By Victor Simoes, The Seattle Medium
Students fighting for democracy in the Philippines and working to connect the Filipino descendants with issues of forced migration and national sovereignty locally and abroad have launched a student chapter of a group with deep roots in Seattle.
Anakbayan University of Washington (ABUW) is a grassroots youth and student organization that aims to agitate,organize and mobilize Filipino and non-Filipino youth and students for national democracy in the Philippines. This overseas chapter of Anakbayan Philippines is the third to launch in Seattle, which is also home to Anakbayan Seattle (the first overseas chapter of the organization to be founded internationally) and Anakbayan South Seattle.
The student group officially launched its chapter on April 26, bringing around 100 people together at the Husky Union Building (HUB). The three-hour program included a brief presentation on the current political situation of the Philippines and migrants abroad, an introduction to ABUW’s newly elected executive committee, heartfelt speeches and cultural performances.
Chel Cendana Gary, one of the founding members of Anakbayan Seattle in 2002, the first international chapter of Anakbayan Philippines, said that this launch is a continuation of the legacy of the Filipino struggles in Seattle. Gary shared some of the lessons she learned while organizing two decades ago, particularly highlighting the importance of youth work, which she sees as the lifeline of the Philippines National Democratic Movement.
“We should not attach ourselves to a specific place, school, or institution,” said Gary. “What we should do is attach ourselves to a mission, a purpose, a movement, and for me, that movement lives in my heart.”
ABUW members presented an in-depth analysis of the current political and social situation in the Philippines and for Filipino immigrants living overseas, highlighting that under Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s US-backed regime, poverty rates have increased, and more than a million Filipinos leave the country every day to seek work opportunities overseas.
Brandon Sim, the vice chairperson of ABUW, explained that in Anakbayn’s analysis, the Filipinos in the diaspora in the United States are not separate from the struggles in their homeland. The reasons people immigrate are rooted in the same three issues people in the archipelago are fighting against: U.S. imperialism, feudalism and bureaucrat capitalism.
Even though ABUW just launched as a full-fledged chapter, they have been working with the Seattle Filipino community since 2019, looking to fulfill the requirements to launch as a chapter of Anakbayan Philippines, which includes among other things a consolidated analysis of the local community.
In the past two years, ABUW made several efforts to integrate with Filipino students and workers in the diaspora. The organization conducted informational efforts at the University of Washington Medical Center to spread the word about the human rights violations under the Bongbong Marcos regime to the Filipino workers and held several public educational discussions.
Ariana Flawau, the secretary general of ABUW, said the launch came at a time when members felt they had strong organizing skills in addition to a deep understanding of the situation in the Philippines and abroad. They felt prepared to form the chapter that now has 33 members.
“No one ever talks about how hard it is to start a grassroots political org, especially as young people and students who are still figuring themselves out in terms of school and their aspirations,” said Flawau.
“Students already have so much on their plate with academics and, on top of that, trying to learn outside of the classroom about the situation not only in the Philippines but here economically, politically, and socially.”
During the second half of the programming, Francesca Juico, an activist organizing in Gabriela Seattle, a Filipino group advancing the women’s movement, and former member of ABUW sang “Ancestors,” a song written for Amado Khaya Canham Rodriguez.
Rodriguez was a young militant who moved back to the Philippines to organize with farmers and Mangyan indigenous communities on Mindoro island and died on August 4, 2020. Rodriguez’s official cause of death was septic shock, likely due to food poisoning, a death preventable with appropriate governmental oversight.
The event ended with a passionate speech by Elle Mendiola, ABUW’s chairperson. In their remarks, Mendiola highlighted the toll in human rights violations under current president Marcos Jr. and remembered the long and lasting fight of the Filipino people against fascism.
“We organize for the exploited and oppressed masses, poor and working-class students who need to work to get an education, if that. Students will be buried in debt because education is commodified in this country as it is in the Philippines,” Mendiola said. “We do this for the Filipino healthcare workers, custodians, and food service workers that keep this university running.”
After the launch, ABUW returned to work and hosted a new member orientation in May. 8. The organization plans to continue connecting with Filipinos in the diaspora through educational discussions, direct actions and community partnerships. To learn about the orientation and future events, access ABUW’s Instagram.
