Fil-Am activists keep spirit of EDSA People Power alive

Filipino American activists commemorate the 39th anniversary of the EDSA People Power Revolution. CONTRIBUTED
SAN FRANCISCO – Hundreds of Filipino Americans gathered outside the Philippine Consulate General in San Francisco on Feb. 25 to commemorate the 39th anniversary of the EDSA People Power Revolution.
The rallyists vowed to preserve the legacy of the uprising that ousted Ferdinand E. Marcos in 1986 as they criticized the removal of its anniversary as a national non-working holiday in the Philippines.
They also welcomed the impeachment of Vice President Sara Duterte by the House of Representatives and urged the Senate to expedite Duterte’s removal from office.
Additionally, demonstrators – led by BAYAN Northern California, Malaya Movement and International Coalition for Human Rights – called for an International Criminal Court (ICC) investigation into thousands of killings in a “war on drugs” under former President Rodrigo Duterte.
Highlighting the issues faced by Filipino communities in the US, the rallyists demanded that the Consulate address their needs, including providing assistance to undocumented Filipinos amid President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown.
Joi Barrios – poet, activist and Philippine language lecturer at UC Berkeley – read one of her poems about the EDSA Revolution.
Joy Barrios / CONTRIBUTED
The League of Filipino Students at UC Berkeley and GABRIELA Berkeley performed Awit ng Pag-Asa, or Song of Hope, to highlight their commitment to continue fighting for a better future for the Filipino people.
“The 39th anniversary of (the) people power uprising honors the women, workers, farmers, students and broad masses who stood firmly against tyranny and plunder, and who proved that the power of the people can bring down the most despotic dictator,” said Pyxie Castillo, GABRIELA USA chairperson.
“Filipinos continue to suffer under the very same conditions that force 7,500 Filipinos to migrate overseas in search of better livelihood every single day.”
Speakers from the San Francisco and Oakland Committees for Human Rights in the Philippines denounced the practice of red-tagging activists.
Speakers from the San Francisco and Oakland Committees for Human Rights in the Philippines denounce the practice of red-tagging activists. CONTRIBUTED
They also called for justice for Brandon Lee – a human rights advocate from San Francisco, who was shot in Ifugao, Philippines, in 2019 – in what they described as an assassination attempt carried out by the Duterte government.