October 18, 1587 was the first recorded presence of Filipinos in America. | The Odyssey Online
Start writing a post
Arts Entertainment

In Honor Of Filipino American History Month, Here Are 7 Facts You Probably Didn't Know

Did you know Vanessa Hudgens is Filipino?

1443
In Honor Of Filipino American History Month, Here Are 7 Facts You Probably Didn't Know
https://pixabay.com/en/children-smiling-asian-filipino-597471/

In This Article:

Filipino Americans, also known as Fil-Ams, make up a good amount of the American population. Over 3.5 million Filipinos live in the United States. Filipinos are very present in American history. Here are a few facts you probably didn't know about Fil-Am history.

October 18, 1587 was the first recorded presence of Filipinos in America.

https://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/landing-of-the-first-filipinos-historical-landmark-morro-bay?select=mQwyrktppWhxxPXb_I3Mbw

Hence why we celebrate Filipino American History month in October. Filipinos landed in Morro Bay which is now a special landmark for all Fil-Ams. As you can see, this is also 33 years before Pilgrims landed.

Filipinos are the second largest Asian group in America.

http://www.pewsocialtrends.org/2012/06/19/the-rise-of-asian-americans/

In California, they are the third largest ethnic group. They are the in largest Asian group in Alaska, Arizona, California, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Washington, Wyoming, and South Dakota.

Over 250,000 Filipinos were soldiers fighting for the U.S. in World War 2.

https://www.rappler.com/entertainment/25854-forgotten-soldiers-philippine-scouts

After the war, many Filipinos became United States citizens.

But, America broke its promise to Filipino soldiers.

https://www.rappler.com/entertainment/25854-forgotten-soldiers-philippine-scouts

Filipino veterans that fought for the U.S. were supposed to get compensation just like American veterans but that didn't happen. Then, The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 which contained the Filipino Veterans Equity Compensation Fund allowed Filipino veterans to get some compensation. It entailed a one-time payment of $15,000 for U.S. citizens and $9,000 for non U.S. citizens. Even so, many Filipino veterans still haven't gotten their compensation.

Many of the top famous people are Filipinos.

https://www.elle.com/uk/life-and-culture/culture/news/a40611/vanessa-hudgens-sparks-engagement-rumours-ring/

Just to name a few: Vanessa Hudgens, Nicole Scherzinger, Shay Mitchell, Bruno Mars, Apl.De.Ap (From the Black Eyed Peas), Enrique Iglesias, and Rob Schneider.

The Filipino language, Tagalog, is more common than you think.

It is the third most common language in California. Many people even think it should be taught in schools in California!

In 2009, Filipino American History Month was recognized by the U.S. Congress.

https://filipinostarnews.net/opinion/editorial/filipino-american-history-month.html

Filipino American History Month was first founded in 1992 by Dr. Fred Cordova and Dr. Dorothy Laigo Cordova, also the founders of Filipino American National Honor Society.

Report this Content
This article has not been reviewed by Odyssey HQ and solely reflects the ideas and opinions of the creator.
Student Life

8 Things I Realized After My First Semester In College

Actually, Kylie Jenner, 2018 is the year of realizing things.

162
Friends

The first semester of college is famous for being one of the most difficult transitions of one's young adult life. You're thrown into a completely new area where the majority of the people surrounding you are strangers in an academic environment that's much more challenging then what you've grown accustomed to for the past twelve years. On top of that, you probably share a room with another person (or even multiple people) on the lumpiest "mattress" you've ever slept on.

With this change comes a lot of questions: what do I want to major in? What am I passionate about? Is what I'm passionate about something I'm actually good at? Why does the bathroom smell like cranberry juice and vodka? What is that thing at the bottom of the shower drain?

Keep Reading...Show less
girls with mascot
Personal Photo

College is tough, we all know. Here are 8 gifs you will 99% relate to if you are in college.

Keep Reading...Show less
Student Life

7 Things College Has Taught Me

Other than knowledge and all those important things

479
7 Things College Has Taught Me
We Know Memes

So, college is the place where you're supposed to learn all of these amazing life skills.

Here are the top seven skills I have learned thus far.

Keep Reading...Show less
college

College is some of the greatest years of anyone's life. Its a time to be outrageous, different and free; a time to do everything you were afraid to do. Here are 38 things you will learn during your four (maybe, five or six) years in college!

1. As a freshman, one does get to be called “freshman” by upperclassmen when they walk to parties in a mob of people.

Keep Reading...Show less
Adulting

6 Unrealistic Expectations Society Has For Young Adults

Don't let the thesaurus-inspired vocabularies in our résumés fool you. We're actually just big kids.

3110
boy in adult clothes

Well over four feet tall and 100 pounds in weight, many of us "young adults" of the world still consider ourselves children. Big, working, college-attending, beer-drinking children. We may live on our own, know how to cook noodles, and occasionally use a planner, but don't be fooled; the youthful tendencies that reside within us still make their way into our daily lives. From choosing to stay up until 3:00 a.m. playing video games on a school night to going out in 30 degree weather without a coat, we still make decisions that our parents and grandparents would shake their heads at in disappointment. So why are we expected to know exactly how to be a wise, professional, sensible adult? It's not that we're irresponsible (for the most part, anyway). It's that we are young, inexperienced, and still have the sought-after, enthusiastic mentality that we can do and be whatever we want, which has not yet been tarnished by the reality of the world. These are just a few of the unrealistic expectations that society has for young adults.

Keep Reading...Show less

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

Facebook Comments