Fil-Am Rizal Youth Awardees sound off on gun violence, Trump

This year’s Dr. Jose Rizal Youth awardees and their parents smile for the cameras after the awards ceremony. Also in the photo are Minister Patrick Chuasoto and PAFC officers Aylene Mafnas and Sonny Busa. INQUIRER/Jon Melegrito

WASHINGTON, DC — Seventeen-year-old Joseph Brandon B. Gopiao of Burke, Virginia, was 13 years old when he learned of the deaths of 20 children in Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newton, Connecticut, who were killed in the deadliest mass shooting at a grade school in U.S. history.

With this incident still fresh in his mind, Gopiao recently wrote in an essay that “we must do everything in our power to keep tragedies like these from happening again.”

Gopiao’s essay was one of two read at the 24th Annual Dr. Jose Rizal Youth Awards, held at the Philippine Embassy on Dec.r 20. Now a high school senior at Lake Braddock Secondary School, Gopiao was among this year’s 10 awardees.

Joseph Brandon B. Gopiao says Rizal will petiton President-elect Donald Trump to sign gun control legislation. INQUIRER/Jon Melegrito

They were each given a certificate of recognition and a medal by the Philippine Embassy’s Chargé d’Affaires ad interim Minister Patrick A. Chuasoto and Philippine American Foundation for Charities (PAFC) President Aylene Mafnas during a public ceremony, which also commemorated the 120^th anniversary of Rizal’s execution in 1896.

Enough!

In his winning essay, Gopiao describes how Rizal would resolve the issue of gun violence in the United States: “He will stand with the others around the country, including myself, who have said, ‘Enough!’ Death by guns claims more than 30,000 lives every year. Together with all of us, he will demand safety for the children, for the communities and most importantly, for this nation.”

The Philippine Embassy and PAFC have jointly sponsored the annual Dr. Jose Rizal Youth Awards for 24 years. INQUIRER/Jon Melegrito

Rizal, Gopiao adds, will “write a petition to President-elect Donald Trump and urge him to sign and develop gun control legislation. He will suggest the creation of sensible gun laws and ban high-capacity magazines and assault weapons immediately.” Other solutions Rizal would like to see implemented, Gopiao points out, includes universal background checks and accessible mental health treatment to keep guns away from the mentally ill.

Natalia Fernandez doubts President-elect Trump will even consider Rizal’s ideas on reducing gun violence. INQUIRER/Jon Melegrito

“We must all vow to help change our culture and write to President-elect Trump to change government policies in order to stop this cycle of gun violence,” Gopiao writes. “Together with Dr. Jose Rizal, we can take action for positive change in memory of those who died and insist that this must never happen again.”

Other awardees weighed in through their essays.

Peaceful protest

Janelle Maglunob Gonzaga of Chantilly Virginia, a 10th grader at Freedom High School, believes Rizal would lead a peaceful protest in Washington, DC “to show how directly involved he is in the cause to stop gun violence. The march would then lead to an awakening moment for the American people to realize how important this issue is to their daily lives.”

Fifth-grader Kamalani Damaso Soriano receives her certificate from Minister Patrick Chuasoto. INQUIRER/Jon Melegrito

Natalia M. Fernandez, 17, of McLean, Virginia., states that Rizal “would restrict certain loopholes around gun responsibility. This would make gun owners secure their weapons better and prevent any gun exchanges that could potentially result in murder. He would appoint specialized people to crack down on guns in the black market, and promote the idea of no gun use across the country.”

A senior at Bishop O’Connell High School, Fernandez expresses doubts that President-elect Trump would even consider Rizal’s suggestions. “Honestly, I am scared because I don’t think he’s fit to be President,” Fernandez says. “But we can get involved by educating ourselves on the issue and engaging our Representatives in Congress to enact laws that will stop gun violence. That’s what Dr. Rizal would want us to do.”

Natalia’s younger sister, Nariella, writes that Rizal “would have formed a progressive organization like ‘La Liga Filipina’ to resolve the issue of gun violence in the U.S. He would have stood up for what he believed in. He would have fought for what was right, no matter what the consequences.”

Build communities, not walls

Joseph Abelardo Conaty, 11-year-old son of Austin and Agnes Conaty of Laurel, Maryland, has a few words of advice for Trump as well. The first-time Rizal Youth awardee, a 5th grader at St. Joseph’s Regional Catholic School in Beltsville Maryland, says “Trump should forget about building walls. He should build communities instead that would help young people grow to become good citizens.”

In his essay, “If Dr. Jose Rizal could don his ‘Batman’ suit, what do you imagine his first big task will be?” Conaty imagines Rizal would first address the Filipino youth and urge them “to honor their elders, respect the laws, study their lessons, be industrious, pray and write well, know their math and read a lot.”

All three children of Jonathan and Maria Luisa Gonzaga, from left, Janelle, Gerard and Isabelle, are Rizal youth awardees. INQUIRER/Jon Melegrito

Fifth-grader Kamalani Damaso Soriano, daughter of Mariah Soriano and Anthony Casalena of Alexandria, Virginia, writes that Rizal’s first big task as Batman would be “to encourage everybody to stay positive and to fight for their rights and what they believe in. I imagine that Dr. Jose Rizal would create lots of other books and encourage the people not give up their faith. Also, he would create an idea to empower Filipinos.”

To Rebecca V. Honigsford of Vienna, Virginia, a 5th-grader at Our Lady of Good Counsel, Rizal would ensure that everyone is treated equally, work with world leaders to foster better understanding, and “peacefully eliminate the world of villains.”

The other awardees include Regina V. Honigford, a 7th-grader at Our Lady of Good Counsel; Isabelle Marie Maglunob Gonzaga, a 3rd-grader at Cardinal Ridge Elementary School; and Gerard Thaddeus Maglunob Gonzaga, a 7th-grader at J. Michael Lunsford Middle School.

Hope of the Fatherland

“I’m overwhelmed with happiness and so very proud of these young people who were awarded tonight,” said Marisol Angala, a Washington, DC public school teacher for 13 years and chair of the awards committee. In her closing remarks, she encouraged the awardees to study very well.

“You cannot be soldiers or public officials yet, but your serious dedication to your studies is an act for the good of the country since you become the educated youth. As Rizal said, the educated youth is the hope of the fatherland. With education, you can equip yourself with solid knowledge that will elevate you to accomplish your noble purpose, and with all your achievements in and out of school you are doing exactly what Jose Rizal wants you to be,” Angala said.

Launched in 1993, the Dr. Jose Rizal Youth Awards recognizes the academic excellence and community service of outstanding Filipino American youths in the Metro DC area. These youths, through a Selection Committee, have met the eligibility rules and criteria that emphasize the ideals of Dr. Jose Rizal, namely, scholarship and community service.

Joseph Abelardo Conaty with his parents, Agnes and Austin Conaty, says Trump should build communities, not walls. INQUIRER/Jon Melegrito

“The Dr. Jose Rizal Youth Awards serves to honor and remember Dr. Rizal’s selfless love of country and for countrymen. But we believe that it should not only create awareness about Dr. Rizal, but find him within ourselves and put his inspiration into good use,” Minister Chuasoto reminded the young students in his remarks.

In his inspirational message to the awardees, Sonny Busa, PAFC Board chairman and professor of International Relations at the US Military Academy West Point, emphasized the importance of using their talents and skills in making a difference and uplifting the lives of other people. “The biggest satisfaction comes not from what you earn, but from what you give to others. So take the award today and be proud of it,” Busa said.

The annual Dr. Jose Rizal Youth Awards is jointly sponsored by PAFC and the Philippine Embassy.