Seattle, WA — The Filipino American National Historical Society (FANHS) is pleased to share the Filipino American History Month 2022 theme:
Celebrating Our History and Legacies:
50 Years of Filipino American Studies,
40 Years of the Filipino American National Historical Society (FANHS),
and 30 years of Filipino American History Month
The year 2022 marks several anniversaries in Filipino American history.
First, 50 years ago, the first Filipino American Studies (FAS) classes were taught at UCLA and UC Davis. With classes previously established at San Francisco State University and City College of San Francisco, 1972 was the year in which FAS began to be taught across multiple institutions and states (with FAS classes being established at Western Washington University and the University of Hawai’i in the mid-1970s). Over the past 50 years, college-level FAS classes became instituted at colleges and universities all over the country – from Oregon to Michigan to Virginia. More recently, FAS curricula have been established in K-12 public schools in California, Hawai’i, and Seattle. FAS scholars have also emerged across multiple disciplines – from History to Humanities to Psychology to Education – with numerous books, journal articles, and multimedia works that provide knowledge of the experiences of Filipino Americans in the United States.
Second, in 1982, Dorothy Laigo Cordova founded the Filipino American National Historical Society (FANHS) – the oldest national Filipino American organization and the only national group committed to promoting and preserving Filipino American history. For the past 40 years, FANHS has educated Filipino and non-Filipino people – through conferences, workshops, lectures, films, artwork, and other media – about the Filipino American historical experiences and contributions to the U.S. In 2016, the FANHS National Museum opened in Stockton, California, and as of 2022, there are 42 FANHS chapters across the United States.
Finally, October 1992 was the first time that Filipino American History Month (FAHM) was celebrated in the United States – a year after FANHS passed a proclamation (spearheaded by Fred Cordova). Since then, FAHM has been celebrated annually all over the country – with initiatives by FANHS chapters, local community nonprofit groups, government organizations, and college student organizations. In 2009, U.S. Congress declared October as FAHM, and in 2015, President Obama celebrated the first FAHM at the White House.
Through the development of these three institutions – FAS, FANHS, and FAHM – we recognize how Filipino Americans have initiated collective, grassroots efforts to ensure that our voices are heard, that our experiences are recognized, and our histories are told. Thus, we acknowledge these major historical markers in our community, and we encourage Filipino Americans and their allies across the country to collectively celebrate FAHM 2022 with these legacies in mind.
Possible activities to participate in:
- Read Filipino American Studies books of the past and present. For example, 2022 marks the 25th anniversary of the edited text Filipino Americans: Transformation and Identity, (edited by Maria P. P. Root) – regarded as a foundational comprehensive text in Filipino American Studies.
- Support arts and media that advance Filipino American Studies, such as Lumpia with a Vengeance (film) or Larry: The Musical (theater).
- Learn about the history of the Luzones Indios who first set foot in California on October 18, 1587 (435 years ago), as well as the historical oppression and resilience of Indigenous Peoples from the Philippines in both the motherland and in the United States.
- Conduct and share oral histories that highlight regional experiences of Filipino American history. For example, our newer FANHS chapters in Ohio and Georgia have uncovered untold stories of migrants, pensionados, and laborers in their states.
- Curate a panel of Filipino American artists to describe their contributions to the arts (e.g., music, dance, theater, hip hop).
Given the push for a more formalized Filipino American curriculum in higher education and K-12 schools – as well as the public critique on Ethnic Studies and Critical Race Theory – the month could be used to reflect on historical context while also inspiring advocacy for Filipino American Studies courses and programs, as well as for more initiatives focusing on the preservation and dissemination of Filipino American history. For instance, in 2019, the Bulosan Center for Filipinx Studies was launched at UC Davis, and in 2020, a new minor in Pilipino Studies was established at UCLA. More recently, the youth-led Filipino Curriculum Project in Hawai’i lobbied for their state legislators to pass a resolution to implement an elective social studies course on Filipino Americans, while organizers in Seattle successfully lobbied for the development of FAS curricula in K-12 schools. We hope that talking about the many ways that Filipino Americans have advocated for the telling of our histories – through classroom curriculum, FANHS conferences and workshops, or FAHM celebrations – will encourage future generations to be active in teaching and instituting Filipino American history too.
We also recognize the many ways that Filipino Americans have created spaces and programs to better enhance our communities – hence maintaining long-lasting legacies for future generations. For example, 2022 is the 60th anniversary of the first Tagalog course taught at the University of Hawai’i and the 50th anniversary of SIPA (Search to Involve Pilipino Americans) – the oldest existing nonprofit organization serving Filipino Americans in Los Angeles. Both set precedents for establishing similar programs or organizations across the country. In acknowledging the many legacies created by Filipino Americans across the United States, we encourage our community members to brainstorm ways to create a more sustainable impact for future generations of Filipino American communities too.