DRINKS
DRINKS OF
DRINKS OF DANIELS IS BACK WITH ITS FINAL ROUND THIS MONTH.
CHRIS IS RAISING A GLASS TO
HONOR OUR REGION'S DIVERSITY AS
PART OF ASIAN PACIFIC AMERICAN
HERITAGE MONTH.
TONIGHT CHRIS SHARES A
COFFEE WITH HISTORIAN DOROTHY
CORDOVA WHO HAS FOUGHT TO
PRESERVE THE AREA'S FILIPINO
AMERICAN CULTURE AND STARTED A
NATIONAL ORGANIZATION IN THE
PROCESS.
WE'RE WITH THE GREAT DOROTHY
CORDOVA.
EIGHTY NINE YEARS AGO.
YOU ARE A WALKING TALKING WORD
IN THIS CASE SITTING
ENCYCLOPEDIA OF HISTORY HERE IN
SEATTLE.
WHERE ARE WE RIGHT NOW?
WE'RE AT THE IMMACULATE
CONCEPTION.
THE OLD SCHOOL BUILDING WHICH
IS A VERY HISTORICAL SITE FOR
FILIPINOS AND WE'RE HAVING A
LITTLE CUP OF COFFEE FROM A
LOCAL TINY LITTLE NOT SO WELL
KNOWN COFFEE HOUSE.
HOW DID YOU HOW ARE YOU AND
YOUR FAMILY COME TO SETTLE IN
THIS PART OF SEATTLE?
MY DAD CAME TO THE UNITED
STATES IN 1990 AND THEN MY
MOTHER COMES IN 1920, USED TO
TAKE THREE WEEKS TO COME ACROSS
THE OCEAN TO COME TO THE UNITED
STATES FROM THE PHILIPPINES.
I WAS BORN HERE IN 1942.
MY FAMILY MY DAD THROUGH HIS
LAWYERS WAS ABLE TO PURCHASE A
HOUSE IN MADISON VALLEY IN 1935
.
PANELS WEREN'T SUPPOSED TO OWN
PROPERTY.
YOU JUST MENTIONED YOUR FATHER.
THAT WAS A TRANSFORMATIVE
EVENT.
YOUR FATHER'S AT AGE FOUR.
HOW DID THAT HOW DID THAT
IMPACT YOU?
HOW DID THAT AFFECT ME?
I THINK YOU SAID IT SHAPED YOUR
INTEREST IN THE HISTORY MADE ME
START WONDERING WHY THINGS
HAPPEN.
YOU STARTED AT THAT AGE
SEARCHING FOR YOUR DAD,
SEARCHING THROUGH HISTORY.
I GREW UP WITH SUCH AN INFERIOR
I'M A CATHOLIC.
OK, SO ALL MEN ARE
CREATED EQUAL.
YEAH, SURE.
UNTIL YOU STEP OUTSIDE AND
YOU'RE NOT EQUAL YOU KNOW IT
YOU FEEL YOU'RE ANGRY BUT WHEN
YOU'RE MINORITY ME I WAS BORN
HERE AND SO I WAS BUILT INTO A
SOCIETY AT THAT TIME THAT
CONSIDERED A SECOND CLASS
PEOPLE.
SO YOU CARRY ALL OF THIS
GARBAGE WITH YOU.
WAIT A MINUTE WAIT A MINUTE.
WE'RE PAYING TAXES.
YOU KNOW WE'RE DOING ALL THESE
THINGS WE THE WAR THEY COME
BACK, THEY'RE TREATING NOBODY
AND JUST AND THEN DOING THE
RESEARCH.
SO I START TO GET REALLY ANGRY.
I GET REALLY VERY UPSET ON THE
COFFEE'S ON I'M GETTING WORKED
UP.
OH MY GOD.
THE STATE ASKED ME TO DO THE
ORAL HISTORIES AND I STARTED TO
GATHER THE STORIES OF THESE
PEOPLE WHO CAME HERE WHEN THEY
CAME OUT THERE CAME THEY WERE
PART OF THE UNITED STATES.
THEY CAME BECAUSE THE
PHILIPPINES WAS SOLD BY SPAIN
TO AFTER THE SPANISH AMERICAN
WAR.
THEY SOLD THE PHILIPPINES TO
THE UNITED STATES FOR TWENTY
MILLION DOLLARS.
I DON'T THINK A LOT OF PEOPLE
KNOW THAT.
YEAH.
SO THEY CAME HERE THINKING THEY
WERE AMERICAN AND THEY WEREN'T
THEY WERE BROWN PEOPLE WHO WERE
GIVEN THE TITLE THAT DIDN'T
MEAN TOO MUCH TO ANYBODY.
THERE WAS A TWENTY FIFTEEN PEW
RESEARCH STUDY THAT SHOWED
SEATTLE IS ONE OF THE TOP TEN
METROPOLITAN AREAS IN TERMS
OF THE FILIPINO COMMUNITY THIS
HAS BEEN AN AREA THAT HAS BEEN
RICH IN FILIPINO AMERICAN
HISTORY.
YOU HAVE TRIED TO PRESERVE THEM
AND STARTING UP A NATIONAL
ORGANIZATION HERE IN SEATTLE.
RIGHT.
YOU KNOW, NOTHING DONE WAS EVER
PLANNED, NOTHING.
THINGS JUST HAPPEN.
YOU BETTER RECOGNIZE IT'S AN
OPPORTUNITY AND SEE THIS OR YOU
GET AN IDEA AND JUST GO WITH IT
.
YOU LITERALLY WROTE THE BOOK ON
ON LOCAL HISTORY, FILIPINO
AMERICAN HISTORY AND THE HOW
PEOPLE HAVE IMMIGRATED HERE
FROM THE PHILIPPINES.
I DON'T THINK A LOT OF PEOPLE
KNOW THAT PART OF AMERICAN
HISTORY ESPECIALLY WITH ALL THE
TALK ABOUT IMMIGRATION THERE
WAS A CAP ON HOW MANY PEOPLE
COULD MOVE HERE.
OUR THING IS TO CORRECT A
MISCONCEPTION WHY DO YOU THINK
IT'S IMPORTANT TO PRESERVE THE
LOCAL FILIPINO AMERICAN
HISTORY?
YOU FELT THAT THE FILIPINOS
HAVE BEEN FORGOTTEN.
THEY WERE FORGOTTEN.
WELL, I TELL YOU WHAT, HERE'S
TO PRESERVING HISTORY AND THANK
YOU FOR PRESERVING HISTORY AND
YOU ARE CLEARLY THE MOST
IMPORTANT PERSON IN THE REGION
FOR PRESERVING THE FILIPINO
AMERICAN HISTORY.
SO THANK YOU FOR SHARING A
DRINK WITH ME EVEN THOUGH YOU
SPILLED MOST OF IT THERE.
OH MY