Alaska Legislature OKs bill making October ‘Filipino American History Month’

Rep. Genevieve Mina, in barong Tagalog, her mother Evelyn Mina, and Lt. Gov. Nancy Dahlstrom pose for a photo after Rep. Mina’s oath of office. Mina’s bill passed the State Senate in a 19-0 vote. It now goes to Gov. Mike Dunleavy to be signed into law.CONTRIBUTED

Alaska’s Legislature passed a bill Friday, May 12 establishing October as Filipino American History Month in the state.

Freshman Rep. Genevieve Mina (D-Anchorage) introduced HB 23 as her first bill. Mina is only the second Filipino American state legislator in Alaska’s history, after the late Rep. Thelma Buchholdt, who was elected 50 years ago.

“I just feel overwhelmingly proud because this bill wouldn’t have passed, not just without the support of the Legislature, but also without the decades and decades of advocacy and community work and just the existence that Filipinos have had in Alaska and in our nation,” Mina said on Friday after the bill passed.

You may also like: Meet Genevieve Mina, Alaska’s 2^nd Fil-Am lawmaker in 50 years

Mina’s bill had 43 co-sponsors or over half of the Legislature. Senator Elvi Gray Jackson (D-Anchorage) brought HB 23 to the Senate floor, reported KTOO.

“From seasonal migrant cannery workers to health care workers and political leaders, Filipino Americans are a part of the fabric of Alaska’s diverse history,” Gray-Jackson said on the floor. “Unfortunately, the history of the Filipino community is not often told, which results in the erasure of both the history of this community and the people themselves.”

The bill passed the Senate in a 19-0 vote, with Sen. Bert Steadman, R-Sitka, absent. The bill now goes to Gov. Mike Dunleavy to be signed into law.