For Immediate Release
Justice For FilipinoAmerican Veterans(JFAV)
Contact Person; Richard Bis

Los Angeles -  "The Historic  Filipinotown - an Idea whose time has come, and No one can stop it."

  After more than twenty years of bickerings and advocacy the Filipinos and Filipino Anericans and their allies came to terms and in a show of unity cooperated with the FiIipinotown Committee formed by 14th District Concilman Eric Garcetti,  finally got their long time wish- that a Historic Filipinotown was recognized by the City Council in a unanimous resolution last August 2 with the tumultous acclaim of hundreds of Filipinos who filled the city chanmbers.waving the Philippine flag and shouting-- MABUHAY!  

" The LA City Council resolution is a first step towards full peoples empowerment" People's CORE  Executive Director Joe Navidad said. "Majority of the people in the community had been skeptical to many efforts for a Filipinotown that failed in the past  but now it is a reality, we hope that this initial effort will be a start for geniune community empowerment."  

JFAV co-coordinator and People's CORE organizer Arturo P.Garcia also said:" The City Council recognition of the Historic Filipinotown was long overdue. But is still better late than never."  

"For a long time every group has an its own agenda trying to take the credit for the recognition of a"Nayong Pilipinas" in 1980's, a Manilatown or Philippine town in the 1990's  to no avail. Many politicians like the late LA Mayor Tom Bradley and  Council member John Ferraro. County Supervisor Gloria Molina  and  now State Assembly person Jackie Goldberg also tried but were not successful in realizing this endeavor.  But now- when the old and the new leaders settled and united for a "Historic Filipinotown" meaning where the famous Carlos Bulusan, Philip Vera Cruz and the immigrant Filipino community settled and made history in the United States. Now the dream is a concrete reality."  

But despite all the self congratulations, Garcia lamented the fact that during the celebrations the Filipino American  youth and students and even the veterans participation were left out except in speeches. "Not one youth leader was asked to speak in the program . One Filipino leader even went to the extend of "declaring Temple street as Eric Garcetti street" - a clear sign of overeagerness or "sipsip mentality". We hope on August 8, they will rectify this oversight." Garcia added.  

" The ball is in mayor James Hahn's hand now, I hope he signs the resolution to make it a law." Garcetti stressed. " We hope that after the sign ha been put up along the Temple-Beverly corridor on August 8.- the real community empowerment, its economic and social upliftment will follow."  

"For sure we hope that the youth, the seniors, the Filipino World War II veterans who live in the Temple-Beverly corridor now known as the "historic Filipinotown" and the whole community benefit from it now just a noisy small group of politicians and vested interest who made this efort very hard for us to achieve. " Garcia ended.

  For more information please call Art P. Garcia@(213)625-7705 or email@ jfav_justicenow@hotmail! .com        

where is this new philipinotown?
Do they have the ability to levy their own taxes and affect policy, or is it just a symbolic victory for diversity?

Naming a district or a street is a way of mapping "history" onto a space.

How many people knew that the current site of the Belmont Learning Complex was a red light district? Or that Chinatown is built, partly, on top of an old graveyard?

These facts are forgotten because the places, once destroyed or built over, lose their identity. Likewise, ethnic neighborhoods change and their history is lost to time.

Naming is a way to memorialize a space. As the article points out, notable figures in Fil-Am history lived there. Carlos Bulosan wrote about LA. My favorite writer, John Fante (an Italian-Am), situated parts of his stories in that part of LA. It's interesting to know where it is. Until recently, only had the idea that there were many Pilipinos around Echo Park, but didn't know it was an established community. Now, with this designation, it's obvious.

These small marks on the maps are particularly important to immigrant groups, because, by and large, their histories are lost. For whatever reasons, people of color in America, and immigrant groups especially, are not good at recording their own histories. They don't take note of their public existence the way that middle class Anglos do.

I didn't mean that symbolic power is bad. Its just that it'd be really cool if with the name came some real power?

I guess in some ways, having ethnic bodies making decisions is about as creepy as white rule, but it would be cool if these litle enclaves had the ability to control their own fate...

Hmm, am I calling for BIDs (Business Improvement Districts) or something else, more on the lines of community empowerment and the ability to regulate more. Not sure, but...