Fatima Lacanlale on Finding Home in the US and Boston
In this episode, we profile Fatima Lacanlale. Fatima’s journey to Boston has taken her from the Philippines to the Bay Area to the Bay State with stops in Utah and Tennessee in between. During our conversation, Fatima discussed her immigration story and the tales behind her different moves throughout the US. She also shared her personal hobbies in the arts — including an upcoming series of 12 paintings that depict life in the Philippines.
Listen to the full conversation below, or subscribe to our show on Apple Podcast, Google Play, Stitcher, and Spotify.
Transcript
[MUSIC]
Kaitlin Milliken: Hello, and welcome to the BOSFilipinos Podcast. I'm your host, Kaitlin Milliken, and this show is obviously made by BOSFilipinos.
In each episode of our podcast, we highlight a different aspect of Filipino life in the Greater Boston area. So today we’ll be profiling a member of that community: Fatima Lacanlale. Fatima’s journey to Boston has taken her from the Philippines to the Bay Area to the Bay State with stops in Utah and Tennessee in between. With each move, Fatima has had to refine her ways of staying connected with her culture and her family.
During our conversation, Fatima and I discussed her immigration story and the tales behind her different moves throughout the US. We also discuss her personal hobbies in the arts — including an upcoming series of 12 paintings that depict life in the Philippines.
Thank you so much, Fatima for joining us for this episode of our show.
Fatima Lacanlale: Yeah, thank you so much for having me. Glad to be here.
Kaitlin Milliken: To introduce you to our community. I'd love for you to sort of run through where you've been. I know that you grew up in the Philippines. Where did you grow up?
Fatima Lacanlale: Yeah, I grew up in Pampanga. It's like an hour away from Manila. And then I moved to the US back in 2010. I left with my three siblings that are here. Now. My mom left us when I was, I believe 10 years old, my auntie took care of us — her sibling.
When my mom and my dad, you know, got separated — I would not call it divorce because we don't have divorce in the Philippines, it's called an annulment — we got super poor. And my mom just wanted to take care of us and the best for us. So that's why she sacrificed herself to be away from us. And she married this 72-year-old man. And it was very challenging for her. But since it's for us, nothing matters, as long as it can help us achieve and have a better life here in the US. She did what it took to get here. And then when she got here, she started working in retail as well. And then sending us money back in the Philippines until she got her US citizenship, and she started taking us in here. And now I'm super thankful my mom did that every day. I'm always grateful to be here. There's not even one rice that I can take and throw in the trash. Because from my experience in the Philippines, when my mom and my dad got divorced, we were like sleeping on the streets. My mom couldn't even buy me a 50 pesos bag. But now my mom keeps giving me bags now I'm like, “Mom, stop sending me.”
Kaitlin Milliken: That's such a Filipino mom thing. I don't know what it is with the moms and the bags, but it's like always with the bags. So you said you were living with your aunt and your siblings, when your mom was in the US until you were reunited. Can you tell me a little bit about your siblings? Like are you the oldest? Like tell me a little bit more about your aunt, that type of stuff.
Fatima Lacanlale: My big brother, He’s 27, 28. I'm 27. My sister, she's 26, and my younger brother, he's 25, I believe. So we're not far away, far apart from each other. And they're super amazing. I like how we get along. And now we're all matured like we're supporting our mom, getting into our lives. It's just like really good feeling, like how we've grown so much from each other. But we used to play a lot in the cornfields or like those waters. I miss those kinds of stuff.
And my auntie. Her name is Sonia. She is amazing. She is my traveling buddy. She's like my mentor. Shehe was so strict and conservative though, like I didn't like that. But thank you so much for doing that. Because when you're so young, you're like 16, you're so happy with your boyfriend you forget things like, what's real life is but she helped me prevent my life from going to a different path. So I'm so glad that she helped me with the right direction.
Kaitlin Milliken: Your mom petitioned for you and your siblings to come to the US. How old were you when you immigrated here?
Fatima Lacanlale: I mean maybe before 18 because I think the law at that time like you have to be minor.
Kaitlin Milliken: What was it like getting to live with your mom again, after having so much time lapse that you weren’t living in the same house and seeing each other every day?
Fatima Lacanlale: Actually, my mom traveled at least a few times back to the Philippines when she was here. And it was awkward to be honest not seeing her for years. So when she came back to the Philippines, it was really awkward. Like I've spent so much time with my auntie and just like seeing you in real person. Are you even real? Like, “Are you really my mom?” And because at that time when she left us with my auntie I can still remember I was singing “Open Arms” in the karaoke, I'm crying. “I wish you can just come back here. And like, don't leave us.” I didn't understand it at that time. But it all made sense now but just looking back at that time, it was very sad. But now I really have a great relationship with my mom. I call her almost every day just checking in with her.
Kaitlin Milliken: That's great. So when you came to the US and you were like living with your mom, like What are the things that helped you guys bond and become close?
Fatima Lacanlale: Yeah, she took us, she gave us a tour and the whole San Francisco thing. And then we went to Disneyland. I can't believe I, my first time to Disneyland was 18. I was like, “We're too old for this.” And then she took us to Vegas, “Fine. I'm old for this.” And then took us to Reno. And then every time we went, she days she's off, she would take us to restaurants and stuff like that. And we go for a picnic and those kind of stuffs.
Kaitlin Milliken: What were what was helpful during that time in terms of like making friends and having connections with other folks in the US outside of your family?
Fatima Lacanlale: I graduated high school in the Philippines. And then when I moved to the US, in order to support our financial aid, they asked us to wait for a year in a day. So they asked me to either go to community college or go back to high school while waiting. So I went back to high school here Balboa High School in San Francisco. I mean, it's in Balboa. So it's like, there's a lot of Filipino communities there, especially like our school too, as well. So they have their own separate like group and stuff. So it was easier to find. And everyone was just so friendly. They know what it feels like to be coming here in the US. And they would take us to Jollibee, the all the closest restaurants. So it was a lot easier. So I got two high school degree. And after that, I spend my time at City College of San Francisco and after City College, I went to University of San Francisco to get my bachelor's degree in business management.
Kaitlin Milliken: So you graduated with a degree in business management. Did you know that you wanted to be in the tech space? Or was like your first job? Did that just happen to be in tech? What brought you into that field?
Fatima Lacanlale: Yeah. So at first, I wanted to become an architect, because I love like, sketching, drawing and those kind of stuff. And then I want to become an economist. But it didn't work out for me. And but since I love — growing up, like I saw my families in the Philippines are so entrepreneurial people. So that's where I was like, “Well, I want to learn about business management, like what is the difference between here and the Philippines, so that I can help and maybe apply some and share some to my family in the Philippines.” So that's why I took that degree and um, I love it. It's awesome.
Kaitlin Milliken: So like sort of the hustle comes from what you were seeing from and learning from relatives who were like doing more entrepreneurial things in the Philippines. Can you talk a little bit about what those like entrepreneurial, like things were that inspired you to be like, “That's something I could see myself doing.
Fatima Lacanlale: My Auntie's always been in business. And I've always, she always she would always take me with her. And whenever she does business proposals and those kind of stuff, I kind of got inspired, of doing what she was doing. And like running her own business, just like not relying to other people and seeing it being successful. I know there are some ups and downs and challenges, but she's super strong, like mentally like to do it. So if she can do it, I can do it as well.
Kaitlin Milliken: We talked on the phone before interview you had gone from San Francisco, then I believe you went to Tennessee next. What was your next stop?
Fatima Lacanlale: Yeah, I went to Nashville, Tennessee. I lived there for a year.
Kaitlin Milliken: So you did San Francisco to Tennessee. I forgot. Did you move one other time before coming here as well?
Fatima Lacanlale: Yes. Moved to Utah.
Kaitlin Milliken: What were some of those differences between like the different areas that you lived in, especially when it came to your Filipino identity?
Fatima Lacanlale: I really love Nashville. It's like a music city. And it's really fun. But I didn't find many Filipino communities there. But maybe if I went far away from Nashville, I could have find them. But it wasn't a thing for me. And then we moved to Utah. And when I was in Utah, there's a Filipino community there. But just Utah was amazing. Like you can find national parks. They're amazing things to find there. But the weather wasn't meant for me. We were like, “Okay, let's try Boston.” And Boston is just perfect. Summer is perfect winter. I love Seeing the snow. And it was just working out for me. But I just wish that, you know, since we moved here is to find a Filipino community. But since, you know, maybe COVID happens, it kind of prevented me to find those activities, those events, because when we were in San Francisco, like they would create this events that you can go to. And it's just like, really fun. I forgot what it was, but it was in San Francisco downtown and all the Filipinos gather with music with food with, like, you can walk around like a fair.
Kaitlin Milliken: What made you want to move out of the Bay Area, you know, especially having the family and friends that you had, like, in that place? What prompted you to start your journey to these other places?
Fatima Lacanlale: I mean, it was hard. Like, I've never been away from my siblings, and my mom or like my family. So I really wanted to feel how to be independent. And when I moved to Nashville, oh my gosh, I wish I didn't ask to be independent, because so hard. I was super homesick. It was a really like, adventure for me. So it was hard, but I think I'm getting used to it. I just like probably being independent. Because when I was in the Philippines, like, yeah, you have your relatives, you have maids, they're like, they do everything for you. So it was hard for me to do things here in the US, especially when I was by myself. Like I had to literally learn how to cook, making sure I really clean like everything, and stuff like that, and then making sure that I'm having income too as well to survive. So, but definitely, it was worth it. To be honest, it was really a good adventure. I feel like moving to different cities. It's like, knowing different cultures as well. It's my pleasure to travel. Like literally, it was really worth it.
Kaitlin Milliken: Great. And I also know that you're a painter. Can you talk a little bit about, you know, how you got into painting what inspires you? And all of that?
Fatima Lacanlale: Yeah, absolutely. So when I was an elementary in the Philippines, there was a painting competition. So, I won that, and they gave me this encyclopedias, books. There's so many of them. Ever since then, when I was in high school with this, all girls school, I joined the art club. And then when I got into the US, like, it kind of changed a little bit. I've been busy with different stuff. But now since like working from home, I've been kind of getting back to that one. And also, you know, sending paintings to my mom. paintings. There are so many paintings a lot in our place. Like I know from other people, they have a different ways to relieve their stress. But for me, it's just like very relaxing. I actually have planned for myself, I want to do this, like 12 series of paintings. It's basically I want to start my own photography, like about people in the Philippines. Like because there's so many kids in the Philippines that are on the streets. I just want to capture those, like very inspiring moments of those people in the Philippines.
Kaitlin Milliken: Do you have to wait to travel before you start that project?
Fatima Lacanlale: I'm planning to go back to the Philippines end of this year. So hopefully that happens. But definitely, I've been following a lot of Filipinos in the Philippines who are photographers and there are so amazing picture. So I'm kind of doing that as an inspiration first, and then I'll start doing next year.
Kaitlin Milliken: When did you decide that that was a project that you wanted to do?
Fatima Lacanlale: Actually was last year when this COVID happened. And I had so much free time and gave me something to think like what I really want to do for my life. And I was like, I see people on Instagram like famous artists having their 12 series like one example is like nature, like or months or whatever, seasons. I'm like, what do I want to do for myself or my 12 series? And then I was like, “Well, why don't I just like leverage where I grew up, you know, like what was like to be living in the Philippines, and I want to capture that and paint it, and see it, and see it every day, and it's like a reminder for me like how lucky I am to be here.”
I can't wait to go back to the Philippines and start like different 12 different styles of people that are living on the streets. It's either like children playing on the streets or a Lola sitting on the street or like anything like someone carrying like the taho thing you know, those kind of stuff. So that's why I called my 12 series like 12 different scenarios of lifestyle in the Philippines.
Kaitlin Milliken: And are you looking to focus on like your hometown or any specific geography? I know that you said you're going back I don't know to where.
Fatima Lacanlale: Definitely most likely Pampanga but for sure, when we go to Manila, go to the Divisoria. Like maybe I would like capture some of those stuff or go to Subic which is like super close to Pampanga, or maybe in Boracay. So I feel like, whatever I go to the Philippines, that's what I would capture. I mean, something that is super capturing that would really resonate. It's very compelling. I will not say dramatic, but something that would break your heart just looking at the picture.
Kaitlin Milliken: So this is my final question for you. Do you have any advice for like Filipinos or Filipino Americans that are looking to move to Boston on how they can make it feel like their home?
Fatima Lacanlale: I mean, from my experience, I know, so it's a big city, so. But don't be afraid of new opportunities. You know, since you don't have probably don't have any family in town, treat your new friends and co-workers as your family. And remember, you can call your family anytime. So I think that would be the best thing I can do. Other than that start following people on Instagram, I started following you, the BOSFilipinos, everyone like who's cooking here, like just to find the community here and this where I found you.
Kaitlin Milliken: Great. Well, I think that's a great note to end on. Thank you so much Fatima for your time.
Fatima Lacanlale: Of course. Thanks for having me.
[MUSIC]
Kaitlin Milliken: This has been the BOSFilipinos Podcast. I'm your host, Kaitlin Milliken. Music for our show was made by Matt Garamella. Special thanks to Fatima for joining us. If you liked this episode of our show, you can subscribe to the BOSFilipinos Podcast on your streaming platform of choice. You can also follow us on Instagram, @bosfilipinos, to stay connected. If you have ideas of what we should cover, you can let us know at bosfilipinos.com. Thanks for listening and see you soon.
Josee on Life as a First-Gen Graduate and Young Professional
When she was growing up, Josee Matela would tell her family that she spoke eight languages. That included, English, Filipino, and Boston. She grew up wanting to go to college in Boston, and achieved those dreams by attending BU as a first-generation student.
Now, Josee is a postgraduate, young professional living and working in digital marketing. In this episode of the BOSFilipinos Podcast, she shares her experience as a first-generation student, young professional, and Filipino-American.
Listen to the full conversation below, or subscribe to our show on Apple Podcast, Google Play, Stitcher, and Spotify.
Transcript
[MUSIC]
Kaitlin Milliken: Hello, and welcome to the BOSFilipinos Podcast. I'm your host, Kaitlin Milliken, and this show is obviously made by BOSFilipinos.
In each episode of our podcast, we highlight a different aspect of Filipino life in the Greater Boston area. So today we’ll be profiling a member of that community: Josee Matela. Josee is a woman of many talents. She’s a Community and Special Projects Manager at FinTech Sandbox and a digital marketing specialist for Surround Insurance. And on top of that, she’s the founder of her own marketing consulting business Matelamade LLC.
She and I actually met in college, when we overlapped during our time at Boston University. We worked at the university’s television station. Josee wrapped up her time at BU in May of 2020 as a first-generation college graduate. She created the First Gen Graduated project, which documents her stories and those of other first-generation students who missed out on their 2020 graduation ceremonies.
During our conversation Josee and I discussed her professional life, her experience as a first-gen student at BU, and her relationship with culture.
Thanks so much, Josee for being here today.
Josee Matela: So glad to be here. Thanks for having me, Katie.
Kaitlin Milliken: So you've been in Boston for five years. Can you talk a little bit about what brought you to the area? And what that transition to being in Massachusetts was like?
Josee Matela: Absolutely. So when I was a little kid — we're gonna start with one of those stories — I would tell my family that I spoke eight different languages, including English, Filipino Spanish, and one of them was actually Boston. Now, I will say that I was neither fluent in any of the languages except for English. But when I would talk to my family, I said, “Oh, I know how to speak Boston.” And that meant I could park the car in Harvard Yard, imagine a three-year-old Filipino girl saying that my love for Boston started out when I was really young. So my aunt, who I'm very close with, she went to BU for her undergrad and went to Tufts for her grad school.
And Boston was this mystical land of her adventures and her heart and her younger years that I fell in love with. And while she was up here, she ended up meeting my uncle who lived in Watertown. And they would always tell me stories about their times up in Boston, and my uncle's family's still here. And so it was just always this affinity for the city knowing that I had such a family history there. And that was kind of really cool for me.
And then I also would always say that I would go to Boston University when I was younger, and I didn't know college nor higher education. And I could barely read at a fifth grade level. But I thought that being the five-year-old with my dreams, and my hopes, I would walk around in my BU sweatshirt, and tell everyone I was going there. And I'm sure they were very believing of what I would be doing. But hey, I made it happen. So yeah, I mean, I've always wanted to be in Boston, I grew up loving the Boston sports teams, genuinely. I just thought of it as this next step, this new place where I could pursue the things I was passionate about, move away from home, but also find a place that was somewhat familiar, because of all the times I'd been there and heard stories about it.
So I went to be for my undergrad, I finished my degrees in journalism and international relations. And in the meantime, with the pandemic going on, I thought, “What better place to get my footing start out in Boston?” I think I'm ready for the next step to see where it'll lead me. But I know that Boston will always be that home for me.
Kaitlin Milliken: I want to talk a little bit about the First Gen Graduates project that you sort of launched and your experience as a first-gen college student. Can you talk a little bit about what that project is and what inspired you to do that?
Josee Matela: Absolutely. So I am a first-generation American, my mother's from the Philippines. So is my father, but I was raised by a single mother and the village that helped raise me as we all know, Filipinos, you always take care of your kind which is really cool. I'm grateful for the extended family, but actually they turned into a big melting pot. I say I grew up with five moms, two dads.
And so I was really cautious and worried when I was applying for colleges as a high school student. Because I was low-income, I was first-gen, I was not sure about where I wanted to go. And I knew that I really needed a good financial aid package, because we all know college is really expensive. And after a few months, and some programs, thankfully, I was like, “You know, this is something I want to do.”
And when I got to college, it was scary. It was daunting, it was an environment that I wasn't used to. But I felt primed for because you know, when you are so excited to be somewhere, and just grateful to be there in the first place that I think that helps to propel you and kind of erase some of the fear that you have. I did have a lot of imposter syndrome, I did feel like there were points where I didn't fit in with my peers, whether that be from an income level, whether that be from an experience level, like everyone was talking about their summers and Europe and I'd never left the country.
I wanted to start First Gen Grads because it was an opportunity to really celebrate the first-gens who are graduating college in 2020. It's a pandemic, a lot of people aren't having graduation ceremonies, that ceremonial walk across the stage that us, our families, our communities were really looking forward to kind of left for the wayside — all for really good reasons. So you know, it's not an anger that it had to happen but more of a disappointment in some ways. You wish that you would have that chance to walk across the stage to have your family come see you.
Kaitlin Milliken: Right, there's a little bit of grieving over that loss of the experience. I understand that I feel like a lot of people understand that in different ways this year, but college students who were set to graduate and high school students were set to graduate especially.
Josee Matela: Even though there is a pandemic, that doesn't diminish the work that they've done throughout their whole careers, their lives, the things their parents sacrificed, the things that they had to make. So I started a little project just to highlight some of the stories. And as a journalism grad, thankfully, I had done a lot of writing before. So it was just writing little vignettes of a few different people. And it was a really enlightening experience. And I think that it was something I really cherished and was amazing getting to hear these stories. I genuinely wish I had the bandwidth to continue it more. But I also know that it was a really tough summer.
And I had to take a step back, kind of just be very grateful for the opportunity to see what I had done and, you know, hope that what I did put out there was something that could inspire other fresh ends entering college, high school students, or even people who are in college now trying to see what's possible down the line.
Kaitlin Milliken: Yeah, definitely. That's really great. A good way to celebrate things when celebration feels like it's in short order, but it's more important than ever. So you are a marketing professional. And I know, recently you started a new job, a first post grad job. During that job search period you founded Matela Made. Can you talk about what that is and why you launched your own hustle?
Josee Matela: I mean, if you're a millennial, if you're Gen Z, I'm the older version of Gen Z, it seems like we are in #hustlemode. The typical salary jobs that people had grown accustomed to in older generations, the “I could pay for college with my summer job situation” is not our cup of tea, nor is it reality now. So I think we're finding a new evolution of the worker of passion. And for me, I think that's the biggest thing. It's realizing that a lot of people are out here pursuing their passions, whether that be you work a nine-to-five, and then you have a side hustle. Whether it be “Oh my gosh, my side hustle is picking up, I can turn it into my full time job.”
And for me, I kind of wanted to be in the mindset that I couldn't wait for opportunities to happen. I kind of had to make it happen myself. And so for me, I wanted to start this small business as a way to one, fulfill that quote unquote, “American Dream” and start doing the things that I wanted to do that I was passionate about that I knew, thankfully, could help me put food on the table, pay my rent. And it's definitely a learning experience coming from a background that's not specifically marketing. But thankfully, I've had some PR, marketing experience through different internships. And I want to really trust myself to go ahead and start a small business and start onboarding clients and creating really cool things because it's what I think I've been training to do and what I feel really passionate about.
Kaitlin Milliken: So you mentioned earlier that sort of your Filipino family, being a Filipino American shaped your decisions in college or just experience as a first-generation college student. How has being Filipino shaped the next step of your young life as a person who's no longer in school or like a young professional living in Boston?
Josee Matela: My mom left her home country, her little city of Alangalang Leyte, to come to the US to pursue her dreams, and so did my aunt. Wherever your next step lies, there's always this opportunity to just reach for it and go for it, even if it's absolutely scary and as daunting as moving halfway across the world.
And another thing with that, is something that my Nina told me, which is “they can take away your money, they can take away your goods, your home, your assets, however it is, but the one thing they can't take away from you is your education.” And that was a really big motivator throughout high school throughout college, especially because I grew up in a low income household where there wasn't much to go around. So for me, this was a really crazy opportunity to be in Boston, and to be running with the big guys and doing my own thing and learning every day. And in my experience, and from what I know and see in my family and my Filipino community that I was raised in. There is this sense of hard working. There's a sense of grit. There is this sense of, we don't take anything for granted. We are so lucky for every day that passes, and we are here to run at it with open arms and just to tackle it as we need to. And there is not a sense of pride in terms of boastfulness, rather, it's this “we know what our family has gone through what our ancestors have done, all the sacrifices that have happened.” And we let that sort of lead our mindset, not to take anything for granted, not to assume that anything is something that you just automatically deserve, but rather something that you are pushing for and finding joy and hope and wisdom through and.
Kaitlin Milliken: Like community and connection.
Josee Matela: Every generation there is a new form of evolution, there's a new form of who each generation is, and you can tell them with, like your lolos and lolas, and you can tell it what your ates and you can tell it with your aunties and how everyone seems to change as people start to experience new things as people start to be raised in different societies, if you will. And the biggest thing for me was also finding the ways that made me unique from or our generation unique from our parents generations or the generations before that, where even though there may be a difference in some values, or some sort of traditions that have been passed on, there's the same overlying theme of, paving your own way. Of finding community and finding joy in even the smallest things and really taking our Filipino heritage, our Filipino character and applying it where we want.
Kaitlin Milliken: Great and I think that's a perfect note to end on. Thank you so much Josee for your time.
Josee Matela: Thanks for having me sending all of my love to the kapamilya.
[Music]
Kaitlin Milliken: This has been the BOSFilipinos Podcast. I'm your host, Kaitlin Milliken. Music for our show was made by Matt Garamella. Special thanks to Josee for joining us. You can follow Josee on instagram at @matelamadellc. That’s Matela with one L. If you liked this episode of our show, you can subscribe to the BOSFilipinos Podcast on your streaming platform of choice. You can also follow us on Instagram, @bosfilipinos, to stay connected. If you have ideas of what we should cover, you can let us know at bosfilipinos.com. Thanks for listening and see you soon.
Marc Anthony Lujares on Running a Small Business, and How to Look Your Best
By Kaitlin Milliken
In 2020, getting a haircut feels like a luxury. Filipino-American small business owner Marc Anthony Lujares can help. This year, Marc launched a business where he gives mobile haircuts and style consultations in the Greater Boston Area.
Marc is a personal image concierge, giving haircuts and style consultations to help men look their best. In this episode of the BOSFilipinos Podcast, Marc shares how he pivoted into the fashion game and tips for developing your own personal style. He also discusses his experience growing up as a Filipino-American in Greater Boston.
Listen to the full conversation below, or subscribe to our show on Apple Podcast, Google Play, Stitcher, and Spotify.
Transcript
[MUSIC]
Kaitlin Milliken: Hello, and welcome to the BOSFilipinos Podcast. I'm your host, Kaitlin Milliken, and this show is obviously made by BOSFilipinos.
In each episode of our podcast, we highlight a different aspect of Filipino life in the Greater Boston area. So today we’ll be profiling a member of that community: Marc Anthony Lujares. Marc is a personal image concierge that focuses on men’s fashion. He also runs a mobile barber operation that can help you or the guy in your life look put together for the holidays — and everyday.
During our conversation Marc and I discussed how he pivoted into the fashion game and tips for developing your own personal style. We also talked about his experience growing up as a Filipino-American in Greater Boston.
Thanks so much, Marc for being here.
Marc Anthony Lujares: Oh, happy to be here. Thank you for having me.
Kaitlin Milliken: Absolutely. When we connected through Instagram, I saw that your profile says that you are a personal image concierge. I've never heard that term before. But I'd love it if you could explain what that means for our audience.
Marc Anthony Lujares: When I think of the word like concierge, there's a couple of words that come to mind. Above and beyond customer service, sort of like being like, someone's right hand person or running errands for someone. So for me, when I came up with that term, personal image concierge, it really pertains to a guy's personal image in themselves and whatever that I can do to help elevate their image, in turn elevating their confidence in themselves and how they're perceived to the world.
Kaitlin Milliken: Let's talk a little bit about how you've launched your business. You told me earlier that you started at the beginning of the pandemic, why were you inspired to create your business? And what was the process of starting it like?
Marc Anthony Lujares: There's a lot of uncertainty in the beginning of the pandemic. So for me, I'd always want to start my own business. And my thing is always wanting to help people. Since people are afraid to go out there, be in public places, even though there are these guidelines and restrictions — my thing was to help guys look their best. Despite the pandemic as long as we're operating in a safe way. But to help guys improve their image. I found that it's been pretty helpful for a lot of guys and families in general with younger kids. They're going to start school and they want to look their best. And I figured it would be a helpful service for many families, and for guys in general.
Kaitlin Milliken: Right now your services are mobile, and you have a van and you're driving out and you're giving haircuts and doing your consultations that way. Was the original vision to be mobile, or did you pivot to go mobile?
Marc Anthony Lujares: My original thought was to be able to bring the service to them. It's like a nice treat for yourself, if someone was to come to you, as opposed to you go there. In reality, to go get a haircut for most guys, it almost like drains two to three hours, sometimes. You get there. Sometimes you're waiting. And then you could be waiting up to an hour, and then you get the actual haircut, and then you go home. And a lot of times that can be so time consuming. So my thought was to just go to each client, if they are looking to get a service like a haircut.
Kaitlin Milliken: Great. And of course, I'm sure that you're a pro at all of the safety measures that have to happen, but what are you doing? And how do you keep both yourself and your clients safe when you're doing these consultations?
Marc Anthony Lujares: So initially, what people do is they contact me letting me know that they're interested in getting a service. And for me safety is really important. Like I'll ask them, have you traveled outside of the state in the last two weeks? Have you felt any symptoms that's related or correlated with COVID-19? When I go to your home, I just ask that you are wearing a mask and before I even enter the home I'll do a non-contact temperature to see if you are anywhere near triple digit temperature. So once that's settled, and they agree with that, I enter the home or a lot of times it's like in their outdoor space, if it's like a really nice day. I'll wear a mask and divisor and gloves as well, to make sure that they feel safe when I'm performing the service.
Kaitlin Milliken: So do you have any stories from working with any of your clients that you would like to share?
Marc Anthony Lujares: When I go to people's homes, you’re entering an intimate space. This is their life. You meet family members. Kids are awesome. They call me “the haircut man” when I come in. It's kind of funny. Yeah, one of the things that happened to me that really stuck out to me was when this little boy after I had given him a haircut. He waved goodbye to me like, “Bye, haircut man,” and I was really touched by that. I felt kind of like a superhero at that point when he said haircut man.
Kaitlin Milliken: I want to ask a question. There might be folks who, you know, we're all in our homes. We've been staring at ourselves in the mirror. Maybe we want to come out of quarantine looking extra fresh and stylish. Do you have any tips for audience members, or the guys who are out there listening about what you can do to keep a stylish personal image?
Marc Anthony Lujares: To keep it simple, honestly, like when you're wearing clothing, proportions are really important. Like, if you have broad shoulders, sometimes it's good to be able to accentuate that. Obviously, playing with proportion is important. And if you want to show some of your personality, a lot of times people will show their personality through their favorite article of clothing that kind of gives them their signature look. Honestly if you feel confident, and wearing a cardigan all the time, that's like your look, and people will resonate with that. Kind of like Mr. Rogers like, to me, that guy is one of the flyest guys I have ever seen in a neighborhood. But yeah, proportion is key. And being able to show your personality through your clothing, really sell it, because when you're happy in how you look the rest of the world sees that too. They see it in your face, and it should all draw attention to your face. And that comes with the hairstyle too.
Kaitlin Milliken: I know that our folks are listening, but we're on zoom, I can see that you've got like a blazer and like, I don't know what you call the handkerchief that comes out of the blazer pocket?
Marc Anthony Lujares: Oh, the pocket square.
Kaitlin Milliken: Yes, yes. What influenced your personal style?
Marc Anthony Lujares: I actually grew up in the South Shore. So there weren't that many Filipinos, where I grew up. I was probably one of the only like, colored/Asian person in a lot of my classes. As a kid, you stand out, but you kind of have to be mindful of how you are when you interact with other people. So style has always been something that has, in a way, spoken for me as far as like, “Oh, that guy has a general sense of style.” I felt like when I wore something that I felt comfortable and confident and a lot of people will start to talk to me and get to know me a little bit more.
And a lot of the time to, like music has inspired me as well. I remember, actually, in high school, just because of the way that I dressed someone had thought that I would become like a music producer or something. That was when like, Kanye West first came on the scene and he started wearing pink polos. I kind of followed suit in that same era and started wearing pink with confidence. And people were like, “I like that.”
Kaitlin Milliken: We always love the bold choices, like the bold choices make it work.
Marc Anthony Lujares: Absolutely. When you go bold, people notice. And when you get that recognition for going bold, people, they give you props.
Kaitlin Milliken: Have you been a part of the like, fashion hair scene here for your entire career? Or did you pivot into it from something else?
Marc Anthony Lujares: I pivoted into it, because I'm even throughout school, I've always been just kind of reading up on blogs and following certain figures who style I appreciate a lot. Being first generation Filipino, going into that field isn't something that's like really… It's perceived to your parents is like, it's not going to pay a lot of money or you know, whatever. So for me, I kind of slowly got into it.
Initially, when I was in school, I started health science courses. So I the route was to be a physical therapist. But, for me, it was just like, “Oh, let me just do something that will make my parents happy. But I'm okay with.” The fashion part had always been a part of me that I'd always done all the time, and I didn't really realize it until much later on.
Fashion has always been like my guide to do the things that I love to do, until I eventually fall into something that's like, perfect for me. So I had always been cutting hair throughout high school, which I didn't even realize that until I was much older that I had always been cutting hair. Whenever I give someone a haircut, I make them feel really good about themselves. And they look to me as being the professional and giving them the advice that's suitable for each person. And that will really highlight the best qualities of themselves.
Kaitlin Milliken: And I know that you mentioned a few times how being Filipino and growing up in Boston as a Filipino person has influenced your sense of style, your relationship with your work. Are there other ways that you connect to your Filipino identity that you want to talk about on the show?
Marc Anthony Lujares: The Filipino community in Boston. It's quite small, and it's spread out as well. So I would say, even though it's a small community, I always have contact with my friends who are Filipino. It's almost like a daily interaction. So some of the things that we go through, we share common things. Especially food, we always have food, what restaurants are out there. My sister is a chef at Myers and Chang in the South End, so food is a constant conversation that still connects to my identity.
Kaitlin Milliken: We are at our final question of the interview. There might be folks who want to get a haircut, book an appointment with you. What's the way to do that?
Marc Anthony Lujares: Yeah, absolutely. I mean, right now, it's pretty much like word of mouth or if you send me a personal message on Instagram. It's talcum and tonic, talcum_and_tonic. You can send me a message, or you can send me a text or call me. It's 617-942-1343.
Kaitlin Milliken: Let's all hope that folks get in touch with you and get really fashionable around the holidays. And thank you so much mark for joining us today.
Marc Anthony Lujares: Oh, no problem is a pleasure to be on the podcast.
[Outro]
Kaitlin Milliken: This has been the BOSFilipinos Podcast. I'm your host, Kaitlin Milliken. Music for our show was made by Matt Garamella. Special thanks to Marc for joining us. You can follow Marc on instagram at talcum-underscore-and-underscore-tonic. You can DM him to book an appointment or call 617-942-1343 to set up at time. If you liked this episode of our show, you can subscribe to the BOSFilipinos Podcast on your streaming platform of choice. You can also follow us on Instagram, @bosfilipinos, to stay connected. Holiday season is officially upon us! So stay safe and let us know how you’ll be celebrating this year. And if you have ideas of what we should cover, you can let us know at bosfilipinos.com. Thanks for listening and see you soon.
Katherine Choi on Speech-Language Pathology
by Kaitlin Milliken
When it comes to her job, Katherine Choi says she feels most fulfilled when she helps her students communicate their wants and needs. That could be asking for a snack, or their iPad, or sharing their feelings with a loved-one.
Katherine is a speech-language pathologist, who aids people with speech or swallowing disorders. After getting her undergraduate degree from the University of Massachusetts Amherst, Katherine continued to pursue the field in a Master’s program at Worcester State University. Today, Katherine is a practicing clinician at a school for special needs students.
In this episode of the BOSFilipinos Podcast, Katherine shares the different ways she works with her students. She also discusses remote teaching in 2020, the factors that led her down this career path, and her life outside the classroom.
Listen to the full conversation below, or subscribe to our show on Apple Podcast, Google Play, Stitcher, and Spotify.
Transcript
[MUSIC]
Kaitlin Milliken: Hello, and welcome to the BOSFilipinos Podcast. I'm your host, Kaitlin Milliken, and this show is obviously made by BOSFilipinos.
In each episode of our podcast, we highlight a different aspect of Filipino life in the Greater Boston area. So today we’ll be profiling a member of that community: Katherine Choi. Katherine is a speech-language pathologist who lives in Malden.
If you’re like me maybe you don’t know much about speech-language pathology. Or anything. At all. Well it’s time for a quick definition. Speech-language pathology deals with a wide range of speech and swallowing disorders that affect people. According to the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association that includes speech disorders, like stuttering, language disorders, like trouble sharing thoughts or ideas, or swallowing disorders caused by an injury — just to name a few.
Thank you so much, Catherine, for being on our show.
Katherine Choi: Of course, thanks for having me.
Kaitlin Milliken: Yeah, so I don't actually know very much about speech-language pathology. And I'm sure that some of our listeners, this may be a totally new field to them as well. Can you explain what that is for people who may not have heard the term until now?
Katherine Choi: Yeah, of course. So you're not the only one. And it actually even people that think they know what speech-pathology is don't necessarily know all the time, because it's such a wide field, which is kind of what attracted me to it. So it's about preventing, assessing, diagnosing, and treating, and all that goes into speech disorders, language disorders, social communication disorders, cognitive communication disorders, and swallowing disorders for children and adults. So it's really kind of all over the place. But it makes it interesting. And you can kind of, typically you'll find one avenue and you'll perfect those skills, but you're not really closed off to anything else. If down the line, your degree will still allow you to go into different areas of the field.
Kaitlin Milliken: Yeah. And since it is such a large field, is there a particular part of that field that you specialized in or are most passionate about?
Katherine Choi: Yeah, so before I got into my master's program, I was actually a speech assistant, at a school for students with autism. So that really, I was there for over six years. And I think that's really my expertise as of now. And that's similar to the field, the school that I'm in right now is also similar. I'm working with a similar population. So a lot of working on helping these students with severe special needs, learn to communicate, and really build up their language and vocabulary. And even within that, I really want to specialize in AAC, which is Augmentative Alternative Communication. So really helping my students who don't have natural speech, use iPads or designated devices to help them communicate their wants and needs.
Kaitlin Milliken: So you mentioned that you're currently working in a school and you were working in a school before that. Just on an average day, what type of things are you doing with the students you work with?
Katherine Choi: So it really depends on the student and my ages right now are between like second grade and fifth grade. And even within that, there's a lot of variation. So with one student, maybe I'm working on requesting, so I'm giving them a couple choices, and I'm having them say, “I want iPad,” or “I want Cheese-It,” so there's that end, and then there's other students I'm working on pronouns. So maybe I'll show them a picture or a video and ask them, “Alright, like, Who is it? What are they doing?” And we'll kind of work on building up their vocabulary, their grammar and their utterances. So maybe right now they can say, “Run,” and we want them to say, “The boy is running or he is running.”
Kaitlin Milliken: So when it comes to the students that you're working with, I know that there was probably a period of time where you were doing this work and it was remote. Are you still remote? Or are you going in? And does that change the way that you do your work?
Katherine Choi: So right now, I am doing a hybrid model. My school is doing a hybrid model. So I spend Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday mornings in-person, and then all the afternoons and Wednesday all day, I will be remote. And that's funny that you asked that because it's kind of something that's a little bit stressful, especially as a beginning clinician, because I'm not just making materials for my in-person sessions, the same students I'm seeing remotely. And it's a whole other set of activities and materials that I'm kind of having to curate and put together. So it's, it's definitely a little bit different.
Kaitlin Milliken: And when you're doing that type of work, especially when you're at home, is it one to one on Zoom? Or is it like more of a one to many type of situation where everyone's in gallery mode? What's that like?
Katherine Choi: Because of the population that I'm working with, most of my sessions are one to one in person and remote. All of my remote sessions are one to one. But actually, because a lot of my students need that extra support, it's my student and their parent or guardian with them really helping facilitate this session.
Kaitlin Milliken: I also want to just ask about what made you choose this field. So when did you decide that becoming a clinician and doing this type of work was for you?
Katherine Choi: I kind of fell into it. It kind of began back when I was entering undergrad undecided and not really knowing where I wanted to be. Growing up, I kind of wanted to be a teacher. I'm the oldest of five. So I feel like I was always that caretaker kind of role. And so that brought me towards speech pathology. And then when I was looking for what I wanted to do, I kind of thought back. Actually, both of my brothers needed speech therapy for speech delays. My sister has a stutter, and she had speech therapy. And actually, my grandfather had a stroke, and he had speech therapy after that. So even within my family, you can really see the range of the different areas that a speech therapist can really help with.
Kaitlin Milliken: Going about your job, what do you find particularly fulfilling about speech-language pathology, and the things that you work on?
Katherine Choi: Throughout my years working at my previous school, I think the biggest thing is when the parents come back to you, and they are so excited about the progress that your students are making, or you're working on this one goal for so long, and then you see this breakthrough, and really just helping my students communicate and get across their wants and needs. Because it's so essential. And I feel like a lot of people take it for granted.
Kaitlin Milliken: I always like to ask about stories, since I think in a lot of ways that helps make the understanding very concrete for people who may not have exposure to this world. Are there any moments that stick out to you in your clinical work with any of your students that you remember and reflect on when you think about the importance of what you're doing?
Katherine Choi: So there actually is one that I remember running home and telling my then boyfriend now husband that. So I had a student, and we had been working on conversation. So just kind of like, back and forth. “Hi, how are you?” “I'm good,” because it's a really hard thing to teach. Especially when I'm trying to prompt. If I'm trying to tell you to tell me to say hi, It can get a little confusing.
And I was working with a student and we were trying to just play and be a little creative. He was kind of in a downtime situation. And I knocked on the door that he was hiding behind and I said, “Hi.” And he just independently said, “Hi.” And I was like “Oh my god.” And I said, “How are you?” He said, “Good, how are you?” And it was just that moment of happiness that all of this time that I had spent, and we had worked together on these goals and to see it come in such a natural situation, I think I still think about that to this day. And just, it works.
Kaitlin Milliken: I didn't ask but I feel like it definitely should have, is there a particular age range that you're working with?
Katherine Choi: So I actually work at a school that's specifically for children, with students with these kinds of special needs. So the whole school gets speech therapy. But so there's actually three of us. So one speech therapist has the younger ages, one has the older ages, and I have the middle. So it's really second grade to fifth grade. But at my previous school, I worked with students from four to 21. So a wide range.
Kaitlin Milliken: What are some of the differences when you're working with a student who might be in that younger elementary school timeframe versus teenagers, early adults?
Katherine Choi: So I think the younger ages, typically, you're just trying to help them develop their basic communication and their basic language skills, but also, because of the nature of the disability, the age doesn't necessarily coincide with their functioning level. So, a lot of it is individualizing it for the student, but to what you're saying is the older kids, you might want to focus more on functional skills as far as having a job.
So at my previous school, we did a lot with prepping our students to go out into the community and work at a local grocery store or the mini-put down the street. And so if I was the speech pathologist for that case, I would be helping them to work on the vocab that's gonna apply to that. So the put-put, or the shovel that you're going to use to dig the rocks next to the put-put, and stuff like that.
Kaitlin Milliken: I'm going to pivot a little bit. I always ask folks about their lives outside of work just as we try and do a more holistic profile. So when you're not doing clinical work, what can be found doing in those other parts of your life?
Katherine Choi: I love hiking and being outside, especially in the current times when maybe other activities are not as accessible. And just spending time with family and friends and going to the drive-in or just hanging out grilling, I when the Patriots were having people in their stands, my husband and I would go to a lot of Patriots games and do the tailgating or stuff like that.
Kaitlin Milliken: Very nice. And obviously, you're Filipino American living in Massachusetts, sort of like the requirements to be on the show, I guess. We always ask people about their cultural experiences and their cultural identity. Can you talk a little bit about how you connect to your culture?
Katherine Choi: So my mom came over from the Philippines in the 80s. And she came over it at the time, I think a lot of Filipino nurses were coming over together to work. And she worked at a hospital called Jewish Memorial Hospital in Boston, and they actually had dorms specifically for the nurses to stay in. And I feel like that really helped my mom to make a lot of friends and really have a great support system. She's friends with a lot of those nurses still today.
And so I feel like that kind of led to as I was growing up, we would go to a lot of the Filipino parties and get all that great Filipino food and line dancing and all of that. So I feel like I'm really blessed in that way that we were able to grow up that way. Since my mom's a nurse, she's involved with a lot of the PNAANE. So Philippine Nurses Association of New England. She's actually up for President Elect. But so I feel like that has also led to... They would have events and my family would attend those events. So I feel like it's been a great way to really keep all of that culture right at our fingertips.
My family helps put together the Santa Niño festival at my church every year. So we help. We bring in the Filipino choir, and there's lots of Filipino food and Filipino dancers. And on a more personal note, I really try my best to really support any Filipino businesses that I can. If you saw my Instagram, you see that I'm following all of these Filipino groups. And I think it's really important to support the culture that we want to be around for everyone.
And I try to go back to the Philippines as much as I can too. I was there actually, right before all this craziness happened. So I saw my grandparents.
Kaitlin Milliken: Where is your family in the Philippines from? Where do you go when you visit?
Katherine Choi: So my mom grew up in Manila. But my family right now is in Marikina. So, Metro Manila.
Kaitlin Milliken: I think it's really interesting. I know a lot of folks who are Filipino, my family included, grow up in this healthcare setting. My grandma's a nurse, all of her sisters are either nurses or work in the hospital doing something adjacent to nursing. Do you think that that health care, more health leaning element influenced your decision to go into clinical work at all?
Katherine Choi: I think it definitely did. I thought about being a nurse way back when but I couldn't do the blood or the needles. But I think the fact that speech pathology does have that avenue to go into being a swallowing specialist and working with rehab facilities and stuff like that. I think it really helped push me in that direction.
Kaitlin Milliken: What's something that you wish everyone knew about the work that you do in speech-language pathology, that they may not know, like, something you want to stick in their minds after this podcast is over?
Katherine Choi: So as far as someone that wants to be in this field, when you're applying to grad schools, it can be really discouraging. I actually, when I was in my undergrad program, someone told me, my advisor told me that this isn’t the field for me, and that I should quit. So really, if someone is looking to get into this field, and they really want to help people don't get discouraged, and take the time to be a speech assistant, or whatever you need to if this is really where you want to help people, I think that you should just keep going and keep trying.
In general, especially in the political climate, there's a lot of talk about Joe Biden and his stutter. And I think that that is really important for people to know that he does have a stutter, and that he is doing amazing things, and that he should really be supported and people with stutters should really be supported, because it's not an easy thing.
Kaitlin Milliken: So when you were mentioning your advisor and them discouraging you from going in and getting your master's in this field, what were their reasons behind that?
Katherine Choi: So a lot of the graduate programs have really high GPA requirements. So I think the average across the field is probably a 3.8. And in undergrad, I wasn't as studious as maybe I should have been, and instead of guiding me towards the speech assistant route, or just kind of kind of helped me in other ways, they were just very not nice and...
Kaitlin Milliken: And a 3.8 is like a super high GPA. That's like very difficult to achieve.
Katherine Choi: And so that's kind of why I wanted to say, to make sure that people don't get discouraged because I'm here and I didn't have that 3.8. And I feel like this is where I was meant to be.
Kaitlin Milliken: I really thought it was interesting that you mentioned stuttering as well. I think that something that isn't necessarily understood unless someone researched it. You know, you might think that it's like... I'm trying to think about how to explain what I thought it was before learning about what it actually was...
Katherine Choi: Like many disorders, it's not the same for every person. So there are people that stutter, and they repeat the same syllable multiple times. But then even that same person, if they are familiar with a word that they know, they typically stutter on, a sound they typically stutter on, then maybe they're stopping and trying to think about what other word can I use to replace that word and trying to figure out if they learn different strategies about how to kind of take a breath and try to relax because a lot of the strategies that we teach people during stuttering therapy is relaxing and making sure that you are using your strategies, taking your breath. And a lot of people yeah, they just think that it's repeating a syllable a couple of times, and there's a lot more to it. And I encourage people to do the research and to make sure that they're informed about that before they make judgments.
Kaitlin Milliken: Thank you so much Katherine for taking the time to join us today.
[MUSIC]
Kaitlin Milliken: This has been the BOSFilipinos Podcast. I'm your host, Kaitlin Milliken. Music for our show was made by Matt Garamella. Special thanks to Katherine for joining us and sharing her work. If you liked this episode of our show, you can subscribe to the BOSFilipinos Podcast on your streaming platform of choice. You can also follow us on Instagram, @bosfilipinos, to stay connected. Holiday season is officially upon us! So stay safe and let us know how you’ll be celebrating this year. And if you have ideas of what we should cover, you can let us know at bosfilipinos.com. Thanks for listening and see you soon.
Building a Bahay Kubo in Massachusetts
By Hyacinth Empinado
As a certified millennial, I’m obsessed with plants. I have over 50 plants scattered all around my home, not to mention the few cuttings I’m helicopter-parenting. But I’ve only acquired my first Filipino plant a few months ago — a calamansi tree. My friend gave it to me as a housewarming present after years of hearing me fawn over it every time we visited the local garden center.
This little tree has gotten me thinking about the plants we had back in Cebu and my mom’s garden in Florida. Growing up, I’d catch snippets of my mom talking to my aunt about how to propagate a certain plant or what fertilizer to use. Now as an adult living in the US, I find myself having the same conversation with my mom and sister. Even though we live hundreds of miles away from each other — my mom and sister live in Florida, while I live in Massachusetts — sharing tips and plant updates has drawn us closer.
My lemonsito (calamansi) tree
Kamunggay is life
Our garden in Cebu was filled with flowering shrubs, fruit trees, wandering vines that nourished delicious tubers like ube and yams, and of course, kamunggay (malunggay in Tagalog). Kamunggay is a staple tree in many Cebuano homes because it’s used to make Utan Bisaya, a healthy and comforting vegetable soup that’s tinged slightly green by the kamunggay leaves.
Now that we’ve moved to the United States, my mom has turned acquiring Filipino plants into somewhat of a sport. When we first got to Florida, she had to get her hands on kamunggay, so she can make utan. I remember going into the yards of neighborhood Filipinos (with their permission) and plucking so many fronds that I’m surprised that the tree still had any leaves after we finished.
Lemonsito (calamansi) from my mom’s garden.
More than a decade later, my mom not only has acquired her own kamunggay, but has grown her Filipino plant collection so much that her Florida garden looks like it’s been imported from the Philippines. It’s home to lemonsito (calamansi), tangad (lemongrass), agbati (spinach), ube, camote (sweet potato), papaya and so much more, not to mention all the other more “trendy” plants like fiddleleaf figs that are as tall as her ceiling. She recently texted me a photo of sigarilyas from her garden. All I know about this vegetable is that it’s mentioned in the popular folk song “Bahay Kubo,” which is totally #goals. It goes something like this:
Bahay kubo, (Nipa hut)
Kahit munti, (Even though it’s small)
Ang halaman doon,
Ay sari-sari, (It’s surrounded by a variety of plants.)
Singkamas at talong, (Jicama and eggplant)
Sigarilyas at mani… (Sigarilyas and nuts)
(It goes on and on naming other vegetables. And for those of you who are wondering, no, ube is not mentioned.)
My mom’s sigarilyas.
Building my bahay kubo
My mom’s Florida house feels like our Cebu home, not just because she and my sister are there, but also because being surrounded by the plants we had in Cebu takes me back to my figurative roots.
My mom is now helping me build my own plant collection. When I visit my family in Florida for Christmas, she packs baon for me to take on the plane. Now, on top of ham, rolls of embutido (Filipino-style meatloaf) or leftover lechon, I get several plant babies, which she lovingly detaches and/or prunes from her own plants and wraps in paper towels and cling wrap. Sometimes she packs it in colorful tissue paper for a festive touch. The rest of the year, we constantly text each other with plant updates and Facetime to see how our plants are doing.
I haven’t asked her for kamunggay yet, but now I’m thinking that I should to make my indoor garden more like my Cebuano home. In the meantime, I’m taking care of my little calamansi and hoping that it somehow survives the winter and bears fruit next year. If anyone knows about how to take care of kamunggay or calamansi trees in MA, hit me up!
Embracing My Filipino Identity
by Kaitlin Milliken
Reflecting on my childhood, I always remember family parties with fondness. My grandma had immigrated to the US in the 70s. Her six siblings followed along. Eventually her brother and sister had children. Then, those children had children. And, by the time I was born, our family was a large clan of Bay Area Filipinos with whom I passed every major occasion of my life.
My grandma had also successfully petitioned for her parents — my Nanay and Tatay — to immigrate to the US. I have very vague memories of our family’s matriarch and patriarch before their passing, but one sticks out vividly in my mind.
I was in early elementary school at another birthday party that an aunt was hosting at her house in San Jose, California. My Tatay offered his hand to me so I can honor him with mano po, a way to show elders respect. Instead of taking his hand and touching it to my forehead, I went in for a handshake. All American, business casual.
The grownups laughed at the time. I was American-born and didn’t know any better. Even at that young age, I felt like a cultural outsider in my own family. The customs my relatives participated in so fluidly seemed foreign to me. I speak in greater depth about my relationship with culture in the pilot episode of the BOSFilipinos Podcast, but, for so long, I felt as if I wasn’t Filipino enough.
What follows is a quick foray into overcoming that cultural imposter syndrome, and why celebrating Filipino American History Month is a crucial step in understanding my racial identity.
My extended family celebrating my mom’s 50th birthday and my dad’s retirement in 2019.
Recognizing the Filipino-Side of my Asian Heritage
I often wonder, why did I feel like a cultural interloper? For so long, I attributed that feeling to being mixed race. My dad is half-Japanese, half-generically-white.
Growing up, I was surrounded by people who were Filipino — both in my family and at my mostly-Asian elementary school. When I compared their lives to mine, nothing seemed to line up. My classmates ate sinigang for dinner, and we were more of a shake-and-bake chicken type of household.
Meanwhile, I had no Japanese relatives or friends to benchmark my experience with. My paternal grandmother had passed away, leaving our family without Japanese traditions. Instead of trying to fit in with my classmates, I “picked” to lean into the Japanese side of my identity. I spent my formative years watching anime and listening to early 2010s Jpop. (As an adult, I realize that neither of those things are great gauges of Japanese society and were not to be taken as gospel. But, we all make regrettable choices in our early teens.)
It was only after moving to college that I learned how deeply my Filipino identity had touched me. Most of my friends at Boston University came from White, All-American households. Many didn’t have the close-knit extended families that showed up for every birthday, Christmas, Superbowl, and three day weekend. Karaoke was something to be done at bars, not by drunk uncles singing “Danny Boy” in the living room on the Fourth of July.
Most importantly, I realized that my values stemmed from my Filipino-American upbringing. My grandma and mom always put other people before themselves. They showed their love through sacrifice and generosity. Whatever anyone needed, they provided without any hesitation. The way I express and understand love comes from their examples.
It was in my late teens that I realized that my cultural identity was not a binary, and I was just as Filipino as I was American or Japanese.
Me quarantined at my apartment in Boston, wearing earring from BRWNGRLZ, a Pinay-owned small business.
Embracing What I Know
After graduation, I moved to the East Coast for work, thousands of miles away from my family. I couldn't fly back for every occasion and often found myself homesick. In order to feel closer to them, I started to spend more time nurturing my Filipino-American identity.
I would call my grandma to ask her about where she grew up in metro-Manila, what it was like to go to nursing school in the Philippines, and about how she felt when she first stepped foot in California. My kitchen started to include staples like banana ketchup and fish sauce. Thanks to Google Translate, I was able to try my hand at making the siopao and empanadas so readily available in my hometown.
I also started to look for art that spoke to the Filipino-American experience — from books to film to music. Artists like Ruby Ibarra and Klassy spoke to the immigrant stories that I had been surrounded by in the Bay Area.
And, of course, I volunteered to make a podcast for BOSFilipinos as a way to connect and learn from Filipinos and Filipino-Americans in my new home.
Learning What I Don’t
Understanding what it means to be a Filipino-American has been a journey — one that I will continue for the rest of my life. At age 23, I am just beginning to understand the role that culture plays in how I see the world. I know getting in touch with my roots means more than drumming up some recipes in the kitchen and listening to my grandma’s stories of the motherland.
The next step of understanding my FilAm identity is learning about the history of both Filipino Americans and Filipinos living in the Philippines. It also involves recognizing that people from the Philippines do not have a monolithic culture. Each region has aspects that make it unique. There are also indigineous groups, like Igorots and Aetas, who face unique challenges often because of other Filipinos.
There’s lots of nuance that I don’t yet understand, and I have so much to learn about the complexities of being a Filipino-American. That’s why I’m grateful to have Filipino American History Month as a time to start reflecting. I also know that taking the time to understand history and myself is an attitude that I should carry each day — FAHM and beyond.
Malaka Gharib & Magdalena Dolorico on Art
Art offers one way for people to share their stories and connect. This episode of the BOSFilipinos Podcast features two pinay artists, who share their inspirations and creative journeys.
First, we sit down with Magdalena Dolorico, a 15-year-old artist in Massachusetts. Magdalena shares how she learned to draw and what role her culture plays in her approach to art.
Then, we step outside of the Bay State to hear from Malaka Gharib, an artist based in Nashville. Malaka discusses her graphic novel, I Was Their American Dream. Released in 2019, the comic explores her identity as an Egyptian, Filipino American.
Listen to the full conversation below, or subscribe to our show on Apple Podcast, Google Play, Stitcher, and Spotify.
Transcript
[MUSIC]
Kaitlin Milliken: Hello, and welcome to the BOSFilipinos podcast. I'm your host, Kaitlin Milliken. This show is obviously made by BOSFilipinos.
On this podcast, we highlight a different aspect of Filipino life in the Greater Boston area. Today, we’ll take a deep dive into one form of self expression: art. Drawing, painting, digital art — even just doodling — are all great ways to share stories. Art also brings people together. You might see a painting of someone who looks like you and feel a connection or be reminded of a familiar situation. Maybe they have an opportunity to escape into a fictional world for a few short moments.
In this episode, we’ll sit down with two artists who will talk about their work. First, we’ll chat with Magdalena Dolorico. Magdalena is a young pinay artist living in Massachusetts. She’s 15-years old and a student.
During the conversation, Magdalena talks about how she learned to draw, what inspires her and advice for other young artists.
Thanks so much for joining us today.
Magdalena Dolorico: Thanks so much for having me.
Kaitlin Milliken: So to get our conversation started, I'd love to learn when you started doing art and what you like to draw.
Magdalena Dolorico: So art has always been a thing I've enjoyed. I've always loved to draw. When I was little art class was always my favorite class. What really made me get seriously interested in art is probably seeing my older cousin Celine do art. She's an incredible artist. I first met her when I was like eight or nine, and she came to visit my house. And she brought with her a self portrait she was working on and also some of her materials. And I was really just awe. I saw that and I was really just like, “I want to make something like that.”
As for what type of art I make, it really varies. And it's definitely going to change more, as I do more art. It's definitely been more kind of cartoony stuff. Like, that's what I started out with. But right now I'm really into realistic stuff, like trying to draw faces and realism, that kind of stuff I really love.
A lot of my interest started from reading, because I love to read, and I would draw characters from my books and stuff like that. So that's how it kind of started also.
Kaitlin Milliken: So you mentioned that art class was always your favorite. Did you learn through classes or did you teach yourself?
Magdalena Dolorico: I would really self teach myself, especially when it comes to the realism part, because that wasn't really in any of my art classes. Because like art class as a kid is mostly just like doodling stuff. And I learned a lot from the internet, and watching YouTube videos is really helpful for me.
Kaitlin Milliken: I always love to hear how people are building their skills, what helps you grow the most as an artist?
Magdalena Dolorico: I think just knowing that it's okay to make mistakes and just going for it and giving it a shot and knowing it's not going to be perfect. And then just learning from whatever I take from that experience into what I take into the next experience. It’s what I do when I'm learning something new, and I'm trying to get better. That's always always what I keep in mind.
Kaitlin Milliken: So we always ask questions about culture, because the show is sort of about that. So can you talk a little bit about your relationship with being Filipino?
Magdalena Dolorico: So I'm half Filipina, my mom is Filipina. She was born and raised here. But she's 100 percent Filipina. So I'm half, and my dad is white. It's always been interesting growing up, like being mixed also, just because it’s something I think about all the time. Like, “Do I really count as a Filipina?”
Also, just learning about my culture has been something I really love to do, especially when I visited the Philippines, when I was 12 years old. That really like opening my eyes to so much that I don't know. When I was little, it was something like I was just kind of indifferent about it. I was just like, “Whatever. I'm half Asian, I guess.” [Laughs] But when I first visited there, and I met all these cousins, I never met before, and I tried new foods. I grew up with Filipino foods that my mom would make, but I definitely tried a lot more when I visited there.
That's when I really started getting interested in my culture a lot more, and I tried to teach myself as much as I could about it and asked my mom about all these things that I hadn't asked her about before. It's something that's a really important part of my identity.
Kaitlin Milliken: That's really cool. I also understand how it feels to be half. I'm also half. So my dad is white and Japanese and my mom is full Filipina. So it was always, like, “Where do I fit into that bigger picture?” I totally understand that.
Magdalena Dolorico: And I also think it was a little different here too, because at least where I grew up, where I am growing up, there's really not many Filipinos at all. There's one restaurant all the way out in Quincy. So um, and there's one Filipino market out there. And that's really far away. So, we really didn't get much exposure to that growing up. And it's something that's kind of made me a bit sad before because I felt like I missed out on some things that I would have wanted to know and experience about Filipino culture. And it's also just been a bit weird because there's nobody around me. Especially at my public school, my elementary school, there wasn't a single Filipino there like not one.
There was maybe two Asians there, like that was it. So I didn't know a lot of people who shared my culture. So there was nobody, I can really bond with over it and stuff like that. So it's definitely different from like, growing up with everybody around you.
Kaitlin Milliken: Yeah, it's great that you got to visit I'm sure that that was like a really good experience.
Magdalena Dolorico: It was like life changing.
Kaitlin Milliken: I love that. Does your cultural connection ever play into the art that you make?
Magdalena Dolorico: So I was thinking a lot about that question. It was kind of hard, because if I'm going to be honest, I don't really try anything that relates that much to Filipino culture. I think one thing I thought of is the fact that Filipino culture and Filipino people are just very underrepresented. I wrote my experience being Filipino, and also being mixed, made me understand what that felt like to be, for me and my family to not really have a lot of stories out there that resembled ours. So I think that's made me very aware of that when I'm making my art — to try to make sure I'm including lots of different types of people in my art. Do I have characters with different skin colors and hair types and body types, etc.? I wouldn't want anyone to look at my art and feel like I don't draw people who look like them. So I think being Filipino helped me be more aware of that.
Kaitlin Milliken: Great, thank you so much for taking the time out to chat.
Magdalena Dolorico: Yeah, thank you so much for the opportunity. It was so cool.
[MUSIC]
Kaitlin Milliken: Our next guest, Malaka Gharib, comes to us from outside of the Bay State. Malaka is a Deputy Editor for NPR in Nashville. She’s also an artist, author, and creator of many zines. She released her graphic novel, I Was Their American Dream, in 2019. The comic explores her relationship with her identity as a Filipino, Egyptian American throughout her life. I read the novel in a day, it was so good. And it takes the reader to the many places that shaped Malaka’s life — from Cerritos California, to Syracuse New York, to Washington DC.
During our conversation, Malaka shared her story and why she chose to share it through her art.
Thank you so much, Malaka. I just wanted to see if you could introduce yourself and tell us a little bit about I Was Their American Dream.
Malaka Gharib: Sure. My name is Malaka Gharib. I'm a journalist, a writer and an artist. And the author of I Was Their American Dream, which is a book about the first generation Filipino Egyptian American, and figuring out what my dreams were compared to my family's dreams, and the burdens of being a child of immigrant parents.
Kaitlin Milliken: So what inspired you to begin working on your graphic novel?
Malaka Gharib: So I was inspired to write this in 2016, after I just heard so many one-dimensional views about immigrants in this country, and it made me want to share some of the more nuanced stories of my own family. So there is this idea that immigrants are like clamoring to come into this country. But my mom, for example, never wanted to leave Manila. She was perfectly happy with her job there, but the family was moving. so she had to come and she didn't really want to do that at all.
And my dad is Muslim — Egyptian and Muslim. And we always hear these very common tropes since 911, probably before that, that Muslims are terrorists. And I just thought of my dad as this very harmless man who loved Tom Hanks and gardening. So I tried to course correct those narratives by making these illustrations and those illustrations became the foundation for a book deal, which became I Was Their American Dream.
Kaitlin Milliken: So you talk a lot about your parents in the book, your mom was born in the Philippines, as you mentioned, and your dad in Egypt, what did it feel like balancing both of those cultural identities, especially as you were growing up?
Malaka Gharib: Even though I was a kid, I knew that there was a definite code of conduct that was to be followed when I was around each of my parents. So in Filipino culture, you take off your shoes, when you're in the house. As a kid, you're not too loud, you're not the center of attention, and you tend to be quiet, as a way to show deference. You kiss only on one side of the cheek. You eat with a spoon and fork, and I knew to just do those things in front of my mom.
In front of my dad, I knew that in Arab culture, we kiss on both sides of the cheek. We eat with bread, or fork and knife and not with a spoon and fork. And, you know, even like using the bathroom, my dad used a bidet. So I knew to use bidet at my father's house, and my mom didn't have a bidet. So there's just so many different things that I just picked up as a young person that in mom's house, we do this. In dad's house, we do this. And then there was the American way, which I didn't even... I knew wasn't part of my immediate life because I lived in an immigrant community in Southern California. But I knew that other people, Americans who, I didn't consider myself one, that other people did that, like our family.
Kaitlin Milliken: You mentioned that you grew up in California, and eventually moved to the east coast for school. Did that move, shift your perspective on how you viewed yourself and your relationship with your culture?
Malaka Gharib: When I moved to New York, upstate New York to go to Syracuse, I sort of was suddenly surrounded by many white people who at this point, in my life as an 18-year-old like really saw on television, or movies and books and things like that, but never really had spent much time embedded with a lot of white people. And I fell into a sort of like culture shock. I realized that a lot of things I've learned about what people were just sort of wrong a nd were also like stereotypes.I had this idea for some reason that like, white people were very rich. And that was definitely not the case. I don't know where I had gotten that idea from. I also thought that all of them were like, really hot. And that's not the case as well.
And I was actually sadly disappointed to find that people weren't interested in talking about culture. I feel like in Southern California where I grew up in Cerritos, because there were so many people from ethnic backgrounds, it was very common to ask people, but you were. Because heaven forbid that you get it wrong, that someone was from El Salvador and not… Say, somebody from El Salvador or Mexico or like some say, somebody from Pakistan or India. It was really important in a very diverse place to know those distinctions. Because those distinctions defined you, and they defined your immigrant parents life.
And so, I was actually pretty shocked that nobody asked me what my cultures were. And for the first time in my life, it made me think about, why does that matter? Why does it matter that somebody asked me? And it's because I realized at the time as an 18-year-old, that that was my identity, My Filipino life and my Egyptian life that was how I grew up. And to not be interested in my culture means that you're not really interested in who I am as a person. And they were not trying to understand the full me.
A lot of times I had heard, “Oh, well, I don't see color.” At the time, I didn't know why it made me so frustrated that “I don't see color.” But now in retrospect, after reflecting on it in the book, but when you say that you don't see color, if you're saying that you don't acknowledge these parts of me. And these parts in which I see myself. It's erasure. And it's very confusing at the time.
Kaitlin Milliken: So when you had those experiences, what did you do to sort of process them and connect with your culture when there were so many folks who said they didn't see color or didn't have that type of interest in your background?
Malaka Gharib: I actually didn't, didn't even try. I thought I erased myself further. Before I went to college, my Tito Marro who grew up with me, we lived in the same house with my mom, he told me that the reason that we're sending you to Syracuse, even though it's so expensive, the whole family's pooling money together to send you there, because we want you to learn the way of the American and become like them so that you can succeed in their world. We can’t teach you these things. So you need to take what you can get when you're at Syracuse, at a place that has a lot of white people. Try to dress like them. Try to listen to how they talk, how they communicate, and that will prepare you for the real world.
And at the time, I remember thinking that, “Yes, I think it's stupid.” And I mean, it's sad to say that he couldn't be more, right. And that lack of interest in my culture — that “I don’t see color” — it just sort of further validated that. “Maybe to succeed here in America, I need to make myself as American as possible. I need to pass as much as possible as a white person”. And I think I had known that in high school that I adored, and was obsessed with American culture, which really was shorthand for white culture. At Syracuse, it made me plunge even deeper into that.
I was so busy in my in college in my early-20s, in my mid-20s, trying to succeed as a passing American so that I could succeed in my career and my life, that I didn't think about culture only until I started working on the book, which is in 2016 — very late, that I started. I tried to reconnect again with my roots.
Kaitlin Milliken: So throughout the book, you talk a lot about art, which has been a really important part, it seems like, to connecting with your roots. Can you talk about your relationship with art and what encouraged you or got you started in pursuing that creative passion?
Malaka Gharib: I've been drawing and writing in my journal since I was a little kid. I had a Hello Kitty notebook that Tita Jean gave me for Christmas when I was eight. And that was the beginning of writing in my diary. Every day I would write in my diary. And in American Girl books, the characters are always writing in a diary as well as Harriet the Spy. So I wanted to be like the characters I read in my books. And I would write a lot and draw a lot.
And it turns out, I started making these little magazines. And by the time I was 14, I lived in Los Angeles. So there's a lot of rich culture, and I went to an independent bookshop, Skylight Books, and they had a zine section. I bought a zine. And in that zine — in 1999 — that zine has directions on how to make your own zine. And I started since I was 14, to make my own magazines. I'd always been making things out of paper, since I was very little.
Kaitlin Milliken: I loved how interactive that element of your book is, with cutting things out and instructions, also on how to make your own zine. I thought that was just a really cool addition to get the reader involved in the process as well.
Malaka Gharib: Yeah, I wanted people to enter my world. And the only way that I felt like they could enter my world was to interact with me to make decisions as have I. If I was, you know, a paper doll, what would you do? If you were me in college, what would you wear?
Kaitlin Milliken: So I think one of the really cool things about having that multicultural background is that it exposes you to a lot of values. Are there any values or elements of your Filipino identity that you carry very close to you into today?
Malaka Gharib: I think one of the things that I learned from reading the book is, and this is something that one of my editors, Cat Chow, who is writing her own book right now. She used to work on code switch at NPR, but one of the things I learned is that food is often used as a shorthand for me, a person expressing their culture. But there's so much more about your culture than food. And she encouraged me to dig deeper and think about how my culture manifested itself in me. I think that probably in the things that have been instilled in me by my family is a sense of familial obligation. Putting family first. This is very common in Philippine culture. If your family needs money, you like to give it to them you like without thinking. All the generosity, like the things that are mine are that if you like my shirt, I would literally just take it off myself and give it to you. It's things and money don't mean anything. If you need it. We share it. We share everything together.
I think just like the desire to, I think gusto. You know that word in Tagalog? It’s this idea that this passion for life, it's this passion, this lust for life. Like, when you eat, it's like, “Oh, it's so good!” And like when you, you know, when you're like having a beer like, “Oh, this is so refreshing!” This is ability to enjoy life, I think that I have a lot of gusto. And I think that's something that my family instilled in me as well.
Kaitlin Milliken: Awesome. So I have a couple more questions. One is one of the takeaway questions. So what do you hope people learn as they read, I Was Their American Dream?
Malaka Gharib: I think for POC people, it's like your experience of growing up in America was definitely weird. And you're not alone if you felt like a total outsider. And all the conflicting feelings you have, it's completely normal. I think that's the first thing.
The second thing is for non-Filipinos, it's like everything I ever wanted to tell you about me. I think for a lot of my white friends who have know me for decades, this is like the first time that they're hearing this part about my life that they probably didn't know about, because they never asked about it, because they didn't think about asking about it, because talking about race is awkward, and hard, and weird, and difficult. And these are all the things that I'd like for them to know.
Kaitlin Milliken: Definitely. And my final question is sort of, if you could go back in time and talk to your younger self, or other young people who are the children of immigrants living in America, what words or advice would you leave with them?
Malaka Gharib: I think the thing that I always write in when I'm like signing books is like, always be yourself. Yourself is so awesome. I wish that somebody would have just told me that from the beginning that like, “It's very cool to be a Filipino Egyptian American and you should be very proud.” Instead of trying to like shun that and try to favor American culture, white culture over the rest of it.
It's cool to be yourself. I even feel that imposter syndrome sometimes working in the workplace. Sometimes I feel like “Oh, I don't deserve to be here. Like, I'm just like a lowly junior writer.” And then I think to myself, “Wait, they should be so happy that they have this wonderful multicultural perspective on the team. Like that's, that's an honor. They should be honored to have me here.” That would have just changed my outlook forever.
Kaitlin Milliken: That's all they have in terms of questions for you, Malaka. Thank you so much for taking the time.
[MUSIC]
Kaitlin Milliken: This has been the BOSFilipinos Podcast. I’m your host, Kaitlin Milliken. Music for this episode was made by Matt Garamella. Special thanks Magdalena and Malaka for taking the time out to chat.
Before you go, happy Filipino American History Month! This month really focuses on remembering the past and gaining a better understanding of how Filipino people shaped America. I’ll be spending some time this month reflecting about my racial identity, and researching a lot. Because knowing our history helps us better understand ourselves. The team at BOSFilipinos will be posting Filipino American History month content on our website bosfilipinos.com.
One final plug, If you haven't already, you can subscribe to the show on Apple Podcast, Stitcher, Spotify, and Google Play. For more profiles and other great content, follow us on Instagram @bosfilipinos. Thanks for listening and see you soon.
Podcast: Marge Maallo on Her Career in Science & Moving to Boston
When Marge Maallo was in elementary school, her dad would bring home college-level physics books for her to read on the weekends. That kicked off her passion for science that has taken her all over the world — from her home in the Philippines to Australia to Pittsburgh and most recently to Boston.
In this episode of the BOSFilipinos Podcast, Marge shares her experience as a scientist and discusses her research on pain at Boston Children's Hospital. She also talks about maintaining a connection with her Filipino friends and family around the world.
Listen to the full conversation below, or subscribe to our show on Apple Podcast, Google Play, Stitcher, and Spotify.
Transcript
[MUSIC]
Kaitlin Milliken: Hello, and welcome to the BOSFilipinos Podcast. I'm your host, Kaitlin Milliken, and this show is obviously made by BOSFilipinos.
In each episode of our podcast, we highlight a different aspect of Filipino life in the Greater Boston area. So today we’ll be profiling a new member of that community: Marge Maallo. Alright. Marge is a neuroscientist currently researching pain at Boston Children’s Hospital.
Marge has been interested in science since she was a kid. She has memories of reading physics books during her childhood in the Philippines. And that passion for science kicked off her journey away from home. She pursued her PhD in Australia, took a research job in Pittsburgh, and ended up in Boston for her new gig this July.
During our conversation, Marge talked about her experiences as a scientist, and what she’s learned in her research on pain so far. We also discussed moving to the Bay State during a global pandemic and how she stays connected to her family and friends in the Philippines.
Thank you so much Marge for taking the time to join us today.
Marge Maallo: Happy to be here.
Kaitlin Milliken: We know that you are a scientist. You're doing research. Can you talk a little bit about your experience in science and what type of work you do?
Marge Maallo: It's not a very linear experience — the experience I have had. I was formally trained as a physicist. So I did my bachelor's and my master's in physics, back home, University of the Philippines. My research focus then was optics, holography, that kind of stuff. So very different to what I'm doing now. And then I actually also did a few years of PhD in physics back home. But even before I started my graduate school — so masters — I knew I always wanted to do something that's more translational, if you will, more than they do the way people are dealing with their everyday life. And ever since then, I've been trying to find something, something more than doing experiments in a darkroom.
And then for the PhD program that I did in Australia. There, I worked with individuals who have congenital brain malformations, so they're born with these brain malformations, and it was such a different experience. So being trained as a physicist, I wasn't trained how to actually deal with human participants in a study. So there was that that was different. But it's also very rewarding. And I think that sent me on a path that I am now I know that I want to pursue clinical research in my future lab, if you will.
Kaitlin Milliken: Great. I'd love to go back a little farther. You sort of mentioned that you studied physics. What kicked off your interest in going down the science, physics path, as opposed to all the other types of things you could have studied or gone into.
Marge Maallo: I don't know why physics though. But ever since my elementary days. My dad, they had this library where he works. And he would bring me home physics books. I don't know what he was thinking, why physics books, but imagine being an elementary school student and on the weekends in your free time reading a college physics book. So I think that was it. And then in high school, I went to Manila Science High School. I had this teacher in my first year, I think, and she was teaching physics. And it felt like I could just understand everything she was teaching. Then it was easy, but then I got to college. And whoa, this is not the physics I signed up for. But yeah, that started it for me. I think just my parents encouraging me to do what I love doing. I was very lucky that they didn't ask, “Physics? Why would you study physics? What kind of career do you get out of that?” So that that was a lucky break.
Kaitlin Milliken: You mentioned you were born in the Philippines, you studied in the Philippines. And before we started recording, you mentioned that you've kind of followed the research and that's taken you so many places. Can you have a little bit more about that?
Marge Maallo: Right, so I was born in Makati, born and raised in Makati. Well, it's not the capital, but it's in the area-ish of metro Manila. I lived with my parents until I moved out to move overseas. So as you know, Filipinos back home, they tend to stay with their family until it's time to start their own families. So moving to Australia was very difficult in a way that I did not expect. So it's my first time being away from family and it's overseas. So I was very homesick in the first few months. But then I made friends, things got better, and then you just get used to it. And then in the fall, in the next year, my, he was still my boyfriend then, and he followed me in Australia. He studied. He did his own thing. And then we moved here to the US, first to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where I did two years of postdoctoral research at Carnegie Mellon. And then just this July, I moved here to start another postdoc position for more clinical training. So my position at CMU was more on the research side and now I'm venturing more into the clinical world being based at the hospital and working with patients.
Kaitlin Milliken: I know it's a really strange time to move somewhere and also a strange time to integrate into like, the working environment, the ecosystem here. But Boston is known for having this very large STEM community. And how has your experience been with that thus far?
Marge Maallo: It's funny enough. So I know a few academics based in Boston, we communicate by email, but I haven't actually met all these people I work with. So it's all been via Zoom, and phone calls. That's it. Twitter, Twitter's very helpful in that regard. Like science Twitter is very engaging and very fun at times.
But from what I've experienced so far living here in Boston and working with people based here in Boston, it's very different to Pittsburgh and to Australia. Pittsburgh and Australia both were very… We lived a slower pace, I would say, in those two other places. Here in Boston, you can feel that it's more fast paced, more hustle, but it's fun so far, it's been fun so far. People in the lab, especially you have been very supportive. So there's that.
Kaitlin Milliken: Yeah, I'd love to go a little deeper into the work that you do. You're doing neuroimaging, which I only understand as being brain pictures from the word itself. [LAUGHS] But what does that mean for someone who's not in science who might be listening?
Marge Maallo: So there are different what we call modalities. I specifically work with MRI, that's magnetic resonance imaging. Some people when they go to a hospital, they can get an MRI, for example, because it's not invasive. And you don't have the problem with radiation like you do with X-ray. So you can get images of all body parts, abdomen, heart, brain, of course. So that's what I'm doing, neuroimaging.
And within MRI itself, there are different techniques. So some images, you can just get 3D pictures of the brain, those are anatomical images. And then for some modalities, you get a video of the brain, if you will. So 3D images in time, and then you can sort of watch the activity in the brain as a person is doing some tasks while they're inside the scanner. And there's also another mortality, which is sort of what I'm special analyzing in or at least trying to specialize in. It's called diffusion weighted imaging. And it lets you take pictures that after processing it will let you see the connections between the different parts of the brain. So that's what I'm doing right now.
Kaitlin Milliken: So I guess just to help me understand a little bit more, is it something where you pick that project specifically and applied to work on it? Or was it something where, because neuroimaging was what you were most interested in, or was it more than doing something in that clinical sphere?
Marge Maallo: Being from physics, neuroimaging sort of made sense for me in making this job because it's a lot of signal processing. And I received a lot of training and in signal processing back in the day when I was still studying physics. And so when I did my PhD, I worked like I told you earlier with individuals who had congenital malformation of the brain, and in my first postdoc, I worked with children who had surgeries for the management of their epilepsy. So the common thing about those two projects, I worked with very rare populations of individuals. And their brain is not typical in a way that it's not what you would expect to see in a random person. So I knew I was missing that kind of training, just being able to see if you will, a typical brain, and I knew that I needed more training in that regard. And I saw the job opening here at BCH, where it's still clinical in a way because I work now with individuals who suffer from chronic pain, but the way that their brains would appear in the MRI images would be normal would be typical, if you will. So that's what brought me here, I guess. That's what I followed. I knew what I was lacking in the training of analysis of these neuro images. And this was a great opportunity.
Kaitlin Milliken: When it comes to pain and all the things and the research that you're reading, what's really most interesting to you about that?
Marge Maallo: So the challenge with studying pain is it's very subjective, like you and I would have very different pain thresholds. And that's one of the characteristics of pain… So I'm specifically studying headache. And that's how you differentiate migraine, and another type of headache which is tension type headache. If it's really bad, and if the pain is only on one side, then it's probably migraine. If it's all over, and it's not so bad, it's probably tension type headache. But you and I, like I said, would have very different pain thresholds. Maybe just a break would be very, very painful for me because I'm a wuss when it comes to pain. So that's one of the things that's challenging about this, and I find myself very drawn to this challenge. What can we see in the brains of people who suffer from migraine versus people who suffer from other types of headaches that would let us know let us tell, “Okay, so that's migraine, that's a different type” without relying on the subjective experience of the patient.
Kaitlin Milliken: I know sometimes I've been to a doctor or team things where it's like, right, your pain on a scale of like one to 10…
Marge Maallo: There's also this other tool that people use. It's called the visual Association scale, where they show you pictures from happy through really suffering excruciating pain.
Kaitlin Milliken: So in pursuing your postdoc, what’s been surprising to you about that journey? What's like some of the standout things that you've learned along the way?
Marge Maallo: It's very important to have great mentors. I've always heard people talk about this. And that's one of the surprising things here in the US for me. In Australia, we knew that supervisors and mentors were very different people. They could be the same. If you were lucky, you could have an advisor, a PhD advisor who would also mentor you. Here in the US people tend to call everyone their mentors. Which is great, in a way because maybe that's what these people are doing for them mentoring them in addition to supervising their projects. But that's the most surprising and important lesson I've learned in all of this, that having a good mentor is sort of a make or break in someone's career and mental health.
Kaitlin Milliken: Oh, definitely. It's really hard to navigate things without any guidance.
Marge Maallo: Oh, yeah. And just feeling the support, it really empowers you.
Kaitlin Milliken: I do want to ask a little bit about sort of the aspect of keeping a connection with the Philippines, especially since you’re from there. I don't know if you still have family there. How do you foster that connection or stay connected when you're all the way over here?
Marge Maallo: Especially with the flipped timezones. Yes, so we still have family there. My parents and my brother are still back home. My husband's parents are also still back home. So thank God for Zoom and Skype and Messenger, everything. But I guess the closest connection being here to home is the food. We still always eat Filipino food. And that's one of the things that I was really excited to move to Boston about. There is a proper Filipino store here. And it's great because we didn't have that in Pittsburgh. in Pittsburgh, you would have an asian store. And it sells mostly products from China, Korea, Vietnam, and sometimes there are products from the Philippines and you just miss the Filipino food, even cheap thrills, like I don't know if you've ever had this, Cheepee, it's just cornflakes. Yeah… Food is really sort of my, my roots in the Filipino culture.
Kaitlin Milliken: That's really interesting too, because I know there is the one Filipina storing Quincy. In the before pandemic times, there would be popups at restaurants, where they would bring in chefs who would do special menus. Do you find yourself cooking much at home these days now since the going out option is less of an option than before?
Marge Maallo: Yeah, but even before the pandemic I would cook because I do love cooking. It's one of the things that I learned early on in life. Even back home, I would always cook. I would love cooking for people. Sometimes, I would get hungry. I would cook. And then after the meal’s done, I wouldn't be hungry anymore. So it's just really the process of preparing the food that was fun. So when we moved here, it helps us save, for one. But now during the pandemic, like you said, it's really that default. So what I do is I always go, it's always Filipino food like 95% of the time. And then just to spice things up, we were just order in once a month now. So that's sort of the extent of our outside world.
Kaitlin Milliken: I love how you mentioned the process of cooking, I find that there's a lot of mindfulness in it too, because it's very much like a process where you're actively doing things and we spend so much time plugged in especially these days.
Marge Maallo: Definitely, yes. When I craved some Filipino food that I haven't cooked before, I would just call my mom, ask her, “Hey, how do you cook this?” And, and because of the time difference, she'd be like, “Do you know what time it is?” [LAUGHS]
Kaitlin Milliken: What are your go tos? What are your favorites?
Marge Maallo: Oh my favorite is bulalo. That's very easy. I don't know if you've had bulalo before. It's just really beef shank. Sinigang’s my favorite too, like the sourness of the soup, especially during winter.
Kaitlin Milliken: Well the winters here, they get frosty so you're in good company.
Marge Maallo: Like right now it's still officially summer and it's sort of cool becoming colder.
Kaitlin Milliken: I know we talked about things that surprised you and your postdoc. What have been some of your favorite experiences so far in the short time you've been here, and what are you looking forward to as you get more acclimated and being in the city?
Marge Maallo: The place specifically that we're living, it’s very near the beach. So I look forward to seeing the beach frozen. I've seen pictures where the water is just, it's just ice. So I'm excited about that. Once a week, we go out to the beach side and sometimes I would bring my iPad and read papers. And it's just a nice change of pace from being indoors all the time. Of course, while keeping socially distant, physically distant. But yeah, I actually look forward to seeing the beach freeze over. [LAUGHS]
I also look forward to meeting some of the Filipino scientists. I know there are a number, not just a few, more than a few Filipino scientists in the wider Harvard Medical School community as well.
Kaitlin Milliken: You mentioned that, because this is a new field for you, you're really pouring yourself into your work. How do you balance the you that is a scientist and the you that is Marge outside of being a scientist?
Marge Maallo: One thing that I do is I always keep in touch with friends, Filipino friends. They're all over the world. So, like, a lot of my friends are still back home in the Philippines. And especially since the pandemic started. We have been eachother’s support group. So there's that and what I do with my friends is we schedule what is called “enuman” sessions. So inuman is the Tagalog word for drinking sessions. But it's all virtual now. So instead of spending it with an i, we spell it with an e for electronic. So that's what we're doing. We try to do that when everybody's free because everyone has commitments. And like I said earlier, we go to the beach once a week, and when I'm not reading, just enjoying the views, enjoying the sound of the waves crashing. That's always a good time for me because I get to turn my brain off. And then at night, I mostly just watch cheap thrills TV.
Kaitlin Milliken: We love a good cartoon in this household.
Marge Maallo: Oh, yes.
Kaitlin Milliken: So this is my final question. It's sort of about folks who are in this field, who are Filipino, Filipino-American or people who might be, you know, in college and considering going into this field. Are there any pieces of advice that you have for those folks?
Marge Maallo: I would say find your people. So people always say, “You can’t be what you can see.” And it's true that Filipinos are still underrepresented in the sciences here in the US. That said, there's not a lot of Filipinos in the higher ranks, higher positions. But it doesn't necessarily have to be a Filipino that you can look up. They just have to be kindred spirits basically. So just to find your people and draw from them. Draw from the support, so it's a given day. And find your passion, just something that keeps you up at night in a good way. And in the morning when you think, “Oh, I have to do this,” it’s something that gets you excited.
Kaitlin Milliken: Thank you so much for taking the time out to chat.
Marge Maallo: Thank you for having me.
[MUSIC]
Kaitlin Milliken: This has been the BOSFilipinos Podcast. I'm your host, Kaitlin Milliken. Music for our show was made by Matt Garamella. Special thanks to Marge for joining us and sharing about her work. If you liked this episode of our show, you can subscribe to the BOSFilipinos Podcast on your streaming platform of choice. You can also follow us on Instagram, @bosfilipinos, to stay connected. What do you want us to cover? Let us know at bosfilipinos.com. Thanks for listening and see you soon.
Podcast: Why Activists are Calling to Junk the Terror Law & How to Get Involved
In July, Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte signed the Anti-Terrorism Act of 2020 into law. This bill expands the definition of terrorism so it could include strikes, rallies, protest, and providing support to political activists. This episode of the BOSFilipinos Podcast dives deep into The Anti-Terror Law, how groups in the northeast are organizing in resistance, and why.
Three organizers guide this conversation. Bernadette Patino is Northeast Regional Coordinator of the Malaya Movement. She is based in New York. Allan Basco Espejo and Erin Berja are both organizers for Boston Philipinx, Education, Advocacy and Resources — or PEAR.
Listen to the full conversation below, or subscribe to our show on Apple Podcast, Google Play, Stitcher, and Spotify.
Transcript
[MUSIC]
Kaitlin Milliken: Hello, and welcome to the BOSFilipinos Podcast. I'm your host, Kaitlin Milliken, and this show is obviously made by BOSFilipinos.
This podcast is all about sharing the different elements of Filipino and Fim-Am life in the Greater Boston community. So today, we’ll be talking about a recent law passed in the Philippines, The Anti-Terror Act of 2020, how groups in the northeast are organizing in resistance, and why.
There’s been a lot going on in the world lately — from the coronavirus pandemic, to Black Lives Matter activism, to an election just on the horizon. It’s possible that the Anti-Terror Act might have missed your radar. So here’s a very quick crash course.
On July 3rd, Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte signed into law the Anti-Terrorism Act of 2020 — a piece of legislation with a very misleading name. While preventing terror may seem like a good thing, the law expands the definition of terrorism. Under the act, terrorism includes, intimidation of the public, promotion of messages of fear, intimidation of the government, destruction or destabilization of the economy, politics, and society, to create public emergency. So strikes, speaking at rallies, protests — that could all be considered terrorism.
People who provide support — materials, money, services — to those considered terrorists could also face imprisonment without parole.
According to NPR, the law states that it's not intended to quell advocacy and dissent unless there is a serious risk to public safety. However, the council that decides what actually counts as terrorism is appointed by President Duterte. And Duterte’s administration has been under fire by human rights groups for the government’s bloody extra-judicial drug war and crackdown on opposition.
The Anti-Terror Act has been condemned by Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, The National Union of People’s Lawyers, and other advocacy groups.
That was a very brief overview. The rest of this episode will take a deeper dive into why groups are calling to junk the terror law, and the best ways to get involved in the Bay State. For this discussion, I am joined by three organizers. Bernadette Patino is Northeast Regional Coordinator of the Malaya movement. Allan Basco Espejo and Erin Berja are both organizers for Boston Philipinx, Education, Advocacy and Resources — or PEAR.
Bernadette, Aaron, Allen, thank you all so much for being here today. Just to get us started, can you tell us a little bit about PEAR and Malaya Northeast, that way anyone who's not familiar can get to know the organizations you're a part of?
Erin Berja: I mentioned that I have been organizing the Boston fair since 2018. It was established in summer of 2018. So our mission statement is that we are a grassroots organization based in Boston, led by people who identify as Filipinx. We advocate for the rights of Philippinxs in the US and in the Philippines. And we organize in solidarity with other communities affected by imperialism. So PEAR was established because there were a bunch of community organizers in Boston — community organizers and activists in Boston — who needed a space to be in community with other Filipinx activists, especially given the fact that Boston has a pretty rich history of Filipino activism.
It was the site of a lot of anti-Marcos opposition protests in the 1970s. And we kind of wanted to honor and continue that legacy contemporarily by continuing to draw attention to injustices that exist in the Philippines today, especially with regards to the Duterte administration.
Kaitlin Milliken: I think that transitions really nicely. Bernadette, can you talk a little bit about the Malaya Movement, and what you do for that chapter in the northeast?
Bernadette Patino: So the Malaya Movement is a broad movement of individuals, organizations and various formations that's dedicated to defending human rights, genuine democracy, and sovereignty in the Philippines. So it was founded in 2018 to really address President Rodrigo Duterte's rising dictatorship in the Philippines. Of course in 2018, this was already when the bloody war on drugs — the so called war on drugs — was in full swing. Duterte had already various massacres under his name and, you know, in the countryside with farmers and peasants. So the human rights situation in the Philippines was really deteriorating already by 2018.
So different community members from across the US came together — various academics, lawyers, faith leaders, student leaders, and community leaders from the Filipino community — to really show that we stand in opposition to Duterte’s human rights violations, to his rising dictatorship in the Philippines. And really, it's inspired by the anti-Marcos movement here in the US during the ‘70s and ‘80s. So as we know, like Marcos, Ferdinand Marcos, was a dictator in the Philippines back in the 1970s and 1980s. Also a very brutal regime. And I think that affects you know, like every Filipino family I can think of has some kind of story about martial law in the Philippines. So the Malaya Movement is really inspired by that show of solidarity from our community here with our kababayan [fellow Filipinos] in the Philippines.
So originally the Malaya Movement started as a US based movement. So we had chapters across the whole country. But now it's global. So there are chapters now in Canada and in Australia.
Kaitlin Milliken: You touched a little bit on this, Bernadette, and I'd love to get sort of everyone to chime in here. We're here today to talk about the Anti-Terror Law of 2020. But I'd love to kind of get some of the political background and the history that gave rise to this situation.
Bernadette Patino: So Duterte was elected in 2016. I was actually still working in the Philippines during this time. Part of his campaign was to end contractualization for workers in the Philippines. He was really courting a lot of the leftist movement in the Philippines. And he had, even in his campaign, this stand of trying to be a strong man. Trying to be like, “Oh, I'm going to show that the Filipino people need discipline. So therefore these brutal policies that I'm talking about,” he was already advocating for using, like the Philippine National Police and the Armed Forces of the Philippines in a brutal drug war to end this so-called drug crisis in the Philippines.
His Davao death squads, when he was still mayor of Davao City, was already very well known at this time. Regardless, he's still won the election in a landslide. I think it's 16 million votes, and he really blew all the other candidates out of the water. And the night of his inauguration, there were already extrajudicial killings in the name of his so-called war on drugs. So he gave his whole speech at his inauguration, and then that night, there were dozens of people killed in the streets of various cities across the Philippines in the name of this drug war. So it started very quickly.
And up to now, in 2020, like Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, human rights alliances, like KARAPATAN in the Philippines — their research shows that while the Philippine National Police only reports that there are about 5,000 killings, even if that's an acceptable number from the war on drugs, there's estimates already that this number is like well over 30,000. Alongside this, leading up to the anti terror law, we can sort of see how he really used this brutality on the streets. First demonizing a particular sector of society right? The drug war has really impacted the urban poor sector in the Philippines primarily. So right then the human rights defenders start getting targeted, shot in front of their office. And that's even one piece of the pie.
We can talk about the continuation of his neoliberal policies that, you know, cause so much burden and suffering, especially for overseas Filipino workers around the world. We can talk about the ways in which Dutuerte has bowed to the United States and China, compromising Philippine sovereignty in so many ways.
So, yeah, the Anti-Terror Law, in the last four years Duterte has really cultivated a culture of state terror, state violence, and impunity. This is systematized. This is institutionalized. And the Anti-Terror Law is another piece of this larger puzzle. And while it's really not new, because mass arrests, forced disappearances, extrajudicial killings, are already well-seated in Duterte’s presidency and his regime, the Anti-Terror Law, adds fuel to the fire because it is able to justify these things by law. It expands the jurisdiction in which law enforcement and the Armed Forces of the Philippines can continue these violations.
Kaitlin Milliken: Erin, I was wondering if maybe you could help us connect the dots a little bit. Bernadette gave a really great insight into sort of the political background. Can you connect the war on drugs in the Philippines to this Anti-Terror Act and tell us a little bit more about the act itself?
Erin Berja: I was wondering if Alan would actually want to talk.
Allan Basco Espejo: Yeah, I could talk about that a little bit. One thing you'll notice is that oftentimes people will compare Duterte to Marcos. Even though Marcos was a terrible dictator, after he was ousted in the 1980s, a lot of the conditions of the Philippines has not actually improved in a lot of ways, especially in things in regards to poverty. Fast forward to the time of the drug war with Duterte. That compounded with Dutertes’ lack thereof a response to the coronavirus. There is a lot of unrest.
Erin Berja: Yeah, I think it's really important that Allan kind of contextualized the Anti-Terror Law being implemented during COVID-19 — during this whole public health crisis. So as we know, in Southeast Asia, the Philippines has had the highest number of coronavirus cases. And there hasn't been a comprehensive response from the Duterte administration. And instead of providing those needed social services and building of public health infrastructure and any support towards especially poor and working class Filipinos, the government has instead used its energy towards militarization and cracking down on dissent.
They've been given a lot of loans from the World Bank and other International financial institutions. And they haven't really used that towards a comprehensive like plan to support the Filipino people. Yeah. So everyone's kind of asking like, “Why, why do we need this law right now?” There's so much protesters and there's so much dissent about this law coming from a lot of human rights advocates, lawyers, journalists, and basically a lot of different sectors — in the Philippines and also internationally. There's a large uproar internationally. We just had 50 representatives in the US Congress sign this law condemning the Anti-Terror Law. So like all of this condemnation, why is the government still doing this? Why? Why are you not using your energy and resources to provide resources to the Filipinos suffering under coronavirus and your lack of public health services?
Allan Basco Espejo: One thing that a pattern that we can see with the Anti-Terror Law in regards to during the drug war was it kind of follows a line of red tagging and attacks on dissent. So, throughout Duterte’s regime, there has been a lot of red tagging. And so red tagging is essentially claiming that some person or some group is involved with terrorist activities or usually associating them with the communist movement going on — usually, most of the times, without evidence.
There's like a lot of examples, or often times journalists will be accused of being involved with rebellion. And there's often a lot of attacks on journalists and environmental defenders. A famous example is in the case of Brandon Lee, who last August was shot while he was working with a Ifugao peasant movement, I believe. It will make it easier for, basically make it legal for, red tagging and attacks. And they'll most likely occur more often under the Anti-Terror Law.
Kaitlin Milliken: Kind of expanding the definition of terrorism to include things like speaking out against the government, speeches, protests, that can hurt a lot of people who are exercising free speech or expressing discontent.
Bernadette Patino: Yeah. Just to also quickly add. In the act itself, Section Four defines what terrorism is under this new law. And essentially, its definition is more or less the same as the Human Security Act of 2007. That the anti terror act as opposed to replace.
But what many folks have pointed to in Section Four is that the defenders of the anti terror acts are Duterte’s yes-men in Congress and in the Senate. They'll say that, “Oh, there's a provision in there that says we protect the right to organize. We protect the right for people to advocate, protest, all this stuff. It's there in Section Four that this is not included in the definition of terrorism.”
But then what these yes-men don't include is that there's actually a condition to that. It's like, “Okay, you have your right to protest. You have your right to show dissent, etc. Under the condition that the Anti-Terror council doesn't perceive this as undermining public safety, or getting in the way of any major public infrastructure in the Philippines, or posing a risk to public safety.” So what various lawyers — even a former Supreme Court Justice in the Philippines — various international human rights organizations have pointed to is that this condition included in Section Four is very dangerous, because it leaves the interpretation then up to the Anti-Terror Council, which is also created within this act.
So the Anti-Terror Council is essentially a group of men composed almost entirely of Duterte’s appointees, and they have the final say in defining who is a terrorist, in interpreting whether or not your protest is going to be seen as causing harm to public safety, for example. So this condition is left up to the interpretation of a very subjective group of individuals in this Anti-Terror Council that are almost entirely made of Duterte’s appointees. So, that is a huge red flag, a huge concern with the Anti-Terror Law.
Kaitlin Milliken: I did want to dig a little deeper into who's affected. So I've seen, and I'm sure a lot of folks who may be listening to this podcast, have sort of seen things floating around about how this affects both people in and out of the Philippines. Can you talk about how it affects both people who live in the country and people who are part of the diaspora?
Bernadette Patino: So I think there's three particular sections and a lot to really point to when we think about its applications of folks outside of the Philippines. So Section 11 of the law defines who the law considers to be a terrorist. A person no longer has to be a participant in a terrorist act to be considered a terrorist. And I think the next section to sort of think about too is Section number 12. So this section criminalizes material support for who they have tagged as terrorists. So in this section, material support is not just property or money, but it can even constitute what's intangible like services, advice, lodging, training, assistance, providing safe house, providing documents, facilities, personnel or even transportation. It's really easy for the Philippine government especially Duterte to tag particular organizations as terrorist ones. Duterte has attacked many across the world. And this will impact their ability to receive humanitarian aid.
And then I think the last section to also consider about extraterritorial applications is Section 49. So this one is really interesting. It provides six different categories on specific extraterritorial applications for the Anti-Terror Law. So I'll really try to quickly go through the six of these.
So the first one is, the Anti-Terror Law would apply to Filipinos who commit prohibited acts under this law outside of Philippine territory. And it's interesting because what is deemed to be Filipino in this law is very vague. It could be residents of other countries, folks with different immigration statuses, or folks who are simply Filipino by birth.
The second category is individuals outside of the Philippines who commit prohibited acts under this law inside Philippine territory. Say that you're with a solidarity organization providing relief for the pandemic, and you're trying to pass out mutual aid, food and water, and whatnot to different say urban poor communities in Manila. If the government tags or organization as a terrorist one, then your mutual aid work can be deemed as terrorist activity.
So the third category, individuals who commit prohibited acts under this law onboard to Philippine airship or ship. The fourth category of individuals who commit prohibited acts under this law within an embassy, consulate, or diplomatic premises. Boston PEAR, the Malaya Movement, for example, we have mobilized at the Philippine consulate here in New York City. And then if the Philippine government sees this, our protests, as acts of terrorism, they could try to file cases against us in the Philippines.
The fifth category, individuals outside the individuals outside of the Philippines who commit prohibited acts in this law against Filipinos where citizenship is a factor. So say you're a human rights defender, maybe you're not even Filipino. And you are at a protest against the Philippine National Police are the Armed Forces of the Philippines. Well, if the Anti-Terror Council decides... They can say, “Oh, we don't like that you are condemning these members of our Philippine law enforcement who are Philippine citizens, we can deem this as a terrorist act. Or we can say you intending to commit one, and then you can have that terrorist tag.”
So six individuals who commit the prohibited acts under this law directly against the Philippine government. This is a very vague, catch-all category. So any individual — whether you're a Philippine citizen or not, whether you're Filipino or not — any individual committing what the Anti-Terror Council seems to be a terrorist act, or to commit a terrorist act against the interests of the Philippine government, really from anywhere around the world, that person may have criminal cases filed against them in the Philippines under this law.
So yeah, and there's even a little note about extradition. So it says that under the Anti-Terrorist Act, the Philippine government will follow treaties with whatever foreign governments in the process of them, if they want to try to extradite you from your country. So they could try to force you to leave say the US and face cases filed against you in the Philippines.
Kaitlin Milliken: So I do want to pivot into folks who may be interested in organizing around this issue, especially people who live in Massachusetts, or — we’re BOSFilipinos — Boston or in the US. I saw that you made this expression, Allan, since we're over zoom. Would you want to kick off the conversation about how folks can get involved in that movement?
Allan Basco Espejo: So in regards to getting involved, I think the first step to — usually I'll say the first step to getting involved is one is keeping up the current events of what's going on in the Philippines. That's kind of just like, in general, that's something we should be doing. Also, I think another important thing is people should, if they feel the need to, get involved with and to reach out to our different organizations. For example, if you're in Boston, reach out to Boston PEAR. If you're in another city, or if you're in other parts of Massachusetts that maybe don't have a large Filipino community, they're still kind of options. You could always like, check out a lot of the things that Malaya’s doing as well. But, I think the purpose for joining an organization is it provides community, which is just always really nice. It's nice to have a community of Filipinos to discuss, and to talk about these issues, as well as providing a specific structure in organizing against these issues.
Erin Berja: I think a lot of folks right now are scared. Because there's a lot of vague language, like, “Is this gonna apply to me? Is it gonna apply to my family, either in the United States or the Philippines?” But I think it's also really important to know that a lot of people have been mobilizing for this and have been protesting for other issues that are very much intertwined with the motivations for having the Anti-Terror Law implemented. So I mentioned that it was President Duterte’s fifth State of the Nation address yesterday. So a few hours before that, 10,000 Filipinos basically like staged a protest, a rally, an action at UP Diliman, which is the college. Folks, they're still out in the streets.
And there have been more than 15 petitions filed by like lawyers and human rights organizations in the Philippines, towards the Supreme Court, to have them rethink the Anti-Terror Law. And it's really important for Filipino Americans being in the US to recognize that, and kind of do our part in upholding international solidarity. Boston PEAR recently had a week of resistance where we were calling legislators in the US to kind of like publicly condemn the Anti-Terror Law, because any international uproar or any widespread uproar means a lot. Just like spreading awareness and having these counter narratives be proliferated to the public means a lot in upholding like the people's resistance and the Philippines.
Bernadette Patino: If we're talking about calls to action… One if you really want to get involved, if you want to roll up your sleeves and do the work, I think organizations like Boston PEAR and Malaya Movement Northeast are really beautiful ways. They're able to bridge the Filipinx community here to what's happening back in the Philippines to show that we can take action, that we can show collective force together. We can use our voices together to stand for positive change in the Philippines and topple dictatorships in the motherland. And we've done that before. And I think it's really embracing that part of our history, embracing that we are part of a movement that is trying to free our country of all the things that are keeping it down. And I think as us being part of the diaspora, that's one contribution that we can have to the motherland.
The Malaya Movement together with this other Alliance, called BAYAN USA, has a Unity Declaration of People's Demands for Duterte and the US government. So you can sign on at tinyurl.com/demandsvsduterte, versus being vs. So really quickly, the five are to scrap the Anti-Terror Law; to ensure that the government in the Philippines addresses the COVID pandemic properly with free mass testing, with health care, and with livelihood for the Filipino people; three ensure the rights and welfare and protection of our Filipino migrant workers, because they've really faced the brunt of all of the struggles during this global pandemic; four pass the Philippine Human Rights Act. So, the Malaya Movement together with our friends in the International Coalition for Human Rights in the Philippines, and Kabataan alliance — we are having this campaign and asking our legislators to introduce the Philippine Human Rights Act in the House of Representatives here in the US. So essentially, the Philippine Human Rights Act or the PHRA, calls on the United States to suspend US military aid to the Philippines until such a time that we understand that the Philippine government is not perpetuating human rights violations, and for the violations that have already been done, that those individuals be held accountable.
And then lastly, we want to call on the Philippine National Police to get out of the United States. So I don't think a lot of people actually know this, but the Philippine National Police or the PNP, they have outposts here in the US primarily to surveil Filipino activists based here, or Filipinx activists based here. And you know, we've seen the brutality of police departments across the US throughout all the uprisings for Black Lives Matter here. That that's so well documented. So these are just ways in which the US really exports this police violence, this state violence, abroad. And join a local organization, Boston PEAR is amazing. The Malaya Movement Northeast is trying to establish a chapter locally in Massachusetts. There's already a really great group of folks doing Malaya work, especially out in Boston, Cambridge and Somerville areas, so definitely get in touch with folks. Get in touch with me, Erin, or Allan, to get involved if you're interested. At least for the Malaya Movement Northeast, you can follow us on instagram @malaya.northeast, and then our email is malayamovement.ne@gmail.com.
Kaitlin Milliken: I'm afraid that's all we have time for Alan, Bernadette and Erin, thank you so much for being here.
[MUSIC]
Kaitlin Milliken: This has been the BOSFilipinos Podcast. I'm your host, Kaitlin Milliken. Music for our show was made by Matt Garamella. Special thanks to Allan, Erin, and Bernadette for joining us for this conversation. You can follow Boston PEAR on Facebook and instagram for updates. You can check out the Malaya Movement on their social channels and website. The team at Malaya Movement North East there also made a really great podcast episode on the Anti-Terror Act, which you should also listen to. Both groups host events — right now in the virtual world — that you can join.
Now I'm going to plug some BOSFilipinos content. If you haven't already, you can subscribe to this show wherever you listen to podcasts. You can also follow us on Instagram, @bosfilipinos, to stay connected. What do you want us to cover? Let us know at bosfilipinos.com. Thanks for listening and see you soon.