Alameda, California has own PH Independence celebration

Alameda City Mayor Marie Gilmore (second, right) and Consuls Reggie Bernabe (fourth, right) and Reichel Quiñones (third, right) are flanked by the city council members on the steps of Alameda’s historic City Hall. PHOTO BY EM ANGELES

ALAMEDA, California — For the second year running, the city of Alameda joined the Filipino American community in the month-long celebration of the 116^th Anniversary of the Proclamation of Philippine Independence, kicking off the festivities with a flag-raising ceremony held at Alameda’s historic City Hall, which has been standing since 1896.

Alameda Mayor Marie Gilmore, the city’s first African American woman mayor, told the audience that she looked forward to events like these because they represented the growing diversity and sense of community that could be found in the city.

Also present were Rob Bonta, Alameda’s former vice mayor and currently the first Filipino American to serve in the California State Assembly; Vice Mayor Marilyn Ezzy Ashcraft; Council Members Stewart Chen, Tony Daysog and Lena Tam; and Herna Cruz-Louie, executive director of the American Center of Philippine Arts.

Consul Reggie Bernabe of Philippine Consulate in San Francisco, thanked Alameda for joining the annual celebration, and urged the Filipino-American community to take Mayor Gilmore’s encouragement to build diversity to heart. “Democracy is a participative process,” he emphasized. “[The Filipino-American community] has the numbers, but it is up to us to make those numbers count.”

The Philippine Consulate General is currently conducting overseas voter registration for the upcoming presidential elections in 2016. Filipino citizens who will be at least 18 years of age on May 1, 2016 are eligible to register to vote. Registration is free, and may be done at the Consulate during its hours of business.

The Consulate will also be conducting on-site registration at the Kalayaan Celebration at Union Square in San Francisco on Saturday, June 21. Bring a photocopy of your valid Philippine passport’s data page or Oath of Allegiance to register! Forms will be made available at the Consulate’s booth, located on the Stockton side of Union Square.

For more information on the Philippine Consulate General in San Francisco, visit https://www.philippinessanfrancisco.org, or follow their page on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/PCGSF.  END.