Alex Eala makes history with her first WTA Title in Washington D.C.

SCREEN CAPTURE / DIOKNO

Alexandra Eala hoists the winners trophy at the Mbadala D.C. Open.

Call her the Comeback Queen. Alexandra Eala made history for the Philippines on Monday, August 3, pulling off an unforgettable 4-6, 6-4, 6-0 comeback victory against world No. 3 and tournament top seed Jessica Pegula.

With the win at the Mubadala DC Open, the 21-year-old tennis sensation secured her first career WTA singles title, becoming the first player from the Philippines ever to wear a WTA Tour-level singles crown.

An absolute gauntlet of Top 10 elite

What makes Eala's run in Washington, D.C., truly legendary wasn't just how she finished, but the absolute path of destruction she left behind her. Before even stepping onto Stadium Court for the final, Eala dismantled a gauntlet of tennis royalty:

Round 1: Battled past Olympic gold medalist and world elite Qinwen Zheng in a fierce 4-6, 6-4, 6-1 thriller. 

Round 2: Eliminated defending champion and 7th-seed Leylah Fernandez 6-2, 7-6 (1) with a clutch second-set tiebreak performance. 

Quarterfinals: Stunned world No. 10 Elina Svitolina 6-3, 6-4. 

Semifinals: Dispatched four-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka 6-4, 6-2. Reflecting on the moment, Eala shared, "I think I played really well and, of course, it's such a meaningful match against a great player. So really happy to share the court with Naomi."

Navigating the storm

The historic final against Pegula was anything but straightforward. Heavy D.C. thunderstorms forced a suspension of play on Sunday evening, leaving Eala in a deep hole. Pegula had captured the first set 6-4 and held a 2-1 advantage in the second set.

When the players returned at noon on Monday, the uphill battle initially grew steeper, with Eala finding herself trailing 4-3 in the second set.

What happened next was a breathtaking display of Pinoy grit. Showing the fierce baseline hitting and nifty returns that have characterized her rapid ascent, Eala locked in. She broke Pegula back, served out the second set, and completely dictated the final frame.

In total, Eala rattled off nine consecutive games to close out the match, rendering one of the world's best baseliners completely helpless. In an astonishing 6-0 third-set bagel, Eala dropped a mere eight points to seal the WTA 500 championship trophy.

SCREEN CAPTURE / DIOKNO

After winning the final point, Alexandra Eala slumped to the ground recognizing her achievement.

Eala won't have much time to savor her historic win. She will play next at the National Bank Open in Toronto, Canada, with her opening match scheduled for 8 A.M. tomorrow, August 4. 

The victory represents her seventh win against a top-10 opponent this season and catapults Eala from No. 28 directly into the WTA Top 20. 

Thanking the fans

Ever the class act, Pegula turned to Eala after receiving the runner-up trophy:

“I wanna congratulate Alex on an amazing week and tournament. I don’t know how much more I can say. But you’re an amazing player. Just to see how far you’ve come over the last couple years when we first played, to see the amazing fans that follow you every place you go, it’s not fun to play against  but I really appreciate the really fun atmosphere. I think it’s amazing. Congrats. All the best to you and your team and your coach.”

Pegula, a Korean American, knew the impact of Eala Mania that often made center court feel like Eala's home court.

"This is the best Monday final crowd I've seen," Pegula said while accepting the trophy for runner-up, "...To all the Filipino fans that came out, and have supported (crowd cheered). You guys are so helping to grow tennis around the world, and I appreciate that. Being a female athlete, being in tennis, we love to see that growth."

After acknowledging Pegula, Eala turned to fans who stuck around for the trophy presentation:

"To all my supporters, thank you guys...especially the Filipino community here in DC, and back home, and wherever you are around the world. I really feel all the love...Before the final yesterday, I got so many messages. Sweet messages from my family and from my friends who are on tour or wherever else in the world, and I thought to myself, 'I feel so much love.'"

With a passionate Filipino community packing the Washington stands to roar her to victory, Eala has proven that her time on the world stage isn't just arriving — it's already here.

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news, views and chismis from an AANHPI perspective, follow me on Threads, on X, BlueSky or at the blog Views From the Edge. If you find this perspective interesting, please repost.

AANHPI Heritage Month: Overcoming the "perpetual foreigner" trope

Illustrated by Gemini

American history textbooks typically reduce the AANHPI experience to two brief moments: Chinese railroad labor and Japanese American  incarceration during WWII. By skipping over the figures who fought for birthright citizenship, labor rights, and scientific breakthroughs, these books maintain a limited "foreigner" narrative rather than an American one.

According to the latest STAATUS Index from The Asian American Foundation, the American collective memory regarding AAPI history is basically a blank page. The numbers are jarring: over half of U.S. adults — 53%, to be exact—couldn't name a single historical event or policy involving Asian Americans. Not one.

We’re living in a "paradox of visibility." We see AAPI faces in our media and eat the food, but the historical backbone of that community remains invisible to the mainstream. When people could actually name something, they almost exclusively pointed to the Japanese American incarceration during WWII. Beyond that? Crickets.

As the administration pushes for a "patriotic" narrative that filters out "divisive" topics, these figures are the first to be cut. Excluding them isn't just about missing names; it’s about erasing the 150-year struggle for civil rights and legal belonging that defines the AANHPI experience.

Here are some of the AANHPI figures—including the often-ignored heroes of education—who are missing from your average U.S. textbook:

The pioneers of belonging

• Mary Tape: Decades before Brown v. Board of Education, Mary Tape fought for her daughter’s right to attend public school in 1884. Her landmark case, Tape v. Hurley, forced the city to provide an education for Chinese children, laying the early groundwork for the desegregation of American schools.
• Wong Kim Ark: A San Francisco cook whose 1898 Supreme Court victory ensured that birthright citizenship applies to everyone born on U.S. soil. Without him, the legal status of millions of Americans would be in question today.
• Patsy Takemoto Mink: The first woman of color in Congress and the powerhouse behind Title IX. Every girl playing school sports today owes a debt to this Japanese American leader from Hawaiʻi who demanded equal opportunity in education.

Leaders of the movement

• Larry Itliong & Philip Vera Cruz: These Filipino labor organizers were the spark for the 1965 Delano Grape Strike. They reached across racial lines to join forces with Cesar Chavez, proving that the American labor movement has always been a multi-ethnic fight.
• Queen Liliʻuokalani: The last monarch of the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi, whose autobiography documents the illegal 1893 overthrow and subsequent U.S. annexation, providing a critical perspective on American expansionism.
• Yuri Kochiyama & Grace Lee Boggs: Two activists who showed that Asian American history is inseparable from the Black Power and Civil Rights movements. Kochiyama’s life, from WWII incarceration camps to being by Malcolm X’s side, is a masterclass in intersectional justice.
• Mabel Ping-Hua Lee: A brilliant suffragette who fought for American women’s right to vote in 1912, even though she herself was barred from voting by the racist Chinese Exclusion Act.

View from the edge

When current policies label these stories as "ideological," they aren't just cutting facts; they are cutting the roots of our belonging. Figures like Mary Tape didn't "divide" the country—they challenged it to be more inclusive. Removing them from the curriculum leaves us with a hollowed-out history that treats 24 million AANHPI Americans as guests rather than stakeholders.

The push to "restore truth" to the American narrative is a direct hit on the pioneers who forced this country to live up to its own ideals. As we mark AANHPI Heritage Month, we’re reminded that the purpose of ethnic studies isn't to divide—it’s to tell the whole story of how the United States became what it is today. By scrubbing content that Trump's people see as "divisive," the administration risks erasing the very people who fought for the rights we now take for granted.

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news, views and chismis from an AANHPI perspective, follow me on Threads, on X, BlueSky or at the blog Views From the Edge. If you find this perspective interesting, please repost.

AANHPI Heritage Month: Why every American should know about Mary Tape

In 1885, Mary Tape, right, fought for her children's education.

As we kick off AANHPI Heritage Month, the air is thick with "patriotic" mandates and executive orders designed to sanitize the American story. The administration wants a version of history that feels like a Hallmark card—smooth, comfortable, and entirely devoid of the friction that actually moved the needle on civil rights.

But you can’t talk about the American dream of "education for all" without talking about the woman who fought the system before most of our ancestors even set foot on these shores. If your history book doesn’t mention Mary Tape, it isn't giving you the truth; it’s giving you a curated silence.

"Is It a Disgrace to be Chinese?"

In 1884, Mary Tape wasn’t looking to lead a revolution; she was just a mother trying to enroll her eight-year-old daughter, Mamie, in a San Francisco public school. The school principal refused, citing "the Chinese" as a threat to the moral and physical health of white students.

Mary didn’t back down. She sued. And in a time when the Chinese Exclusion Act was the law of the land, she won. The California Supreme Court ruled in Tape v. Hurley that the state couldn’t deny a child an education based on their race."Is It a Disgrace to be Chinese?"

        FYI: Read more about the Tapes' fight for equal schools

Despite the court win, the San Francisco School Board pulled a classic move: they changed the law to create "separate but equal" schools just to keep Mamie out of the white classroom. Mary’s response was a blistering open letter to the board that should be required reading in every civics class:

"Is it a disgrace to be Chinese?" she wrote. "Are you not all of the same blood? Are you not created by the same God? That you should think your color best...?"

She called out the hypocrisy of a "free" nation that took her family's taxes but barred their children from the schoolhouse door.

View from the edge

The current push to label the history of systemic racism as "divisive" or "anti-white" is a direct insult to Mary’s legacy. Telling her story isn't about shaming anyone; it’s about acknowledging that educational equity wasn't a gift handed down by the founders—it was a right clawed back from the state by immigrants who believed in the American promise more than the government did.

It is important for today's AANHPI communities, especially those who are against affirmative action,  to know that the rights that we enjoy today, including the right to an education, did not come about because of the majority's largesse.We had to fight for those rights. 

The efforts of the Tape family laid early groundwork for desegregation in the United States leading up to the historic Brown v. Board of Education, we erase the proof that Asian Americans have always been at the forefront of the fight for justice.

We don't need a "sanitized" history. We need the raw, uncomfortable, beautiful truth of people like Mary Tape. She didn't divide America; she challenged it to live up to the ideals of the Constitution.

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AANHPI Heritage Month: California state park plans a public celebration of Chinese house of worship

The interior of the Weavervill Joss House tells stories of Chinese immigrants.

California State Parks and its partner, the Weaverville Joss House Association, invite the public to watch history come alive during the Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage Day with a Lion Dance at Weaverville Joss House State Historic Park (SHP). This free event will take place Saturday, May 23, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Asian American, Native Hawaiian, Pacific Islander Heritage Month is an annually observed commemorative month in the United States. It is celebrated during the month of May, and recognizes the contributions and influence of Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians and other Pacific Islander Americans to the history, culture and achievements of the United States.

The Weaverville Joss House, known traditionally as the Temple among the Forest beneath the Clouds. Built in 1874, it stands as a resilient anchor of cultural history. It is the oldest continuously used Chinese temple in California and the entire United States.

Hundreds of Chinese miners arrived here during the 1850s Gold Rush. They faced immense discrimination and heavy foreign miner taxes. This temple was their safe space. It functioned as a house of worship, a social hall, and a travelers' hostel.

The interior walls hold actual handwritten census logs. These logs provide a rare, priceless archive of a community that left behind very few written records.

The Joss House is an active house of worship.

Culturally, it’s believed that lions will preserve peace and tranquility in the community and prevail over all evil to bring joy and happiness. After the lion dance, there will be a traditional firecracker display, followed by a dragon dance by the Eastern Ways Martial Arts School. Refreshments will include green tea ice cream with specialty tea and cookies provided by the Weaverville Joss House Association.

Since it’s the Year of the Fire Horse, there will be fire horse crafts for children and guided tours of the Temple of the Forest Beneath the Clouds (Cloud Forest Temple), the oldest continuously used Chinese temple in California.

WHAT: Asian American, Native Hawaiian, Pacific Islander Heritage Day

WHEN: Saturday, May 23, from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m.

WHERE: Weaverville Joss House State Historic Park,630 Main St., Weaverville, CA 96093

California State Parks welcomes all visitors. For more information about the event or if members of your group have accessibility needs, please contact the park at (530) 623-5284 in advance to arrange accommodations.You can also get updates by following the park’s Facebook page.

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UCLA offers new digital textbook on AANHPI history for free

One of the problems of offering ethnic studies in US schools — particularly about AANHPI history — has been the lack of teaching material, but school districts can no longer use the lack of resources as an excuse.

UCLA’s Asian American Studies Center just dropped a game-changer for the classroom. Their new multimedia textbook, Foundations and Futures, isn't just another dry history book — it’s a massive, digital deep-dive into the AAPI stories that usually get short shrift in American curricula.

Led by professors Karen Umemoto and Kelly Fong, It moves way beyond the "model minority" myth, bringing in over 100 scholars to spotlight more than 20 different communities, including often-overlooked stories from South Asian organizers and Pacific Islander diasporas.

This free resource packs 50 chapters of history, from the struggles of 8-year-old Mary  Tape fighting for her right to go to school to the groundbreaking legacy of Hawaii Congressmember Patsy Mink.

“It’s transformative for youth to see themselves and their families centered in curriculum instead of in a paragraph, sentence, footnote or not at all,” said Fong. “In centering Asian American and Pacific Islander experiences, the textbook opens possibilities for students to feel valued and learn more about the communities they belong to as well as communities they may not know much about.”

“I was inspired by the thought of my 15-year-old Indian/Pakistani American niece seeing herself and her community represented in a major textbook,” said Uzma Quraishi, a contributing writer to the project. “I thought, ‘How empowering and affirming would that feel for a young Asian American today?’”

Almost 25 million people identify as Asian in the United States, according to the Pew Research Center. Yet, a recent study from The Asian American Foundation (TAAF) found that one in four adults in the US say they lack personal connections with anyone in the AAPI community. About half of adults say that AAPIs have little or no influence on American culture, with 47% of those surveyed unable to name a famous Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander and 53% unable to name a single significant moment in US history related to AAPIs.




Foundations and Futures is being released at an important time for public education, as the movement for ethnic studies in K–12 schools and higher education has grown significantly in recent years.

Governor Gavin Newsom signed California Assembly Bill 1468 in 2020, requiring students enrolled in California State University campuses to take a class in Native American Studies, African American Studies, Asian American Studies, or Latina and Latino Studies. This was followed by AB 101 in 2021, which made California the first state to require ethnic studies for high school graduation.

There are now 22 other states that have statutes requiring ethnic studies, with Oregon, Oklahoma, Florida, Tennessee and Connecticut among those that include Asian American and Pacific Islander studies in their academic standards.

What makes UCLA's textbook stand out is the format. It’s built for the TikTok generation but grounded in serious scholarship, using audio, video, and poetry to bring 200 years of struggle and triumph to life. As ethnic studies becomes a requirement in more states, UCLA is handing teachers the keys to tell a more honest, inclusive version of the American story.

“The histories featured in the textbook expand our understanding of the world in transformative ways. It helps grow our understanding of who we are and build mutual respect across differences,” said Umemoto. “It deepens knowledge about growing societal problems and shares intergenerational wisdom to make positive change in the world.”

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news, views and chismis from an AANHPI perspective, follow me on Threads, on X, BlueSky or at the blog Views From the Edge. If you find this perspective interesting, please repost.

ANHPI Heritage Month: Congressional Resolution for recognition in a climate of contempt

As we move into May 2026, the familiar ritual of AANHPI Heritage Month feels a lot less like a celebration and more like a battle cry.

As we kick off May 2026, the ritual of AANHPI Heritage Month feels less like a celebration and more like a desperate holding action. On April 30, Representative Grace Meng and Senator Mazie Hirono dropped a bicameral resolution (H.Res.1243) to officially recognize our month. But let’s be real: while Congress cites our history, the current administration is busy repeating the worst parts of it.

“Happy Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander Heritage Month! This year’s celebration precedes the 250th anniversary of the United States—a historic milestone and an opportunity to honor the generations of AANHPIs who have helped build and strengthen this nation," says Rep. Grace Meng, chair of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus (CAPAC).

        FYI: Read the entire Resolution

"Our presence long predates America's founding, beginning with the first recorded arrival of Filipinos in what is now the continental United States at Morro Bay in 1587."

The resolution doesn't just list our "contributions" — it serves as a historical receipt. By explicitly citing the Page Act of 1875 and the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882, it reminds the country that the US government has a long, ugly history of using law as a weapon against us. It’s a necessary jab at a political climate that feels increasingly like a 19th-century throwback.

The "Hellhole" rhetoric

While Congress tries to "honor" us, the rhetoric coming from the top is pure vitriol. Just last month, Trump reportedly lumped China and India into a list of "hellholes," a move that does more than just offend—it signals to his base that people from these regions are "less than."

This isn't just talk; it's a green light for targeted harassment. In Minneapolis, we’ve seen a disturbing spike in anti-Asian incidents where residents are being told to "go back" to those very places. This atmosphere of xenophobia is exactly what the 2026 resolution warns against, yet it is being fueled daily by the White House.

The machinery of exclusion

The most brutal edge of this rhetoric is found in the surging number of AANHPIs in ICE detention. We are seeing a record-breaking crackdown, with families being torn apart as the administration aggressively moves to deport Southeast Asian refugees for minor, decades-old crimes—crimes for which they have already served their time.

 These are people who came here as children fleeing war, now being sent back to countries they don't even know.

The stakes are life and death. The rise in detention numbers has been accompanied by reports of preventable deaths in ICE custody, where language barriers and medical neglect have turned a "minor crime" into a death sentence.

View from the edge

For AANHPI Heritage Month 2026, let’s get one thing clear: we aren’t "guests" in this country, and we’re tired of being asked where we’re really from. This year, as we celebrate under the theme "Power in Unity: Strengthening Communities Together," we’re taking a hard look at the "perpetual foreigner" trope — that tired, racist myth that treats us as outsiders no matter how many generations our families have been here.

A fresh report from the Committee of 100 and NORC shows that 55% of Asian Americans still deal with people assuming they’re foreign. It’s a weight that hits U.S.-born and naturalized citizens almost equally, making it clear this isn’t about a passport—it’s about how we’re seen.

A resolution is a nice gesture, but it won’t stop a deportation bus or silence a racist trope. As the resolution’s 2026 theme reminds us, there is "Power in Unity," but that unity is being tested by an administration that treats our community as a political scapegoat. 

If we want more than just a commemorative plaque, we have to keep fighting the policies that treat us like the the "perpetual foreigners" that the Exclusion Act intended us to be. From land bans to visa limitations and the gutting of DEI programs, the current administration is using policy to reinforce that trope. We're not simply the good little boys and girls that the "model minority" that separates us from other communities.

This May, we’re not just celebrating heritage; we’re asserting our belonging and integration into American society. We’re bridge builders, teachers, innovators, artists, healers and leaders, and — most importantly — neighbors who have been part of the American story from the start.

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news, views and chismis from an AANHPI perspective, follow me on Threads, on X, BlueSky or at the blog Views From the Edge. If you find this perspective interesting, please repost.

George Ariyoshi, the United States' first Asian American governor, passes away

Hawaii's late Governor George Ariyoshi, 1926-2026.

George Ariyoshi wasn’t just a politician; he was the living embodiment of the "Nisei" dream and a towering figure who shattered the ultimate glass ceiling for Asian Americans. When he passed away April 19 at the age of 100, the nation lost the first person of Asian descent to ever serve as a US governor. 

His journey from the son of Japanese immigrants to the pinnacle of power in Honolulu wasn’t just a personal victory; it was a signal to the entire Asian American community that the halls of government were no longer off-limits. Ariyoshi didn't just walk through the door; he held it open for generations to follow, proving that quiet, disciplined leadership could reshape an entire state’s destiny.

During his 12 years in office, 1974-1986, Ariyoshi transformed Hawaii from a collection of islands finding their post-statehood footing into a modern economic powerhouse. He was a master of the "long game," prioritizing sustainable growth and land-use policies that balanced development with the preservation of Hawaii’s natural beauty. 

Known for his fiscal discipline, he guided the state through its first major economic hurdles with a steady hand that won him the respect of both allies and rivals. He never lost an election, a testament to a leadership style defined by integrity and a refusal to chase short-term headlines at the expense of the state's future.

His legacy was anchored in the Japanese philosophy of kodomo no tame ni—doing things "for the sake of the children." This wasn't just a campaign slogan; it was the lens through which he viewed every policy, from infrastructure to education. 

By the time he retired, he had successfully pivoted Hawaii toward a more global future, strengthening ties with the Asia-Pacific region and ensuring the state was more than just a tourist destination, but a vital bridge between East and West.

The outpouring of grief from Asian American leaders has been a profound reflection of his status as a pioneer. Current Hawaii Governor Josh Green  ordered the state to fly flags at half-staff.

“Governor Ariyoshi devoted his life to Hawaiʻi with humility, discipline and an unwavering sense of responsibility to the people he served,” Green said. “He led our state during a pivotal moment with quiet strength and integrity, and his legacy as a trailblazer and public servant will endure for generations.”

"Governor Ariyoshi helped Hawaii look to the future when he brought communities across our state together to develop the landmark Hawaii State Plan," said US Sen. Mazie Hirono. "His commitment to public service and public discourse endured long after he left the governorship, and I'm grateful to have known him."

US Sen. Brian Schatz echoed these sentiments, calling Ariyoshi a true public servant and a foundational inspiration for anyone in Hawaii looking to enter public life. From the statehouse to the halls of Congress, the consensus is clear: Ariyoshi was the "steady captain" who ensured Hawaii’s ship stayed on course during its most formative decades.

Acting Chief Justice Sabrina McKenna spoke to his role as a mentor, noting his ability to teach others the importance of long-term vision over political expediency. 

Even at 100, Ariyoshi’s influence remained palpable, and his death marks the end of an era for the "Magnum Opus" generation of Asian American trailblazers who turned minority representation into mainstream leadership.

Ariyoshi was the son of immigrants from Japan. He was born in Honolulu, March   12, 1926 and grew up in the city's Kalihi neighborhood.

He served in the US Army as an interpreter during World War II. He graduated from the University of Michigan and eqrned his law degree from the UM Law School.

The late George Ariyoshi is survived by his wife, Jean Miya Hayashi Ariyoshi, whom he married in 1955. He is also survived by their three children: a daughter, Lynn, and two sons, Ryozo and Donn.

Funeral arrangements are pending.

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

'Sinners' ode to Chinese Americans' unheralded role in the deep South

Li Jun Li as Grace Cho had a pivotal role in 'Sinners.'

When we talk about American history, we usually get it in black and white ... well, mostly white. But Ryan Coogler’s motion picture Sinners is opening a conversation about the "cracks" in that history — specifically the Mississippi Delta Chinese, a community that lived in a tense, racial "in-between" for over a century.

As we head into the 2026 awards season, Sinners isn't just a win for representation; it’s a history-maker. The film has emerged as a major Oscar frontrunner following its record-breaking 16 Academy Award nominations and significant wins at key precursor ceremonies.

The film recently dominated the 2026 Actor Awards (formerly the SAG Awards) and the NAACP Image Awards, significantly shifting the momentum in its favor.

The film has shattered the all-time record for the most Oscar nominations for a single film with 16 nods, surpassing classics like Titanic and La La Land. For a "Black" movie — directed by a Black filmmaker with a predominantly Black cast with key roles by Asian Americans — to dominate the Academy in this way is a sea change for the industry.

History they didn't teach you: The "Middle Men"

The story of Grace and Bo Chow in Sinners is pulled from a rarely-discussed chapter of the post-Civil War South. After Reconstruction, Southern planters recruited Chinese laborers as a potential replacement for freed Black workers on cotton plantations.

When plantation life proved exploitative, these immigrants found a unique economic niche: grocery stores. Chinese grocers often lived in Black neighborhoods and served Black residents whom white merchants refused to serve.

WARNER BROTHERS

Hailee Steinfeld, who is part Filipino/Black costars in 'Sinners.'

In the film, the Chows operate two stores across from each other—one for Black patrons and one for white. This reflects the real-world segregation where Chinese families were "neither white enough to belong nor Black enough to be fully excluded".

FYI: The 98th Academy Awards will air live on ABC and stream on Hulu on Sunday, March 15 at 7 p.m. EDT (4 p.m. PDT).

Systemic Limbo: While they were often "middlemen" in trade, they faced their own fierce discrimination. They were excluded from white social organizations and even forced to attend separate schools or Black schools after the 1927 Supreme Court case Gong Lum v. Rice ruled that excluding Chinese children from white spaces was legal.

By including the Chows, Coogler didn't just add "diversity"; he showed the historical bonds between marginalized groups. In the film, Grace and the Moore family are described as "family, basically," illustrating the multiracial community building that happened in the heart of Jim Crow.

View from the edge: Breaking barriers 

The significance of Sinners earning 16 nominations cannot be overstated. It is the most-nominated film ever by a Black director and the first to sweep 14 wins at the Black Reel Awards.

Ryan Coogler achieved a rare "trifecta," earning personal nominations for Best Picture (as producer), Best Director, and Best Original Screenplay.

It remains to be seen if the record-breaking haul signals more than just a trend that Hollywood is finally making room for Black-led films that are culturally specific and formally ambitious, rather than just focusing on "suffering." 

By including the Chow family, Coogler didn't just add "diversity;" he showed the historical bonds between marginalized groups. In the film, Grace and the Moore family are described as "family, basically," illustrating the multiracial community building that happened in the heart of Jim Crow.

With no AAPI-centric or themed film among the Oscar nominees, we’re rooting for Sinners not just because it’s a powerhouse film, but because it finally centers the complex, layered history of everyone who lived through — and resisted — the American racial hierarchy.

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

Diosdado “Dado” Banatao: The barefoot visionary who wired the world

Diosdado Banatao, 1946- 2025

If you’re reading this on a laptop or scrolling on a phone, you owe Diosdado “Dado” Banatao a debt of gratitude. He didn't just build companies; he built the very "guts" of the modern computer.

The tech world lost a titan on Christmas Day 2025. Diosdado “Dado” Banatao, passed away at the Stanford Medical Center. Banatao, often called the “Bill Gates of the Philippines,” passed away at 79, leaving behind a legacy that proves the American Dream is alive, well, and powered by silicon.

"He was 5 months shy of his 80th birthday, and ultimately succumbed to complications from a neurological disorder that hit him late in his life," writes his family on a website dedicated to the Silicon Valley giant.

"We are mourning his loss, but take comfort from the time spent with him during this Christmas season, and that his fight with this disease is over. We thank everyone for all the messages of support and prayers during this time."

Like many of Silicon Valley's pioneers, Dado Banatao was an immigrant. His story is the ultimate counter-narrative to the "model minority" myth — it’s a story of raw grit. Born in the rural barrio of Malabbac in Cagayan, Dado grew up the son of a rice farmer and a housekeeper. He famously walked barefoot to school on dirt roads, a far cry from the sleek hallways of Stanford where he would later earn his Master’s in Electrical Engineering.

Silicon Valley pioneer

After graduating cum laude from Mapúa University in the Philippines, he headed to the United States, initially working as a design engineer for Boeing before landing in the heart of the tech revolution.

In the 1980s, personal computing was clunky and expensive. Banatao changed that by thinking smaller. He developed the first system logic chipsets for the IBM PC-XT and PC-AT. He managed to condense 19 separate chips into just a handful, effectively breaking IBM’s stranglehold on the market and allowing more affordable "clones" to flourish.

If you like your high-res graphics, thank Dado. He invented the first Windows Graphics Accelerator chip, moving us away from boring text-based screens into the vibrant, GUI-driven world we live in today.

He also pioneered the first 10-Mbit Ethernet CMOS chip, the foundation for how we connect devices to this day.

He wasn't just an engineer; he was a serial entrepreneur, founding Chips and Technologies (sold to Intel for a cool $300 million) and S3 Graphics. Later, through Tallwood Venture Capital, he became a kingmaker for the next generation of deep-tech startups.

Rooted in the Philippines

Despite his massive wealth, Banatao never forgot the dirt roads of Cagayan, Philippines, where he was raised by his father, a farmer, and his mother, a housekeeper. 

In his speeches, he often told Filipino students, "My story could be your story." He became the patron saint of Filipino innovation. Through the Philippine Development Foundation (PhilDev), he spent his later years obsessed with one goal: eradicating poverty in the Philippines through STEM education and entrepreneurship.

He didn't just give handouts; he built infrastructure. From the AIM-Dado Banatao Incubator in Makati to countless scholarships for aspiring engineers, he wanted to ensure that the next "Dado" wouldn't have to walk barefoot to find a future.

Dado Banatao showed the world that a kid from a small Philippine village could not only participate in the tech revolution — he could lead it. As we look at the landscape of 2025, his blueprint for success remains the gold standard for Filipino Americans and immigrants everywhere.

Philanthropic contributions

Although he didn't attent University of California, Berkeley, his wife and three children are alumni of that famous institution. UC Berkeley named a research center (the Banatao Institute at CITRIS) and a global outreach center (the Dado and Maria Banatao Center for GLOBE) after Dado Banatao and his wife, Maria, in recognition of their significant philanthropic contributions and ongoing leadership. 

Before it became trendy to be a billionaire philanthropist, alongside his wife, the Banataos were doing what they could to make this a better world and provide opportunities for new entrepreneurs and innovators.

Dado and Maria Banatao were early and foundational supporters of the Center for Information Technology Research in the Interest of Society (CITRIS). In recognition of this, the center was renamed the Banatao Institute at CITRIS in 2016.

They founded the Dado and Maria Banatao Center for Global Learning and Outreach from Berkeley Engineering (GLOBE) in 2005. The center's mission is to expand Berkeley Engineering's international partnerships and provide global opportunities for students and faculty.

Their generosity extends to funding a fellowship grant for faculty from the University of the Philippines to collaborate on research with UC Berkeley professors, and establishing the Banatao Family Filipino American Education Fund.

Both Dado and Maria have served on various university boards, including the CITRIS Advisory Board and the UC Berkeley Foundation Board of Trustees. For their long-term leadership and service to the university, they received the 2019 Berkeley Founders Award. 

Dado Banatao's name should join the pantheon of the tech revolution innovators alongside  Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, and Mark Zuckerberg.

He leaves behind his wife Maria and three children and nine grandchildren. The family is making arrangements for a celebration of Dado Banatao's life, details of which will be announced at this website.

The boy who used to walk barefoot to school made the world faster, smarter, smaller and a lot more inspired. 

"The legacy I want to leave is simply to be remembered as a good person first, an engineer second," he once told students at Xavier University in the Philippines. "I firmly believe that true fortune resides in fortitude, family, and faith."

Rest in peace, Dado.

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

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Filipino American is the No. 1 pick in inaugural women's baseball draft

Kelsie Whitmore, the No. 1 pick of the Women's Pro Baseball League, makes history.

Folks, every so often, a story comes along that makes you pause and take notice. And this one is it. Her name is Kelsie Whitmore, and if you haven't heard of her yet, you will.

She's a professional baseball player, a pitcher and an outfielder, and she just made history as the very first overall draft pick in the new Women's Pro Baseball League. That's "baseball," not softball. She was the No. 1 pick by the yet-to-be-named team that will be based in San Francisco.

Whitmore’s name will now forever be linked to the start of the WPBL. Her journey—from the only girl on youth teams, to representing the US on the global stage, to pitching professionally against men—makes her the ideal athlete to be the face of the new league.

Now, that's a great story on its own. But dig a little deeper, and you find something that resonates a little closer to home for many of us. 

Whitmore, 27, is a Filipino American, and her mother, Mirasol, hails from the Philippines. In 2024, when she received an award from Silayan Filipina, she posted on Instagram: "Forever proud to be a Filipino American woman, while representing the sports world through my culture."

In a sport where representation is still evolving, a player like Kelsie stepping into the spotlight is a big deal. She's not just playing for her team; she's carrying her culture with her, a point she makes with pride, from her words to the Filipino imagery tattooed on her left forearm.

Whitmore's success is a familiar story, isn't it? That mix of American opportunity and deep-seated Filipino heritage. It’s the story of so many families who have made a life for themselves here while holding on to their roots.

Before the Women's Pro Baseball League, the San Diego-born Whitmore was already a barrier breaker. She played for independent clubs like the Staten Island FerryHawks and the Oakland Ballers, the latter of which won the Pioneer League's championship this season.

Kelsie Whitmore wears her heritage on her
forearm with a Philippine-inspired tattoo.

Her time with the US women's national baseball team brought home medals, including a gold at the Pan American Games. And don't forget her college days, where she was a star softball player for Cal State Fullerton, even earning the conference's Player of the Year award in 2021.

The startup league had a four-day tryout camp in Washington this summer with more than 600 hopefuls on hand.

The WPBL was co-founded by Justine Siegal, who became the first woman to coach for an MLB team with the Oakland Athletics in 2015. 

It will be the first pro baseball league for women since the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League -- immortalized in the film "A League of Their Own" -- dissolved in 1954.

For the first league's first season, the WPBL is scheduled to play all of its games at Robin Roberts Stadium in Springfield, Illinois. Teams will be based there over a seven-week season, split up into a four-week regular season, a week for all-star activities and a two-week playoff.

But what I find most compelling, from my view here on the edge, is that Kelsie Whitmore is more than just a ballplayer. She’s an advocate, and her apparel brand, "BE YOU," carries a powerful message of individuality and self-acceptance. In her career and through her platform, Whitmore is showing a generation of young people that they can be proud of who they are and where they come from. And that, my friends, is a story worth telling.

Whitmore’s name will now forever be linked to the start of the WPBL. Her journey—from the only girl on youth teams, to representing the U.S. on the global stage, to pitching professionally against men—makes her the ideal athlete to carry the league’s first spotlight.

For San Francisco and the WPBL, she becomes the foundation of a franchise.

For the Filiipino American and Asian American communities, she becomes a symbol of what’s possible.

"Oftentimes, we get caught up in chasing who we acturally are and what we do that we forget who are deep down inside," the Silayan Filipina Pamana 'Legacy' awardee said. "I want to encourage you all to chase the version of yourself that you were always meant to be. When you find that version, be the best version of yourself every single damn day."

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