By Edwin C. Mercurio Ruben Cusipag, a veteran journalist who was detained as a political prisoner during in the early days of Martial Law in the Philippines in 1972 passed away yesterday. Cusipag migrated to Canada by late 1974. Cusipag was the co-founder of Atin Ito in early1976. Atin Ito (This is Ours) was one of the first… Read More »
THERE ARE MANY STORIES TO TELL ABOUT RUBEN, AND NOT ONLY BECAUSE RUBEN HAD A LARGER THAN LIFE PRESENCE, THE 800 POUND GORILLA, EVEN WHEN HE IS NOT IN THE ROOM. HOW TO EULOGIZE RUBEN AND GIVE IT JUSTICE? HE TRANSCENDS DESCRIPTION. FULL OF LIFE, HE HAS THIS UNFORGETTABLE LAUGH, PASSIONATE, INTEGRITY, COMMITTED TO SOCIAL JUSTICE, DEEPLY EMOTIONAL,… Read More »
By: Jason Maghanoy I heard of the larger than life, and at times controversial figure in the Filipino community. The political prisoner. The dynamic writer, charmer and leader, committed to helping Filipino’s build a strong cultural identity in Canada. When I visit my aunt’s house I would see the accolades hanging on the wall: awards for his journalism… Read More »
By Josephine C. Sanchez Obando, Bulacan, north of Manila is widely known for its Fertility Dance ritual. Every year during summer the town celebrates its town fiesta with three days of merrymaking in honor of its three patron saints–the first on May 17 for San Pascual Baylon, May 18 for Santa Clara and May 19 for Our Lady… Read More »
In the last 14 months we’ve been seeking answers to many questions about the way individuals and organizations seduce the community with a combination of guile, sweet-talk and appeal to our sense of compassion. There seems to be a widening scheme to keep quiet among officials, in and out of government, associations and plain citizens. An invisible wall… Read More »
THE MERRY MONTH OF MAY, Part I By Rudy M. Viernes May is the month of fiestas, State it the other way. We Filipinos are never more fiesta-prone than during the month of May. May is also the flower month, and the Virgin Mary. . Being family-oriented as we Filipinos are May isn’t just a month of fiestas,… Read More »
On April 24th, the Toronto Star carried on its upper fold the story of a dying caregiver, 44-year-old Maricon Gerente, who was granted the elusive permanent residence status. It was reported that it was no less than Minister Jason Kenney who decided to dispatch two immigration officers to Oakville-Trafalgar Memorial Hospital to fingerprint the unresponsive Gerente in exchange… Read More »
The Honourable Mike Duffy Senate of Canada Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0A4 Dear Senator Duffy, Hardly a month after your appointment, John Fewings, in his cartoon of yourself as the poster boy for the abolition of the Canadian Senate, won’t be able to foresee how right he was at that time. While I agreed with his message then, I… Read More »
By Stephanie Waddell It’s a story that’s not all that new to Canada: Immigrants arriving here looking for a better life for their families. In this case, it’s a glimpse into the lives of a small number of Filipinos who have moved to the Yukon in search of a better life and contributed to the territory many now… Read More »
It is a very common subject to write about. There are pages of discussions of which are all over the World Wide Web. But throughout my life, I have not been invited to a single public discussion about the topic. Never been a question asked by my teacher or instructor or professor in my school or university. One… Read More »