In a report I co-wrote with Bulosan Center Executive Director, Robyn Rodriguez, and Policy Director, Katherine Nasol, we wrote that the conditions of Filipino caregivers is doubly precarious. The dual crisis of the unregulated caregiving industry and the lack of proper resources towards the fight against COVID-19 put Filipino migrants under great stress and risk.

But the ethic of care that Filipinos in the Bay Area doesn’t just end there.

Filipinos are on the frontlines of battling COVID-19 on so many fronts: in private residences of elderly patients, in care homes and assisted facilities, in hospitals and clinics, in community centers providing basic needs.

Because the concentration of Filipinos in the healthcare industry is so dense, our community, here in the Bay Area, all over the United States and all over the globe, is taking a toll in risk and loss.

Just today, Mallory Moench at the San Francisco Chronicle brings the stories of Filipinos who are caring for their own families and communities to a wider audience.

Part of this story of risk and loss is a narrative of collective power and resilience. This part of Filipinos story under the pandemic, and in fact, under many types of crises (of imperialism, capitalism) is the strength of Filipino networks to stay strong and brace for what’s ahead.