FILAM August 2019

Issue 18, August 2019

Oust Duterte rally calls for People Power p3

More stories on the web @ TheFilAm.net

Betsey Johnson shares a moment with Filipina designer p5

Michelle Hugo: Using her voice to speak for women p 10 Photo by Boyet Loverita

Letter from the Editor

Dear Donald Trump

W

e believe in America.

We believe in the decency of its people. It is our adopted homeland, the country we now call home.

The future belongs to the people who believe in its better angels. The path of our country’s history points to a better union.

There will be setbacks. Those who believe in making America perpetually white, those who wallow in the puerile racism of white nationalists will not own the future.

That future belongs to a society whose tolerance and compassion encompasses everyone who believe fervently in the simple declaration that all persons are “created equal.”

As FDR said nearly a century ago, the only thing we have to fear is fear itself.

We cannot give in, nor can we give up, on the vision that inspires most Americans, and that is equality.

We have had a long, tortured history of injustice. But the genius of this country is its willingness to make the story right and change course to correct the wrongs wrought by our American story.

That narration is inspired by a simple vision of liberty and charity

Reps. Rashida Tlaib, Ayanna Pressley, Ilhan Omar, and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez who were told to ‘go back’ to their countries. Getty Images for all, a willingness to sacrifice for the greater good, and the desire to treat everyone as a human being.

It is a humanity that embraces all religions and respects every social and political creed as well. That is the reason why the United States is a special place for immigrants.

Like every other immigrant, the four million Filipino Americans who now call the country their own understand the gifts this country has bestowed on them. We have managed to reinvent ourselves in ways that we never imagined back in the Philippines. We left our former homeland, willingly

Contributing Writers Tricia J. Capistrano Ludy AstraquilloOngkeko Joel David Mariel Padilla Wendell Gaa Maricar CP Lindy Rosales Hampton Danielle Vania Angelito Cabigao Bonus

Founding Editor Cristina DC Pastor Address P.O. Box 8071 New York, NY 10116

Contact Thefilamny@gmail.com

The FilAm is a publication of A&V Editorial THE FILAM |

or not, because we felt in our bones our future here would have the same infinite possibility the country holds out as its promise to the world. Our being in the country has uncovered and developed skills that were always latent in us but was brought to full bloom by thriving in our new surroundings.

Those skills ranged from the mundane to the profound. From learning to use our voice to speak out to harnessing one’s personality to run for public office. One Filipino American decided to learn how to drive a car after a lifetime spent avoiding what she saw as a chore. Another became a general, and another opened a restaurant business.

Is it any wonder then that immigrants have a fervent devotion to serving this country?

At its most basic, the United States has been good for us. While the word immigrant may be turning into a “dirty” word for some nativists and so-called nationalists, it is badge of honor for those who have flocked to its shores. We believe in the country’s promise and future like no other, a wonderful sentiment for us who call ourselves Filipino Americans. There’s no going back anywhere. This is our country.

Cristina DC Pastor

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Oust-Duterte rally: It’s time for People Power

By Jimin Kim

“W

e’ll be here rain or shine.

Duterte must resign,” shouted the more than 100 people who protested under a heavy thunderstorm what they called the “macho-fascist” regime of Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte.

The rally was held in front of the Philippine Consulate building on Fifth Avenue on July 22, the day Duterte gave his fourth State of the Nation Address in the Manila.

Multiple rallies around the world were held simultaneously on that day. The activists in NYC voiced their grievances against the Philippines’s struggles with increased taxes on basic goods, restrictions on press freedoms, and the government’s war on drugs that has killed several thousands of Filipinos.

Queens resident AnneMarie is an executive committee officer of Anakbayan New York and a former coordinator of Malaya Movement. She criticized U.S. taxes she charged was funding the Duterte administration and his three-year war on drugs. According to a report by Amnesty International, Filipino authorities claim nearly 6,000 people have been killed so far in the drug war, a figure that has been questioned due a lack of transparency by the Philippine government.

The ‘macho-fascist’ regime of Rodrigo Duterte must go, cry activists. Photos by Jimin Kim Protesting in her raincoat, AnneMarie spoke of the strife caused by family separation. Half her family is in the Philippines. Some of her relatives were able to immigrate to the U.S. while others are economically unable to. “Someone needs to be in America to speak on behalf of the Filipino natives to let the American people know Americans are complicit in this,” she said.

Chelsea, Manhattan resident Benjamin, a member of Anakbayan New York, was born in California. His dad came to America to look for work like the thousands of Filipinos who leave their country every day to find better opportunities for their families. He said being an activist is his way of giving back to his roots. “Personally I’m angered by the levels of oppression that exist in the Philippines by the hierarchy that exists there. I know people personally whose families are being affected by the extrajudicial killings.”

Among the speakers was Luis Francia, a journalist, poet and an Asian American Studies professor at Hunter College.

CEO and community leader Loida Nicolas Lewis.

AnneMarie, left, says mobilizing grassroots rallies will create positive change in the Philippines.

THE FILAM |

Benjamin stands next to a mural the activists made to criticize PhilippineU.S.-China relations.

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40 years ago Rodel Rodis

and Edna Austria got married On Sunday, July 28, 2019, Rodel and Edna (née Austria) Rodis celebrated their 40 years of marriage at Colma Community Center in California.

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round 200 guests attended the renewal of marriage vows with Father Rey Culaba officiating, this time with their three adult sons Carlo, 33; Daniel, 30; and Eric, 27, acting as groomsmen. I flew in from New York to attend and asked Rocio Casimiro-Nuyda, my high school classmate, to join the festivities having been invited also by Rodel.

As a background, let me recount Rodel’s community leadership.

In 1971, the young student activist Rodel arrived on the West Coast because his father exiled him to San Francisco to avoid Ferdinand Marcos’s tightening noose on student leaders. He finished college at San Francisco State University and graduated with a law degree from New College of California in 1978. He opened a law practice and became a successful immigration lawyer. As a lawyer, he continued his fight for good governance, social justice and equality for his fellow Filipinos in the Philippines and in the United States. He led rallies in front of the Philippine Consulate during the Martial Law years.

In 1979, Rodel married Edna, who had graduated a year earlier from the University of California San Francisco Nursing School. She recently retired after 42 years as a registered nurse.

In 1987, Rodel was appointed by then Mayor Art Agnos to the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission, the first FilAm to be appointed in the city government.

Rodel was elected to the San Francisco Community College Board and served for several years from 1991 to 2009.

In 1997, Rodel Rodis with Alex Esclamado (now deceased), Michael

Dadap, and yours truly founded the National Federation of Filipino American Associations (NaFFAA) while we were meeting in my office of TLC Beatrice International in New York. The goal was to represent the interests of Filipinos in the USA and to fight for good governance and true freedom for Filipinos in the Philippines. Greg Macabenta was elected National Chair a few years later, and millennial Brendan Flores currently holds the position.

In 2010, after attending the inauguration of President Noynoy Aquino at the Luneta, Rodel together with several members of the campaign US Pinoys for Noynoy/ Mar, formed the US Pinoys for Good Governance. From the start, Rocio Nuyda and six others were elected as board members.

In 2012, Rodel Rodis, Ted Laguatan and I founded the Global Filipino Diaspora Council (Rodel created the name) during the Global Summit in Manila sponsored by the Commission on Filipinos Overseas headed then by Imelda Nicolas, my sister. Greg and his wife Gigi, Ted and his wife Josie, Rocio, Michael and I were among the 200 well-wishers at the Center.

One of the highlights of the wedding reception was classical guitarists duo Michael Dadap and Florante Aquilar. They played a spirited rendition of “Kuratsa,” a Filipino courtship dance. “Romansa de Amor” is the couple’s all-time favorite. They concluded with an inspired rendition of “Sa Kabukiran,” a Visayan folk song.

After the fabulous entertainment, Rodel talked about that wedding held on July 23, 1979 in Daly City.

He told us about Nelson Navarro, his activist colleague during the Martial Law years, who spoke during the

Renewing their vows last month with their three sons Carlo, Daniel, and Eric.

THE FILAM |

Rodel and Edna at their wedding 40 years ago. Facebook photos reception about the Filipino myth of Bathala (God) breaking sticks into two and throwing them in different directions. It is our human task, he said, to find the other part of the stick so we can be brought together in life. That is why our life partner in Filipino is called our “Kabiyak.”

In their wedding in 1979, Edna’s Filipiniana bridal gown was completely embroidered (callado) by 4

hand. That night, it was exhibited at the entrance of the hall looking as new as ever.

Like any Filipino affair, the reception would be concluded with all-night dancing. Music was provided by a trio of musicians playing the disco sounds of the ‘70s and ‘80s.

Time does fly when you are having fun.

When Tracy met Betsey!

By Tracy Dizon

||New York or bust!

There is no one else in the world who has salivated, daydreamt and fantasized about New York more than I did in my lifetime. The Universe conspired and also with the help of Good Karma, our U.S. petition finally came through after waiting 11 years. Now here I am finally settling down with my son as a New York City legal resident. I am finally checking my boxes one at a time!

My New York fashion love affair started two decades ago. Half of my life I have looked up to the New York Fashion icons — from the flamboyant Club Kids: Heatherette (Richie Rich & Traver Rains), Patricia Field’s Sex and the City genius, The Accidental Icon: Iris Apfel’s Legendary Maximalism at its best and of course every girl’s (especially me!) Fashion Patron Saint: The Betsey Johnson!

||In a New York minute!

So first thing’s first in the New York Fashion Life. Lesson #1: Always be in the loop! New York City lives by its saying “in a New York Minute!” So as soon as I heard The Betsey Johnson is coming to NYC for her latest Spring-Summer Collection 2019 launch in collaboration with Urban Outfitters, I was there! It was also Betsey’s first public appearance after her successful open-heart surgery just this Spring. I know we have not met yet but learning about her health and how closer I am now to Betsey Johnson proximity-wise I couldn’t help but feel I had to show my full support to our Fashion-Mother-ofall-things-cute-and-girly!

I had this all planned out for a very long time. I have a list of my New York Fashion icons for whom I have prepared a special gift when I get the chance to meet them. Betsey Johnson is on top of that list! I had been inviting Betsey Johnson to watch my NYFW Shows since I had my first show in Fashion Week Brooklyn. What I like about New York is how everyone can just try and

go for things. Just do it, and that’s what I have been doing! Weeks before the launch, I was doing dress rehearsals at home wondering which would make a great impression. Or course I had to carry along my iconic “Camera Purse” which always brings along a nice conversation anywhere I go.

It was still a little bit rainy as May was coming to an end, but the Urban Outfitters Herald Square was filled with so many cute and quirky fashion girls (and some few boys) waiting patiently and excitedly for Betsey to show up! I never thought there are many serious contenders out there showing some Betsey-lovin-support!

I have never been inside a place where so many girls have seriously dressed up, plainly having fun, and expressing themselves, embracing how fun it is to be a girly-over-the-top-fun-girl-girl!

The Urban Outfitters Herald Square store was filled with cute candy cocktail snacks and drinks, ear piercing booths, photobooths and graffiti tote bag painting booths. Betsey truly is the queen of all quirky cute things and we are her girl squad!! I am seriously getting a lot of fashion tips just seeing how it is done by the Legendary Betsey Johnson!

I must admit I was getting so impatient waiting for my turn. I was worried someone might be cutting the line but I think what is a few more hours when I waited half of my life! But as soon as Betsey Johnson came down the stairs with her blue hippie hair, she was almost floating and so ethereal! You would genuinely feel she was so happy to see her loyal fans! She was throwing rose flower petals going down stairs! You can’t get more whimsical as our Kween Betsey!

||Best validation for a young designer

As soon as everyone saw her the whole party got more lively! I got more excited as I got my turn! It just literally happened so fast. I had prepared my cute Tiara by Tracy Dizon THE FILAM |

The author with her Fashion Patron Saint Betsey Johnson

The Tracy, Betsey look. gift. But the best most unforgettable moment in all of this whole epic moment is as soon as I sat down, Betsey touched my dress and whispered, “I love your dress, it reminds me of Harajuku. I love it!” I was completely dazed and ecstatic!

I proudly showed her I have prepared her a gift and she was so gracious and happy that we opened it right away! Literally a dream come true that she grabbed the two millinery pieces I made and she tried it on right away! Hey, when your fashion icon likes what you designed, I believe it is a good sign that I am on the right track! I told her a little about Harajuku, how she inspired me to keep on going and I even said jokingly if she could adopt me haha!

Betsey adorably answered “I wish honey!” Isn’t she the sweetest ever?

Later that evening I got a lovely thank you message from Betsey Johnson herself. She thanked me for her 5

hat and for coming. Oh Betsey, I will always aspire to be as awesome and as kind as you are. I was so blown away how genuinely sweet she is.

The fashion world is filled with many fickle characters and fleeting trends and styles. It is cutthroat as hell! But just knowing that a steadfast legend in her fifth decade in the fashion industry remained true and genuinely sweet and whimsical as her design is such a comfort and inspiration for many quirky fashion dreamers out there! I am just happy to live to write a genuinely good-vibe New York Story!

Tracy Dizon, a 36-year-old fashion designer and milliner, is often coined “The Filipina Betsey Johnson” by some fashion enthusiasts. She recently migrated to New York with her son to pursue her New York dream of becoming a world-renowned fashion designer. For more about the “Pinoy Pop Life” creative, visit her vlog on YouTube.

A marriage and a march:

Kilawin Kolektibo remobilizes for Stonewall 50

By Panday Banale

Minutes before the 27th NYC Dyke March on June 29, I officiated the marriage of Teri and Tina on the steps of the New York Public Library.

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mid the dancing-in-the-street revelry of Pride March, Teri and Tina were joined in a solemn moment under the hot noonday sun. The pair met and fell in love as young queer Filipinxs.

They could not marry then because Teri, a member of Kilawin Kolektibo, was in the U.S. and Tina in the Philippines. They reconnected after 20 years vowing no ocean, family or career could rip them

Loud and clear.

Love and liberation.

The author as ‘Ninong Ann’ blesses the union of Teri and Tina.

Kilawin had a strong showing at Stonewall 50.

Photos by Ling Quisumbing, Connie Cayaba, Connie Montoya, and Panday Banale THE FILAM |

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apart. It was, as Teri now declared, a case of “love lost and found again.”

Kilawin, a pioneering queer Filipinx activist group, was formed in 1994 in New York City. I was one of the founders. I was a young Filipinx artist at the time, very new to the city and was looking for others I could hang out with. Within months, Kilawin was born and had 12 members. We grew to dozens more. Woefully, the group went into hiatus as members pursued personal interests and careers, went to school and raised families. The spirit of solidarity has remained steadfast.

As the city commemorated the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall protests in June, Kilawin was there. Members and allies came all the way from the Philippines, Canada, and other parts of the U.S. We were reunited and reenergized. It was essential for us to be part of the historic commemoration, to celebrate a half century of progress for LBGTQ rights and liberation. Kilawin

was organized in June 1994 during the 25th anniversary remembrance of Stonewall. Organizing for Stonewall 50 took a lot of work and perseverance, and I sensed a guiding hand along the way. I felt all the energies intertwining and slowly falling into place. In participating, reconnecting and remembering, we made this historic moment a very personal one for all of us. Marching, raising fists, making herstory, we will all remember this feeling of pride in our hearts.

As we move forward, we hold the torch and pass it on to the next generation of queer Filipinx activists.

Panday Banale is the spiritual name of artist and activist Mary Ann Ubaldo.

She was one of the founders of Kilawin Kolektibo, a pioneering grassroots organization whose members are mostly queer and lesbian Pinays. She is a goldsmith, a photographer, a filmmaker, as well as a Reiki and Ayurveda holistic health counselor.

The colors of identity and solidarity.

IDNYC cards may be renewed online starting Dec. 2 The IDNYC program – the country’s largest municipal identification program – will launch an online renewal portal for New Yorkers who enrolled in the program in 2015. The new online portal will become available to cardholders on December 2nd, 2019, when the opportunity to renew will officially begin, according to a statement from the Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs (MOIA) and the Department of Social Services (DSS).

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DNYC cards expire after five years, and with the fifth anniversary of the IDNYC program approaching, the program has created a streamlined and flexible renewal process.

Beginning on December 2nd, 2019, New Yorkers whose IDNYC is expiring in less than 60 days, or whose card has been expired for less than 6 months, will be eligible to renew their IDNYC through the online portal. They may also choose to renew in-person at an Enrollment Center. Most card changes will be able to be updated through the online portal, including change of address and adding a gender designation. For change of address, cardholders may be asked to upload and submit scanned residency documents. For changes to a cardholder’s name, height, or eye color, renewals must be completed in-person at an Enrollment Center.

“The IDNYC card is proof you live in the greatest city in the world and can be used for everything from

opening a bank account, to receiving vital health documents, to gaining free access to world-class cultural institutions,” said J. Phillip Thompson, deputy mayor for Strategic Policy Initiatives. “The online renewal portal will now make it easier than ever for card-carrying New Yorkers to continue to reap the benefits and services solely reserved for those who call this place home.”

“We are excited to announce that IDNYC will launch an online renewal platform making cardholder renewal easy and accessible. Over the last five years, IDNYC has become a model for other cities, states, and countries to expand access to opportunity for all, regardless of immigration status,” said Bitta Mostofi, commissioner of the Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs. “We want each and every New York City resident to know that if you live in New York City, you are a New Yorker and IDNYC is for you!”

THE FILAM |

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“IDNYC is the most successful municipal ID program in the nation for one simple reason: it guarantees all New Yorkers can access essential services, regardless of where they come from,” said Department of Social Services Commissioner Steven Banks. “We are proud to make it even easier for families and individuals to apply for and renew their cards, anytime, anywhere, through our new online portal, so that even more New Yorkers can enjoy everything our city has to offer, from services to entertainment and culture.”

Since the city launched IDNYC in January 2015, IDNYC has become a tool that every New Yorker can use to open up access to the City – from City services to free and reduced cost access to cultural institutions. As of April of this year, New Yorkers have saved nearly $55 million in membership and other fees through IDNYC.

Losing hair? Sue Reynoso can make it pretty

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By Maricar CP Hampton

here’s a Filipina who knows a thing or two about hair – from grooming, to styling, to growing it healthy. Her name is Sue Reynoso.

A medical technology graduate of Silliman University, Sue was already a hairstylist in the Philippines when she came to the U.S. in 2005 petitioned by her immigrant father. She worked her way toward getting a salon license to be able to practice in the U.S. Fascinated that she has seen many different characteristics of hair and has heard despairing stories about losing, thinning or prematurely greying hair, she went to school at the United States Trichology Institute to learn about the science of hair health as a Trichologist.

Her experience as a practice manager for a hair restoration surgeon in New York and budding desire to be on her own would pave the way for Sue to start her own business. Soon, a clinic called Infinite Hair & Skin Care Solutions rose in Woodside, Queens where Sue and her business partner Erica Dineros, try to “educate people about hair loss while providing a solution.”

“Our customers are mostly Filipinos and Hispanics,” said Sue, a mother of three. Her husband Rommel is another entrepreneur and also a marketing professional.

While more men tend to seek out their expertise, it is the women who ultimately make the decision to proceed with treatment for themselves or for their spouses.

|| Bald is beautiful…

If you’re a rock star or a newborn baby, she said.

Some men – eg. politician Cory Booker, FilAm comedian Jo Koy or actor Bruce Willis -- go for the “power bald” look. For women, wearing wigs is a stylish way to cover up.

“Hair loss is embarrassing to talk about and that’s why people avoid it,” said Sue. But judging from the amount of inquiries they receive online and referrals from hair salons and barbershops, it is a much bigger issue than how it is being perceived. She shared how women experiencing partial or complete hair loss, hide feelings of shame and concerns about their looks. In the era of selfies and unabashed self-promotion, hair or the presence of it is important to boost a person’s confidence.

“My partner, Erica and I both have experienced hair loss. We want to understand more about it and how we can treat ourselves. We want to reach out to those who are suffering from it,” she said.

One of the solutions is Scalp Micropigmentation or Scalp Tattoo, which is ideal for people whose hair has become irreplaceable.

Sue and her business partner Erica Dineros, two Filipino Americans trying to ‘educate people about hair loss.’

“Sometimes there’s no more option for hair transplant kasi kalbo na sila. I do what is called 3D camouflage. It looks like hair that has grown back but it’s actually a tattoo,” Sue said.

Scalp Micropigmentation or SMP is a modern hair loss solution and non-invasive treatment that uses detailed micro-needles to deposit pigment into the scalp. The result creates the appearance of tiny hair follicles or short hair stubble. Scalp tattoo has to be age appropriate and aesthetically natural looking. A session lasts about two to three hours. Cost is anywhere from $300-$500 per session depending on the coverage or area that needs to be filled. Usually two or three treatments may be needed as recommended.

“There are styles, options that I give my patients but most of the time they agree with my suggestions.

I want to make sure they are pleased with the results and feel good about themselves,” she said.

As a certified Hair loss Practitioner and licensed Scalp Micropigmentation Specialist, Sue is able to provide scalp and hair treatments. “If we could identify that we could regrow their hair back, then we do it.” Her dream is to introduce the technology in the Philippines.

The hair loss center cannot prescribe medications, Sue said. “But if we see something like a skin disease, we refer clients to a dermatologist.”

Sue dispels the notion that hair starts to thin out at age 50.

“It’s not necessarily your age; it can be your diet, or your lifestyle and majority could be hereditary,” she said. Stress can be a hidden factor.

One of the challenges is the lack of information, she said. Scalp Micropigmentation is a new and developing trend for men. She has seen some clients who are “in denial” about their hair conditions.

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This Scalp Micropigmentation Specialist is from Dumaguete, a graduate of Silliman University.

Sue and Rommel Reynoso and their children Khalem, 18; Lawrence, 8; and Alia, 5, at Khalem’s graduation from high school.

“Usually, when they come in for consult they are not sure what kind of treatment they need. The more they talk about it, the more they learn what they need to do,” she said.

In Dumaguete, Negros Oriental, where she comes from, Sue used to run a restaurant. That’s where she developed her aptitude for business. She never imagined she would one day be part of the exploding hair care industry in America and connect with so many people looking for solutions. “There are a lot of people in need.”

COVER STORY

The comeback of Michelle Hugo:

Using her voice to speak for women

By Cristina DC Pastor

It has been over a year since the closing of the Park Avenue modern French brasserie, Maison Hugo, owned by the culinary couple Michelle and Florian V. Hugo.

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ichelle is finally opening up, ready to address the curious questions. How the business – and a nearly 20-year relationship — went down was a story only a brave and stubborn spirit dare share. She said she is finding her courage being a “resilient Filipina.”

“The closing was not a failure,” said Michelle, 48, in an interview with The FilAm. “We were successful and loved by so many, the only bad choice we made was going for a very expensive spot. That is the sad reality we small business owners face in the current real estate climate in NYC.” She said further, “The business took a toll on our marriage.”

When the business shuttered, Michelle said she found inner strength in how she was raised by her parents. Her stay-at-home mom Rose Patiño Consing devoted herself to raising all nine children. Her father, former Manila Bulletin journalist Ralph G. Consing, had his indiscretions not uncommon among Filipino men of his generation. He became a speechwriter for the late Ferdinand Marcos and joined him as a political exile. Michelle saw in them this ability to bounce back amid setbacks, and transform.

“How I was raised is to come right back up when problems weigh you down,” she said. “I was determined to face the challenges with my head up high and always reminded myself that my family and faith would be my guiding light. With the pain, comes strength, the harder you fall, the stronger you rise.”

||True calling

Michelle has returned to her true love and passion, “my work and love for the humanities.”

She was a women’s rights activist at 18 and joined Gabriela when it was just being formed by former political prisoner Nelia Sancho.

At Maison Hugo on Park Avenue: ‘The closing was not a failure.’

Finding her courage as a ‘resilient Filipina.’

“My friend Nelia has touched my life in so many ways,” she said. “Being an activist has taught me how to use my voice for the right causes. To speak for those unheard and forgotten. Though women have come far, there is still a lot of work to be done and that will include men and women working together.”

In New York, Michelle is a member of the Women’s International Forum formed by United Nation Ambassador spouses to shed light on critical global crisis. She is currently on the advisory board of Jimbere Fund, a non-profit organization that advocates for women and girls

used as weapons of war in Congo. On her own, she is set to launch a non-for-profit introducing culinary arts programs for public school youth.

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||Paris in 1999

Michelle and Florian met in Paris in 1999, and envisioned themselves opening their own restaurant one day. When they met, Florian was already a distinguished chef of the Alain Ducasse chain of international restaurants, while Michelle worked at a Saudi investment firm. “I’ve always been in business, in corporate.” Famed “Les Miserables” novelist Victor Hugo is Florian’s great-great grandfather.

They married three years later. After the birth of their daughter, they laid the groundwork for Maison Hugo, a restaurant that buzzed with excitement when it opened on Park Avenue and Lexington in 2016 because it combined a classy vibe and competitive pricing.

“Everyone’s perception of French food is that it’s fancy and it breaks the bank,” she said. “I always believed that food is the one thing that unites people, when everyone is gathered on the table, everyone is equal regardless of status. Providing fine quality French food to the majority and not just the elite was my goal. Inclusivity always brings the best result.”

||Moving forward

What she has learned from the past year is how Filipino women have this ability to get back up from swift, unforeseen challenges. She has launched Event by Hugo, a catering and event planning service, shortly before closing Maison Hugo.

“This is when I’m really thankful to be Filipina,” she said. “It all goes back to how you lived your life in the early days, the foundation that was built, instilled in you, the culture, the manners. I have never been more proud of my roots.”

With daughter Ella, the ‘love of my life.’

Grants available for women-led projects in music, media The Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment (MOME) and New York Foundation for the Arts (NYFA) announced on July 10 that applications are open for NYC Women’s Fund for Media, Music and Theatre.

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he $5 million grant program launched last year and awarded a total of $1.5 million to 63 film, digital and theatre projects in the first round. This year, an additional $500,000 has been added to expand the fund to include music projects with a maximum grant of $20,000 each.

Originally launched as the “Made in NY” Women’s Film, TV and Theatre Fund last year, the fund is a signature initiative by MOME to address the underrepresentation of all who identify as women in the entertainment industries. With the addition of music to the list of eligible categories, MOME is increasing its efforts to target gender inequity in stubbornly male-dominated industries, said Media and Entertainment Commissioner Anne del Castillo.

One recent report from the USC Annenberg Inclusion Initiative found that from 2013-2019, only 10 percent

of Grammy nominees were women, and from 2012-2018 only 22 percent of artists, 12 percent of songwriters and 2 percent of producers of 700 popular songs from the Hot 100 year-end Billboard Charts were female.

“New York City is home to the strongest creative talent in the word,” said del Castillo. “We are proud to expand the NYC Women’s Fund to include female-identified songwriters, composers, engineers, and producers working in all genres of music. Supporting women creatives in media and entertainment diversifies our talent base and generates richer content.”

Said Michael L. Royce, executive director of the New York Foundation for the Arts. “We’re especially excited that the program has expanded to include a music category, which will give additional artists the opportunity to realize creative works.”

Eligible projects for music grants will include new EPs, albums, and videos THE FILAM |

The Fund addresses gender inequity in male-dominated industries. Photo: MOME for yet-to-be released works from all genres. Projects must have a significant female writing credit, producer credit, engineering credit, and/or musical lead. NYC-based producers, composers, engineers, solo musicians, ensemble bands, and orchestras that are not currently signed to a major label can apply.

Applicants must also show evidence of a growing fan base and have played multiple live shows.

In addition to music projects, film, theatre, and web productions are eligible for finishing funds in the following categories (amounts listed are the maximum potential grant): 11

· Fiction Feature (running time of 60 minutes or more) – $50,000 · Fiction Short (running time of 59 minutes or less) – $25,000 · Fiction Webisode/Webseries (all forms) – $20,000 · Documentary Feature (running time of 60 minutes or more) – $50,000 · Documentary Webisodes/Webseries (all lengths and forms) – $25,000 · Theatre Production – $50,000 Applications and eligibility requirements are available at nyfa.org/NYCWomensFund. Applications close on October 1, 2019 and recipients will be announced in March 2020.

Calendar

of Events

||Ongoing till October 13

Fil-Am Road photography and paintings exhibit by Gloria and Vina Cacho Orden, and Baguio Group of Artists Karenderya 248 Main St., Nyack, N.Y.

||August 18

Super Tekla and Donita Nose in ‘Laughing all the way to the USA concert’ Granby Theater Norfolk, Virginia

||September 3 to October 20

Maia Cruz Palileo solo show Katzen Arts Center at American University 4400 Massachusetts Avenue, NW, Washington, D.C.

||September 8

2019 Outstanding Foreign Workers Awards Night Astoria World Manor 25-22 Astoria Blvd., Queens

Pista Annual Picnic by UPAA New Jersey Liberty State Park, Pavilion B 20 Theodore Conrad Drive, Jersey City

||August 18

Uncalled 4 with Angel Ram, Mig Ayesa, David Dimuzio and Bryan Magsayo Grove Square 116 Newark Avenue, Jersey City

UP Alumni Association of DC, MD, VA Sapphire Ball Fairview Park Marriott Hotel & Conference Center, 3111 Fairview Park Dr, Falls Church, Virginia 22042

||September 14

KZ Tandingan: Supreme the World Tour Melrose Ballroom, Long Island City, Queens

||August 15 to 18

1 p.m. till dusk

||November 2

JCI Queens 6th Annual Bayanihan Festival Queens, NYC

Fiesta in America Expo and Cultural Show Meadowlands Expo Center Secaucus, N.J.

||August 18,

9th TOFA Awards Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall 154 W 57th St, NYC

||September 14

||August 10 to 11

NaFFAA National Empowerment Conference: Making it Count: Transforming Mindsets for 2020 and Beyond Carson, California

||October 26

||September 21

||August 30 – September 2

20th Grand Reunion and Convention, University of the Philippines Alumni Association in America, Inc. Crowne Plaza Hotel at San Francisco Airport, Burlingame, California

||August 31

Dances of the Heart and of the Soul: 3rd Outstanding Parents’ Award and Gala Marriott Hotel-Newark Liberty International Airport 1 Hotel Road, Newark N.J.

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9th Annual All About Downtown Jersey City Street Fair Grove PATH Plaza 319 Grove St, Jersey City

||October 5

Sa Dilaw na....Buwan sa NYC! Juan Karlos and Takethestage La Boom 56-15 Northern Blvd, Woodside, NYC

||October 11

Medicare For All & Its Competitors: Comparing Democratic Plans The Murphy Institute - CUNY School of Labor & Urban Studies 25 West 43rd St., 18th floor, NYC

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||November 16

Gail Banawis and Angel Ram in concert Apollo Theater 253 W 125th St, NYV

||2020

July 1 Filipino American National Historical Society Metro NY Chapter National Conference Waikiki Marriott Beach Resort & Spa, Hawaii

Friends remember with affection the departed Dr. Fely Quines Dr. Felicisima David-Quines, who was a geriatrician in Queens and a family medicine specialist in Albany, has succumbed to pancreatic cancer. She is survived by her husband, retired physician Dr. Emilio Quines, and their three children Emilio III, Alan, and Lisa. She was 75.

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his is so sad,” wrote former Consul General in New York Theresa Dizon De Vega on Facebook. “We will miss such a gracious lady.”

Fely was born in Cabanatuan City, Nueva Ecija. She finished her Doctor of Medicine at the University of the East Ramon Magsaysay (UERM) in 1968 and migrated to the United States the same year. She finished her U.S. training in medicine at New Jersey College of Medicine, and additional residency and fellowship for adult and geriatric psychiatry at Downstate SUNY Brooklyn and Kings County Hospital. She was, as

of 2016, an attending physician at the Adult and Geriatric Psychiatry SUNY Downstate-Kings Hospital. Husband Emilio was born in Baguio City and grew up in the town of Tagudin, Ilocos Sur. He too finished his Doctor of Medicine at UERM but two years ahead of Fely.

Fely and Emilio are a quiet and well-admired couple who have devoted most of their time to community service, volunteerism, and family.

Despite their professional accomplishments, they tend to be low-key. They have participated in numerous medical missions to the Philippines organized by the Philippine Medical Association in America where she and her husband have served as presidents.

‘Gracious lady.’ Facebook photo.

When the couple was named Grand Marshals of the 2014 Philippine Independence Day Parade, then Consul General Mario de Leon hailed them as “true models” being an “accomplished, charitable, yet modest couple.”

Fely was a member of the Ladies for Rizal Long Island chapter.

“I’ve known the Quineses for 25 years,” said Nelia Ferrette offering her comments when they were named Grand Marshals. “They were then presidents of PMAA. I remember they both showed strong leadership during the medical and dental mission in Cabanatuan City.

Both have warm personalities and giving nature.”

Friends remember Fely with affection as condolences poured on Facebook.

“What a big loss to the Filipino community. You will be missed Fely,” wrote Nena Lozada Smith.

From Raul Estrellado: “We share your deep feeling of emptiness and mourning over the loss of Tita Fely.

She will be in our prayers for the eternal repose of her soul and for her to be with God forever.”

“She was a lovely person and I am deeply saddened,” said Vivian Talambiras-Cruz.

My Filipino-American breakfast

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By Jose Padua

y Filipino-American breakfast of the ‘60s was the local Briggs brand pork sausage patties, sunny-side up eggs, and rice, with the runny yolks broken over the rice, and the rice and yolk and sometimes the eggs whites, too, mixed, stirred, or just turned yolk top over rice bottom depending on if my Mom or me or sometimes my Dad was doing the mixing.

I gathered it wasn’t the typical American breakfast.

I understood that my Anglo friends didn’t eat this way in the morning and I knew for sure that they didn’t have rice for breakfast though I didn’t exactly know how I knew, which was the case for a lot of the things I knew back when I was a child. And the thing was, I didn’t know if any other Filipino-American kids ate like this either because my Mom had been the cook for the Embassy in D.C. and this very well could have been her breakfast invention or innovation.

All I knew is that we were different; I didn’t know exactly how or by how much. All I had was this vague child’s notion, and all I wanted was to fit in, and one

thing I knew for sure was that this breakfast was one thing I wasn’t changing no matter how much I wanted to think of myself as a real American. Because some things just weren’t worth it, while other things were worth more than the price you paid for feeling strange.

Call it tradition, call it pride, call it the price of admission to the exclusive club I belonged to because even I had it back then—looking into someone’s ice cold, blue eyes with my brown ones as if there were an ocean of distance between us—a symbol of what would forever be my independence from America.

Poet Jose Padua lives in Washington D.C. with his wife and children. His Filipino parents came separately to the U.S. around 1950 and met when they were both working at the Philippine ambassador’s residence.

He and his two brothers were all U.S.-born and went to Gonzaga College High School and then to Catholic University in D.C. They have all worked at the Library of Congress. Jose lived in New York for a number of years. For about 11 years he lived with his family in Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley, an area where Filipinos are very much in the minority. They are now back in THE FILAM |

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A family photo taken in the 1960s. Jose (seated left) with parents Margarita Padua and Cosme Padua, and brother Tony. Photo courtesy of Shenandoah Breakdown.

D.C. Jose’s latest book, “A Short History of Monsters,” was launched recently in NYC. The book was chosen by former U.S. poet laureate Billy Collins for the Miller Williams Poetry Award and has recently been published by the University of Arkansas Press. Many of the poems were written in and about NYC in the early 1990s, a time when spoken word poetry was blossoming and Jose was a popular performer in places like CBGBs, the Knitting Factory, the Nuyorican Poets’ Café, and other venues. This essay, originally published in 2015, is being reissued with permission from the author.

‘Spider-Man’ sequel is far from boring

By Wendell Gaa

The late legendary storyteller Stan Lee of Marvel Comics had once commented on how Spider-Man is the one superhero character creation of his with whom he was most immediately associated with.

I

ndeed, his image has often been the most frequently used on several Marvel-brand products, from graphic novels to toy merchandise. The reason is unsurprising, simply because Spider-Man is the most relatable hero to fans and readers alike. While he is honestly not my personal favorite superhero ever (that honor goes to Batman), I still have much respect and admiration for this iconic character who has been a beacon of inspiration to pop culture, transcending the comic superhero genre. For unlike Superman, he does not have a messianic savior complex and at his core, he is an everyday human being named Peter Parker, a high school kid struggling to maintain balance in his life, academically and socially, exactly what many young boys in real life are going through.

“With great power comes great responsibility” has been a recurring motto in Parker’s life, and the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s (MCU) latest film installment “Spider-Man: Far From Home” brilliantly takes this aspect of the superhero’s lore to yet another level.

A sequel to 2017’s “Spider-Man: Homecoming” and the first follow-up movie to this year’s epic mega-blockbuster “Avengers: Endgame,” “Far From Home” is a worthy standalone superhero story which further explores Peter Parker’s physical and emotional growth into his role as a crime-fighting hero.

The film takes place right after the events of “Avengers: Endgame” where Spider-Man, along with several other MCU superheroes, banded together to help defeat the intergalactic tyrant Thanos and his alien minions. Parker is now at a point of near-uncertainty and some self-doubt as a superhero in the wake of the sacrifice and death of his friend and mentor Tony Stark/Iron Man (Robert Downey, Jr.). Stark’s assistant and close friend Happy Hogan (Jon Favreau) is on hand to help console Parker and to encourage him to continue to grow into the type of hero Stark inspired him to be. Parker soon embarks on a

British actor Tom Holland is Spider-Man aka Peter Parker.

FilAm Jacob Batalon (left) portrays Parker’s best friend Ned Leeds. With Zendaya and Holland. Photo: ABC.com

high school class trip to Europe to take a break from crime-fighting and to give himself a muchneeded vacation.

But the demands of being a member of the Avengers team are never far away, and he is eventually tracked down by Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson), former director of the Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division (SHIELD) and his ever-loyal ally Maria Hill (Cobie Smulders), who request his assistance in aiding the enigmatic persona known as Mysterio. Peter is once again confronted with the dilemma of just how huge of a responsibility his role as a superhero truly is. All he wants to do is to enjoy the teenage life, like dating and traveling!

“Far From Home” succeeds as a sequel because it doesn’t aspire to be an epic tale about heroism the way its predecessor “Endgame” was. Rather, it is a modest and simplistic individual story focused on Spider-Man alone and his continuing evolvement into a bona fide superhero. I absolutely adored the wit and humor here, and while the adolescent hilarity is present, it is not an overt distraction to the plot, unlike how it was most notoriously overused in 2007’s awfully juvenile “Spider-Man 3” with Tobey

Maguire and Kirsten Dunst.

Tom Holland is wonderful in the titular role, as he perfectly captures the youthful angst, awkwardness, and confidence of Peter Parker. One could almost be tempted to forget that he is actually British in real life! There can be no mention of the supporting cast without acknowledging one of our own, FilAm Jacob Batalon, who portrays Parker’s best friend Ned Leeds. As it was when he made his first appearance in “Spider-Man: Homecoming,” he is given much to do here as Spider-Man’s extremely likeable bosom buddy.

Other notable standouts are Jake Gyllenhaal of “Brokeback Mountain” fame, who gives moral ambiguity to the Mysterio character; and Disney Channel actress/singer alumnus Zendaya, who plays Parker’s love interest MJ with an attractive no-nonsense flare, which in my view is a welcome breath of fresh air. I thought her comic character’s image was defamed with Dunst’s outright annoying “drama queen/damsel in distress” portrayal in the early Spider-Man films.

I must say that Spider-Man as a comic superhero is continuing to grow on me, thanks to “Far From Home,” which is now officially my favorite live-action film adaptation of this Marvel icon.

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History of Filipino nurses in VA

presented in Ren Capucao’s photo exhibit

By Christine Phelan Kueter University of Virginia

Lots of parents urge their children toward careers in medicine, law or engineering. Reynaldo “Ren” Capucao’s family suggested those fields, along with one more: nursing.

“Growing up Filipino, I noticed that other parents didn’t say that,” said Capucao, a University of Virginia graduate nursing student raised in Virginia Beach.

“I always wondered, ‘Why are so many of us nurses?’”

The answer – which spans more than a century and hearkens back to the Spanish-American War’s 1898 end, the Jim Crow South, and even the post-9/11 fear of immigrants – is a lesson in history, migration, the American nursing shortage and the ever-shifting sands of health care.

It’s also the topic of Capucao’s dissertation and photo exhibit, “Culture to Care: The History of Filipino Nurses in Virginia,” which he presented August 10 at the Philippine Cultural Center in Virginia Beach.

With support from UVA Nursing’ Bjoring Center for Nursing Historical Inquiry, the Philippine Nurses Association of Virginia and Virginia Humanities, Capucao’s multimedia exhibit tells the story of Filipino nursing in Virginia through dozens of interviews, collected photographs, filmed narratives and migration maps. It will become a permanent part of the School of Nursing’s “Hidden Nurses” initiative, sponsored by the Jefferson Trust – an homage, Capucao said, to the many Filipino nurses who came before him.

Although Filipinos make up just 1 percent of the American population, they make up more than 4 percent of nurses practicing in the U.S. Since the 1970s, Filipinos make up the largest group of internationally educated nurses practicing in the U.S., a movement that contributed to Filipinos becoming the

The nurse historian asks, ‘Why are so many of us nurses?’

The exhibit opened August 10 at the Philippine Cultural Center in Virginia Beach. third-most populous group of Asian Americans overall (comprising nearly 20 percent of Asian Americans, behind Indian and Chinese Americans).

Filipino migration to the U.S., said Capucao, came in four waves: American colonialism to pre- World War II; roughly 1940 to 1965; from ’65 to the present; and a final wave compelled through chain migration.

After the Spanish-American War ended in 1898 and the U.S. took control of the Philippines, the import of Western institutions, including nursing and medicine, and a series of subsequent legislative maneuvers (including the development of U.S.-led nurse training programs in the Philippines; the Hill-Burton Act of 1946, which fueled construction of new American hospitals; and the 1948 Exchange Visitor Program and Immigration Act of 1965, which opened up opportunities for thousands of Filipino nurses to work in the U.S.) created a growing demand for nurses and an established route toward opportunity for Filipinos, who were only too happy to fill the gap.

Once in the U.S., Filipino nurses imbalanced the clinical and racial hierarchy of nursing. Considered neither white nor black, Filipinos encountered racism and, in some cases, hostility.

Still, in most environments they were

THE FILAM |

embraced and flourished, and in their adopted homeland created “a sense of community, a sense of familiarity, and a transnational linkage back to the Philippines,” Capucao said.

The wave of Filipino nurse immigrants included Capucao’s mother, Jolly, one of eight children from a rural fishing town to whom “the nurse’s white cap became a symbol of her hopes and dreams.” It wasn’t an easy journey. Motherless at 14, Jolly became a parental figure to six younger siblings. After graduating from a Philippine nursing school, she took a job as a public health nurse in her hometown while raising her younger siblings and putting them through school. It wasn’t until her eldest brother enlisted in the U.S. Navy and petitioned for her citizenship that Jolly arrived in the U.S., settling in Virginia Beach, part of the Hampton Roads region that today has the largest population of Filipinos on the East Coast.

By 1990, Jolly had passed her nursing board exam, was working as a nurse, and, in 1992, gave birth to Ren, who would carry on the family’s nursing tradition, becoming an R.N. in 2019 after graduating from UVA’s Clinical Nurse Leader master’s program.

In May, Capucao earned his nursing degree. This month, Jolly will retire after more than 40 years of service as a nurse.

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Capucao, who will continue his research as a doctoral student in nursing this fall, said the experience has also informed his understanding of Filipino culture, America’s sometimes fraught history with immigrants, the factors that compel migration, and deepened his knowledge of his own family’s backstory, as well as his trajectory into nursing.

A portion of his dissertation will be published in the peer-reviewed journal Nursing History Review this fall.

Capucao also received support for the project from several Filipino nurse advisers and the Filipino American National Historical Society. He was mentored by Barbra Mann Wall, director of UVA’s Bjoring Center for Nursing Historical Inquiry, and Aprilfaye Manalang, a professor of history and interdisciplinary studies at Norfolk State University.

“I’m not where I am because of chance, but because of a culmination of historical events,” Capucao said. “The reason why I want to become a nurse historian is to venerate my mom, and the stories of unknown nurses who forged the path that I’m able to take.”

Ren Capucao, a Virginia native, is a Ph.D. nursing student and nurse historian at the University of Virginia. His current research examines the Filipino nurse diaspora to address larger questions about the nursing labor supply, transnational exchange of people and knowledge, and social history of nursing and immigration. This article was originally published by UVAToday and is being reissued with permission.

A fellowship over beer, Balut and videoke Consul General Claro Cristobal hosted a meeting and fellowship with FilAm officers of the New York Police Department (NYPD) and the Fire Department of New York (FDNY) at the Philippine Center on June 25.

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he event included a surprise Baluteating contest and videoke singing and the officers readily rose to the challenge. Firefighter Ryan Ocampo won the Balut-eating contest over six other competitors. He wolfed down two Balut eggs and a bottle of Philippine beer in under a minute. Balut is a duck embryo, a popular Philippine delicacy usually eaten with beer as ‘pulutan.’ It is considered by some foreigners as “bizarre food.” Comedian Jo Koy, who is not a fan, Consul General Claro Cristobal with the men and women of the NYPD and FDNY. has said in an interview that he ate Balut when he was a kid and “I'll never do it again.”

In the singing division, Police Officer Teresigene D'Augostine easily won the videoke challenge by scoring 94 belting Air Supply's "All Out of Love.”

Cristobal welcomed the officers and praised their important contribution in keeping the city and its residents safe, and in helping further raise the profile of Filipino Americans through their service. He encouraged them to keep their connection with their Filipino heritage.

Retired Police Captain Atty. Edward Carrasco, the highest-ranking FilAm in the NYPD, thanked Consul General Cristobal on behalf of all the attendees for hosting and organizing the fellowship. He said that the event provided a venue for many of them to reconnect with the Philippine Consulate and their fellow officers. Detective Eugene Canapi said that he looks forward to expanding the network of FilAms working in law enforcement. Twenty FilAm officers of NYPD and six from the FDNY who are assigned in different precincts and offices in New York City particiThe challenge is on. pated in the gathering.

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COVER STORY

Jun Policarpio and the Solomonic wisdom of an immigration consultant

By Cristina Dc Pastor

“TNTs are my clients,” declared Gonzalo ‘Jun’ Policarpio, an immigration consultant. “I try to solve their problems.”

T

NT or ‘tago ng tago’ -- always hiding in Tagalog – are Filipino migrants on the run.

They flit from state to state, job to job, perpetually fearful an innocuous traffic stop might bundle their family into a plane bound for Manila. They vanish into the woodwork, try to blend in and not call attention to themselves.

They simply refuse to go back home, convinced a life in the shadows is preferable to the harsh struggle of getting by in the Philippines.

TNT is so redolent with meaning for Filipino Americans. It is often mentioned with a wry sense of humor and a lot of heartbreak for dreams that go a-glimmering in the dark of a detention cell.

Not all TNTs are people he would likely assist, Policarpio pointed out.

“Unless they are aggravated felons like drug dealers, rapists, murderers, etc., no dice.”

The author of the book “Shaking the Secret Underworld of the Unjust: The Glitter of 30 Pieces of Silver,” there are few immigration consultants in the Filipino community, he said.

“I have not heard of a real immigration consultant in the Filipino community. Most are lawyers and paralegals,” he said when interviewed by The FilAm. The difference being a lawyer operates within a box, meaning a set of laws and regulations, while a consultant thinks beyond and outside of it.

“He solves problems, thinking out of the box to pursue innovative

He agrees: The system is broken; a border wall can fix it. ideas. His goal is to create something better and fitting to solve the problem, he is the ultimate problem solver,” he said.

The epitome of the archetypal consultant, in his view, is King Solomon of the Old Testament. “He successfully solved the problem of two women claiming parentage of a baby without using a DNA test.”

For example, said Policarpio, one of the innovative ways to pursue a stalled case is to appeal to the discretionary powers of an immigration officer. It should be based on several factors, among them the gravity of the case. He ought to know whether this tack would work. He was an officer of the Immigration and Naturalization Service (now the United States Immigration and Naturalization THE FILAM |

Signing copies at his book launch on July 2018 at the Philippine Center on Fifth Avenue.

Photo by Jan Andrada Service or USCIS) for about 12 years, rising through the ranks to become supervisor. He wrote about his years with the INS in his book where he practically became a whistleblower calling attention to the fraudulent entry of some foreigners tied to terror activities.

The ideal direction is for an 18

undocumented immigrant to work with both a lawyer and a consultant, he stated.

“It is best for an undocumented alien to utilize the services of both an immigration consultant and an immigration lawyer to obtain an immigration benefit. But if the situation does not require litigation

before an immigration judge, talking with a consultant is enough,” he said.

Policarpio is a life-long Republican and agrees Donald Trump should build a wall to keep out immigrants.

“Consider miles and miles of unguarded land borders including the Great Lakes of Canada and Mexico encompassing Washington, Oregon, North Dakota, New York, Arizona, and Texas,” he said. “The President is empowered by the Constitution to regulate or control entry and exit of all persons both citizens and non-citizens in the United States.”

So is the immigration system truly broken?

He replied, “By the increasing number of illegal aliens entering the country makes the system broken. Absence of a complete Border Wall is a problem. Snakeheads and coyotes are having a feast smuggling aliens through the border for at least $50,000 per head.”

Policarpio is a consultant also on issues, such as employment discrimination, whistleblowing, running for public office, and strategic intelligence.

Members of the Policarpio family visit Hudson Yards. Jun and wife Edelwina have seven children and 11 grandchildren.

Photo by Edelwina DelaCruz Policarpio

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Issue 18, August 2019

NYPD officers take on ‘Balut’ challenge p17 Exhibit explores history of Filipino nurses in Virginia p15

Jun Policarpio and the Solomonic wisdom of an immigration consultant p18