GABRIELA USA participates in the Montreal International Women’s Conference and the founding of the International Women’s Alliance

Montréal, Québec, August 16, 2010 — In Montreal, women of GABRIELA USA joined over 350 participants representing 32 different countries, including [...]]]> FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Reference: Valerie Francisco, Vice Chair of Mass Campaigns, GABRIELA USA,gabrielawomen@gmail.com

GABRIELA USA participates in the Montreal International Women’s Conference and the founding of the International Women’s Alliance

Montréal, Québec, August 16, 2010 — In Montreal, women of GABRIELA USA joined over 350 participants representing 32 different countries, including Pakistan, India, Kyrgyzstan, the Philippines, Mali, the Czech Republic, Germany, Cuba, Guatemala, Ecuador, and Mexicothis past weekend to actively participate in the Montreal International Women’s Conference and the founding of the International Women’s Alliance.

GABRIELA USA was joined by local allies from all across the U.S. including members of VietUnity, Tadaima, Women’s Fightback Network in Boston and New York City, Million Workers March, Picture the Homeless, the International Action Center , Latin American Workers’ Project (NYC), Fight Imperialism Stand Together (FIST), Transit Workers’ Union, Cihuatl Tlatocan- Maiz, and the May 1^st Coalition.

From August 13 to 15, delegates participated in plenaries, workshops, and discussions surrounding a wide variety of themes, including women workers, peasant women, indigenous struggles, developmental aggression, violence against women, racism, discrimination and genocide, as well as resistance to wars and imperialist aggression.  From these workshops and plenaries, drafts of resolutions have been created to tackle these struggles on local and international levels.

During a plenary session, delegates unanimously endorsed a declaration in support of the 490 Tamils from Sri Lanka who arrived aboard the MV Sun Sea in Vancouver, Canada, decrying their ongoing detention while calling upon the Canadian government to accept them as refugees.  In addition, participants also affirmed their solidarity and demanded the release of the 43 health workers who were illegally detained in the Philippines in February this past year.

On August 16, delegates of the conference formalized the assembly by creating the International Women’s Alliance which will build coordination of local, regional and international campaigns, to promote mutual support and the sharing of resistance strategies, and to mobilize women around the world in the struggle against imperialism, violence and capitalist globalization. The first assembly of the International Women’s Assembly will take place in July 2011 in the Philippines.

“As Filipina  women, it is our duty as mothers,  daughters, and sisters to come together and strengthen the movement against the  exploitation and oppression of women rooted in the global imperialist system. We can no longer take the brunt of the economic crisis brought about by this system which causes so much hunger, unemployment, forced migration, and militarization all over the world.   The time is now to bridge our struggles and  strengthen the solidarity of women’s organizations worldwide.  The formation of the  International Women’s Alliance will help fortify the growing people’s movement against imperialism,” stated Raquel Redondiez, chairperson of GABRIELA USA.

GABRIELA USA is a national alliance of progressive Filipina women’s organizations including Samahan ng Kababaihan (San Francisco), Babae (San Francisco), Pinay sa Seattle (Seattle), Filipinas for Rights and Empowerment (New York City), and Sisters of Gabriela, Awaken! (Los Angeles).

The initiative for the MIWC and IWA came out of a resolution of the women’s commission of the International League of People’s Struggle (ILPS) which met during the 3rd International Assembly of the ILPS in Hong Kong in 2008.

For more information about the conference and alliance, please visit http://miwc2010.wordpress.com/.

By Henni Espinosa, ABS-CBN North America Bureau, San Francisco and Don Tagala, ABS-CBN North America Bureau, New York . A day after President Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III’s State of the Nation Address, Filipino-American activists from San Francisco, Los Angeles, Seattle, New [...]]]>

FilAm Activists Protest Aquino’s State of the Nation Address | Balitang America

Contact: Raquel Redondiez, Vice Chairperson, GABRIELA USA, chair@gabusa.org

Gabrielas in the U.S. Call On Their Motherland For A Clean and Honest Elections & To Vote For Progressive Women’s Partylist & Candidates

With less than a week before citizens of the [...]]]> For Immediate Release
May 6, 2010

Contact: Raquel Redondiez, Vice Chairperson, GABRIELA USA, chair@gabusa.org

Filipino-American Women Send A Mother’s Day Message: Elect Liza Maza & GWP!

Gabrielas in the U.S. Call On Their Motherland For A Clean and Honest Elections & To Vote For Progressive Women’s Partylist & Candidates

With less than a week before citizens of the Philippines cast their votes for the 2010 elections, Filipino-American mothers and daughters show their support for a partylist that has upheld and fought for the rights of women, children, and migrants – the Gabriela Women’s Party (GWP). Members of GABRIELA USA put together a commercial, featuring a diverse cast of women: mothers, students, workers, community advocates and queer women, all pledging their support for GWP and its Senatorial candidate, Liza Maza.

“As Filipino-Americans, it’s important to us mothers and daughters that those who sit in government positions truly have the interest of the people in mind. Liza Maza and GWP have proven this with their history of creating breakthrough legislation that protect women and children and survivors of violence, and also co-authoring the bill allowing for overseas absentee voting. This is why this Mother’s Day weekend, we support GWP and Liza Maza,” says Raquel Redondiez, Chairperson of GABRIELA USA. “It is our hope that the commercial reaches our kababayans abroad and in the Philippines, and elect Liza Maza and the Gabriela Women’s Party.”

The commercial, uploaded onto Youtube, presents a multigenerational cast of women with diverse interests and issues. Donning “Maza ako” shirts, the women urge viewers to vote for senatorial candidate Liza Maza, and Gabriela Women’s Party. Although a number of the cast members cannot vote in the current elections themselves, it does not mean that they do not have a concern about its process or its outcome. Members of GABRIELA USA are calling and texting their friends, relatives, and kababayans in the Philippines on Mother’s Day to urge them to vote for GWP and Liza Maza, and are steadfast in ensuring a clean and honest election process.

To view the commercial, please visit http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sAp3XX8Ygxk..

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On this May 1st, Filipina-American women are taking a stand for immigrants’ rights across the nation. In the light of the Schumer Bill, that will enforce [...]]]>

FILIPINO-AMERICAN WOMEN TO MARCH FOR WORKERS AND IMMIGRANT RIGHTS ON MAY 1

On this May 1st, Filipina-American women are taking a stand for immigrants’ rights across the nation. In the light of the Schumer Bill, that will enforce a stricter identification system in the United States and the current passing of SB1070 in Arizona, a law that will allow police to racially profile and criminalize immigrants, GABRIELA USA’s mothers and daughters will march with thousands of other immigrants to fight for legalization for all. For the Filipino community, immigration is a focal point and issue for Filipino families nationally, there are an estimated 4 million Filipinos in the United States, including an estimated 1 million undocumented Filipinos. The majority of Filipinos migrate to the United States through family visa sponsorship, but are often subjected to wait periods of 10 to 15 years for their petitions to be processed and to be reunited with their loved ones.

“We should not have to live in fear of being escapegoated or being seperated from our families, when Filipinas contribute so much to our society– caring for the sick and elderly, educating our future leaders, and contributing in all aspects of this society.   We are not criminals, we are women workers and professionals trying to sustain our families,” stated Raquel Redondiez, chairwoman of GABRIELA USA.

GABRIELA USA endorses the National “Unity Statement of the Filipino Community on Immigrant Rights” in coordination with BAYAN USA and National Alliance for Filipino Concerns. It is attached below for further reading.

LEGALIZATION FOR ALL!
FAMILY REUNIFICATION !

For more information on May 1st Actions please contact:

Los Angeles:
Sisters of Gabriela Awaken (SiGAw)
Media Contact: Terrie Cervas – (213) 537- 8278
sigaw.la@gmail.com
Assembly point: 9am: S. Olympic and W. Broadway, Los Angeles, CA 90015

San Francisco:
Babae
Media Contact: Raquel Redondiez – (415) 244-9734
Assembly point: 12 noon- 24th and Mission, San Francisco

Seattle:
Pinay sa Seattle
Media Contact:
Assembly Point:

New York:
Filipinas for Rights and Empowerment (FiRE)
Media Contact: Cris Hilo – (818) 281-3134
Assembly Point: 11:30 am on the south side of Union Square, along East 14th Street near Broadway, in Manhattan.

NEW YORK – Author and psychologist Dr. Kevin Nadal has defended the Filipino community against racial slurs before, having led protests against ABC in 2007 after the network’s hit show Desperate Housewives made a slanderous comment about the Philippines’ reputation [...]]]> By Don Tagala, ABS-CBN North America News Bureau | 04/07/2010 2:59 PM

NEW YORK – Author and psychologist Dr. Kevin Nadal has defended the Filipino community against racial slurs before, having led protests against ABC in 2007 after the network’s hit show Desperate Housewives made a slanderous comment about the Philippines’ reputation in the medical community.

ABC apologized and made amends after the snafu.

Now, Nadal has something—or someone, rather—new to focus on. Comedian and radio personality Adam Carolla, known as former host of Loveline with Dr. Drew, and The Man Show, recently disparaged boxer Manny Pacquiao and the Philippines in his podcast.

“Here’s how you know your country doesn’t have a lot going for it when everything is about Manny Pacquiao. Get a ***ing life as a country,” Carolla said. Carolla also said Pacquiao was illiterate, that the Philippines was only known for the boxer and its sex tourism industry, and that Pacquiao prays over chicken bones.

Nadal immediately published an online petition demanding an apology from Carolla.

“We need to fight every time and anytime someone does anything that’s unjust or anything that is discriminatory towards our community,” Nadal said.

With more than 3,000 signatures and counting, it’s now the number one petition on petitiononline.com.

Carolla has since apologized via his Twitter page, saying he’s sorry he offended many Filipinos, and that while he tries to be “provocative” and “funny,” he “crossed the line,” adding later that Manny is a great fighter.

Pacquiao has accepted Carolla’s apology, but Nadal says it’s not enough. Nadal wants Carolla to apologize on his podcast, so everyone can hear Carolla “in his own voice.”

Some Filipinos say however that there is a degree of truth to Carolla’s statements. Valerie Francisco of the Filipino womens’ rights group Gabriela USA says, “The issue of sex trade affecting women and children in the Philippines has been a really grave problem and a serious issue.”

Other Filipinos, however, believe paying attention to Carolla is not worth it, and may just give him attention he doesn’t deserve.

“If we waste a lot of effort just policing this guy, it might be a band-aid solution,” said Brian Tenorio.

Francisco adds that the end of statements similar to Carolla’s will end “when Filipinos change the character of how the whole world looks at them as migrant workers and global citizens.”

View the online petition here http://www.petitiononline.com/FilAmAC/petition.html Balitang America

Reference: Raquel Redondiez, Chair of GABRIELA USA, gabrielawomen@gmail.com

Demeaning Comments of CBS Comedian Underscores Necessity of GABRIELA’s IVOW Campaign To Combat Violence Against Women Including Sexual  Exploitation and Trafficking of Women and Children

GABRIELA-USA condemns Adam Carolla’s repulsive comments disparaging Manny [...]]]> For Immediate Release
April 5, 2010

Reference: Raquel Redondiez, Chair of GABRIELA USA, gabrielawomen@gmail.com

Fil-Am Women Denounce Adam Carolla’s Promotion of Sexual Exploitation of Filipinas

Demeaning Comments of CBS Comedian Underscores Necessity of GABRIELA’s IVOW Campaign To Combat Violence Against Women Including Sexual  Exploitation and Trafficking of Women and Children

GABRIELA-USA condemns Adam Carolla’s repulsive comments disparaging Manny Pacquio and joking about sex tours in the Philippines.

“There is nothing funny about the sexual exploitation of women and children and the illicit sex trade in the Philippines.   Adam Carolla and CBS should issue a formal apology.  It is these types of irresponsible comments that help reinforce the culture of violence against women” says Raquel Redondiez, Chairwoman of GABRIELA-USA.

The extreme poverty and reprehensible sex trade at the expense of women’s and children’s bodies is rooted in decades-long neo-colonial relationship that the Philippines has had with the United States.  While Carolla wrongfully blames the Filipino people for these deplorable realities, the truth is that the primary driver of the sex trade in the Philippines is the history of United States military presence in the Philippines since the Spanish-American War. For over a century, U.S. imperial power has been maintained in the Philippines through wars of aggression often fought on women’s and children’s bodies through rape, prostitution, and sex trafficking.

“The comments are not only ignorant, racist, and demeaning to all Filipinos, but they are also harmful to the thousands of women and children who are involuntarily trafficked and forced into the sex trade every year as a result of the Philippine nation-state’s impoverished economic conditions.” says Terrie Cervas of SIGAW, a Los Angeles-based group of Filipinas.

Since the Philippines’ nominal independence from U.S. colonial rule in 1946, U.S. military bases were banned from the land.  However, the U.S. has been able to evade justice by enacting the Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA), which has allowed continues  U.S. military presence throughout the archipelago.   The VFA has promoted the prevalence of U.S. military personnel to act with impunity.  U.S. military presence in the Philippines promote the sex trade industry, resulting in massive cases of sexual exploitation including the involuntary rape and trafficking of women and children.

“We have not forgotten Nicole who was raped by U.S. Marine Daniel Smith and the countless other Filipino women and children who have been victimized as a result of institutionalized racism and American media’s hypersexualization of Pinays.” says Valerie Francisco,  Chair of Filipinas for Rights and Empowerment, a New York- based Filipino-American group.

To combat institutionalized violence and oppression, especially towards Filipino women and children, GABRIELA-USA launched an educational campaign in February called “iVOW to Fight VAW”.  The campaign seeks increase awareness and raise public condemnation of violence against women (VAW), as well as education diverse communities on the root causes of the different forms of violence.  Carolla’s crude comments have proven the need for such conversations to continue in order to fight violence against women and children.

GABRIELA-USA is a national alliance of progressive Filipino women organizations and an overseas chapter o”f GABRIELA Philippines, with Babae in San Francisco, Pinay Sa Seattle, Sisters of Gabriela Awaken in Los Angeles, and Filipinas for Rights and Empowerment in New York City.

Reference: Raquel Redondiez, Chair of GABRIELA USA gabrielawomen@gmail.com

GABRIELA USA Celebrates First Year Anniversary Launching National IVOW Campaign

Hosts Gabriela Women’s Partylist Nominee, Emmi De Jesus in New York

New York, NY—One year ago, four organizations: BABAE San Francisco, Filipinas for Rights and Empowerment (FiRE) New York, Pinay Sa Seattle and Sisters of Gabriela Awaken (SiGAw) Los [...]]]> Press Statement
March 29, 2010

Reference:
Raquel Redondiez, Chair of GABRIELA USA
gabrielawomen@gmail.com

GABRIELA USA Celebrates First Year Anniversary Launching National IVOW Campaign

Hosts Gabriela Women’s Partylist Nominee, Emmi De Jesus in New York

New York, NY—One year ago, four organizations: BABAE San Francisco, Filipinas for Rights and Empowerment (FiRE) New York, Pinay Sa Seattle and Sisters of Gabriela Awaken (SiGAw) Los Angeles came together to establish an overseas chapter of GABRIELA Philippines—the largest progressive women’s alliance in the Philippines. With the depreciating conditions of the Philippine economy and neoliberal political leadership under Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, migrants, largely women, have been exiting the Philippines at an alarming rate. This is the impetus for establishing progressive women’s organizing outside of the Philippines. GABRIELA USA was a landmark formation that reflected the quickly changing conditions of the Filipino people with a stern and militant resistance from Filipino women in the diaspora.

One of the major efforts of GABRIELA USA this year was to launch the national IVOW campaign- a comprehensive campaign that addresses violence against women (VAW) as issues of sex trafficking and prostitution, domestic violence, rape, incest, sexual abuse, sexual harassment, sexual discrimination and exploitation, limited access to reproductive health care, and violence as a result of political repression. The campaign, which launched in February 2010, urges people to take a stand and commit to ending violence against women. GABRIELA USA asserts that violence against women is becoming varied in its forms, inflicted by numerous perpetrators from intimate partners, family members to limited access to basic needs of the family and state violence. Under this banner, GABRIELA USA invites communities to acknowledge the inequalities in the lives of women and children as violence to then stand against the problems that are slowing women’s advancement.

In New York, FiRE has accumulated more than 700 signatures and photos of people from all nationalities, class backgrounds, genders and sexual orientations that have vowed to end VAW. FiRE members have traveled up and down the Eastern seaboard to educate Filipinos and non-Filipinos alike about VAW. This past year, FiRE has also strengthened their ties in supporting KABALIKAT Domestic Workers Support Network by organizing different cultural projects and a research project about the conditions of Filipino domestics in NYC. FiRE has seen an impressive growth in membership and will be looking towards building a strong and united Filipino sisterhood against imperialism and VAW.

In San Francisco, BABAE celebrated 5 years of political organizing and carried the iVOW campaign with fervor at their event. Along with college workshops, forums and conferences, they have enlisted several organizations including Kappa Psi Epsilon to the campaign and will continue to spread the word at the upcoming SF Walk Against Rape. BABAE members created, produced and performed their first full theater show that addressed issues of domestic violence, a culture of silence and family dynamics in the Filipino community. BABAE has increase 80% since the formation of GABRIELA USA and look towards building stronger ties to the LGBTQ community there.

Pinay sa Seattle launched the IVOW campaign on Februrary 19, 2010 with with a cultural show also titled IVOW that partnered with Cambodian and Japanese progressive organizations on the themes of violence against women. Audience members participated in the IVOW campaign by writing their vow to end violence against women. The show was a success with over 100 people in attendance and requests that the show be done again. For International Women’s Day, Pinay participated and helped plan a city-wide IWD march that was held on March 6 where women and community members marched with IVOW placards that addressed pressing issues affecting women and children.

Sisters of Gabriela, Awaken (SiGAw), the newest of the four GABRIELA USA member organizations, has also taken strides to expand the Filipino women’s movement in Los Angeles. In the past year, they launched their campaign through internally studying the VAW orientation and collecting photo vows of allies and members. They have conducted interviews with a handful of migrant and working class pinays about their migration experiences and VAW to understand the local manifestations of the campaign in their community. SiGAw has steadily held writing workshops, with help from Professors Lucy Burns and Michelle Cruz Skinner, as well as Melissa Roxas. Roxas is a FilAm activist who survived torture and abduction in the Philippines. SiGAw’s writing resulted in a cumulative show called Diwang Pinay. Its theme was focused on Filipinas migrations stories and their experiences of various forms of violence,  highlighting the violence committed against women in the Morong 43, a group of healthcare workers in the Philippines who are illegally arrested and detained.

GABRIELA USA’s next major efforts will be to organize and mobilize women organizations from different backgrounds and communities to attend the Montreal International Women’s Conference (MIWC) to confer about strategies and issues that can usher in a “Global Militant Women’s Movement in the 21st Century.” Also, GABRIELA USA will join the broad movement to pressure the Obama administration for comprehensive immigration reform with legalization for all.

The need for Filipino women’s organizing continues to be necessary with elections drawing near in the Philippines. Pre-election violence has already risen with the Maguindanao Massacre in Mindanao and continuing human rights violations. As the Philippines looks forward to the end of Gloria Macapagal Arroyo’s presidential term, Filipino women must come together to demand genuine leaders and government representation from the most oppressed classes. In this spirit, GABRIELA USA fully supports the upcoming candidates for the GABRIELA Women’s Partylist, including Emmi de Jesus and urges all migrants abroad with Philippine citizenship to vote for pro-people candidates.

With the economic crisis steadily worsening, GABRIELA USA commits to the ongoing struggles of Filipino women in the US, especially those who are bearing the brunt of unemployment, lack of access to social services, anti-immigrant policy and discrimination. GABRIELA USA looks forward to building solidarity with other women’s struggles and movements in the US and around the world, in hopes of unity between all working women. We vow to fight violence against women in its various forms. One year of women’s organizing in the US has taught us many lessons, one of which is the relentless punishment of capitalism and imperialism, which gives us strength to stand together to to expand and grow to challenge those problems.

Unite to Fight Violence Against Women!
Vote for GABRIELA Women’s Partylist!
End U.S. Imperialism Now!

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The Women’s International Democratic Federation held a panel discussion on “The Economic Crisis and Women’s Access to Work” at the United Nations on March 10 as part of the 15th anniversary of the Beijing World Conference on Women. Dr. Vinie [...]]]> By Sue Davis
New York

The Women’s International Democratic Federation held a panel discussion on “The Economic Crisis and Women’s Access to Work” at the United Nations on March 10 as part of the 15th anniversary of the Beijing World Conference on Women. Dr. Vinie Burrows, permanent representative to the U.N. for the WIDF, asked the panelists to talk about “how the global economic crisis has fallen the hardest on women.” Berta Joubert-Ceci of the National Women’s Fightback Network of WIDF helped organize the event.

Maritzel González-Quevido holds picture of Cuban Five political prisoners at discussion of women’s status at UN. WW photo: John Catalinotto

Ana Violeta Castaneda, WIDF regional coordinator for Latin America and the Caribbean, noted that advancements for women have been limited since Beijing because many repressive governments in the region spend valuable resources on the military, while the vast majority of the people live in poverty.

Valerie Francisco, representing GABRIELA USA, said that employment for women in the Philippines has worsened since the Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo administration took power nine years ago. As a result, Filipino women are migrant workers in 145 countries, most often as low-paid domestic servants with no rights. She invited women to attend a GABRIELA conference in August in Montreal to prepare a women’s platform of action.

Liege Rocha, a member of the steering committee of WIDF in Brazil, reported that the impact of the capitalist crisis was not that heavy in Brazil, though there was some increase in unemployment. While 47 percent of women work (90 percent in service industries), they earn 30 percent less than men. “One of our achievements is establishing the Women’s Department, where women decide on policies for women. We need to take action to end women’s inequality and to be economically independent,” she said.

Pham Hoai Giang, the head of international relations for the Vietnam Women’s Union, prepared a statement read by U.S. activist Merle Ratner. The VWU, established in 1930, is currently fighting trafficking of women and domestic violence and is dealing with the continuing effects of Agent Orange. Giang noted that the impact of the capitalist crisis has not been as severe as in other countries because of government policies devoted to relieving poverty.

Maritzel González-Quevido of the Federation of Cuban Women spoke about how Cuba has been actively implementing key policies adopted at the Beijing conference as part of its overall program to end oppression based on class, gender and race. González reported that women predominate in many job categories — for example, they are 70 percent of health care workers and attorneys.

Invited guest Tiago Vieira, president of the World Federation of Democratic Youth, announced the World Youth Festival that his organization is holding in December 2010 in Johannesburg, South Africa.