Shogun actors win big at Golden Globes

Actor Cosmo Jarvis, far left, joins Shogun's Golden Glob winners, Anna Sawai,
Hiroyuki Sanad and Tadanobu Asono.

With the 2025 Golden Globes awards, Asian and Asian American actors and productions continue their unprecedented success in award shows during the last four years.

Shogun won all four categories it was nominated in at the Golden GLobes Awards held Sunday, including Best Drama Series for Television.

The series' three actors nominated also won the coveted trophy for a drama series in the best Male Actor ( Hiroyuki Sanad), Best Female Actor ( Anna Sawai) and Best Supporting Actor (Tadanobu Asono).

The period drama, based on the James Clavell novel, made history as the first non-English series to win the Golden Globe in te television drama category. The Shogun series, taking place in medieval Japan, was almost all in Japanese and used a mixed cast and crew from Japan and North America.

FYI: The full list of Golden Globe winners

The series was so successful, creatively and received so well by viewers that there are plans to extend the storyline beyond the original novel into a second and third season.

Jon M. Chu, director of the film production Wicked, widened the AAPI presence with his passionate comments when his musical moton picture won a Golden Globe for Cinematic and Box Office Achievement.

“My parents came to this country and loved Wizard of Oz. They'd tell us about the yellow brick road and the place over the rainbow, where all dreams come true if you dare to dream it," said Chu.=, who grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area. "So I'm up here looking at you, living the dream and looking at this beautiful, beautiful cast. It's more beautiful than I ever thought it could be.”

 He continued: "So when we discover that maybe the world isn't exactly the way we thought it was, and maybe [we all have] a little bit of Elphaba inside of us ... that maybe we have that courage and that strength to not give up but to rise up. Take the road off the yellow brick road and maybe discover we can fly.”

Ali Wong also won the Golden Globe for the best stand-up comedy performance in "Ali Wong: A Single Lady" that can be sreamed on Netflix.

Ater complaints about the lack of diversity arose, the Hollywood Foreign Journalists Association, found to have an overwhelmingly white membership,  attempted to bring more diversity broadening their membership to include more jornalists of color.

Productions such as South Korea's Parasite and Squid Games, the American film Everything, Everywhere All At Once, Farewell and Minari and the TV dark comedy Beef, have brought more attention to Asian and Asian American talent and productions. 

The Golden Globes is owned by Dick Clark Productions who bought the rights from the Hollywood Foreign Journalists Association in 2023. Members of the HFJA still vote on the nominated films and television productions.

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news and views from an AANHPI perspective, follow me on Threads, on X or at the blog Views From the Edge.

Maui Filipinos hope $2 billion in federal disaster recovery funding will bring some relief

A sign under a Philippine flag expresses the mood of Maui's Filipino residents because
of the urgent need for affordable housing.

Hopefully, some of the $2 billion in federal assistance recently granted to Maui will address some of the needs of the island's Fiipinos, many of whom remain homeless after the 2023 wildfire that devastated western Maui.

Maui Mayor Richard Bissen announced Dec. 21 that the County of Maui will receive about $2 billion in federal assistance days after a report citing the needs of the island's Filipinos, who make up the majority of the Maui's workers, mostly serving the tourist industry.

Even before the fire that decimated Lahaina's historic downtown and the majority of the housing, Maui's workers' affordable housing was in short supply. After the fire, housing is even more scarce. Some of the workers are still living in the hotels' usually packed by tourists. Their hotel rooms are financed by FEMA up until February 2025 when the temporary residents are supposed to start paying out of pocket. Most of those workers are of Filipino descent, eothere recent immigrants or descendants of the plantatioin workers brought in in the early 20th Century and work in the tourism industry.

Initially, most of the mainstream media from the mainland focused on the plight of the Native Hawaiian community, which made up 10% of Lahaina's population. Overlooked were the Filipinos, who make up 40% of the seaside town.

“The Filipinos got somewhat marginalized in terms of advocacy,” saud Jonathan Okamura, a professor emeritus of ethnic studies at the University of Hawaii Manoa, and who grew up on Mau. “It’s kind of like what goes on in Hawaii generally with the sovereignty movement. Native Hawaiians get their ideas expressed and appreciated by non-Hawaiians in ways that Filipinos are less able to do, especially the immigrants.”

About $1.6 billion of the federal funds will be part of Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) funding for housing on Maui and an estimated $480 million more will go towards economic development, small business loans and water infrastructure, among other needs.

The US Congress on Dec. 20 and 21 voted to allocate $1.6 billion in disaster relief through the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to support Maui’s efforts to rebuild homes. 

Another $480 million will go to Maui for disaster recovery. Strict federal guidelines govern how the funds must be used, including requirements for comprehensive financial reporting by the County to the federal government.

In response to the news, Bissen saaid:

“We are profoundly grateful for this vital disaster relief, which will allow us to begin the critical work of rebuilding and fortifying our community after the worst wildfires this nation has seen in a century,” Bissen said. “This CDBG-DR funding will not only help our most vulnerable wildfire survivors, but also enable us to invest in projects that will make Maui County more resilient and better prepared for future challenges.”

Even though Filipinos are the largest ethnic group in Maui, after the disastrous 2023 fire, many believe that  their voices and needs were not being addressed. This belief led to the formation of Tagawa, the organization behind the report, Comprehensive Report on the Needs and Recovery of Filipino Survivors of the Lahaina Fires, the first research report to specifically focus on Filipino survivors of the 2023 Lahaina fires was made public Dec. 16.

Today, about one-fourth of Hawaii’s 1.4 million people are of Filipino descent, according to the 2020 US Census. However on Maui ithey account for the second-largest ethnic group on Maui, with nearly 48,000 island residents tracing their roots to the Philippines, 5,000 of them in Lahaina, which was about 40% of the town's population before thte fire. 

"We are essentially seen and treated as a labor source, and we are in the bottom of the social hierarchy in Hawaiʻi — there's also research about health disparities. So the condition of Filipinos is not the best — and you throw in a disaster on top of that. So that disaster exacerbates the conditions of Filipinos," Nadine Ortega, Tagnawa executive director, told Hawaii Public Radio. 

As , Maui, specifically West Maui which includes the historic town of Lahaina, recovers from the disastrous 2023 wildfire that killed 115 people, many residents felt that the voices and needs of Filipino residents were not being addressed.

Many longtime Lahaina residents, including Native Hawaiians, told the AAssociated Press that in the rebuilding of Lahaina, the new  housing for Filipinos and other low-income long-time residents  they worry that whatever is  built will be too expensive for  Filipinos and other ethnic groups who made lived there.

Other concerns are cultura in naturel. For instance, about 68% of the Filipino households are multigenerational, but FEMA rules apply assistance only to "immediate" family members, which does not meet the qualifications for aid from FEMA and the Red Cross. As a result, families are broken up, causing trauma.

“What was once this big multigenerational household is now just separate smaller units and we lost the sense of community and help that our multigenerational house houses provided,” said Krizhna Bayuda, one of the people surveyed.

Entire neighborhoods were destroyed in the Lahaina fires.

‍Some of the otheer highlights of the Tagnawa report:

•  English, Ilokano, and Tagalog speaking respondents reported different recovery needs and experiences. English-speaking Filipinos indicated the greatest access to basic needs and therefore prioritized housing issues higher than Ilokano and Tagalog respondents. Tagalog respondents showed the least access to basic necessities such as food, water, and household goods. Ilokano and English respondents rated housing as a higher priority than Tagalog respondents. 
• Financial aid is consistently marked as a top need for Filipino survivors; in the initial needs assessment, 94% of respondents indicated they needed financial aid. One year later, when asked how they could be best supported in the recovery process, aside from housing, 38% of respondents expressed the need for financial aid. 
• Ilokano and Tagalog-speaking immigrants faced language barriers and unfamiliarity with local and state government systems, exacerbating their need for translation services and advocacy. 

• Families who were living in multigenerational households that were separated due to FEMA and Red Cross regulations are now struggling with the declining physical health of elders. This separation has also affected childcare with families having to make additional accommodations such as traveling across the island to drop off child/ren and elderly relatives, or they have had to stop working to take on caregiving duties. 
• Despite only approximately 6% of respondents of the 1-year surveys expressing the specific need for mental health services, 33% of responses mentioned stress and traumarelated symptoms (anxiety, nightmares, insomnia, hypervigilance and intrusive memories) raising concerns for Filipino mental health with particular concern for children’s mental health. 
• Youth Filipino mental health distress is a serious issue. 50% of responses indicated that school changes left Filipino children feeling isolated and emotionally distressed with some children experiencing bullying in their new schools. 
• Gender-based violence is often underreported, gender-based violence data requires unique methodology to capture, and this phase of the research did not specifically focus on this sensitive data, however some respondents of the Tagnawa needs assessment survey did report unsafe housing and experiences of sexual or physical violence. These findings, while limited in scope, are deeply concerning and have prompted Tagnawa to launch a gender-focused comprehensive study as the next phase of our work. 
• English language proficiency and U.S. citizenship are disaster recovery tools that many Lahaina residents did not possess. To survive, Filipino immigrants activated their indigenous values and practices of interdependency, mutual aid, generosity, expanded definitions of family and kinship, and subsistence agriculture via backyard farming.
• Filipinos and Filipino immigrants care about environmental issues and Native Hawaiian priorities, not just jobs. Job creation and Lahaina lands remaining in Lahaina hands (as opposed to outside developers and owners) were tied as the top mid- to long-term issues named by Filipino respondents. A significant number of respondents also support water as a public trust and wetlands restoration. 
• In direct contradiction to Governor Green’s divisive statement on Filipinos pushing for the October 2023 reopening of West Maui tourism, 47% of Filipino fire survivors opposed the reopening of West Maui to tourism and 22% had mixed or torn feelings, expressing conditional support or reservations. Only 31% indicated support for the reopening outright, however often citing economic need.

The flag of the Philipppines flies over a makeshihft memorial to the Maui fire victims.

The mayor thanks Hawai‘i US Senator Brian Schatz for his relentless efforts in securing this funding, as well as all Hawai‘i’s Congressional leaders for their continued advocacy on behalf of Maui’s wildfire survivors.

“This funding is a lifeline for our community, and I am deeply grateful to Senator (Brian) Schatz and all of our Congressional leaders for their unwavering support,”  Bissen added.

FYI: ;Maui residents and local stakeholders are encouraged to stay informed about ongoing recovery programs and opportunities for public engagement. For more details, please visit www.mauirecovers.org/cdbgdr.

In addition to the estimated $1.6 billion in CDBG-DR funding for housing, about $480 million more will be heading to Maui, including:

• $350 million to build critical water infrastructure
• $33 million to repair roads
• At least $22 million to support economic recovery, agriculture, and conservation effort
• $19 million for child care
• At least $12 million to provide loans to impacted small businesses

To ensure the effective management of these federal funds, the County of Maui, with approval from the Maui County Council, has established a CDBG-DR Program Office within the Department of Management’s Office of Recovery. The County has spent months preparing an action plan and readiness protocols to ensure efficient roll-out and use of the funding.

“We are fully committed to working in close collaboration with state, federal and local partners in this comprehensive recovery effort,” said John Smith, incoming Administrator of the County Office of Recovery. “Together, we will build a stronger, more resilient Maui for the benefit of wildfire survivors and all residents of Maui County.”

“Considering the context that Lahaina is 40% Filipino," said Tagnawa director Ortega to Hawaii News Now, "there needs to be a greater consideration of the Filipino experience after the fire.” 

“If it wasn’t for the Filipinos having two or three jobs, a lot of the businesses here, including the hotels, would have a hard time operating,” said Rick Nava, a community advocate and Filipino immigrant who lost his own home in the fire.

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news and views from an AANHPI perspective, follow me on Threads, on X or at the blog Views From the Edge.

Jimmy Carter introduced human rights into US policies, helped oust Philippine dictator

When former US President Jimmy Carter introduced human rights into his foreign policy initiatives, it marked the beginning of the end of the Ferdinand Marcos dictatorship.

Carter's administration stressed adherance to human rights in its relationships with other countries and marked a cooling of support for Ferdinand Marccos, who had declared martial law in the Philippines marked with detaining Marcos critics and the "disappearance" of scores of anti-Marcos crticis. Until Carter came into office, previous US administrations had tolerated the Marcos dictatorshop in order to maintain US military bases in the Philippines.

“Jimmy Carter brought the human rights movement into the halls of power and worked to create a government guided by human dignity,” said Tirana Hassan, executive director at Human Rights Watch.

Carter died Dec. 29 at the age of 100. Although his presidency lasted only one term, he continued his advocacy for human rights after he left the White House.

Carter was sworn in as the 39th president of the United States in 1977 and immediately stood out with a foreign policy agenda that prioritized international human rights. He championed principles drawn from the United Nations 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which for the first time established an internationally recognized foundation for “freedom, justice and peace in the world.” 

After the "secret" bombing in Cambodia and US defeat in Vietnam and Watergate affair led to the ouster of President Richard Nixon tarnishing the institution of the Presidency, Carter's emphasis on human rights was a breath of fresh air and provided encouragement for the growing anti-Marcos movement both in the Philippines and in the United States. 

Carter’s human rights records had its shortcomings. Walking the tightrope between national security and how much he could do to persuade the Philippine dictator to return tdemocracy to he Philippines. At times he failed to condemn abuses of longtime allies—such as Ferdinand Marcos in the Philippines and Suharto in Indonesia—in favor of other US interests. 

But behind the scenes, he kept pushing for democratic reforms under Marcos' martial law regime by tying those reforms to the future of the US military bases in the Philippines. One of the enduring legacies of Carter in the Philippines was the 1979 amendment to the Military Bases Agreement. The Philippines gained greater control over its sovereign territory with the US pledging $500 million in military and economic aid over five years as compensation.

In 1986 he was among the independent monitors of the Phiippines elections in 1986, which Marcos staged under pressure from the US. The monitors reported numerous voting anomalies but Marcos was declared the winner over Corazon Aquino, the widow of assassinated Marcos foe, Ninoy Aquino.

'I think Marcos stole the election,' said Carter, after the Marcos-controled Philippine Senate declared Marcos the winner  on Feb. 15.

"The outcome would have been Aquino's victory if the election had been fair," said Carter.

'It would please me if President Reagan would announce that as far as the United States is concerned we did not recognize this as a legitimate election and we were not any longer going to support the Marcos government.'

Carter predicted that Marcos' rule would last no 'more than a few more weeks or a few more months.' Indeed, on Feb. 22, the famous People Power revolution was launched, forcing Marcos and his family to flee Manila to live in Hawaii.

He is perhaps best known for brokering the Camp David Accords, which resulted in a peace treaty between Egypt and Israel. But his foreign policy efforts included the first visit by a US president to sub-Saharan Africa, the end of longstanding support for the abusive Somoza government in Nicaragua, and prompting Congress to mandate annual State Department human rights country reports. His administration created formal procedures to focus policymaking attention on human rights.

Carter established the Department of Education, which elevated programs to support students in poverty and with disabilities to the cabinet level while providing the executive branch with a vehicle for civil rights work. He also appointed more women and people of color as federal judges than all previous US administrations combined.

After leaving office, Carter and his wife, Rosalynn, who died in November 2023, founded The Carter Center in 1982. They worked to address issues they did not adequately address in the White House, focusing primarily on promoting peace, supporting democracy, and improving health around the world.

Jimmy Carter hands over the keys of a new Habitat for Humanity-built house in the Philippines.

Carter’s 1994 trip to North Korea led to an agreement with Kim Il Sung to put his nuclear program on hold, which may have headed off a developing crisis. Following the 1991 coup against President Jean-Bertrand Aristide of Haiti, Carter brokered eleventh-hour negotiations with opposition leaders that averted US military intervention and restored Aristide to power.

Through The Carter Center, the former president also secured the release of political prisoners in North Korea and the Gambia, monitored over 100 elections in 39 countries plus the United States, and helped to nearly wipe out Guinea worm disease, which during the 1980s afflicted millions of people in poor and remote areas.

He and Rosalynn demonstrated their commitment to providing housing to those in need by establishing a decades-long partnership with Habitat for Humanity. They worked alongside thousands of volunteers to build affordable housing in 14 countries.

In 1999, the former President and his wife and Habitat for Humanity came to the Philippines as part of Jimmy Carter Work Project, which builtalmost 300 homes for low-income Filipinos with the assistance of over 14,000 volunteers from 32 countries.

In 2002, Carter was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, the first US president to receive the award for contributions made after leaving the Oval Office. The Nobel committee cited “his decades of untiring effort to find peaceful solutions to international conflicts, to advance democracy and human rights, and to promote economic and social development.”

Throughout his post-presidency, Carter used his platform to speak up on some of the most pressing human rights issues of the era, promoting racial justice, the rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people, the rights of women, and more. In 2007, he published Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid, courageously recognizing Israel’s apartheid against Palestinians and calling for an end to Israeli human rights abuses.

“Jimmy Carter’s commitment to human rights has left an indelible mark on the global human rights landscape,” Hassan said. “He set a powerful example for world leaders to make human rights a priority in their policies at home and abroad.”

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news and views from an AANHPI perspective, follow me on Threads, on X or at the blog Views From the Edge.

Los Angeles Chanatown apartment owners face new lawsuit

 

Elderly tenants of Cathay Manor Apartments protest conditions

 

A couple of days before Christmas, California sfiled a lawsuit against the landlords of  the troubled Cathay Manor apartments in Los Angeles' Chinatown for alleged mismanagment of the housing intended for low-income elderly residents.

California Attorney General Rob Bonta today announced Dec. 23, the  filing of a lawsuit in the Los Angeles County Superior Court to involuntarily dissolve C.C.O.A.   Housing Corporation, a nonprofit public benefit corporation that incorporated in California in 1979 to provide affordable housing for “elderly persons and handicapped persons.” 

"C.C.O.A. and its board failed vulnerable seniors at Cathay Manor by providing substandard living conditions," said Bonta, the first Filipino American elected to the state's Attorney General.

With the dissolution, millions of dollars can go to a legitimate charity providing affordable senior housing," he said in  statement.C.C.O.A. Housing Corporation’s sole charitable activity was the operation of Cathay Manor, a 268-unit apartment complex in downtown Los Angeles that is financed by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development under a Housing Assistance Payment contract. The residents of Cathay Manor are low-income senior citizens, many with disabilities or impairments that require them to use wheelchairs or walkers to travel any distance. In 2023, C.C.O.A. Housing Corporation was forced to sell Cathay Manor as a result of pervasive and persistent mismanagement. 

Following an investigation by the Attorney General, the A.G.'s complaint seeks the appointment of a receiver pending the court’s resolution of this case and to transfer the proceeds from the sale of the building to another charity with a similar charitable purpose to provide affordable senior housing. In addition, the complaint seeks an accounting of all financial transactions the charity has had with its directors and any related entities.

FYI: A copy of the lawsuit can be found here.

“There is simply no denying that C.C.O.A. Housing Corporation and its board members failed our seniors miserably when they operated Cathay Manor. It was and still is inexcusable,” said Bonta. “While C.C.O.A. Housing Corporation no longer owns or manages the building, my office is taking legal action to ensure that the proceeds from the sale of Cathay Manor cannot be used, in any way, by the organization’s current leadership. 

"Their track record speaks for itself. They cannot be trusted to do the right thing. Instead, the funds should be distributed to one of the many legitimate charities that actually provide affordable senior housing in the Los Angeles area. At the California Department of Justice, we are committed to holding unscrupulous charities accountable and tackling our state’s housing crisis — today’s lawsuit is a continuation of those efforts,” Bonta said upon filing the legal action.

“For years, I’ve heard from Cathay Manor residents about the unacceptable conditions they’ve faced under C.C.O.A. Housing Corporation,” said US Representative Jimmy Gomez. “That’s why I pushed for an investigation, and I’m glad to see California Attorney General Bonta taking action. I’ll keep fighting to protect Chinatown seniors and hold landlords accountable to ensure they meet their responsibilities to our communities.”

C.C.O.A. Housing Corporation is currently defending multiple actions filed against it — including a lawsuit filed by Cathay Manor tenants relating to poor living conditions — and criminal charges filed by the Los Angeles City Attorney’s Office in 2021. 

The newest lawsuit would not adversely impact the ongoing civil and criminal actions. The appointment of a receiver would allow a neutral party to manage C.C.O.A. Housing Corporation’s affairs, including oversight of the existing lawsuits. If the court grants dissolution of the charity, the receiver would also manage the winding up of C.C.O.A. Housing Corporation’s affairs. Further, C.C.O.A. Housing Corporation would still need to satisfy debts and liabilities in order to dissolve.

Following the sale of Cathay Manor and the payment of existing debts and liabilities, C.C.O.A. Housing Corporation currently has more than $8.5 million in a restricted bank account. As a condition for approving the sale of Cathay Manor, the Attorney General required all proceeds to be put in a restricted bank account. In June 2025, a final payment of $70 million is due to C.C.O.A. Housing Corporation from the sale of the building, which will also be placed in the restricted bank account. 

During the course of the Attorney General’s investigation, C.C.O.A. Housing Corporation’s current board members failed to provide any kind of plan as to how the funds would be properly used to provide low-income housing in the future.

Cathay Manor provides housing for the elderly.

Gong Donald Toy, also known as Don Toy, is named as a defendant in today’s complaint. He has been a Director of C.C.O.A. Housing Corporation and its President and Chief Executive Officer since the incorporation of the organization in 1979. In addition, Janet Lim, Sing Foo, and Jimmy Victoria — all of whom are former and current C.C.O.A. Housing Corporation board members — are named as defendants.

“C.C.O.A. and its board members demonstrated a complete and total disregard for the Chinatown community and the seniors who resided at Cathay Manor,” said Los Angeles City Councilmember Eunisses Hernandez. “They cannot be allowed to benefit from the sale of the building that they so woefully mismanaged and neglected. They have already shown us who they are and I applaud Attorney General Bonta’s efforts to hold them accountable for their egregious breach of the community’s trust.”

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news and views from an AANHPI perspective, follow me on Threads, on X or at the blog Views From the Edge.

Legendary Filipino American R&B pioneer passes away

Filipino/Black American artist Sugar Pie Desanto continued to perform well into her 80's.

Filipino/Black American R&B singer Sugar pie DeSanto died at the age of 89 on Dec. 20, 2024. The legendary performer paved the way for Black Filipino American performers H.E.R. and Saweetie.

Views From the Edge first wrote about R&B singer Sugar Pie DeSanto in 2017, giddy with my admittedly late "discovery" of a bit of Filipino American history.

Back then, the music pioneer was known only to hard core music fans but she was already a legend in the R&B genre. Later, in 2020, she was still performing. She showed up at a San Francisco music festival and dang, if she didn't do her trademark sommersault at the age of 85.

FYI: Read what others have said about Sugar Pie DeSanto: NY Times, SFGate, San Francisco Chronicle, KQED, AsAmNews

SF Gate described her performance this way:

"DeSanto, who stood a petite 4 feet 11 inches and performed into her eighties, loved to shock audiences by selecting a large, handsome fellow out of the audience as a prop for her signature feat. Without warning, she would climb on the man, wrap her legs around his waist, and dangle upside down. Once, she took this acrobatic display even further, draping her legs around a man’s neck. Recalling this moment with laughter, she said, 'I told him, don’t drop me. If you do, you’re in trouble!'”

Still sassy after all these years.

“My sister was one of a kind and you will never see anyone like her again,” wrote Domingo Balinton, her brother, in a Facebook post that noted that DeSanto died in her sleep. “She was full of energy and commanded respect when she walked on stage as well as in life. I am truly going to miss her.”

During her lifetime, she performed with other music legends such as Etta James and James Brown. The latter, nown for his own dance moves, jokingly asked her to tone down her performance because she might overshadow his own act.

Her brother writes that she died in her sleep in her home in Oakland, California. 

DeSanto was born Umpeylia Balinton in Brooklyn, New York to a Black mother and Filipino father in 1935. The family moved to San Francisco’s post-WWII Fillmore District as a child. She was the oldest girl of 10 siblings.

DeSanto's mixed racial heritage is due to the anti-miscegenation laws that were prevalent up to the Loving v. Virginia Supreme Court decision rendered in 1967. Until then, the anti-misegenation laws banned marriages between Whites and people of color. However, most of the racist laws did not prevent the marriages between Native Americans, Blacks and Asians.

In recent years, Black and Filipino personalities have become more prominent and pay homage to their mixed racial roots. Among the artists who may have benefitted from the door-opening by DeSanto are R&B artist H.E.R. (also known as Gabriella Sarmiento Wilson) and rappers Saweetie and Guap, all of whom were raised in the San Francisco Bay Area.

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news and views from an AANHPI perspective, follow me on Threads, on X or at the blog Views From the Edge.

New York state establishes AAPI Commission

Earlier this year, New York Gov. Kathleen Hochul, center, introduced some of the
commissioners of of the newly formed state AAPI Commission.

New York installs 13 members to the newly formed New York State Asian American and Pacific Islander Commission.

Thirteen Asian American leaders were sworn in at Queens College on Dec. 12, pledging to strengthen the connection between the Asian American community and New York State. 

Although New York State Governor Kathleen Hochul, could not join the swearing-in ceremony in person, her office shared her message.

"Welcome to the first-ever meeting of the NYS Asian American and Pacific Islanders Commission. We established this Commission because your voices are essential to our state's future, and we are always looking to gain a deeper understanding of one another. We invested $35 million to protect Asian American New Yorkers from Hate Crime and set $30 Million to local AAPI organizations to serve their communities."

New York State is the home of more than 1.7 million AAPI, about 10% of the total population. New York City alone is home to more residents of Asian descent than any other city outside of Asia. T

The New York Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Commission is tasked with enhancing the community's economic and social well-being and addressing the health and educational needs critical to AAPI communities throughout the state. Its mandate includes making policy recommendations, coordinating programs, implementing public education campaigns, and raising awareness among AAPI individuals about state and local resources.

Hochul has been proactive in supporting the AAPI community, highlighted by her approval of legislation making Lunar New Year and Diwali public school holidays. 

Under her leadership, the state made historic investments last year, allocating $30 million to empower community organizations to fight hate and enhance wellbeing. This year's state budget includes an additional $30 million for these crucial initiatives and an extra $35 million to enhance security for organizations particularly vulnerable to hate crimes and vandalism.

The Commission will be led by Chair Gaurav Vasisht, the first Asian American and Indian American to lead the nonprofit New York State Insurance Fund, 

The other members of the commission are:

• Ambrosia Kaul, Coalition of Asian American Children and Families
• Andrew Sta. Ana, Asian American Federation
• Dr. Joyce Wu, Doctorate of Pharmacy
• Jeffrey Gu, Make Us Visible
• Faustina Sein, Karen Society of Buffalo
• Marjorie Hsu, Westchester Asian American Advisory Board
• Kyung Yoon, Korean American Community Foundation
• Peter Tu, Flushing Chinese Business Association
• Tal Shaw, Chair, Asian Pacific Islander American Public Affairs Association
• Tim Law, Chinese American Social Services Center
• Maf Misbah Uddin, Labor leader
• Neeta Bhasin, the founder of Diwali at Times Square, Sammaan for All

Hochul signed the bill establishing the commission earlier this year. The legislation was authored by Assemblywoman Jenifer Rajkumar, the first Indian American elected to the New York Legisture.

“I introduced this historic legislation to meet this critical moment in time: Asian Americans are now the fastest growing ethnic group and making large gains in representation across many fields," said Rajkumar at the signing ceremony.

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news and views from an AANHPI perspective, follow me on Threads, on X or at the blog Views From the Edge.

Rachel LaMont crowned winner of ‘Survivor’ and $1 million

SCREEN CAPTURE

Rachel LaMont after she was named Sole Susrvivor.

Updated Dec. 21, 12:30 a.m.

Rachel LaMont earned seven votes from the 8-person jury to become the winner of the 47th season of the reality TV series Survivor.

"I am the kind of person that believes that everything happens for a reason, and timing is everything," she said in a Parade interview after the last episode which aired Wednesday.

"And just being here and seeing all the people here and the vibe of this season, I genuinely feel like this is my season. This is the one that it was meant to be. And it's great."

The 34-yeaar old Bangkok-born Rachel won the competition by winning the final immunity challenge that included crawling through mud and winding up with a puzzle. As the challenge winner, she was assured of being in the final three and the power to choose who would be the second person in the final three, which turned out to be Sue

Rachel also had the power to choose who among would be the third finalist by having the other two -- Teeny Chirichillo and Sam Phalen -- compete aagainst each other by building fire.

As the final three answered the questions from the jury, made up of contestants they helped to eliminate, Rachel's onfidence wavered when Sam gave a convincing argument that he deserved the jury's vote.

‘I am so stressed out that I’m losing right now, but I’m also having so much fun," she told the NY Post. "Just talking, interrupting each other, talking over each other, correcting stuff for the jury. It was so much fun. It was the most dynamic moment.  Even thought truly there was a part of me that was like, ‘Am I about to lose the game at final tribal?’"

"I think Rachel will go down as one of the best overall players to ever compete on Survivor," said host Jeff Probst. "She made the most of every opportunity, and when in trouble, always found a way out. Her dominant challenge performance speaks for itself, and her final argument to the jury about why she deserved their vote was very well-crafted with just the right amount of confidence and humility.

"And in addition to all of those player qualities, she was also a really fun human. I enjoyed talking to her at challenges and Tribal Council."

Rachel, who immigrated to the US with her family at age 7, is married and a graphic artist from Southfield, Michigan. "I basically make apps that you interact with look pretty. So I design what they look like and the colors and all of that good stuff," she told Parade.

It might not be the last we see of Rachel. In a post-game interview with Entertainment Weekly, she responded to the question if she would play again. “How could I not? This is the most incredible adventure. I still think all the time about just sitting on Beka beach in the dirt with my friends around the campfire playing a crazy game, and if they called, of course I would go.”

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news and views from an AANHPI perspective, follow me on Threads, on X or at the blog Views From the Edge.

Man admits guilt for spying; harassing Chinese living in US

SCREENSHOT

Chen Jinping, right, and his co-defendant Lu Jianwang.

Not only do Chinese immigrants in the US have to worry about adjusting to life in an unfamiliar culture, they have to contend with harassment and threats from their country of irigin, the Peoples Republic of China (PRC).

Chen Jinping, 60, of New York, New York, pleaded guilty today (Dec. 18) to conspiring to act as an illegal agent of the government of the PRC, in connection with opening and operating an undeclared overseas police station, located in lower Manhattan, for the PRC’s Ministry of Public Security (MPS).

“Today’s guilty plea holds the defendant accountable for his brazen efforts to operate an undeclared overseas police station on behalf of the PRC’s national police force — a clear affront to American sovereignty and danger to our community that will not be tolerated,” said Assistant Attorney General Matthew G. Olsen of the Justice Department’s National Security Division. “The Department of Justice will continue to pursue anyone who attempts to aid the PRC’s efforts to extend their repressive reach into the United States.”

As alleged, Chen Jinping and co-defendant “Harry” Lu Jianwang , both US citizens, conspired to act as illegal agents of the PRC government and also obstructed justice by destroying evidence of their communications with an MPS official. While acting under the direction and control of the MPS official, the defendants worked together to establish the first known overseas police station in the United States on behalf of the Fuzhou branch of the MPS. 

The so-called police station — which closed in the fall of 2022 — occupied an entire floor in an office building in Manhattan’s Chinatown. Lu and Chen helped open and operate the clandestine police station. None of the participants in the scheme informed the U.S. government that they were helping the PRC government surreptitiously open and operate an undeclared MPS police station on U.S. soil.

The "police station" occupied an entire floor of the glass building in New York City's Chinatown.

“Not only was the police station set up on the order of MPS officials, but members of the Chinese consulate in New York even paid a visit to it after it opened,” said Michael Driscoll, the FBI’s assistant director in charge of its New York office. “It is our belief that the ultimate purpose of this illegal police station was not to protect and serve but rather silence, harass and threaten individuals here in the United States.

The two suspects were alleged to be the leaders of a nonprofit organization founded in 2013 that described its mission as a “social gathering place for Fujianese people,” and over the past several years, he built what prosecutors describe as a “relationship of trust” with the Chinese government.

The nonprofit sent counterprotesters to Washington in 2015 when members of the Falun Gong religion protested Chinese president Xi Jinping’s visit to the U.S., and Lu helped the Chinese government locate other dissidents in the U.S.

In another instance, one of the alleged Chinese agents began harassing a Chinese American who was advising a California candidate for the US Congress.

In October 2022, the FBI conducted a judicially authorized search of the illegal police station. In connection with the search, FBI agents interviewed both defendants and seized their phones. In reviewing the contents of these phones, FBI agents observed that communications between the defendants and an MPS official appeared to have been deleted. 

In subsequent consensual interviews, the defendants admitted to the FBI that they had deleted their communications with the MPS official after learning about the ongoing FBI investigation, thus preventing the FBI from learning the full extent of the MPS’s directions for the overseas police station.

Chen faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison. Per Chen’s plea agreement, the government has agreed to dismiss the obstruction of justice charge against him. Lu has pleaded not guilty to both of the charges against him and is awaiting trial.

The PRC's aggressive interference in the lives of Chinese immigrants not only violates their rights in the US, the strategy also gives red meat to racists' anti-Asian assaults, which rose signicantly during the pandemic and spurred by Trump's anti-Chinese rhetoric during his first term as President and  continued during his 2024 re-election campaign.

“Today's acknowledgment of guilt is a stark reminder of the insidious efforts taken by the PRC government to threaten, harass, and intimidate those who speak against their Communist Party,” said Executive Assistant Director Robert Wells of the FBI’s National Security Branch. 

“These blatant violations will not be tolerated on U.S. soil. The FBI remains committed to preserving the rights and freedoms of all people in our country and will defend against transnational repression at every front.”

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news and views from an AANHPI perspective, follow me on Threads, on X or at the blog Views From the Edge.

Three Filipino American labor leaders inducted into Hall of Honor

 

From left: Larry Itliong, Philip Vera Cruz and Peter Velasco were honored for their
role in the United States labor movement.

Three Filipino American labor leaders were recently inducted in the Hall of Honor by the Department of Labor.

The U.S. Department of Labor inducted Filipino American labor leaders Larry Itliong, Philip Vera Cruz, and Peter Gines Velasco into its Hall of Honor, on Nov. 20 recognizing their pivotal roles in advancing farmworkers’ rights during the 1960s. These leaders made significant contributions to the labor movement, particularly through their work during the Delano Grape Strike.

• Larry Itliong, born in the Philippines in 1913, immigrated to the United States in 1929. He became a prominent labor organizer, advocating for fair wages and improved working conditions for farmworkers. 

• Philip Vera Cruz, who arrived in the U.S. in 1926, was instrumental in organizing Filipino farmworkers and served as vice president of the United Farm Workers (UFW). 

• Peter Gines Velasco played a significant role in uniting Filipino and Latino farmworkers, particularly during the Delano Grape Strike, which became a defining moment in the labor movement.

Acting Labor Secretary Julie Su honored the inductees, stating, “Itliong, Vera Cruz, and Velasco rallied farmworkers… to courageously organize for fairer wages and humane treatment.” 

In 1965, these leaders orchestrated the Delano Grape Strike, where over 800 Filipino farmworkers protested against poor working conditions and low wages in California’s grape vineyards. Their efforts with Mexican American leader Cesar Chavez led to the formation of the UFW, marking a significant advancement in the labor movement.

The ceremony included performances from “Larry the Musical,” celebrating Itliong’s life and contributions. The induction highlights the significant contributions of Filipino Americans to the labor movement, inspiring future generations to continue advocating for workers’ rights and social justice.

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news and views from an AANHPI perspective, follow me on Threads, on X or at the blog Views From the Edge.