Unsung heroes featured in Filipino films1 min read

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Though the face of the United Farm Workers was typically César Chávez, it was the Filipino Americans who initiated the Delano grape strike in 1965 that led to Chávez’s prominence in a social movement and labor unrest.

And that’s why film director Marissa Aroy pursued “Delano Manongs” a documentary on the U.S. Army’s 1st and 2nd Filipino Infantry Regiments.

“Filipinos are often called ‘The Forgotten Asians,’ for many reasons, but in terms of the farm labor movement, I would say there were a few distinct reasons you don’t know about the Filipino contributions,” Aroy said.

“Non-Filipinos need to see that we have made contributions to the social fabric of our society,” she said. “That there is a recognizable and large population of Filipinos in the U.S. and we are a social and political force to be recognized.”