The Washington, D.C. Filipino Community In Images Of America
The Washington, D.C. Filipino community is unfamilar to me. But I found this new historical overview of the community prominently on display in the D.C. public library. and decided to read it. The book is part of the "Images of America" series of Arcadia Publishing. I am familiar with many books in this series of local histories and have learned a great deal about Washington, D.C., where I have lived for 35 years and about other people and places in the United States. Thus, I thought this book would give me a new point of view about the city where I live. I was able to get involved with the book more than I thought I might.
Published in 2009, "Filipinos in Washington, D.C.", by Rita Cacas and Juanita Lott, tells the story of the Phillipine community from about 1900 to the present day. Earlier studies of the Phillipine experience in the United States tend to focus on the West coast, and this book breaks some new ground. Besides telling the local story of an immigrant group, the book offers a summary of the American-Phillipines experience which I found valuable and important in approaching the text.
The United States and Spain fought over the Phillipines in 1898, and following that war, the United States also fought with Phillipines who wished to secure their independence. The Phillipines because a U.S. territory and its residents became U.S. Nationals. In 1916, Congress passed a law committing the United States to the independence of the Phillipines. However, independence did not occur until after WW II, in large part as a result of that conflict. Japan invaded the Phillipines during WW II, resulting in General Douglas MacCarthur's famous pledge, "I shall return", which he did.
Phillipine immigration to the United States began in earnest in about 1900, which is where this book begins as it relates to Washington, D.C. Many people came in connection with military service or as part of the relationships between the local Phillipine government and the United States government. The earlier immigrants tended to be mostly men. Ultimately many early immigrants, called "pioneers" in this book became settled, secured jobs, and raised families. This book focuses on several of these early pioneers and their descendants. In the organization of this book, the year 1964 is considered a watershed. In that year the Capital Beltway, the overcrowded freeway which surrounds the city and suburbs was completed. The completion of the Beltway is taken as something of a coming of age for the community as it branched out in the metropolitan area and became established and accepted.
Thus, this book is a combination of a broad story and a specific community history. It shows the development of the Phillipine community through the continued stories of several families. The book tells its story in six short chapters of photographs and annotations which are more detailed than in most Images of America volumes. It begins with photos and stories of the earliest immigrants. I was interested in seeing how closely-knit and socially active this community was even in the early years up to, say, 1940. The book shows the kinds of jobs the Filipinos took in their early years, which centered upon the military or government, and in service occupations. The immigrants, unfortunately faced various forms of discrimination over much of their history. As the population expanded, the Filipinos established early communities which the book documents. A chapter describes the climactic year of 1964 and the expansion of the community subsequent to that time. At about that time, barriers of discrimination against the community, which had included restrictions in employment, housing opportunities, and even marriage in some cases had fallen or were about to fall. As the community expanded, younger members became more conscious of their heritage and wished to preserve and expand it. Among the results were a 1994 exhibition "A Visit with My Elders", an expansion of Phillipine-related programs at the University of Maryland and other schools, and increased activism. The contemporary Filipino community, judging from this book, is active and retains close ties among its members. The final chapter of the book includes photographs and discussions of Filipino people of achievement in the Washington, D.C. area and its environs. There is a bibliography for readers interested in further exploration of the subject.
This book is in part a family story. The primary intended audience was probably the Filipino community whose history is celebrated here. But I enjoyed reading the book and learning something the story of a community that I hadn't earlier thought or known much about. The book will interest readers interested in the American immigrant experience and readers interested in learning about the diversity of Washington, D.C. and the United States.
