This year 2024, the iconic Filipino Fiesta is now on its 31st year as a staple among the cultural events held on Oahu. While Maui’s Barrio Fiesta has been around much longer—55 years this year.
We must give credit to Eddie Flores Jr. for starting the first Filipino Fiesta in 1993. As he notes in his upcoming memoir, as a hapa Filipino-Chinese he did not know any Filipinos (except perhaps his dad) and barely could understand simple Tagalog, but in 1991 he decided to reconnect with his Filipino roots by joining the Filipino Chamber of Commerce of Hawai’i (FCCH).
In 1992, when Lito Alcantra was the FCCH president, he formed a committee “to look into the feasibility of building a Filipino Community Center” and asked Roland Casamina to chair it, with Eddie as the co-chair.
One of the events formed to “unite the Filipino organizations and increase Filipino visibility” was the Filipino Fiesta which was held on May 15, 1993 at Kapiolani Park.Eddie, a savvy businessman, also wanted to use the fiesta proceeds to help defray pre-planning costs for the project—and that first fiesta earned $9,000!
As Eddie says, “Everybody else has a festival at Kapiolani Park. Why not us?”
The following year, he added the parade component.
The parade started at Fort DeRussy, wound down Kalakaua Avenue, and ended at Kapiolani Park to officially start the fiesta.
The addition of the parade ensured that a large crowd was present when the fiesta opened, and to ensure that the crowd remained until closing, movie stars from the Philippines were recruited to perform as the finale.
By its third year, the Filipino Jaycees were much involved when one of its members, Harry Alonso served as the overall chair.
Since event planning is Harry’s cup of tea, I suspect that the playbook that was used then, remains to this day—aside from the typical booths, including food vendors, there was a “cultural village” with its mini-stage and organizations were encouraged to decorate their booths with regional decor.
The fiesta and parade for two decades were held, for the most part, in Waikiki, with the Filipino Jaycees taking the lead (with Eddie still monitoring the process).
When the cost of running the parade became untenable, that was discontinued, and the Filipino Jaycees got burnt out running it. The fiesta location got moved around too. One year it was held at Honolulu’s Civic Center; then it was moved to Kakaako Park.
Some years ago, right before COVID hit, the fiesta was relocated to the grounds of the FilCom Center.
I asked Eddie why he moved it to Waipahu. He says, “I felt that part of the mission of FilCom is to serve the Waipahu community. There is no better place to bring the non-Filipino community to visit the pride of the Filipinos. In addition, the cost and logistics to run the fiesta is lower than the other places.”
As a major sponsor, I suppose he has the clout to make these changes—aside from adding the “Flores de Mayo” to the event’s name.
Last year’s fiesta was once more chaired by Harry Alonso, and he asked Su Lazo, an officer of the Filipino Jaycees to co-chair.
Su narrates: “When Harry asked me to co-chair last year’s Fiesta, it was an opportunity to observe how it was run and inform the Filipino Jaycees’ decision on whether to organize once again. As you alluded to, our young leaders should have a seat at the table. It is mutually beneficial for both FilCom and the Jaycees. Our board agreed it was worth pursuing and so planning started in July.”
The Filipino Jaycees were once more involved in planning the fiesta, with Su Lazo as the overall chair this year. She notes that the best part of the event for her is seeing how it brings the Filipino Community together and adds that:
“It is humbling and inspiring to witness this community, all driven by a shared commitment to preserving Filipino culture, create such a memorable experience for everyone that attends the Fiesta. It is the epitome of the Bayanihan spirit.”
Although a similar playbook was used for this year’s fiesta, the “cultural village” had a unique addition.
The last organization to get the “free” cultural booth is the newly-formed Hawaii Filipinos for Truth Justice and Democracy (or HFTJD).
Its booth had a sign that said “Urban Philippines: Looking Out of a Window.”
When one looks into the window, one can see the shanty towns prevalent in urban centers framed by the high rises where the rich lived. And in front of the booth is a kariton—that ubiquitous symbol of the resilience of the urban poor.
Dr. Arcelita Imasa, its president notes: “Our booth features urban working-class communities, the challenges they face: poverty, lack of services, homelessness, but we also want to highlight how these communities are able to help each other and fight for their rights.”
In my 31 years as an observer/participant of the fiesta, this is the first time I’ve seen a booth (and an organization) raise social awareness and encourage civic engagement at the fiesta.
As part of their cultural presentation, the group sang songs of resistance and protest such as “Bayan Ko,” “Bahay,” and “Di Nyo ba Naririnig.”
As one of the members noticed—the entire Consuelo Courtyard where the cultural village was located had its noise level go down a few notches as the audience listened intently.
Times are changing and so with the fiesta.
Finally, the young people have taken over, as it should be.
As Eddie Flores says “…They did a great job. I plan to spend more time with them. They are the future of Filipinos in Hawai’i.”
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