A place for ALL people of Seattle
View of Seattle from Jose Rizal Park by Rosie Diño
For decades, Jose Rizal Park, now located in the historic Filipino American community of Beacon Hill, was a dream deferred. Today, on the last day of Filipino-American history Month we recognize our collective need to preserve our shared history, maintain dignified and culturally-relevant spaces, and hold our elected officials to account.
Between October 12th and 13th, four bronze plaques and a priceless time capsule within the Jose Rizal monument were taken. The plaques honored those who worked tirelessly to make an idea a reality and the time capsule contained family photos, memories, historical information and old newspaper articles meant to preserve our stories. A time capsule designed to honor the words of Rizal himself, who writes about a similar endeavor in his novel Noli Mi Tangere (Touch Me Not).
While many are left wondering why this may have happened especially on Filipino-American History Month, leaders in the community like Tess Guerzon-Cabrera of the Jose Rizal Park and Bridge Preservation Society recognize that the bronze plaques may be of value to someone desperately trying to make ends meet in a city that has been historically harsh to our unhoused neighbors. We too wish to speak clearly and empathetically that we believe this to be an act of desperation; bronze is valuable - countless people in our community are under-resourced. Yet too, we recognize the acrity to which this sears - a deep hurt and violation that more molten metal can never heal. Particularly for Filipinos and Filipino Americans, and also for Japanese Americans whose Sadako and the 1000 Paper Cranes statue was painfully taken as well. These honored places that push our shared history front of mind are deeply valuable, not just for specific communities but for the entirety of Seattle and all Americans. As a community in this city, we must be better neighbors - while the impact of this is hateful, so too are the conditions of disinvestment, gentrification, and resource retrenchment that perpetuate desperation.
Jose Rizal literally bridges the CID to Beacon Hill, a critical corridor that refutes intended siloing and reclaims a history of redlining. And Jose Rizal bridges struggles for independence and democracy in the face of colonial occupation as a core tenet to Filipino and Filipino-American identity; a spatial mirror to Seattle’s Volunteer Park. During Filipino-American History Month we were acutely reminded of our collective history as Seattle residents.
All of us at Archipelago feel a strong connection to Jose Rizal park; some of us are transplants. Some of us are Seattle born and raised.
“In 2018, my friends and I took a trip to Seattle. I’m from the Boston area originally. We went on a long walk through the CID - across Jose Rizal Bridge to the park. I could not believe that this monument existed, that Filipino Americans could be honored with this incredible view of Seattle.”
“I grew up here in the PNW. When I first noticed the name of the bridge, I was like, ‘What? This is JOSE RIZAL Bridge?’ When I was younger I always associated bridge names with white politicians. It was an empowering surprise to see that something that is a part of everyday life in a major city is named after a Filipino hero.”
I am not a Pacific Northwest kid. I didn’t grow up in Seattle. I was born in Hawaii, lived there until I was 10, and moved to the Philippines with my family. Though I would visit Washington to see my family who moved here in 2012 in between the Alaskan fishing and canning seasons, it wasn’t until 2018, that I could tell someone who asked, “I’m from Seattle!”. I did not grow up with the privilege of my lived experience being so authentically and deeply tied to this place.
It took a pandemic, me shifting careers, and joining a movement to finally start to see Seattle as my home. As I engaged more in the community and learned more about the history of the Pacific Northwest through the stories we get to share at the restaurant, I started to feel like, in my own way, I was part of it all. The past and the present are connected.
I saw myself in the Manongs who immigrated to the US for a better life for their families despite the backbreaking work in the farms and canneries where they sought opportunity. I saw myself in the vibrant movements of activism, fighting for civil rights for all, led by folks like Bob Santos, Gene Viernes, and Silme Domingo. I saw myself in Maria Orosa, a food technologist that used her education from the University of Washington and experience in the Alaskan canneries to return to her homeland and promote self-sufficiency by using our abundant natural resources in nourishing our country.
In our daily work at the restaurant, each of us face tensions in exploring our identities and the culture we all share. We are all coming from different backgrounds and different life experiences and relate to our work in different ways. But despite those differences, we aim to create a joyful experience for all who come in whether they’re a Filipino who grew up in the Pacific Northwest or someone from a completely different background who is visiting Seattle for a couple days. We hope that in the small space and time we get to share with our guests, they can internalize — whether it be through the stories, the familiar flavors and smells, or even the memories evoked — that our history, community, and experiences are ones that are shared among us all.
In the spirit of that, we hope that this moves our community to come together and protect the spaces and history we share in our city. As we fondly refer back to Alexa Villanueva’s concept of Future Ancestors every night of the Fall Experience, we think about how we are all future ancestors and are able to impact the lives of our people and future generations today. The same way the leaders and elders of the past envisioned and created a space to celebrate the Filipino community but also to provide a place for all people of Seattle and those who visit to enjoy a beautiful view of our city.
If you feel called to respond to this, here are ways you can support:
Join in any calls to search the area for the time capsule! It is the only irreplaceable item that was taken. If you find a steel cylindrical container, or if you stumble across old memories that look like they could have been part of it, please bring it to the police, no questions asked, everyone just wants it back.
Join us this Saturday, November 2, 2024, 11-5pm at El Centro de la Raza to provide Seattle Parks and Recreation with input on the Jose Rizal Park renovation.
Sign on to Jose Rizal Park Coalition’s petition as an organization or an individual to restore the Jose Rizal Park, replace what was taken, provide more services to the community, and defend Filipino history!
Join us on Wednesday, November 6, 2024 at the Beacon United Methodist Church to gather in the community and continue to be involved in planning for next steps.
Join us on Saturday, November 9, 2024 1-3pm at Beacon Hill Library for a Public Safety meeting
Happy Filipino American History Month to all!