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State of the Filipino Union: The bridge is being built… Handa ka na?

The State of the Filipino Union, Building a Bridge, Defining and Encouraging the Community, was held on Feb. 26, 2009, at William Doo Auditorium, University of Toronto. It was sponsored by Migrante Youth, Kapisanan Philippine Centre and Filipino Students’ Association of Toronto (FSAT). It is part of FSAT’s 5th Annual Filipino Awareness Week.

Youth, elder panelists, organizers at the State of the Filipino Union.

By Robin Orbeta-Lacambra

The youth are the fair hope of the motherland – a statement of Jose Rizal that showed some truth at the State of the Filipino Union (SOFU), an event successful at bringing together a vast representation of Filipino leaders of the Greater Toronto Area. This evening event was a youth initiative, held at the University of Toronto, by organizing committee: Myk Miranda, Alex Felipe, Luigi Garde, Benjamin Bongolan, Mithi Esguerra, Jeffrey Miranda, Celeste Palanca and Aimee Gomez.

The purpose was commendable: to unite all Filipinos, regardless of age, political affiliation or faith practices, so that we can finally be together – and talk. Talk about being Filipino in North America. Talk about the divide, why it’s there and what we’re going to do about it.

Time constraints and a very large panel of speakers weren’t what one would consider ideal for profound exploration and discussion of matters. Regardless, truths did emerge.

One of the memorable truths was this: there is no single way to be Filipino – a formula of ‘Filipino-ness’ doesn’t exist. Furthermore, it’s not about comparing ‘filipino-ness’. It’s about being. Being Filipino is something we each define for ourselves. It can mean dancing the tinikling, speaking one of the hundred Filipino languages, or it can mean going to karaoke every weekend – belting out love ballads, like we do so well.

Hearing the tidbits shared by our peers and elders, led me to the memory of something someone had once told me about the condition of humanity: “Ideologies separate us, but dreams and anguish bring us together.” The Filipino community is diverse in perspective and practice; but regardless of where our faith and opinion lie – our hope in a common understanding and a shared sense of pain when one of us is down, is unifying.

Although not all of what was expressed through out the night left people in agreement, and maybe even heightened a sense of distaste, this step was a huge step. More importantly, this step was possible because of the dedicated work of trailblazers in youth initiatives and progressive change. They have and will continue to pave the way, especially for the youth, allowing for growth. The notable progress among the Filipino youth community was something that was ironically not celebrated at SOFU – despite having a number of trailblazers present, front and centre. It is important to always keep in mind that even though we have many issues to work out as a community, Filipinos ARE making waves – especially among the youth.

The opinions represented at SOFU were from all points of a vast spectrum, but there is no denying that we all agreed on what SOFU made blatantly clear. There is a yearning for cultural understanding – be it on an individual basis or beyond; a yearning for an appreciation of Filipino diversity, and most importantly a yearning for “functional solidarity”. Yes, we come from different upbringings. Yes, our interests and our focuses vary. Yes, our faiths and cultural beliefs can be conflicting. But none of these differences should keep us from uniting together in solidarity.

Myk Miranda

Mithi Esguera

Alex Felipe

The elder panels

The youth panel

Folklorico dancers at SOFU event.

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