Recognition
On Wednesday, I was proud to join with dozens of Filipino WWII veterans at the Filipino American World War II Veterans Memorial Park to celebrate the passage of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. Contained within the stimulus package is a provision that grants a tax-free lump sum of $15,000 to Filipino veterans of World War II who are based in the United States. The recognition is way too little and much too late for so many of our veterans but it does represent some overdue justice for those who fought right beside American soldiers in the Philipines for our nation’s freedom.
The US government had originally promised Filipinos they would qualify for full US veterans’ benefits if they served but after Congress passed the Rescission Act of 1946, Filipinos who served in the US Army were stripped of their status as US veterans. While the amount they’re receiving as a result of the newly passed stimulus package is well below that which they should have been granted, it’s a long awaited and well deserved recognition of their service to our country.
More than 120,000 Filipino soldiers served under the command of General Douglas MacArthur as enlisted soldiers in the U.S. Armed Services during World War II and the 13th Council District has the highest concentration of Filipino Veterans in Los Angeles. As Councilman, I was determined to celebrate that, which is why in 2006 I was proud to deliver on my promise to erect the nation’s first Filipino Veterans war memorial in Lake Street Park, right in the heart of L.A.’s Historic Filipinotown. Erecting that monument was a cause very close to my heart as my grandfather was in the US Army and fought in the Philipines during WWII; it was as a result of this service that he earned his citizenship when he returned.
I am glad to see our federal government finally recognizing the service of our Filipino veterans.
