Walking into the Xavier Room in Fromm on Oct. 25, 415 Palengke attendees were immersed into a traditional Filipino market displaying the rich history and culture of Filipino Americans. The event was hosted by USF’s Kasamahan, which is the Filipino and Filipino American organization on campus. The market was their final event for Filipinx American History Month (FAHM), which has taken place annually during the month of October since 1992. The month was officially recognized by the Congress in 2009 and is to commemorate the first recorded presence of Filipinos in what is now the United States.
The event featured small Filipino owned businesses with the purpose of teaching about the culture. Booths showcased a cultural bear for weaving, a Batok artist and a library hosted by Archipelago books who highlight Filipino authors and book characters. Batok, or traditional tattoo artist, Kristian Kabuay, who has a niece at USF and has done talks on campus about the writing, was enthusiastic to share his knowledge at the event. “Ultimately, it is about how we can propagate and preserve these cultural practices,” Kabuay said. “I always feel that in order for this to live on, you have to get the next generation to know about it and eventually practice it.”
There were several performances featured throughout the night from Kasamahan members’ bands Musika and The Crashouts to their dance troupe featuring traditional Filipino folk dances. Yubelle Punzal, sophomore biology major and Cultural Relations Director of Kasamahan, was in charge of organizing the performances and even joined in the dance troupe. “A lot of the dance performances that we do are about the ones that we already have back home in the Philippines. This one was from a different region and it was Spanish influenced,” Punzal said.
Featured on the back wall of the room was an ancestor wall that allowed students to honor the legacy of their loved ones. Ella Candelario, first-year undecided major and representative for Kasamahan, helped put together the wall. “I think it is such a beautiful process to remember the people that came before us. It is so cool that it is done in such a creative way,” Candelario said.
There was also a fundraiser and raffle going on featuring Filipino foods mango sago and buko pandan. “Mango sago is, like, sago tapioca with mango and then buko pandan is coconut and pandan,” Mia Lau, sophomore education major and community and political affairs co-director of Kasamahan, said. The buko pandan has coconut and pandan flavored jellies, with pandan being a screwpine plant with an earthly vanilla flavor. The raffle prizes consisted of a basket filled with Filipino snacks and a Jollibee keychain.
The market and Kasamahan provided a space for students to connect with their heritage and learn more about themselves. “I am half Filipino, so I’ve always felt not as connected to my Philippine side, but being in Kasamahan and helping out with FAHM has just been like such an honor and such a great opportunity to just like get, like more into my Filipino like side and also community,” Kris Renee Salazar said, a junior biology major and community and political affairs co-director. For students who did grow up connected to their culture, the organization provides a safe space to create meaningful relationships. “For me, I think it was all about finding a second home here in San Francisco. I grew up with a predominantly Filipino family and was very much accustomed to the culture, the language and all that comes with it,” Punzal said.
Each year, Filipinx American History Month has a featured theme that is picked by the Filipino American National Historical Society. This year’s theme was from Quotas to Communities: Filipino American Migration and Movement. “FAHM is all about celebrating the history of Filipino Americans in the U.S., and especially our resistance and our pride in our culture, especially because we’re not in the Philippines. It’s still an opportunity for us to celebrate our own history,” Lau said.
Kasamahan and the event provided a welcoming environment for all students, even if they aren’t Filipino. “I hope that incoming students know that Kasamahan is really for everyone. Even though it is a Filipino organization, it is not just for Filipino people. Anybody can join, everybody here is so welcoming and it’s honestly such a cool and important thing to be a part of,” Candelario said. Providing a space on campus for students to learn about their culture, or cultures other than their own, is an essential resource that can be found at Kasamahan and was certainly present during the 415 Palengke.
