The Filipino Bayanihan Center Opens its Doors: Addressing the Impacts of Forced Migration and Amplifying the Voices of Migrants

Reference: Nikki De Leon, Filipino Bayanihan Center, kamusta@bayanihanoregon.org

One year following the launch of the Bayanihan Response to COVID-19 Campaign spearheaded by the National Alliance for Filipino Concerns Oregon, the community continues its response to disparities by launching the Filipino Bayanihan Center, a physical location and migrant service center in SE Portland to further develop the action-oriented network of volunteers, programs, research initiatives, and advocacy for the Filipino Community. 

The launch of the center was attended by over 100 individuals and organizations. The event highlighted cheers of excitement and congratulatory messages from local grassroots organizations including Migrante Portland, PSU Kaibigan, Anakbayan Portland, Anakbayan East Portland, the Pacific Coast Coalition for Seafarers, Direct Action Alliance, Portland Jobs with Justice, the Foundation for Philippine Progress, the Philippine American Chamber of Commerce, the Filipino American National Historical Society, the Filipino American Association of Portland & Vicinity, representatives from the Council of Filipino American Associations of Oregon & SW Washington, and many more.  

Pastor Joel Summer of Access Covenant Church shared a prayer and Emily Rice, a community organizer with indigenous roots in the Ikahalan/Kalanguya tribes of the Cordillera peoples, led an acknowledgment of the stolen lands of the many Indigenous nations of the Columbia River alongside honoring the Indigenous peoples of the Philippines who have stewarded our rich and diverse islands for thousands of years. A portion of the formal program was also dedicated to recognize and encourage dialogue on Juneteenth, a holiday in the United States celebrating June 19, 1865, when the last enslaved African peoples in Confederate territory were declared free by the Union’s executive decree. These crucial discussions are especially important because Oregon has a deeply entrenched racist history of discrimination against the African American community, from exclusion laws to overtly racist policies -- and the Filipino Bayanihan Center recognizes that we need to organize ourselves as a Filipino community to have a shared understanding and analysis of this history, and advocate for the Black community and many more who are oppressed and exploited. Music, activities, and Filipino food catered by local Filipino vendors and small businesses filled the space with a sense of celebration and community in honor of the frontline Filipino health workers lost over the last year. To close, the founding board members cut a ribbon to indicate the official opening of the center to the public. 

Our Mission and Vision

It is the Bayanihan spirit that inspires us to take collective action to assert the rights and welfare issues of everyday, working Filipino families and individuals through provision of services, research initiatives, advocacy, and leadership development. Our center’s aim is to connect Filipinos who have left their homelands seeking a better life to local resources, while building capacity to engage with the issues we face as a community towards sustainable change. 

We envision a community united in addressing the impacts of forced migration that begins with health, livelihood, and justice for our working class and migrant Filipino families. We believe that those most impacted by structural socio-economic injustice should lead in the development of long-term solutions. By supporting the community organizing framework, we make visible and amplify the voices of migrants locally. 

Building Unity and Upholding International Solidarity

We believe that genuine freedom and liberation must be organized, not in competition with each other but in support of one another, amidst a system that denies our people their basic rights and dignity. It is in this frame that we are united in our support and respect for all oppressed people’s drive and will to be free, and in our work with the local, national, and international community and organizations, we strive to build unity and cooperation by upholding international solidarity.

We are committed to study, engage, and integrate with the communities we aim to support and serve here and at home in the Philippines. In order to reach a common understanding that the economic crisis will continue to exploit, endanger, and violate the rights of Filipino workers, we will support one another in building our capacity to demand a better future for migrant workers in Oregon. 

We are excited to launch the center, develop its programs, continue our outreach, and collaborate with other immigrant, migrant, refugee, and displaced people’s organizations that are advocating and organizing their own communities for a just change. We are humbled to contribute this action-oriented center in a city like Portland that has such a rich history of marginalized communities organizing for their rights. From housing justice against gentrification, to environmental justice against unsafe drinking water, to racial justice against police violence, the fight for justice and basic rights is part of the backbone of Oregon, and the organizers behind the Filipino Bayanihan Center are learning from and standing side-by-side with communities every step of the way.

Call to Action

We invite the community to learn more about the Filipino Bayanihan Center, utilize our programs and services, volunteer with us, and continue to support us as we develop our provision of services, research initiatives, advocacy, and leadership development programs. We are continually humbled and ever-grateful to our community for the outpouring of support and confidence as we dare to lend a helping hand to the most vulnerable members of the Filipino community in precarious situations. For more information, please visit www.bayanihanoregon.org