Update on "No to Hate!" Campaign

UniPro’s Official Statement Regarding Recent Hate Mail in American Canyon, California

In early January, the Pilipino population in American Canyon became the target of hate when several residents received an anonymous letter referring to members of the Pilipino community as “filthy” "unwanted" “scum.” We in UniPro released a petition to take a stand against racism, to stand in solidarity with the Pilipino community in Napa County, and to demand that local authorities and government officials ensure that those responsible are held accountable for their actions. Similarly, NaFFAA Region 8 (National Federation of Filipino American Associations) has called for authorities to investigate the origins of the hate mail. We are grateful to those who have signed the petition, and especially to the City Council of American Canyon for their acknowledgement of our initiative and for their swift response to the incident. This response includes a rally and march on January 9th among city leaders and residents, including members of the Filipino American Association of American Canyon, in appreciation of diversity. Furthermore, the City Council adopted Resolution 2013-05 on January 15th, affirming the city as one of racial and religious equity. Lastly, the City Council has directed the Police Chief to investigate all possible leads regarding the author of the letter. While we laud these efforts, there is still a long way to go towards eradicating the deep-seated and ongoing racism that Americans face every day. UniPro strongly urges that Pilipino organizations work together - locally, regionally, and nationally - to show support for all victims of hate, and to create a national culture that accepts and celebrates diversity.

Speak & Be Heard: Meet The Judges

A few days ago, we introduced you to last year's Speak & Be Heard winner, Danielle Maglente, in order to give you an idea of the incredible spoken word poetry to expect from our contestants at this year's event. But in addition to the talented competitors, we're thrilled to introduce this year's judges which include Steven Raga (founder of UniPro) and Rosendo Pili (MC known as Mugshot) and Danielle Maglente. Emceeing the night will be Air Tabigue, comedian and emcee from the New York area. Please join us at Jebon Sushi on Februrary 1, 2013 at 7PM for 2013's UniPro Speak & Be Heard competition.

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About the Judges:

Steven Raga was the founding President for UniPro in 2009, and served as Executive Director until 2011. Currently, he is a member of UniPro’s Board of Trustees. As of 2012, Steven is serving as the founding National Chairman for Filipino American Civic Engagement (FACE) [facephilippines.com] and Executive Director for Region 1 of the National Federation of Filipino American Associations (NaFFAA) [naffaa-r1.org]. He is also on the Board of Directors for the Filipino Children's Fund [fcfinc.org], which works to improve the livelihood of impoverished families in the Philippines.

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“Before and when all else has failed, words are my first and last resort.” As an MC, poet, writer and educator, Mugshot lives by this credo and has dedicated his passion and energy to the written and spoken word. As an avid Queens New York native, his voice has been inspired by the diversity, culture and grit of his borough, as well as by the beauty and struggle of his immigrant upbringing. This is where the means of his perception has taken root, culminating in a mixture of urban angst, a haze of third world toddler-escent memories and the flowery pessimism of a poetic disposition.

Mugshot has rocked stages throughout the US with his crew, Deep Foundation, and has worked on several releases including Deep Foundation’s “The First Draft,” “Generation ILL” & Hydroponikz’s “Grown.” He is currently working on his solo debut project entitled “Punching Clocks” scheduled for release in 2013.

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Air is a Filipino-American comedian, emcee and producer from Long Island, New York. He has performed and emceed numerous events for the Filipino and Asian Community, including the FIND, MAFA, NYC's Asian-Pacific American Heritage Festival, AsianinNY's Moon Festival and Fashion show and the 2011 and 2012 NYC Philippine Independence Day Parades. In 2011, Air was nominated for NYC's "Most Outstanding Filipino-American in Entertainment" for his accomplishments. He is currently performing with Pacific Punchlines: a hilarious group of API comics have banded together to bring standup comedy to school campuses.

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At 21 years old, Danielle Maglente is currently a Senior at Seton Hall University, majoring in Philosophy and minoring in Political Science and Asian Studies. She has been involved in the Filipino Community since she was four years old, singing in local Filipino Independence days, various Performing Arts of the Philippines Inc. (P.A.P.I.) events, Shirt the Kids NJ in 2011, and serving as External PR and President of Seton Hall’s Filipino Club (FLASH). She wants to thank UNIPRO for allowing me to come back and judge this year’s SPEAK and BE HEARD Competition, and wants to wish good luck to all of the competitors!

Speak & Be Heard Spotlight: Danielle Maglente

In anticipation of Friday's Speak & Be Heard spoken word competition, we wanted to give readers an idea of what sort of talent they can expect. Here is the winning piece from last year's competition "Seventeen Once" by Danielle Maglente. Danielle will also be one of our featured judges for the 2013 event on February 1. For more info, see the event flyer at the end of this story.  "Seventeen Once" by Danielle Maglente:

I was “in love” once, And stupid Yeah I thought my definition Of love Was crystal, clear, Lucid

But then I realized all I ever did was give my heart away To anyone that would use it

But he really did love me, I think.

Baby, you threw that fact around As if it wasn’t a delicate feeling Respected and renowned, Like it wasn’t my exposed vulnerability, Tender and profound.

And slowly The me I once knew was nowhere to be found.

Cause with all that time I made myself invest All those sweet quotes And love notes I lost myself Identity theft

Auctioning off This once respected sort of self For that chance of being in love Collecting dust on my shelf To you the highest bidder

Going, once for once I think I’m in love my thoughts dominated by you I can’t get enough going twice with your lips, and your words you entice but your heart just isn’t in it but I let it suffice

Sold, Without a moment to reconsider Our hearts grew founder But our conversations turned bitter

And I know you can go to the grave saying that you never hit her But your harsh words struck me like the heaviest fist The “Fuck You’s” left their marks worse than a dozen bruises

But tell me Why is it that when you left I was left Drowning in desperation

Throwing myself at you for a mere hint of reciprocation Thinking I could have your heart if you had my flesh Forced to succumb to this innate moral mess ,

Yeah I was sick and all I wanted was to convalesce.

But he used to be such a nice guy, I would doggedly protest He would never just use a girl Jus’ to get under her dress.

Not me. (what about those 5 years?) Not me.

I told you I was stupid,

I just wish there was some sort of quick remedy for a heartbreak.

Like, you were some universally accepted- FCC approved obscenity So I could just block and bleep you out of every crevice of my memory mentally erase you phsyically deface you fight that stupid, stupid, need to embrace you

You know, the funny part is, you blow up my phone more..AFTER we break up but I’ve wised up, yeah I put that shit on block

Cuz nobody calls at 4 in the morning “just to talk” I did it cause I missed you And You did it cause you suck Knew that I was waiting And would most likely pick up. ..and that’s just messed up.

Be a man. Being lost isn’t an excuse, babe. Should’ve just told me you gave up.

About Danielle: 21 years old. Currently a Senior at Seton Hall University, majoring in Philosophy and minoring in Political Science and Asian Studies. I have been involved in the Filipino Community since I was four years old, singing in local Filipino Independence days, various Performing Arts of the Philippines Inc. (P.A.P.I. )events, Shirt the Kids NJ in 2011, and serving as External PR and President of Seton Hall’s Filipino Club (FLASH). I want to thank UNIPRO for allowing me to come back and judge this year’s SPEAK and BE HEARD Competition, and I want to wish good luck to all of the competitors!

Postcard from the UniPro Eboard

As January comes to a close, the UniPro Eboard couldn’t be more thrilled with the recent successes of our organization. Since November, we finally obtained 501(c)3 status and we welcomed new Program Directors to our board. We launched our new blog, a fantastic source for personal and thought-provoking pieces about the issues that affect Pilipinos locally and globally. On January 9th, we started a petition as a display of our solidarity with the Fil-Am community in American Canyon, CA. On the 17th, we networked with more than a dozen community figures and organizations at our first Meet & Greet of the year at Max’s of Manila in Jersey City. That was only the beginning. On February 1st, we will be hosting Speak & Be Heard!, a spoken word competition and showcase of the many talented poets in our community. (Let us know if you're interested in competing!) February 25th, the 27th anniversary of the People Power Revolution, is fast approaching - and so is our panel featuring guest speakers who will share stories about their involvement in the Revolution. This anniversary event is the first in a series of three events, all under the umbrella program called State of Filipino American Advocacy (SoFAA), an initiative headed by Kirklyn Escondo, our Director of Community Building.

We have so much more in store, with Lester Bosea, our Director of USAPAN, scheduling USAPAN workshops at various colleges, and more events and publications in the works thanks to Ivan Gonzales, our Director of Public Policy and Foreign Relations. While our Eboard, Program Directors and staff are hard at work putting together all of our engaging and exciting events, much of what UniPro does would not be possible without our interns! UniPro internship positions are currently open for Spring 2013 and college credit is available.

Lastly, save the date for Summit 2013! Our third annual Summit will be on Saturday, June 1st, the day before the annual Philippine Independence Day Parade.

We're looking forward to getting to know you in the coming months, whether you're a prospective intern, an individual curious about the People Power Revolution, a spoken word poet or a member of a fellow community organization!

Sign UniPro's Petition Against Hate Crime in American Canyon, CA

I was called a "filthy Filipino" once.

It was in middle school. A classmate and I had gotten into a little tiff - I can't recall what it was about - but when she said those words, they stabbed me like a million little knives. I was shocked, then mad, and then disheartened, especially when, during dinner that evening, I told my mother about the incident and we were both unable to hold back tears.

A few days ago, Derek Valencia, a resident of American Canyon, CA, posted a photo of a hateful letter on Facebook. The letter, supposedly from the California Department of Consumer Affairs Board of Barbering & Cosmetology, is addressed to fellow American Canyon resident Maria Aida Ignacio Brandes. At first, it discusses Ms. Brandes' alleged unlawful practice of cosmetology, but later it veers into a tirade against the "Filipino scum" in American Canyon:

"In addition, the American Canyon Filipino community as filthy as it is. [Illegible] unwanted as it is...... doesn't need to bring additional unwarranted/unlicensed practices which assists in bringing down the already downward spiraling property values in our area.

"We are attempting to have our community a law abiding one, without having yet another gang of Filipino scum such as yourself and married daughters who have attempted to assimilate into this once clean non-Filipino dominated area in American Canyon (Napa Junction) which includes those of your female offspring who have aligned themselves with CAUCASION husbands to assist in ensuring their half-breed children have "straight noses" in order to be accepted in non-Filipino society."

When I read  about this incident last night, I was just plain confused. I thought, "Is this real?" My astonishment was not regarding the authenticity of the letter as it is clearly not an official letter from the California Department of Consumer Affairs Board of Barbering & Cosmetology, but I wondered again, as I did in middle school, why someone would go out of his or her way to target an entire community with such vile and hurtful words. I again pondered how I was at all "filthy."

Sadly, this letter is real in that it is full of real hate.

We must not let the Filipino American community of American Canyon stand alone. As Filipino Americans, Asian Americans and, simply, Americans, we must not be idle and complacent. We cannot allow this blatant act of racism to go unnoticed and unpunished. We must "work together, locally and nationally, to help bring justice to this issue."

Take a stand against hate.  Sign UniPro's petition against the recent hate crime in American Canyon, a small step against the deep-seated racism in this country that many Americans face every day.

Photo credit: The Huffington Post