Many of you know that my parents immigrated from the Philippines in the 70s. But what you probably don't know is that my parents both worked up to three jobs at any given time - working overtime at their day jobs, selling goods at the local swap meet on the weekend and picking up gigs as they could. It wasn't easy, but like many immigrants they did it in search of a better life for themselves and their families. We've all heard about the struggle, experienced it, seen it on tv or in stories, but there is so much that is left unsaid.
The Asian American Voices Project created a series of short films to illuminate the experiences and contributions of APIs in Silicon Valley. Silicon Valley Asian American Voices is a multimedia project that facilitates education and advocacy on policy issues that impact Asian American immigrants. Even if you are not from SV or of Asian descent, these stories matter because in many ways they are stories of all immigrants. The films cover challenges with health care, housing and immigration.
One of stories really grabbed because this woman looks like my lola ("grandma" in tagalog). Nenita Ibe, an elderly Filipina woman, works hard as a room attendant in the hotel industry. She is an active member of the union committee, advocating for workplace changes that will improve the lives of those around her. Her story touches on issues of health care access, language access, immigration reform and family reunification. All of these were daily challenges in my own family.
- Check out the film trailer. The full film is being shown on March 4th at DeAnza college and on March 20 it is being screened in conjunction with the San Francisco Film Festival. Events and discussion groups are free. Check their website for more details.
- Check out the AA Voices Facebook page
- Enter the contest! They are giving away 2 tickets to the SF AA Film Festival starting March 2nd. Enter the sweepstakes.
- Post a link to website on your Facebook and tweet about it.
- Join the Twitter Party on March 16 from 12 to 1pm PST. City Mama and I are hosting the conversation.
(BTW- I was a board member at Asian Americans for Community Involvement, which is the agency behind this project. They hired my social media company Clever Girls Collective to do online outreach. But I woulda wrote about this anyway!)
Sheila, just watching that minute plus trailer brought tears to my eyes. Both of my Lolo's immigrated from the Phillipines and helped build amazing foundations for my parents. I owe so much to them - and wish they were both still alive. Thanks for sharing and reminding us all to always remember and pay tribute to the past.
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