Rick Barot's WANT Reviewed at the Poetry Foundation Blog

Formally, too, Barot’s poems hemorrhage loveliness even when we might expect some dissonance. Though they rarely adhere to strict patterns of meter or rhyme, their meticulous syntax and elegant rhetoric create a strong impression of classical grace and harmony. The effect is so relentlessly successful it leads me to a strange suggestion: These poems may be too beautiful for their own good.

Read more.

APIA Spoken Word & Poetry Summit

Thursday July 30th to Sunday August 2nd -- Bay Area

APIA Spoken Word & Poetry Summit



The APIA Spoken Word and Poetry Summit is a biannual gathering of poets, artists, musicians, and activists throughout the world who convene for four days of workshops, performances, and discussions to uplift the APIA arts and activism community. View complete agenda and details here. And be sure to check out "Volume Control III" on Friday, an artist showcase fundraiser to offset Summit costs. Featuring Kiwi, Denizen Kane, Skim, Kelly Zen Yie-Tsai, Bao Phi, Leah Lakshmi-Piepzna Samarasinha and more.

7 pm
Wheller Hall, UC Berkeley
$ 10 - $ 15 sliding scale

Penguin Classics on Air: The Noli

José Rizal and the Novel That Sparked the Philippine Revolution

Elda Rotor of Penguin Classics interviews Rowena Jiminez about a José Rizal/ Noli Me Tangere community read-a-thon organized through her nonprofit group Bagong Kulturang Pinoy, and speaks with Harold Augenbraum, the translator of the Penguin Classics edition of the classic. Alan Walker, head of academic marketing, introduces listeners to The Power and the Glory by Graham Greene on "Reading the Classics from A to Z." And Stephen Morrison, associate publisher and editor in chief of Penguin Books, offers up the opening to José Rizal's Noli Me Tangere in his segment, "First Pages."

Photos from the Al Robles Memorial: Glide Memorial Church

... can be found at Bob Hsiang's website.

Press release: UCLA releases Amerasia Journal women's issue

From Allyson Tintiangco-Cubales:

UCLA releases Amerasia Journal women's issue

For Immediate Release

July 27, 2009

For Press Information and Author Interviews:

Mary Kao, mugao@ucla.edu
(310) 825-3415

Stephanie Santos, stephaniesantos@ucla.edu
(310) 825-6498

"UCLA releases Amerasia Journal women's issue"

Los Angeles - Thirty-five years after its first special issue devoted to Asian American women, the UCLA Asian American Studies Center Press is pleased to announce the release of Amerasia's newest issue "Where Women Tell Stories," guest edited by Mary Uyematsu Kao and Stephanie D. Santos. The articles in this issue highlight the strong connections between Asian Pacific American women and their communities and challenge both ethnic and feminist studies to recognize the herstories of Asian Pacific American women.


"This women's issue attempts to cross bridges and reconfirm basic issues that a women of color feminism has embraced for the last forty years," states Mary Uyematsu Kao. "The collective experiences from overlapping generations of women represented here show a continuing trend for women of color to seek creative ways to exercise their power as women."

"This will allow for more dynamic political involvements," offers Stephanie Santos, "whether with undocumented mothers, refugees, immigrant garment workers, or social justice activists."

"Subverting the Hierarchy/Collaborating Narratives" the opening article by Roshni Rustomji and Luz de la Rosa, explores a "salvation paradigm" which has embedded hierarchies of race, class, education, age, and/or social and political power. Creating ways to remove these hierarchies, the authors conduct workshops in Oaxaca, Mexico to learn what the local women know in the aftermath of a revolutionary groundswell in 2006-2007. Filmmaker Dai-Sil Kim Gibson challenges us to learn about Korean "comfort women" that the Japanese military savagely exploited with her piece, "Do You Hear Their Voices?"

One of the highlights of the issue is 'Stirrin' Waters' and Buildin' Bridges: A Conversation with Yuri Kochiyama and Ericka Huggins." These two historic icons of social justice movements of the 1960s share lessons and insights on today's movements. Another important bridge is Laura Pulido's "Immigration Politics and Motherhood," examining how the immigration question has put some U.S. mainstream feminists in the opposition against Mexican immigrant women-raising the specter of nativist racism that continues to plague U.S. social justice movements.

Ketu Katrak examines the differences and similarities that South Asian women face in the home country versus the U.S. and how that affects women's organizing efforts. In a similar vein, "GabNet: A Case Study of Transnational Sisterhood and Organizing" by Annalisa V. Enrile and Jollene Levid reveal an inside view of the U.S. arm of Gabriela, an organization based in the Philippines working for the liberation of women and the nation. Katie Quan's retrospective of the 1982 Garment Workers Strike in New York City's Chinatown is an important account because it comes from a strike organizer's direct experience.

"Practicing Pinayist Pedagogy" by Allyson Tintiangco-Cubales and Jocyl Sacramento demonstrate ways for Filipino women to "connect the global and localto the personal issues and stories of Pinay struggle, survival, service, sisterhood, and strength." And "Three-Step Boogie" by Mary Uyematsu Kao, describes how the race/class/gender framework emerged to work within the 1970s Asian American Movement setting, through the lives of Sansei (3rd generation Japanese American) women activists.

Poets Irene Suico Soriano and Fuifuilupe Niumetolu touch you with tales from the Philippines and the U.S., and one woman's struggle from a Mormon-Tongan upbringing. Tiffany Min, Kimson Kheoum, Amy Horn and Mary Im from Khmer Girls in Action (Long Beach) share in poetry and prose their struggles as young women in a transitional Khmer American culture. Jolie Chea's performance piece creates crucial understandings of the Cambodian refugee experience, while Carrie Usui shares some of the problems specific to Asian Pacific American women when it comes to personal health issues.

This special issue of Amerasia Journal costs $15.00 plus $5.00 for shipping and handling and 9.25 percent sales tax for California residents ($21.39). Make checks payable to "Regents of U.C." VISA, MASTERCARD, and DISCOVER are also accepted; include expiration date and phone number on correspondence.

The mailing address is: UCLA Asian American Studies Center Press, 3230 Campbell Hall, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90095-1546. You may also purchase through the online bookstore:
www.aasc.ucla.edu/aascpress/comersus/store/comersus
Phone: 310-825-2968.
Email: aascpress@aasc.ucla.edu

Annual subscriptions for Amerasia Journal are $99.99 for individuals and $445.00 for libraries and other institutions. The institutional price includes access to the Amerasia online database, which has full-text versions of all Amerasia Journals published since 1971. Amerasia Journal is published three times a year: Winter, Spring, and Fall.

###

Small Press: Sasha Pimentel Chacón

From the Hyphen magazine blog:

I've just spent a better part of my weekend at the San Francisco International Poetry Festival, in which El Paso-based Pinay poet Sasha Pimentel Chacon participated. Some of you may remember her name from Neela Banerjee's review of OCHO #16, a literary journal which I guest-edited last year, and in which I included Chacon's poems. While the former SF Poet Laureate Jack Hirschman invited Chacon as a poet representing the Philippines, she was raised in Atlanta, schooled at Fresno State, and now teaches at University of Texas at El Paso. In other words, she is an American poet. Still, it was great to see the festival include a Pinay voice, especially one so fierce.

Read more.

Filipino American Jazz Festival featured on KPFA Radio

From Tony Robles:

What: POOR Magazine Radio Show, KPFA Radio 94.1 FM (or you can listen online at WWW.KPFA.ORG)

When: Thursday July 30, 2009 7:30am

Who: Tony Robles interviews Carlos Zialcita and Oscar Penaranda of the upcoming 2nd annual Filipino American Jazz Festival. They will discuss the Filipino experience in jazz. Oscar will read a poem by Al Robles paying homage to this art form. There will also be a segment on the upcoming Asian Pacific Islander spoken word and poetry summit taking place in Berkeley as well as a tribute to the late Alexis Arguello, former boxing and champ and Mayor of Managua.


Tony Robles
Co-editor
POOR Magazine
www.poormagazine.org

Barbershop Reading Series: August 1 (SF)

From the Barbershop Reading Series website:

Please join us for the next event in the Barbershop Reading Series. Playing off the atmosphere of a community barbershop, our events feature live literary readings along with musical performances.

Our August 1st event will feature readings by a husband-and-wife pair of poets:

OSCAR BERMEO is the author of the poetry chapbooks Anywhere Avenue, Palimpsest and Heaven Below. Recent poems appear in BorderSenses, In the Grove and Spindle, among others. Oscar is a BRIO (Bronx Recognizes Its Own), IWL (Intergenerational Writers Lab) and VONA (Voices of Our Nations Arts Foundation) poetry fellow. He lives in Oakland with his wife, poeta Barbara Jane Reyes.

BARBARA JANE REYES is an adjunct professor in Philippine Studies at USF. Her work has been published in Asian Pacific American Journal, North American Review, Notre Dame Review, Parthenon West Review, and elsewhere. Barbara is the author of Gravities of Center (Arkipelago, 2003), and Poeta en San Francisco (Tinfish, 2005), which received the James Laughlin Award of the Academy of American Poets. Her third book, Diwata, is forthcoming in 2010 from BOA Editions. She reviews small press books by Asian Pacific Islander American authors for Hyphen magazine’s blog.

Also reading will be BRENT FLUTY, a member of the Barbershop Writing Group, a workshop running in conjunction with the Barbershop Reading Series and led by series host Michael McAllister. Click here for more info on the Barbershop Writing Group. Brent graduated from University of Oklahoma with a B.A. in Geography with focus on Latin American studies. He is a Gardener by profession, who writes in his off time

Our musical guest will be San Francisco-based singer-songwriter TERESE TAYLOR. The Village Voice said of Taylor: “She can veer from lonely backwoods laments to precise, grinding Mission Of Burma-like instrumentals and back. Her music is intuitive and mysterious, filled with personal in-jokes and painful memories, a puzzle that is meant to be felt and experienced, not solved.”

–

Details:

Joe’s Barbershop
2150 Market St (between Church and Sanchez)

Our first two events played to full houses, so we suggest arriving early, especially if you want to kick back in one of the barber chairs.

Saturday, August 1st, at 8 pm
SUGGESTED donation: $5 (everyone welcome)

That donation helps to cover our expenses and buys you highly addictive Kettle Salt and Pepper potato chips, baked goods, cold beer, and a Diet Coke or two.

We can always use volunteers to help set up and clean up afterward. Volunteers pay no cover and earn good karma. If interested, email Michael McAllister.

Call for Submissions: San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival

The San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival - March 11-21, 2010 – is now accepting submissions for its 28th festival. Submit early and save on submission fees!

The SFIAAFF is the nation’s largest showcase for new Asian American and Asian films, annually presenting approximately 130 works in San Francisco, Berkeley and San Jose. Since 1982, the SFIAAFF has been an important launching point for Asian American independent filmmakers as well as a vital source for new Asian Cinema.

Click here for details and guidelines.

VIDEO: Denizen Kane “Holdin’ Up the Wall” (Directed by Jason Mateo)

via DJ Phatrick:

Description: DENIZEN KANE Directed by Jason Mateo

Man Asian Literary Prize 2009 Longlist

Found at Ian Rosales Casocot's blog:

Five Filipinos (including a couple of Filipino Americans!) on the Man Asian 2009 Longlist!

The Administrative Committee for the 2009 Man Asian Literary Prize has today announced the longlist of works for this prize:

Gopilal Acharya , With a Stone in My Heart
Omair Ahmad , Jimmy the Terrorist
Siddharth Chowdhury, Day Scholar
Kishwar Desai , Witness the Night
Samuel Ferrer , The Last Gods of Indochine
Eric Gamalinda , The Descartes Highlands
Ram Govardhan, Rough with the Smooth
Kanishka Gupta, History of Hate
Kameroon Rasheed Ismeer , Memoirs of a Terrorist
Ratika Kapur , Overwinter
Mariam Karim, The Bereavement of Agnes Desmoulins
Sriram Karri , The Autobiography of a Mad Nation
Nitasha Kaul , Residue
R . Zamora Linmark , Leche
Mario I. Miclat, Secrets of the Eighteen Mansions
Clarissa V. Militante, Different Countries
Varuna Mohite, Omigod
Dipika Mukherjee, Thunder Demons
Hena Pillai , Blackland
Roan Ching-Yueh, Lin Xiu-Tzi and her Family
Edgar Calabia Samar, Eight Muses of the Fall
K. Srilata, Table for Four
Su Tong, The Redemption Boat
Oyungerel Tsedevdamba, Shadow of the Red Star

This longlist of 24 unpublished works of Asian fiction in English will be reviewed and evaluated by the 2009 Man Asian Literary Prize judges, who will announce a shortlist of works in October 2009. The winner will be announced on Monday, 16 November at an awards ceremony in Hong Kong.

The judging panel for the 2009 Man Asian Literary Prize comprises Indian writer Pankaj Mishra, Irish novelist Colm Toibin (Chair), and Chinese American author Gish Jen.

The 2009 Man Asian Literary Prize longlist was chosen from among 150 submissions received from all over Asia.

The largest single group of submissions was from India, followed by the Philippines and Hong Kong. Entries came from as far afield as Bhutan, Mongolia and Myanmar as well as from China, Singapore, Malaysia, Taiwan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Pakistan. The Prize received submissions from well-established as well as first-time authors, and these included translated works as well as works originally in English. Most submissions were made by authors themselves, with a handful coming from literary agents or translators.

David Parker, Chair of the Board of Directors of the Man Asian Literary Prize said: "We are delighted to see so many exciting entries from all over Asia. Now in its third year the Prize has established itself as a window onto the extraordinary wealth of creative talent in this part of the world."

Man Group plc is the sponsor of the Man Asian Literary Prize and the annual Man Hong Kong International Literary Festival. Additional information is available on the website.

KSW: SHIFTING FOCUS: Changing Your Brain, Changing Your Writing Practice

SHIFTING FOCUS: Changing Your Brain, Changing Your Writing Practice

Taught by psychologist and poet Pireeni Sundaralingam, this workshop aims to boost your creativity AND productivity on a daily basis, using exercises that promote your writing abilities by engaging with your own unique brain structures, rather than working against them. The main aim of the course is to challenge the way that we, as writers, engage with the world around us. In particular, the two-day workshop will explore how innovative metaphors can be used to shift our focus.

The workshop is for all poets seeking inspiration and struggling with blocks, that is, writers of all ages and experience. The course is split over two consecutive Saturdays and involves assignments, designed to enrich your out-of-class writing practice, that need to be completed between workshop sessions.

August 1 & 8th, 2009: 10am – 1pm
Location: Kearny Street Workshop (KSW), (NB new location)
PariSoMa - 1436 Howard Street, San Francisco, CA CA 94103.

Registration fee is $80.
To register, please contact: info@kearnystreet.org (Tel: 415.503.0520)
Website:
http://www.kearnystreet.org/programs/calendar/calendarindex2.php#pireeni

Instructor Bio:
A PEN USA Rosenthal Fellow, Pireeni's poetry has appeared in literary and political journals such as Ploughshares, World Literature Today, The Progressive, and The Guardian newspaper (UK), university texts such as Three Genres (Prentice-Hall, 8th Edition, 2006; 9th edition, 2009), and anthologies such as Masala (Macmillan, 2005), and Language for a New Century (Norton, 2008). Her poetry has aired on national radio in Ireland, Sweden, and the US, and been featured at the United Nations headquarters, and the International Museum of Women. Pireeni was educated at Oxford University, and has held cognitive science research posts at MIT and UCLA. Dedicated to examining the confluence of art and science, in the past year alone, she has given lectures on "Poetry and The Brain" at MOMA (New York), the Exploratorium (SF), and the Life in Space symposium at Studio Olafur Eliasson (Berlin). Pireeni was born in Sri Lanka and currently lives in San Francisco. http://www.wordandviolin.com

Togonon Gallery Hosts an Evening of Harana

Togonon Gallery and the Producers of Harana invite you to a special evening celebrating Filipino American Contemporary Art, Film and Wine

Togonon Gallery Hosts Harana

A Night of Filipino American Contemporary Art, Film and Wine to benefit the Harana Documentary Film

($10.00 Admission)
DATE: July 29, 2009
TIME: 6:00pm - 8:00pm
LOCATION: 77 Geary Street (at Grant), 2nd Floor, San Francisco, CA
Contact: fides@haranathemovie.com
or call 415-613-0584

www.haranathemovie.com

Eileen Tabios: Two Reviews of Nota Bene Eiswein

From Jacket 37, "Inspiration’s Mirror in Tabios’s Nota Bene Eiswein," by Grace C. Ocasio:

Eileen R. Tabios’s latest poetry volume, Nota Bene Eiswein, is broken up into two sections: “Ice: Behind the Eyelet Veil” and “Wine: The Singer and Others—Flamenco Hay(na)ku.” The two parts couldn’t be any further apart. The poems of her first section are fairly elliptical while the poems of her second section are visceral and narrative.

The first part reads like refrains from a gallery of songs. The poems of the first section are unusual because Ms. Tabios produced them in response to reading a fellow poet’s collection—The Book of Funnels by Christian Hawkey. Compelling in their own right, the poems from this section provoke longing, a need for answers in the reader. Yet, Ms. Tabios does not deliver any apparent answers or prescriptions for these poems.

Read more.

From Joey Madia, New Mystics Reviews:

Her passion and efforts for connection with the reader make all the difference here. Although Tabios is coming from a place of High Art, there is nothing ivory tower about her poetics. This is a balance that both the street poets and academics should be seeking if we are to revitalize our worth as poets.

Read more.

Al Robles: Two Articles and a Memorial

Poetry was a central part of Al’s life, and in his twenties, according to Emil De Guzman, he was a regular in San Francisco’s famous North Beach neighborhood, with the Beat poets like Lawrence Ferlinghetti and Allen Ginsberg. Al was also a painter and a carpenter who made Japanese tea houses.

But his art and poetry also were inextricably linked to his activism. After all, he grew up in California at a time when it was tough to be a Filipino, to be Asian, a person of color. He was about 11 years old when the US government began rounding up Japanese Americans and taking them to internment camps, in one of the saddest chapters in American history. It is said that Al’s younger brother, Remy, was picked up by the military thinking he was Japanese. Al had to fight to pull his brother from the truck headed for the internment camps.

-- Benjamin Pimentel, for the Inquirer

Al Robles was a saint because he was so selfless, compassionate, and unswervingly faithful to not only the Filipino manongs, but also to the broader society beyond the Kearny Street Manilatown area in San Francisco that he was so active in. This was one of the things about Al Robles that made him such an exceptional human being: no one was excluded from his diverse and inclusive grassroots universe.

-- Allen Gaborro, for FilAmStar

Click on image to enlarge, for more information on the upcoming memorial:

movie review of "Himala" BY ALLEN GABORRO

FILAM STAR (July 16-31, 2009 issue)

Efforts in the Philippine movie industry to move beyond the ubiquitous escapist film piece has never been easy, even less so during the early 1980’s when such exceptional cinematic forms of social commentary like Ishmael Bernal’s “Himala” (“Miracle”) were few and far between. But today, even as weaning Filipinos away from kitschy comedies and melodramas remains a daunting task, the 1982 “Himala,” through its staying power as a critically-acclaimed movie, continues to push the conventional parameters that encode Philippine cinema.

In standing the test of time, “Himala” has proven to be not only a natural work—natural that is to Philippine history and culture—but a necessary one as well. I say necessary because the film, with all of its spiritual and religious overtones, deeply penetrates the collective Filipino eros, psyche, and notion of community. In other words, its socio-historical importance lies in its ability to reveal complicated truths about the Philippines both to outsiders and to Filipinos themselves.

“Himala” is also propelled by a social agenda which demands viewers’ undivided attention towards Ishmael Bernal’s bold incursions into a universe that is vastly different from the one many modern Filipinos are accustomed to. Whether you are a believer or not, Christian faith and spirituality are compelling worldviews anywhere you look, and this is certainly so in “Himala.” Themes of religious faith and revelation reverberate throughout the film, dominatingly so until the late series of scenes. From watching “Himala,” it is easy to see that Bernal was fascinated by the power and influence that religious faith has over people in the Philippines, one of the most Roman Catholic nations in the history of Christendom.

“Himala’s” long-lasting approbation would not have been possible had it not been for the intense religious zeal displayed by its main character Elsa, played by a young Nora Aunor. Elsa walks in the footsteps of other self-proclaimed, modern-day prophets in that she claims to be able to see and commune with the Virgin Mary. This mysterious revelation transforms her from an unpretentious and serene young woman into a hallowed spiritual medium for the Virgin Mary.

Bernal contrasts his movie’s otherworldly theme with the temporal realities that the residents of Cupang, the small town in which “Himala” is set, must deal with on an everyday, pragmatic basis. Whatever solace the residents find in their maddening existence is in folk traditions and Catholic spirituality.

In a reflection of the strength of folk traditions in the Philippines, Cupang is portrayed as a town that supposedly lives under a curse that was placed upon it as punishment for the residents’ earlier banishment of a leper who was really the Virgin Mary in disguise. The residents believe that the curse is responsible for the severe drought which has brought about the town’s indigent state.

Elsa’s supernatural metamorphosis meanwhile, is not all that is spiritual or regenerative about her. Elsa’s ostensible relationship with the Virgin is manifested in her incredible healing powers. People from all around come to Cupang to have their afflictions cured by Elsa. The town is soon reconstituted into a tawdry mecca into which the sick, the tormented, the agnostic, the curious, and the opportunistic congregate after hearing about the alleged miracle of Elsa’s experience.

Elsa though, discovers in short order that her healing powers are beginning to weaken. This overwhelming truth sets the stage for the dimming of Elsa’s aura and for the movie’s stunning finale. From being a savior, Elsa is abruptly turned into a scapegoat. Bernal’s combination of the capriciousness and absurdity of the townspeople’s behavior with their readiness to blindly construct answers out of faith and spirituality is as absorbing as the story itself.

Not that Bernal automatically aspired for “Himala” to be a cinematic masterpiece, but the Cable News Network (CNN) did declare it to be the best Asian motion picture of all time. If it is as brilliant as CNN says it is, it is because of its faculty for conveying the complex emotional and spiritual conviction that millions of Filipinos have for their religious beliefs.

Yet, Bernal also takes a secular approach in the movie which makes for a tricky balancing act between faith and reason. This is the unique accomplishment of Bernal’s work. Wandering simultaneously amidst the sacred and profane, “Himala” leaves room for doubt whether you are one of the devout members of the flock or a non-believer.

ALLEN GABORRO

Philippine American Literary House: Book Sale

From PALH Books:

Many of our Philippine books have been discounted. Check them out, at

http://www.palhbooks.com/books3.htm

Call for Submissions: CBT Play Creation Unit Deadline Extended, Carlos Bulosan Theatre

From the Toronto Alliance for the Performing Arts (TAPA) blog:

The CBT Play Creation Unit is a novice play creation program. It introduces participants to various approaches to making theatre. Through regular workshops and sessions with professional theatre artists, we help participants identify, cultivate and explore their creative voice. Each member will create a 10-15 minute piece of theatre that will be presented in CBT’s annual showcase of new work Tales from the Flipside at the end of February 2010.

Submission Guidelines:

• A letter of interest outlining why you would like to be part of the program, including an idea you would like to develop into a piece of theatre
• A 1-2 page submission of creative writing (this can take the form of dialogue, poetry, prose, short story, etc.)
• The Play Creation Unit begins meeting September 2009 through to January 2010.

The deadline for submissions is July 31, 2009.

Submissions can be sent by email to: info@carlosbulosan.com

The Carlos Bulosan Theatre’s (CBT’s) mandate is to reflect on social issues affecting the Filipino and broader community. CBT is also committed to creating innovative work that reflects a vibrant, new generation of Filipino-Canadian artists. CBT seeks to encourage and develop Filipino-Canadian writers, performers, and other artists within the community.

Town Hall Meeting to Launch the New Book “Filipinos in Carson and the South Bay”

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 17, 2009

CONTACT:
Rose Ibanez
Filipino American Library (FAL)
Tel: (310) 830-0950
Email: reibanez@sbcglobal.net

TOWN HALL MEETING TO LAUNCH THE NEW BOOK "FILIPINOS IN CARSON AND THE SOUTH BAY"

CARSON, CALIFORNIA (July 2009) – The story of Filipinos coming to America, particularly the Los Angeles Harbor area, has long been an overlooked part of this local area's history. That will change on August 8, 2009 with the arrival of the new book Filipinos in Carson and the South Bay. Written by long-time residents Florante Peter Ibanez and Roselyn Estepa Ibanez, this pictorial history book will formally be launched at a Town Hall Meeting entitled "Presentation on the History of Carson and the South Bay" on Saturday, August 8 at 1:00-3:00pm at the Carson Community Center, Carson Dominguez Room (801 Carson St., Carson, CA 90745). This Town Hall Meeting is hosted by Carson Mayor Jim Dear and Councilwoman Julie Ruiz Raber, in partnership with the Filipino American Library (FAL).

The educational presentation will feature samples of the book's historical photographs, local speakers, and the opportunity for the audience to share their own stories about growing up in the area. Co-Authors and couple, Florante and Roselyn Ibanez, have sought out family albums, organizational records, and personal stories to present this evocative history of their community. Filipinos in Carson and the South Bay is part of Arcadia Publishing's Images of America series that celebrates the history of neighborhoods, towns, and cities across the country.

Founded on October 13, 1985 by Helen Agcaoili Summers Brown ("Auntie Helen"), FAL is the earliest and largest Filipino library in the country with a collection of over 6,000 titles. Its mission is to provide access to information and knowledge through the collection, preservation, and dissemination of a unique collection of Filipino American and Filipino reading material to those that seek knowledge. Through this collection and its community involvement, FAL seeks to provide access to cultural information and enrich America's diverse cultural tapestry. It is located at 135 N. Park View St., Historic Filipinotown, Los Angeles, CA 90026-5215. From June 15 to September 15, FAL will be open for Summer Hours: Thursdays-Fridays 1:00-5:00pm. To visit outside these hours, please schedule an appointment at filamlibrary@sbcglobal.net or 213-382-0488. Also, please visit FAL's website at www.filipinoamericanlibrary.org.

(For pictures to include for publication, please contact Rose Ibanez as indicated above.)

This Weekend: Reminders

(1) KSW Weekend Blogging Workshop! Info here.

(2) Spoken Word Transformations at Manilatown. Info here.

(3) Alleluiah Panis in IBIG: PUlse of Desire at Yerba Buena Gardens. Info here.

San Francisco International Poetry Festival

Filipino American poets Tony Robles and Sasha Pimentel Chacón, and Chicano writer Alejandro Murguía (who will be reading in October for the PAWA Arkipelago Reading Series) will be participating in this year's San Francisco International Poetry Festival. More information here.

Daylong Writing and Meditation Retreat for People of Color

From Kenji Liu:

Write Action and Creativity: A Daylong Writing and Meditation Retreat for People of Color
Sun, Aug 16, 9:30 am - 5:00 pm
Spirit Rock Meditation Center
Fairfax, CA

With Mushim (Patricia) Ikeda-Nash and Kenji Liu

Cost $25 - $55, sliding scale, plus a donation to the teacher(s). Bring lunch to share.

This daylong retreat is for any Person of Color who desires to write -- whether you are an experienced writer or a novice attempting to put together your first poem or story. The day will include basic meditation instruction and writing periods with suggested exercises and time for free-writing, and will include an open-mic sign-up for those who wish to share brief samples of their work.

Please bring a lunch for yourself or a dish to share on the potluck table. And feel free to bring any unfinished projects (short excerpts of poetry, memoirs, fiction or whatever you may be working on) for small group input during the lunch period.

This event is for self-identified People of Color. While nearly all Spirit Rock events are open to all people, we occasionally hold daylongs and residential retreats specifically for People of Color, women, LGBTQ folks, and other communities that have historically been targets of social oppression. These separate spaces, based on shared experience of identity, are reported to be very beneficial to many participants, and our commitment to continue to hold these events is part of our ongoing efforts to make Spirit Rock and the Dharma accessible to all people.

Register online:
http://www.spiritrock.org/calendar/display.asp?id=PC3D09&type=daylongs%20and%20classes

*****

Online Registration for weekend daylongs is available until 1:00 pm on the Thursday before the event. For other events during the week, online registration will close two days before an event begins. If online registration has closed, you may pay at the door if the event is not full.

Financial Aid: Scholarships and work exchanges available. Call 415.488.0164 x 224. No one turned away for lack of funds.

--
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Kenji Liu

GRAPHIC DESIGN & ILLUSTRATION
http://www.figdig.com/portfolio/liusan

Celebrating the Life of Al Robles: 07/25/09 at Glide Memorial Church SF

Click on image to enlarge, for more information:

Philippine News: Penélope V. Flores reviews Harana sa Intramuros

When asked to explain the concert's repertoire, Florante [Aguilar] replied:

“We immediately thought it should be an All-Pilipino selection based on the music we both have been championing through our recordings, the harana and kundiman. Our individual approach is actually very different from each other, with Michael leaning towards more traditional harmony while I take more liberty in harmony and form. We thought this combination offers a richer musical experience.

Read more.

Spoken Word Transformations at Manilatown 07/18/09

Alice James Books and Kundiman Present Book Prize for Asian American Poets

From Poets & Writers:

Kundiman, the New York City-based organization promoting Asian American poets, and Alice James Books, the Maine-based cooperative poetry press, have partnered to present a $2,000 book publication prize in 2010. The new award, the only prize of its kind, is dedicated exclusively to Asian American poets.

"We, Kundiman, are thrilled to be partnering with Alice James Books on this initiative in that it gives us an opportunity to participate in a material way the production of Asian American poetry and in the professional development of Asian American poets," said Sarah Gambito, Kundiman’s cofounder and executive board president. She went on to say that the award "fulfills our shared commitment to contributing to the diversity of voices in the poetic landscape."

Read more.

'This Is How the World Should Be': Asian-American Poetry Blossoms at U.Va.'s Kundiman Retreat

July 8, 2009 — Kundiman – a classic-yet-subversive form of Filipino love song that actually expresses love of country – informs a poetry retreat held at the University of Virginia each summer to bring together a select group of budding Asian-American poets.

"As an organization dedicated to providing a nurturing space for Asian-American poets, we find in this name inspiration to create and support poetic expression," wrote founder and U.Va. alumna Sarah Gambito on the organization's Web site.

Read more.

Jim Barredo, Filipino American Drummer of Explosive New Band Tim Be Told Celebrates His Heritage

From USAsian Wire:

"I don't think my heritage has a direct influence on how I approach our music per se," says Jim. "However, being an example to other young Asian and Filipino musicians as someone who pursued their passion and love instead of a normal, secure career path does weigh on my mind."

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Hyphen Magazine Review: Nick Carbó's Chinese, Japanese, What Are These?

There is something heartbreaking about Filipino American poet Nick Carbo's latest collection of poetry, provocatively titled Chinese, Japanese, What Are These? For those of you not in the know, the book's title references the xenophobic children's rhyme, "Chinese, Japanese, dirty knees, what are these?" The gestures accompanying said rhyme include using one's hands to stretch the eyes, hence making the "chinky eye." The movement corresponding to "What are these?" is to show or motion towards the breasts, exaggerating their size.

Read more.

Call for Filipino Poetry

From Eileen Tabios:

[Please feel free to forward]

A Call For Submissions

for a

SPECIAL LITERARY ISSUE FEATURING FILIPINO POETS NOT LIVING IN THE U.S.A.

Guest Editor: Eileen Tabios

Deadline: Sept. 30, 2009

Submissions: 1-5 poems, any style or theme in the English language. Can have been written in a non-English language but submit only if an English translation is available (N.B., I, however, can only assess the English version). Can be previously published but not online, or otherwise available online, as this Issue will be published online.

Bio.: Tell me something about yourself (and of course include place of residence).

Eligibility: I seek poets not residing in the U.S. But it's possible that as this Submissions Call goes out, some of you may be in the U.S. temporarily (say, for college or graduate studies). But if you still self-identify as being a resident (primarily) of another country besides the U.S., even though you may be living currently in the U.S., you are eligible.

Logistics: Email submissions to GalateaTen@aol.com . Don't send attachments. Send poems in the body of the email. If you wish, you also can describe special formatting issues in the body of email.

For more info: Email GalateaTen@aol.com.

SF Filipino Jazz Festival 09 Kickoff Concert at Yoshis Oakland

FESTIVAL 2009 KICKOFF CONCERT

Charmaine Clamor
Yoshi's Oakland
510 Embarcadero Oakland 510-238-9200
Thursday July 16
Shows at 8 and 10 pm
www.yoshis.com
www.charmaineclamor.com

Charmaine Clamor is America's leading Filipina jazz and world music vocalist. Her debut album, Searching For The Soul, "announced the arrival of an impressive new vocal artist. When Charmaine Clamor's warm, luscious contralto slips into a seductive rhythm or purrs through tender lyrics, there's no doubt that a first-rate jazz talent is present". (Don Heckman, Los Angeles Times)

After making Filipino music history by placing her album Flippin' Out in the Top-5 of both the Jazz and World Music charts, Charmaine recently performed at the Manila International Jazz Festival and also received a FAMAS Award while in the Philippines. She is the first jazz artist to be signed to Manila's Viva Records label.

with special guest
Mon David
featured artist
SF Filipino American Jazz Festival 2009
www.mondavid.com

"His stunning improvisation and grooving lyricism are the stuff of world class vocalizing... The Filipino singer has all the skills to emerge as one of the breakout male jazz vocal talents of the year." --Don Heckman, International Review of Music

Cha: An Asian Literary Journal "Lost Teas" Section

From Cha: An Asian Literary Journal: "We at CHA realise that, sadly, online journals often fold leaving countless works without a home. If you have lost a work in this way, CHA may be interested in republishing your work in our new regular section, 'Lost Teas'. Please see submission guidelines for more details.

Scenes from the 7.11.09 PAWA Arkipelago Literary Series

YouTube videos from the 7.11.09 edition of the PAWA Arkipelago Literary Series featuring Randall Mann, Kristin Naca, Debbie Yee, and Mariano Zaro can be found here.


Flickr photos from the 7.11.09 edition of the PAWA Arkipelago Literary Series featuring Randall Mann, Kristin Naca, Debbie Yee, and Mariano Zaro can be found here.

Hyphen Magazine Review: Maiana Minahal, Legend Sondayo

I enjoy Minahal's poetry because, apart from being precisely crafted and lively, it's subversive. It literally subverts an old Filipino folktale of the woman Sondayo, who battles the wind goddess, because the wind goddess stole her husband.

New Book: Nick Carbó's Chinese, Japanese, What Are These

Chinese, Japanese, What Are These
by Nick Carbó
Pecan Grove Press, 2009
ISBN: 978-1-931247-64-1 $15

"A new, outstanding volume by Nick Carbó, in which the world of the Philippines, its reinvented mythology, poignant and disruptive experiences stemming from its colonial past, seem to be engaged in a remedial dialogue with Italy, Spain, France, Japan and the United States, the countries featured in this poetry collection where a similar hurt, and parallel perspectives of renewal are nested, locked in the characters’ hearts. “Language” is the key word of the volume, and its power is explored by the author in its connection with vitality, exchange, sensuousness, rebirth. This book will enthral the readers’ mind and will germinate in every fibre of their bodies." —Elisabetta Marino, Professor, University of Rome-Tor ver gata

Pick up your copy here!

Rick Rocamora at Manilatown 07/11/09 4-6 pm

You can still attend the PAWA Arkipelago reading, and then head on over to Manilatown to catch Rick Rocamora. Click on image to enlarge, for more information:

Foothill Writers' Conference 07/09-07/12/09

Now in its 33rd year, the Foothill Writers' Conference continues its tradition of bringing literary arts mentorship and cultural enhancement to the Foothill College community and the San Francisco Bay Area.

The 2009 conference will offer seminars, workshops, and readings in fiction, poetry, and nonfiction; this year the conference will also include a screenwriting component for those interested in writing for television or film.

FOR FURTHER INFO email Kella Svetich: svetichkella@foothill.edu

This year's speakers include: Alan Cheuse, Justin Chin, Jane Ciabattari, Lesley Dauer, Sharon Doubiago, Danielle Haysbert, Scott Inguito, Linda Janakos, Avotcja Jiltonilro, Carol Lem, Barbara Jane Reyes, Michelle Richmond, Doren Robbins, Floyd Salas, Tony Tulathimutte, Marianne Villanueva, R.J. Ward, Kim Silveira Wolterbeek, Al Young.

As of July 3 Writers’ Conference participants will only be able to register on-site at the conference; the deadline for adding with an add code was last Friday. On-site registration is easy - simply arrive whenever you wish (see the schedule of events) and pay the conference fees at the registration table. Fees total $53 for all conference events, and check or credit card is preferable.

More information here.

APIA Spoken Word Summit

Registration deadline is Wednesday July 15. More info here.

Niki Escobar: Letter to U.S. History

A hay(na)ku by NikiEscobar: "Letter to U.S. History" here.

07/11/09: Randall Mann, Kristin Naca, Debbie Yee, Mariano Zaro @ SFPL

[Please distribute widely via your social networking tool of choice.]

The Filipino American Center of the San Francisco Public Library in association with Philippine American Writers and Artists, Inc. presents:

Philippine American Writers and Artists, Inc. Literary Reading with

Randall Mann, Kristin Naca, Debbie Yee, and Mariano Zaro

Saturday July 11, 2009
2:00 -4:30 pm
Latino Hispanic Community Meeting Room B



Randall Mann is the author of two collections of poetry, BREAKFAST WITH THOM GUNN (University of Chicago 2009) and COMPLAINT IN THE GARDEN (Zoo/Orchises 2004), winner of the 2003 Kenyon Review Prize; and co-author of the textbook WRITING POEMS, Seventh Edition (Pearson Longman 2007). He works as an editor and lives in San Francisco.

Kristin Naca's poems have been published in Indiana Review, Prairie Schooner and Octopus Magazine. She recently graduated with a PhD from University of Nebraska, and MFA from Pitt. Her book Bird Eating Bird was selected by Yusef Komunyakaa, for the mtvU National Poetry Series Prize. It will appear with Harper Perennial in September.

Debbie Yee is a trusts and estates attorney and Kundiman fellow. Debbie's poems have appeared or are forthcoming in 32 Poems, OCHO, Fence and The Best American Poetry 2009. Debbie blogs irregularly at www.debbieyee.com.

Mariano Zaro was born in Borja (Spain) in 1963 and since 1994 he has lived in Santa Monica. He is the author of Where From/Desde Donde (Bay Books, 1996), Poems of erosion/Poemas de la erosión (Carayan Press, 2003) and The House of Mae Rim/La Casa de Mae Rim (Carayan Press, 2008). Visit his website here.

All programs at the library are free.

San Francisco Public Library
100 Larkin Street (@ Grove)
sfpl.org

Hammer Museum: PEN USA Emerging Voices Reading (LA)

[Addendum: Reading is 7/22/09.]

Emerging Voices is a literary mentorship program designed to launch potential professional writers from underserved communities. Join us in a reading by this year’s crop of talented writers (three poets, three fiction writers, and two memoirists) as they celebrate the completion of a year-long mentorship, including Author Evenings, workshops, master classes, courses at UCLA Extension, lectures, public readings, and informal sessions with mentors. The eight recipients of the 2009 Emerging Voices Fellowship are: Erika Ayon, John Boucher, Rachelle Cruz, Thi Dao, Parnaz Foroutan, Sylvia Sukop, Marissa Tinloy, and Mehnaz Turner. Since its inception ninety-one writers have completed the Emerging Voices Program. For more info please visit www.penusa.org

More information here.

KSW: Weekend Blogging Workshop (SF)

Weekend Blogging Workshop with Claire Light and Glenda Bautista

July 18-19, 10:00am - 1:00pm
KSW @ PariSoMa, 1436 Howard Street

This weekend intensive blogging workshop will take you from beginner basics to blog bragging rights. Sign up for one day or both, and get into the blogosphere.

Read more.

Update: PAWA Arkipelago Literary Series

Hi all, please make sure to check out our PAWA Arkipelago Literary Series lineup: you can find this on this by scrolling down this blog's sidebar.

Oliver de la Paz: New poem at Guernica Magazine

"Requiem for the Orchard" chronicles two boys and their summer "shit job." Despite the menial subject, Oliver de la Paz's orchard rivals Anton Chekhov's in longing and brutality.

Make sure to check out Oliver's poet recommendations which follow his poem.