On Monday May 9, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced the long awaited policy to allow eligible Filipino WWII veterans to be reunited with their families through a parole process.
Recognizing that these aging veterans are in their 90s, but have to wait as long as 20 years under current policy to reunite with their children, this policy is expected to help thousands of veterans with support from their families in their twilight years. The announcement was made and received with all the fanfare appropriate for a victory that was years in the making.
USCIS Director Leon Rodriguez personally announced the policy change at a special White House Briefing I was able to attend with colleagues from around the country to discuss immigration issues in Asian American and Pacific Islander communities. His unequivocal support for the veterans reminded everyone in the room that their service was not just to the Philippines, but to all of us as Americans.
Filipino WWII veteran advocates and other leaders attending the White House briefing on immigration and Asian American/ Pacific Islander communities. Photo Credit: Lou Tancinco
The announced policy was hailed by advocates and organizations working with and for Filipino WWII veterans around the country, as well as in the Philippines. Organizations such as the San Francisco Veterans Equity Center and the National Federation of Filipino American Associations issued press statements, as did our allies who stood shoulder to shoulder with us, such as Asian Americans Advancing Justice- AAJC. Organizations like these are leading the important outreach to make sure that every eligible family will be able to benefit from this new policy.
My organization, the Filipino Veterans Recognition and Education Project (FilVetREP) welcomed this development as yet another victory in the ongoing struggle to give these veterans their just due. We recognize that immigration is one of the ongoing unresolved issues related to the underlying inequity of Filipino veterans as unrecognized U.S. veterans. Now retired Senator Daniel Akaka (D-HI) originally introduced legislation reunite Filipino WWII veterans with their families in 2007 as part of the broader equity movement to fully support Filipinos whose status as U.S. veterans was summarily revoked by the U.S. government after the war. Senator Akaka's legislation went on to be one of the few bipartisan pieces of immigration legislation in a protracted and bitterly divisive immigration debate, but never got final passage. President Obama, recognizing the bipartisan support for these veterans, and with pressure from advocates in the Filipino American and AAPI community, announced his intent to create this policy that we celebrate this week.
The Filipino Veterans Equity Act, on the other hand, as a bill that had been introduced in the Congress as early as 1991, went on to achieve an important yet limited victory. The Equity Act was intended to restore, by reason of their active service, full veterans' benefits to the Filipino World War II veterans, which were rescinded by the Congress on February 18, 1946. The Equity Act was never enacted into law. However, in 2008, legislation introduced by the late U.S. Senator Daniel K. Inouye (D-HI), established the Filipino Veterans Equity Compensation Fund. Passed and enacted in law as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5), the Act, among other things provides a one-time payment for Filipino WWII veterans in the U.S. ($15,000) and the Philippines ($9,000). While the Act recognizes the service of the Filipino World War II veterans as active military service in the Armed Forces for purposes of the lump sum payments, the inequity and struggles still exist as work continues to try and fix the eligibility process and ensure everyone who served benefits by this legislation.
The immediate victory we celebrate this week on the immigration front should not be an excuse to kick our feet up and call it a day, but rather an incentive to keep building on our success and push for official recognition. FilVetREP recognizes the ongoing challenges our veterans face on the legislative front, but sees the next achievable victory in the 2015 Filipino Veterans of World War II Congressional Gold Medal Act. Introduced by Senator Mazie Hirono (D-HI) in the Senate as S. 1555 and Representative Tulsi Gabbard (D-HI) in the House as HR 2737, this bill will provide a Congressional Gold Medal as fitting tribute to their selfless service. We are mobilizing our partners and allies to support our campaign and proudly connect this work to the decades of advocacy that have achieved victories for our veterans on a variety of fronts, from immigration to health care, to burial benefits.
With immigration policy on our side, and mindful of the other needs of our veterans, all hands are on deck nevertheless to win a Congressional Gold Medal for Filipino WWII veterans this year. Previous military units from communities that faced discrimination- from the Tuskegee Airmen, to Japanese American military units (the 442nd Regimental Combat Team, Military Intelligence Service, and the 100th Infantry Battalion), the Navajo Codetalkers, the Women's Air Service Pilots, and most recently, the Borinquineers 65th Infantry Regiment of Puerto Rico, have received Congressional Gold Medals. Despite the racism, sexism, and xenophobia these military units faced, they fought bravely for their country and their receiving a Congressional Gold Medal is a reminder that the nation's gratitude does not discriminate.
The discrimination Filipino WWII veterans have faced as unrecognized U.S. veterans has lasted for more than seventy years and a Congressional Gold Medal may be the last victory we can achieve for them while they are still with us.
The Filipino Veterans Recognition and Education Project (FilVetREP), chaired by Maj. Gen. Tony Taguba (Ret.), is a non-profit organization whose mission is to raise awareness through academic research, public education, and national recognition of Filipino American WWII soldiers for their wartime service to the United States and the Philippines from July 1941 to December 1946. Ben de Guzman serves on the FilVetREP Executive Committee. For more information, visit the FilVetREP web site at filvetrep.org or find us on Facebook or Twitter.