Blog
The residents of Mayhaligue Street in Tondo, Manila City successfully defended their community against an attempted demolition of their homes on May 26. Because of the residents barricading all entry points to their community, they were able to thwart the deployed demolition team, police, and firefighters from forcibly evicting them from their homes.
The return of Donald Trump to the U.S. presidency marks a dangerous escalation in the fascist assault on immigrant and migrant communities, with Filipino migrants among the most vulnerable targets. Trump’s administration has doubled down on mass deportations, workplace raids, and harsh immigration policies that threaten not only undocumented immigrants but also documented Filipino workers and families.
The ongoing genocide in Palestine and the 2017 Siege of Marawi in the Philippines, though distinct in context, share similarities in terms of the suffering and humanitarian crises they sparked. Analyzing the parallels and intersections between these two events sheds light on the devastating impacts of warfare and settler colonialism.
You don’t need to be an activist to be red-tagged. You don’t need to hold a placard, chant in a rally, or even organize a protest. Sometimes, all it takes is speaking up. A Facebook post about injustice. A donation to a community pantry. Wearing a shirt that says “Makibaka.”
In the Philippines, those simple acts can be twisted into something dangerous.