About 1,000 join first Little Manila parade and block party in Woodside, Queens, for Filipino American History Month

The Filipino American community in Woodside, Queens, held its first Little Manila Parade and Block Party on 18 October for Filipino American History Month, drawing about 1,000 people and honouring some 70 Filipino Americans in what organisers hope becomes an annual tradition.

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The Filipino American community in Queens held its first Little Manila Queens Parade and Block Party on Sunday, 18 October, to celebrate Filipino American History Month, The FilAm reported. About 1,000 people joined the parade, followed by an afternoon of performances, cultural demonstrations, community activities and an awards ceremony.

The event was hosted by the Office of Assemblymember Steven Raga with the Office of Queens Borough President Donovan Richards, Woodside on the Move, Bright Spot Community Development Center, the NaFFAA New York State Chapter and the FANHS Metro New York Chapter, according to the Asian American Arts Alliance. "For the first time, we marched through the streets of Little Manila to celebrate a Filipino American history that stretches back 439 years," Raga said.

Some 70 Filipino Americans were honoured across advocacy, arts and culture, business, community service, education, media, healthcare and public affairs, including Judge Eve Cho Guillergan, novelist Gina Apostol, poet Patrick Rosal, composer Michael Dadap, journalist Cristina Pastor and actress Ching Valdes-Aran. Honoree Noel Pangilinan urged the community to work for "a Filipinotown in Queens… just like Japantown or Chinatown."

The date marks the first recorded arrival of Filipinos, seafarers of the Manila-Acapulco Galleon Trade, at Morro Bay, California, on 18 October 1587. Woodside is home to an estimated 50,000 to 70,000 Filipinos living in New York City, and organisers saw the event as the beginning of an annual tradition.