Justice for Filipino American Veterans (JFAV) Year-End Report, 2006

Justice for Filipino American Veterans (JFAV) Year-End Report, 2006

Los Angeles --The year 2006 was a fruitful and a meaningful year for Filipino World War II Veterans and their advocates. The Justice for Filipino American Veterans (JFAV) started the year with a collective action and ended it with a Christmas celebration.

JFAV was formed in December 16, 1998 in Los Angeles. It took over from the December 7 Movement (D7M) that started the veterans movement gfor recogntion, justice and equity campaign with the first mass action infront of the Westwood Federal building on December 7, 1993.

Now JFAV is composed of 32 youth and student organizations, 25 community organizations and 5 veterans organizations based in Southern California and a network all over the United States.

We in JFAV take this opportunity not only to report our activities and greet our activist and advocates a new year, but to thank everybody for a year well done and accomplished!

JFAV milestones for the last year 2006;

1.February 17. JFAV marked the 60th commemoration of the passage of the unjust Rescission Act of 1946 with a City Council passing a resolution recognizing and supporting the veterans struggle for justice and equity in the U.S Congress. More than twenty Filipino veterans leaders and their supporters appeared in the City Council Chambers and received the two resolutions that recognized the Filipino veterans and People’s CORE for their advocacy for equity and justice.

2. On April 7, 2006, the Filipino World War II veterans remembered April 9, 1942 in simple ceremonies at FASGI with the survivors of Bataan and Corregidor as speakers.

3. The JFAV coordinators attended different events in different cities of the United States to pursue the popularization of JFAV and organizing its chapters in Seattle, New York and San Francisco. These conferences are the: - Affirmative Action conference in Oakland in February; AJLPP Founding Conference in San Francisco in early June; ILPS conference for A Just and Lasting Peace in Vancouver,Canada in late June and the PASULONG Fil-Am youth conference in New York in November, 2006.

4. JFAV veterans and advocates mostly youth and immigrants from the Filipino American community actively joined the upsurge in mass actions for immigrants rights that started in March 25 and ended with the national day of boycott- the “Day Without Immigrants” last May 1 in Los Angeles that mobilized the masses in their millions.

5. On Veterans Day, November 11, 2006, the JFAV spearheaded the 6th Annual Veterans Day Parade and Community Health Fair that was attended by more than 2,000 people at the Lake St. Park and at the Filipino American Community of Los Angeles (FACLA). The annual event was more successful and bigger than the previous year.

6. Also on that day, the first Filipino World War II Memorial for Filipino Veterans in the United States was inaugurated at Lake St. Park. This brought to reality the efforts of Filipino organizations including the JFAV for this monument that lasted for more than four years.

7. On December 8, 2006, a benefit dinner-dance was held at the Philippine Village Center at Eagle Rock attended by more than 200 people. The occasion was graced by Council Member Jose Huizar of District 14. It was a fitting occasion to close the year.

With these mass actions and activities as our milestones, we are looking forward for another more active and fruitful year ahead hoping that the Veterans Equity Bill and the Family Reunification Act passes in the U.S Congress.

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