FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

DATE: October 23, 2008

CONTACT: Judy Moran
415-252-2586
judy.moran@sfgov.org

An Art on Market Street Program Panel Discussion:
The Filipino Experience in the San Francisco Bay Area in the 1970s

Details from Flor de Manila y San Francisco, an Art on Market Street poster project by Jenifer Wofford

The San Francisco Arts Commission is co-sponsoring with Kearny Street Workshop a panel discussion about the Filipino immigration experience in the 1970s as part of the Art on Market Street Program. The panel will take place on Thursday, November 13th, from 7 to 8:30 PM at Kearny Street Workshop, located at 180 Capp Street at 17th Street, in Space 180.

The panel is presented as part of Flor de Manila y San Francisco, an Art on Market Street Program project that includes a poster exhibition by artist Jenifer Wofford.  The panel will discuss the connections between the Philippines and the San Francisco Bay Area, particularly in relationship to the immigration of Filipina nurses.  The event is free of charge and open to the public.

This history inspired artist Jenifer Wofford to develop a story narrated in her poster series about the fictional character Flor Villanueva, a nurse who has emigrated from Manila to San Francisco in 1973.  The Art on Market Street exhibition includes six different, original poster designs reproduced and installed in 24 of the triangular kiosks on Market Street between Van Ness and the Embarcadero.  Ms. Wofford will show slides and details from all six posters at the panel discussion and talk about why she chose to tell this particular story.

The panelists include the following distinguished individuals:

Catherine Ceniza Choy will speak about Filipina nursing and immigration history in the United States. She is an Associate Professor of Ethnic Studies at the University of California at Berkeley where she teaches courses in Asian American History, Filipino American studies, and contemporary United States immigration. She is the author of the award-winning book, “Empire of Care: Nursing and Migration in Filipino American History,” which was co-published by Duke University Press and Ateneo de Manila University Press in 2003.

Dan Gonzales will speak about the Filipino-American experience and Asian American community activism in San Francisco in the 1970s.  He is one of the founders of Asian American Studies and the College of Ethnic Studies at San Francisco State University.  In addition to a long history of teaching and writing, he has been an historical advisor to several film and television programs about Filipino American history, Asian Americans and American legal, political and social processes, and Philippine/United States relations.

Joaquin “Jay” Gonzalez will speak about Manila/Philippines political history in the 1970s Marcos era. He is an Associate Professor of Politics and Director of the University of San Francisco Maria Elena Yuchengo Philippines Studies Program and has had numerous books published, the latest being “Filipino American Faith in Action: Immigration, Religion, and Civic Engagement.” After 9/11, Dr. Gonzalez was appointed Commissioner of Immigration Rights for the City of San Francisco, and in 2005 was awarded a Special Congressional Recognition by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi for his exemplary work on immigrant concerns.