE gash on his face may have healed but it has left a big scar on Noel Quintana’s face and every time he looks at the mirror, he is reminded of that terrifying morning on February 3 when an assailant slashed his face with a box cutter.

A few days after the incident, he joined a group of Filipino American leaders and supporters gathered to pray for his recovery. He has been expressing his thoughts and opinions on the matter, and in recent weeks, he has become the poster child of anti-Asian hate in New York.

Quintana, who moved to the United States from the Philippines in 2007, juggles two jobs with a nonprofit organization and a tax preparer. Migrating to a new country without any family, he has found a support system by volunteering at the Migrant Center, a nonprofit organization at St. Francis of Assisi led by Fr. Julian Jagudilla.

“His attack has made Asian members of our community scared and anxious.

Reassuring them and finding resources for them so they can l i v e safel y

in our city is the need of the hour. We have to fight racism and protect our Asian communities through vigilance and community action,” Fr. Jagudilla said at the ”Rise Up Against Anti-Asian Hate” rally on Feb. 27.

It was a gathering of a veritable who’s who in New York politics led by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, Rep. Grace Meng, Attorney General Letitia James and Mayor Bill de Blasio, along with community allies and non-government organization leaders across the city. They were one in denouncing the surge of anti-Asian hate incidents in New York.

A couple of blocks from the rally, a 36-yearold Asian American man was stabbed unprovoked two days earlier.

“Pagaling na pero medyo masakit pa rin (It’s healing but it’s still a bit painful),” Quintana told the Asian Journal said on the sidelines of the program.

“I’m overwhelmed by the support of the people, the community, even outside the U.S. I am so thankful for the support. I think that something has to be done so it would be safer not just for Asian Americans but for everyone,” he said further.

“There’s a lot of violence that happened during this pandemic and people should be aware that we need one another so that this would be avoided.”

A Brooklyn resident, he was on his way to work in Harlem Noel Quintana AJPress photo by Momar G. Visaya

Noel Quintana speaks at the Rise Up rally in New York on Feb. 27

that fateful morning. He boarded the subway at the Jefferson Station in Bushwick. It was full so he picked a spot where he stood. A few stops later at Bedford Station, he recalled that a man hopped in and stood beside him. He was praying the rosary when the same man kicked the tote bag Quintana was carrying.

Quintana recalled moving his tote bag away from the man but he kicked it one more time.

He turned to the man and said, ‘What’s wrong with you?” and moved to the other end of the train car. At this time, the train has reached the First Avenue station.

The painful memory of an incident two years ago came rushing back that Wednesday morning, Feb. 3 as his assailant moved towards him. He thought he was going to be punched again and he somehow readied himself for the strike.

But it didn’t happen. It was moments later when Quintana realized something worse had happened. He saw the shocked faces of his fellow subway passengers. He touched his face, looked at his hand and saw blood.

“Nobody helped,” he said, his voice almost breaking. “We’re all New Yorkers and no one helped me. There should be an awareness campaign on how to deal with this kind of problem, not only on the subway but also on

AJPress photo by Momar G. Visaya

the streets, so people know who to respond to victims such as myself.”

Realizing that no one called 911 or alerted the train conductor and that the subway was moving on, Quintana stepped out and walked toward the end of the platform. He stayed by the station booth as the attendant called 911 and asked for help. After answering questions from the police, he was brought to Bellevue Hospital where he received about 100 stitches on his face.

New York police arrested the man who attacked Quintana, and according to him, the man is scheduled to be arraigned this week.

As he said in a Zoom prayer meeting a week after the incident, he did not want to just be a statistic. Not this time, not anymore.

A couple of years ago, he was assaulted outside his work in Harlem. He just left the office that day and as he was walking, he saw a man running towards him and before he knew it, the man had already punched him in the face.

Gathering his composure, he stood up and attempted to walk but he faltered. He reported what happened to the nearest police station and moved on with his life. That was the end of it.

Little did he know that two short years later, PAGE 15

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What to do if you’re billed for an SBA EIDL loan you don’t owe

DID you get a bill for a Small Business Administration (SBA) loan, but you didn’t apply for one? It’s likely that an identity thief applied for the loan using your personal or business information. The SBA has new guidance about reporting the fraud, and the FTC has tips to help you clear up any credit problems it may cause.

The SBA’s Office of Disaster Assistance has been issuing the loans under its COVID-19 Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) program. They’re designed to give financial help to small businesses and non-profit organizations. Criminals have taken advantage of the program by using stolen information to get loans in someone else’s name, or in the name of that person’s company. And now, the bills are landing in the mailboxes of people and businesses that never applied.

If you or your business is billed for an SBA EIDL loan you don’t owe: • Report the problem right away to the SBA’s Office of Disaster Assistance and follow their guidance on what to do.

• While the SBA processes your identity theft report, you may still get monthly invoices. Keep these invoices until the SBA has finished reviewing your identity theft report.

If you run into other problems caused by the misuse of your personal information: • Visit IdentityTheft.gov/steps, which will guide you through placing a free, one-year fraud alert on your credit, checking your free credit reports for other accounts you did not open, closing fraudulent accounts opened in your name, and adding a free extended fraud alert or credit freeze to your credit report.

• Report on IdentityTheft.gov all instances of fraudulent accounts that you find, including the SBA loan. You will get an Identity Theft Report that you can use to clear fraudulent information from your credit reports. Your personal credit may be affected by the identity theft. Keep a close eye on what’s in your credit report by checking it regularly.

Visit annualcreditreport.com to get a free credit report every year from each of the three national credit agencies.

(Atty. Rosario Méndez/Division of Consumer and Business Education, FTC)

NEW YORK AND NEW JERSEY ASIAN JOURNAL • MARCH 12-18, 2021

Side effects...

Kris Aquino with sons Bimby and Josh

Photo from Instagram/@krisaquino

Kris considers moving permanently to Tarlac amid bashing of her sons

KRIS Aquino expressed that she is now considering several locations in Tarlac province to permanently live in, reiterating her plans to move away from the city.

“Cards on the table, I was readying to switch my voter’s registration to Sitio Alto, Barangay Central, Tarlac,” Aquino said in an Instagram post on Monday, March 8.

“It is doable because of the ready availability of modular homes,” she added.

Aquino also stated last month her idea to move, saying she was going to rent a beachfront house for a few months until she figured out where to move next.

At the time, she kept most of the details private but said she will only be visiting Central Luzon every six weeks to check on her eldest son Josh.

Now, Aquino explained that she was “running away from love” as high blood pressure from “seven years of emotional stress” were causing prob-

lems with her autoimmune conditions.

She also clapped back at netizens who were criticizing her and her sons.

“I leave you with this, my mom warned me—I’ll always have to do twice the effort as everyone else because all you now see is my fame, my name, and my perceived wealth.” she stated. “Trust me when I say, I will study, immerse, and I will win your approval because I worked harder than what is demanded.”

Criticism online isn’t anything new to Aquino, but the latest harsh comments that involved her children struck a nerve for her anew. Recently, she called out critics for homophobia directed at her youngest son Bimby and dispelled rumors on Josh getting married.

Josh is Aquino’s son with actor Phillip Salvador while Bimby is her son with PBA player James Yap. (Dana Cruz/ Inquirer.net)

How Noel Quintana’s faith led him to the...

PAGE 14 he would be facing another similar incident. Only this time, it would be more bloody and gruesome.

In the past few weeks, he has been on the front page of the Washington Post and featured in People magazine, along with other mainstream publications. He has no problem being thrust into the limelight and becoming the face of the issue. In fact, he is embracing it.

“I guess you can call it the bright side of the incident because may action na nangyayari (there is action going on). Hindi yung naging victim ka lang at wala ka nang nagawa (It’s not that you just became a victim and did nothing),” he said. “Even if I was victimized, in my little own way, I would contribute in helping other Asians to not experience what I went through. I don’t want others to experience what I have experienced.”

He is urging people to be safe and aware, to take videos and report incidents. He is also hoping for the strengthening of laws against hate crime.

“It is important for me to voice my story so that people would be aware. Most of the time, Asians, in general, are shy, timid people. We keep things to ourselves, so it is important to reach out to other people, especially to our government, that we are also part of the society and we should not be neglected by them,” he said.

It has been weeks since the incident and the scars have healed somehow but there’s still a little pain here and there, according to him. On top of that, he admitted he is still unable to sleep as the horrific scene keeps on replaying in his mind.

“Hanggang ngayon hindi pa rin ako makatulog ng maayos (To this day I still can’t sleep well). I try not to think about it and do meditation pero yun pa din ang problema ko, hindi pa rin ako makatulog (but that’s still my problem, I still can’t sleep),” he shared, adding that he continues to undergo counseling sessions.

And when asked about his advice to kababayans who might be unnerved by his story and now scared to take the subway, he gave the following advice: “Be alert [of] your surroundings and magpasensya na lang din siguro tayo, umiwas (and we should be understanding too, and stay away [from trouble]).”

Quintana is hopeful that in due time he will be completely healed psychologically and physically and that he’d be able to wear the scar across his face like a true survivor. For now, he says he derives strength from God and members of the community who continue to reach out to him and send him their prayers and support.

A GoFundMe page (https://gofund.me/98ac2db9) to support Quintana has received nearly $5,000 as of this writing.

As New York State Attorney General Letitia James told the crowd, “When I think of Noel, I think of the words of Dr. King.

It is the good people who fail to stand up. It is the silence of good people who fail to stand up, who allow racism and hate to persist and so all of us are here today, all of us who believe in the goodness of one another. All of us who recognize that his scars will heal but the scars of hate, and the taint of hate, and the pain of hate that we have got to cure, so all of us must stand together.”

PAGE 12 anti-cholesterol drug.

Caution on sex pills The three pills listed above for the treatment of male erectile dysfunction are some of today’s wonder drugs.

However, heart patients on vasodilator medications called nitrates (Nitroglycerine, Imdur, Isordil, Nitro-Dur, etc.) must never take Viagra, Levitra or Cialis, because any of these three taken with a nitrate can cause severe drop in blood pressure. The reason is the ED pill and nitrates are both vasodilators and their additive effect of opening all the blood vessels in the body can cause massive fall in the blood pressure and shock.

When taken properly as directed by the prescribing physician, the ED pills are effective and safe.

Aspirin, Plavix, and bleeding Aspirin and Plavix (Clopidogrel) are two of the most valuable medications in cardiology today. They are antiplatelets and thin the blood to prevent blood clots, and minimize the risk of heart attack and/or stroke. However, some persons’ coagulation system might be more sensitive than others, leading to gastrointestinal bleeding from either or both medications, or from anti-arthritis non-steroidal pills. This is a common side-effect to watch for among these patients.

Antidepressants and suicide Some antidepressant medications have been linked to an increased incidence of suicidal tendencies. Although effective for their proper indication in the medical regimen as a treatment for depression, these drugs appear to increase the suicide rate among some patients taking this type of medication.

Birth control pills and phlebitis Birth control pills containing estrogen have been known to cause thickening of blood, and inflammation and blood clot formation in the leg veins (phlebitis). Untreated, these blood clots could travel to the lungs and cause serious consequences. These substances have also been suspected to increase the risk of breast cancer in women.

Steroids, wound healing and fracture Anti-allergic, anti-inflammatory corticosteroids, or steroids for short, are one of the wonder drugs medical science has today, but its use could have the side-effects of

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osteoporosis, bone fractures and impaired wound healing.

Its constant use may also lead to glandular deficiency.

Diuretics and dizziness Diuretics (water pills) are used in the treatment of high blood pressure and heart failure because they eliminate excess body water and sodium (salt). With reduction in the fluid volume in the system, which will help lower the blood pressure, patients may sometimes feel dizzy.

Is there any GOOD sideeffect?

Yes, as exemplified by the “anti-impotence” pills, like Viagra, Cialis, Levitra. The original studies on this drugs were focused on its vasodilator (opening up) effect on the coronary arteries, to prevent heart attack. But the male laboratory mice given the substance developed erection.

Since the coronary vasodilator effect was not as great as the “side-effect” of erection, this drug has been officially approved by the US-FDA in April of 1998 as treatment for male erectile dysfunction.

And with great efficacy and success too. And then, there is aspirin, originally used for fever, aches and pains.

Today, cardiologists around the globe prescribe low-dose (81 mg) aspirin for its mild blood thinner effect (a beneficial side-effect) for heart patients.

Since all medications, without exception, could have potential side-effects, it is very important for patients to discuss in detail with their attending physician about the medications they are on, or drugs they plan to take. *** The main objective of this column is to educate and inspire people live a healthier lifestyle to prevent illnesses and disabilities and achieve a happier and more productive life.

Any diagnosis, recommendation or treatment in our article are general medical information and not intended to be applicable or appropriate for anyone. This column is not a substitute for your physician, who knows your condition well and who is your best ally when it comes to your health. *** Philip S. Chua, MD, FACS, FPCS, a Cardiac Surgeon Emeritus based in Northwest Indiana and Las Vegas, Nevada, is an international medical lecturer/author, a Health Public Advocate, and Chairman of the Filipino United Network-USA, a 501(c)3 humanitarian and anti-graft foundation in the United States. Visit our websites: philipSchua.com and FUN8888.com Email: scalpelpen@ gmail.com

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