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The state of public housing in NYC: Roaches and rats, heat that never turns on, elevators that are always out of order
By Mayor Zohran Mamdani Fifty-two years ago, on a hot summer night, a new sound emerged from the first-floor community room at 1520 Sedgwick Avenue, where we stand today. New York is where greatness so often is born. And on that August evening, greatness was born in the Bronx. The hip-hop that millions of people around the world listen to […]
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Nostalgia entertainment in ‘Stranger Things’
By Wendell Gaa The end of 2025 and the beginning of 2026 mark the end of an era in TV history, namely Netflix’s globally popular series “Stranger Things.” After five seasons, this show just aired its final episode on New Year’s Eve, and it is one that I am truly going to sorely miss. Set […]
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‘The FilAm’s’ Top 10 stories for 2025
The year 2025 has been a somewhat harsh year for the community. News of Filipinos entangled in legal troubles, restaurant closures, and other difficult developments often dominated the headlines. To be fair, the year also produced its share of uplifting stories—reports that drew strong readership and profiles of individuals whose work inspired others and made […]
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Marcelito Pomoy’s Mar-a-Lago Moment
By Cristina DC Pastor Marcelito Pomoy, the Pilipinas Got Talent Season 2 champion whose rare vocal range has mesmerized audiences around the world, was not quite ready to close out the year on a quiet note. On December 28, the Filipino singer found himself performing at Mar-a-Lago, the luxurious Palm Beach, Florida club resort owned […]
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Prof. Ismael Jampayas, 89
By Cristina DC Pastor Another pillar of the community has died. Ismael Jampayas, Honorary Grand Marshal of PAFCOM 2023, passed away on December 28 from cardiac arrest. He was 89 years old. Jampayas — fondly called Mike by close friends — told me he worked as a Professor of Clinical Pathology and Coordinator of Clinical […]
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ON GLOBAL FILIPINOS Dado Banatao: Modern Filipino hero
By Loida Nicolas Lewis On Christmas Day, 2025 the Philippines lost our modern Filipino hero. Diosdado “Dado” Banatao died peacefully in the presence of his family in his Alma Mater Stanford due to a neurological condition at 79 years old, five months before his 80th birthday. But what a life of eight decades! Dado was […]
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After the doors are closed: A Filipino priest’s post-Christmas melancholy in America
By Father JM Manolo A. Punzalan The Christmas season places a profound demand on both body and spirit, especially for us Filipino priests ministering in America. For nine straight days, my life revolved around Simbang Gabi every day at either 5 in the morning and again at 7 in the evening. My days began before […]
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What happened to Catalina Cabral?
The FilAm Editorial The mysterious disappearance of former Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) Undersecretary Catalina Cabral—who reportedly fell along Kennon Road in Benguet on December 18—has sparked troubling questions. Was it an accident? Suicide? Foul play? Or, as some officials have openly speculated, an elaborate ruse to evade prosecution, raising even wilder claims […]
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Bottle caps for ‘Jingle Bells’
By Gene P. Del Carmen Joseph could not have been more than 16. He stood at the front of the church choir loft, towering above us, during our Filipino evening Mass, Simbang Gabi, our novena Christmas tradition that we bring with us wherever we migrate. Robust and earnest, Joseph was a little nervous. When the […]