Mana

Mana has some exciting news! We will be holding a workshop at the Filipino American National Historical Society - Houston Texas Chapter Biennial Conference on July 18, 2024 to share how we collected history and shared their stories. Details below.

We’re getting back to work! Our exhibit at the Anchorage Museum is over, but we are busy archiving our stories. Be on the lookout for new extended versions of the stories you saw at the exhibit that we’ll be posting on our website. Plus more news about what’s next; we can’t wait to share!

Mana Alaska is issuing this statement on behalf of the family whose ancestral image was subjected to defacement at our exhibit in the Anchorage Museum. The family has asked to remain anonymous to prevent further harm to their family and elders. "The incident, which occurred on January 18th, was first discovered not by the museum staff but by a member of our family. They were shocked to find a crude sticker defaced on their grandfather's face in the Mana exhibit, a space dedicated to honoring Filipino-American history. This particular photograph holds sentimental value, capturing the beginning of our grandfather's American dream. Although the museum extended a private apology to our family during a formal meeting held a week after the incident, the museum’s lack of urgency, their seeming indifference to its impact, and the insufficient protection of our communities’ heirlooms has left us heartbroken and disappointed. We hope the museum will implement more robust preventive strategies, elevate customer service standards, and provide comprehensive training to improve responsiveness and empathy. We advocate for these improvements to protect not just our family but all communities from facing similar distress in the future. We also wish to convey to the community that defacing or vandalizing historical artifacts is deeply disrespectful. To the person responsible for defacing our grandfather’s collage: our beloved grandfather was the patriarch of our family and a respected member of the Filipino community. While it may have been a mere 'sticker' in your eyes, the challenges endured by our family are not as easily peeled away."

We are extremely disheartened and disappointed to share that one of the community contributions to our exhibit at the Anchorage Museum was defaced. We have reached out to the museum to: (1) seek answers to understand what happened; (2) understand how this occurred under the museum’s supervision; (3) agree on actions the museum plans to make to address this incident; and (4) ensure our exhibit is treated with the same respect and attention as other exhibits in the museum. We feel extremely disrespected — on behalf of our entire team, our community and especially for the family whose contributions of their late family member were damaged. This serves as a reminder that, as Filipino Americans, we need to take hold of our narratives and build platforms where our voices and communities are genuinely valued. We stand in unity to protect our stories, continue to honor our history, and strengthen our community voice.

Hello, LinkedIn! ???? We are Mana. We launched with a museum exhibit, "Mana: The History We Inherit," in October 2023. Our goal is to be a bridge across the many generations of Filipinos in Alaska by uplifting the often untold stories of our community. Maraming salamat sa inyong suporta! Thank you for your support! Here's a little recap of our launch event, which brought together more than 1,500 Filipino Americans from across Alaska. (?? Young Kim)