The rich heritage of Filipino music takes center stage on December 7, Saturday at the Pasko in America extravaganza at the American Dream Mall in NJ.

The Combined Ensemble of the University of the Philippines Alumni & Friends Rondalla and the Philippine Chamber Rondalla of New Jersey will showcase the timeless charm of the rondalla, a cherished Filipino tradition rooted in the Spanish colonial era.

The Band of Brothers, will electrify the audience with their classic rock and roll hits. Joining them are powerhouse vocalist TJ Castanares and the soulful Lirazen Rose.

The Center for Cooperative Media (CCM) at Montclair University has selected the Filipino American Press Club of New York as one of the finalists in the 2025 New Jersey Ethnic and Community Media Celebrations & Awards. This ceremony recognizes the excellence and contributions of the Garden State's more than 145 ethnic and community news outlets. 

FAPCNY, formed in 2012 in New Jersey, is the only press organization of Filipino American community journalists in the East Coast.

In this season froth with fear for many immigrants, lawyers and civil rights advocates said DACA will be in limbo and raids will be done for massive deportations in an immigration forum.

They are once again doubling up their response to mounting queries. The upcoming Trump presidency ushered the same fright in immigrant communities reminiscent of his 2016 incumbency.

The launch of the poetry book ‘Parañaque to New York City: Fifty Poems’ flowed splendidly on the evening of October 24 in downtown Manhattan - a full circle moment for author Therese Rodriguez, a civil rights champion and CEO of Apicha Community Health Center (CHC), a Federally Qualified Health Center serving the underserved communities of Manhattan and Queens.

Steadfast in her activism for public health and human rights, Rodriguez is also known for her visionary leadership and untiring commitment to the growth of Apicha (CHC).

1st Deputy Mayor Maria Torres-Springer said that the values of humility, hard work, and optimism, which she attributes from her Filipino upbringing, have been in guiding principles in public service. She holds the highest appointive post in NYC and has served remarkably under three city mayors.

Civil rights groups say that the conservative Project 2025 is the road map to an autocratic USA.

Tony Hoang, executive director of Equality California, said that it is a “wrecking ball where the Heritage Foundation is attacking same sex marriage, reproductive rights. It is a road map to roll back time, set back the clock to their world view when America has grown to be diverse. Therefore, the inclusivity should be the philosophy.”

Veteran journalist Sandy Close sees the Project 2025 as inspired by “the fear of replacement” by American conservatives. “They don’t want an America of inclusion. They want to stop it. Full stop.”

Rachelle Peraz, chairperson of National Federation of Filipino American Associations (NAFFAA NY), expressed concern about the persistent low voter turn-out of Filipinos in elections.

Only 10% of registered Filipino Americans go out to vote during elections. “That means we still don’t have a voice or representation unlike our Asian counterparts,” said Peraz.

FALDEF executive director Licelle Cobrador said there is a need for engagement for Filipinos to be active in political affairs of the community.

Over a huge brunch at Thai Diner in lower Manhattan, chef Aisha Ibrahim talked about the October 9 evening that the Time Magazine honored her as one of TIME 100 Next to an excited and proud family and friends.

“It was surreal. I was with scientists and performers. Unbelievable,” she told her eager listeners, pretty much an eager storyteller herself.  Aisha was advocated by James Beard award-winning cookbook author J. Kenji Lopez-Alt for the 100 Next list.

In 2019, 101-year-old Time began publishing the Time 100 Next list, which "spotlights 100 rising stars who are shaping the future of business, entertainment, sports, politics, science, health and more".  Aisha had been spotted.

Distinguished journalist-mentor Sheila Coronel wrote the Foreword about the book ‘Parañaque to New York City Fifty Poems’ by Therese R. Rodriguez, published by Buensalido Public Relations and Communications in 2023.  

“These poems tell the story of a woman who has distinguished herself in a global city, in a country that has not always been kind to those who come to its shores. The book tells the story of a life well lived, a life worth celebrating, a life worthy of poetry."

Filipino fashion designers will show their street wear collection in New York City on Saturday, September 28, 2024, at the Manhattan Mirage on 265 West 37th Street. Creations of Thad Carreon, Simoun Andres, and Mikaela Michelle will be on the runway – promising an elegant and wearable display for fashionistas and enthusiasts.

The fashion event is put together by Soraya Salonga of the 7th S Productions.

The fastest growing electoral demographic, the Asian American, Hawaiian, and Pacific Islanders (AAHPI), could determine the crucial number of votes in the seven battleground states of Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, Wisconsin, North Carolina, and Pennsylvania to win the national elections in November.

Michigan-based Shekar Narasimhan, founder and chairman of the AAPI Victory Fund, said that the AAHPI electorate, now estimated to be 15 million, is not only a significant vote but “the reason for victory.”

Weekend escapades with friends naturally fire me up. The Labor Day retreat this year with accountant and FilAm business chamber executive director Ledy Almadin, TFC ABS-CBN multimedia journo Don Tagala, and Olive Magpile of the Philippine Embassy in Washington, DC was indeed one for great delicious memories.

Philippine tennis champion Alex Eala made a historic entry into the US Open tonight August 19 as she won her first qualifying match against 26-year-old Australian tennis player Maddison Inglis.

The Filipino teen trailblazer is the first Filipino to win Grand Slam in Girls category in 2022.

This August, the highly acclaimed film ‘Jose Rizal’ by the late National Artist Marilou Diaz Abaya comes to New York, presented by the Philippine Consulate General in New York (PCGNY) and Sentro Rizal New York to open the Sinehan sa Konsulado 2024.

Sean Colaljo, a distinguished member of the Institute for Youth in Policy, writes a comparative analysis on US-EU relations under Pres. Biden and former Pres. Trump. The essay warns that a return to a Trump presidency would devastate transatlanticism and strengthen ties with despots like Russia’s Putin.

Sean is a senior student at Whitney High School in Rocklin, California. He founded High School Democrats for America in his district.

Digital media watchdogs are warning the public of the greater threats posed by Artificial Intelligence (AI) in compromising the upcoming elections in November. Combatting AI-generated deep fake information may only be through public vigilance and policy reforms, they said.

Filipino Americans in various parts of the country threw their hats in support of Vice President Kamala Harris for President on Tuesday, July 30.

The Filipino American Community Launch and Celebration was organized by the Filipino Americans for Harris (FAFH), a multi-generational volunteer group of U.S. Filipino American Citizens who support and endorse Harris for President.

“President Kamala Harris is the promise of America,” said Virginia representative Robert Cortez Scott while California Attorney General Robert Andres Bonta said “we cannot go back to the dark days of Trump. Full stop.”

Paraluman Castaneda – Tita Lumen to many in the Filipino American community – is one year shy of 90. When she looks at people around her, she mutters to herself with a chuckle, “Seems to me I’m the oldest.”

FilAm Therese Rodriguez serves as the executive director of the Apicha Community Health Center, a federally qualified health center that provides primary care and special care services to medically underserved and vulnerable communities. It has clinics in Manhattan and Jackson Heights in Queens.

Apicha, says Therese, is a gift of the LGBTQ community to New York, morphing as a local struggle of the disenfranchised persons afflicted with HIV-Aids, nurses, doctors, and community activists who pushed for their rightful place of care and healing. They lobbied before US Congress to change the word ‘Other’ in government health records of individuals into specific races that abound in the US. Thus, was born the word ‘inclusion’ – to include the ‘others’ into the fabric of American society. She had come a long way since then, her daily doze of energy is hope. “We have to have hope,” she said in our conversation.

I was introduced to the top chart songs of Christian de Mesones – You Only Live Twice and Hispanica - by his manager Fritz Germain. The songs were beautiful and perky. I immediately sought an online conversation for my podcast Conversations with MM. Much better than his songs is the artist himself – clever, funny, straightforward.

De Mesones, also known as Big New York, easily relates with the ones he is in conversation with, like we did during my podcast. He established an immediate rapport with his audience at The Birchmere in Alexandria, VA, a band leader indeed.