Filipino American activists rally against Marcos Jr regime at the San Francisco Philippines Consulate

San Francsico, CA – On July 28, over 350 activists rallied outside the Philippines consulate in San Francisco for the People’s State of the Nation Address. The PSONA is an annual event meant to contrast with the state of the nation address given by Philippines President Ferdinand “Bong-bong” Marcos Junior. The PSONA addresses the struggles faced by Filipino workers both at home and abroad, and the neglect that the Marcos administration has for the people it claims to protect.

This year’s PSONA focused heavily on how the consulates have failed to support Filipino migrant workers facing deportations and ICE attacks, along with President Marcos’ close collaboration with the racist, warmongering, anti-immigrant Trump administration. The Philippine consulate in San Francisco was blasted for its refusal to aid migrant workers, even encouraging many to self-deport.

The program of the PSONA included speakers from the Tanggol Migrante movement, BAYAN USA, International Coalition for Human Rights in the Philippines (ICHRP), Gabriela, Anakbayan, League of Filipino Students and the Malaya movement.

Chants and slogans emphasized the complicity of the comprador Marcos regime, such as “Marcos, traydor, tuta ni Trump!” Meaning “Marcos, traitor, lapdog of Trump!” as well as “Sino, sino, sino ang terrorista? Si Marcos, si Trump, sila ang terrorista!” meaning “Who, who, who are the terrorists? Marcos, Trump, they are the terrorists!”

Patrick Racela of Migrante NorCal gave an introductory speech to start out the program, calling out President Marcos directly, stating, “How is it that you can come to the United States and claim that you are serving the people, when in essence what you have done is bow down to Trump, and sell out our homeland? Shame!”

Brandon Lee, chairperson of the International Coalition for Human Rights in the Philippines, a longtime activist and fighter in the Filipino activist movement, also joined the program. Lee was the target of an assassination attempt from the Philippine military, which had left him crippled. He has continued to organize for justice and human rights in the Philippines and participated in the PSONA to call out the Philippine consulate in SF. Lee criticized the consulate for its refusal to allow him into the building to deliver letters from the community demanding that the Philippine commission on human rights reopen his case.

“The Philippines has long been one of the largest recipients of U.S. military aid in Southeast Asia, for bombs, ammunition and other equipment, supposedly to counter external threats. However in reality, this has been used for its internal military operations, to bomb and strafe communities, and kill Filipinos,” said Lee. “Across the Philippines, many communities are losing their livelihoods, and homes, in the name of so-called ‘development projects,’ causing environmental destruction.”

Other speakers shed light on the difficulties faced by Filipino migrant workers, who received no help and support from the Philippine consulates on their arrival to the U.S. Kuya Jay, chairperson of Migrante San Francisco shared his personal experiences. “Many of us left the Philippines to support our families. But what we found when we got here was far from what we hoped for. I slept in a storage room. We didn’t have proper meals. We didn’t receive overtime pay. We worked day and night – and were treated as if we didn’t deserve rest, or even a voice.”

“Why are Filipinos forced to leave our country in the first place? It’s not because we want to leave, it’s because we are forced to,” said Rachel Lucero, an organizer with Malaya SF. “It’s because of the conditions in the Philippines. Since Marcos Junior took office, 3 million more Filipinos are living in poverty. The number of hungry families has doubled. And when our people try to fight back against their conditions, they are met with violence! Shame!”

KC Avilla, an organizer for Malaya San Francisco told the crowd, “Marcos Jr. is protecting himself, and his own family’s power. He knows that the next person that we will come after for corruption is him.“

Andan Bonifacio, chairperson of Bayan USA, closed out with a speech reaffirming the Filipino people’s dedication to fighting back. “Real change will never come from the likes of Marcos. Real change will never come from the likes of the Dutertes. It’ll come from us, the people. It won’t come trying to serve the interests of the foreign imperialists. It’ll come from us, learning and fighting to stand on our own two feet.”

Although attacks against Filipino migrant workers escalate under the Trump administration in the U.S, whilst the Marcos administration continues to oppress and exploit the Filipino people while acting as a puppet for U.S. interests, the Filipino people are not sitting idly by. Filipino organizations are ready to struggle and fight for victory over reaction, whether it is found in the puppet Marcos regime in the Philippines, or in the tyrannical Trump administration here in the U.S.

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