I still remember the news when two soldiers from Fort Drum died fighting the Taliban just a year ago

Memorial Day 2005

I still remember the news when two soldiers from Fort Drum died fighting the Taliban just a year ago. The soldiers were Staff Sergeant Anthony Lagman, 26, from Yonkers, and Sergeant Michael Esposito, Jr., 22, of Long Island. The men were part of the second Battalion, 22nd Infantry Regiment. I started keeping the records of Filipino-Americans who made the ultimate sacrifice during this operation freedom in Iraq.

I am revisiting the story not because it is Memorial Day but the name Sgt Lagman’s mother is Ligaya. Last week she was denied membership to a group of moms of felled servicemen and women - because she's not a U.S. citizen. American Gold Star Mothers, a 77-year-old, Washington-based organization, insisted yesterday that rules are rules.

But some veterans are so upset that a grieving mom would be excluded because of her citizenship that they've asked the Justice Department's civil rights division to investigate. The American Gold Star Mothers is receiving federal funding.

"I think a son is a son is a son and a mother is a mother is a mother," said Ben Spadaro of the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 2885 in Eastchester, who has championed the fight to change the group's rules. "I don't want to hurt anyone," he told the Daily News. "We're just a bunch of old men who want see a wrong righted."

While the son was born in the U.S. and automatically became a citizen, Ligaya Lagman, a Filipina, is a legal permanent resident of the U.S. She has lived here for nearly three decades and pays taxes.

News media and various veteran organizations have been supporting her membership application but Ligaya dropped her bid to become a Gold Star Mother for now.

Bob Foster of the Veterans of Foreign Wars in Eastchester tells the Journal News that Lagman is shaken up by all the attention she has gotten and she wants to stay on the sidelines. But she wants to see the rules changed so other mothers are not turned down like she was. (from AP news)

The Gold Star Mothers organization is a federally recognized agency. The VA continues to list the Gold Star Mothers organization on its federal website as a Congressionally sanctioned and supported organization. It is because of the Gold Star Mothers' past and current Congressionally recognized status that the Gold Stars Mothers Organization is officially sanctioned by the Veteran's Administration.

The Gold Star Mothers organization was founded during an era when military racism and segregation was accepted and practiced as SOP (standard operating procedure). Since that bygone era the Gold Star Mothers, like many local veterans organizations, have refused to change their membership rules that in some cases deny membership to a racial minority applicant who served Honorably in our military, or whose Honorably-served sons or daughters were killed in action.

The original membership rules and regulation that were instituted by all of the pre-integration (1947) military veteran and service organizations were constructed on racist, "Grandfather Clause" premises designed to prevent membership of any non-white person, regardless of their Honorable military service or their relation to a person who served Honorably.

There were 3 Fil-am in the first 100 deaths in Iraq. This figure is relatively high for any minority group |As the death causalities now is over 1500 I find it difficult to get the exact number but the fatal lost of servicemen like Dimaranan and Lagman only indicates that the number of death is still climbing up. US citizenships were awarded posthumously in some cases during the conflict.

As this is memorial day I went to Jersey City Hall to attend the celebration of our WW2 Filipino veteran. I was very proud to see the old soldiers. There were only about 2 dozens brave souls there but they represented those thousand of Filipinos who ultimately made the final sacrifice. In deed they were still fighting not only for freedom but equity. Ligaya will soon get her gold medal but I hope that these guerrillas will get it sooner too.

The fact that such history often involves bestowing bogus significance does not discredit all "recognition politics." The Filipino veterans' cause has come to a brief boil on the 100th anniversary of America's acquisition of the Philippines as a result of the Spanish-American War. It is almost, but not quite, too late to act on a truth spoken 52 years ago: "There can be no question but that the Philippine veteran is entitled to benefits bearing a reasonable relation to those received by the American veteran, with whom he fought side by side." So said a World War I veteran, former captain of artillery Harry Truman. ..George F Will, AP & Washington POST Aug 16,1998..

I listened to Alfredo Diaz who spoke about the ongoing new version of US House resolution that is way overdue.

All of the WW2veterans are now over 80 years old but still standing tall. I can’t help to mention the youngest 80plus year is Restie Valerio who stood tall inside the council chamber just 2 months from triple by-pass operation.

It was a beautiful memorial day…

The Filipino-American Veteran organization NJ

FRANCISCO AGNO

PALBO BARROS

AQUILINO CAGAON

FRANCISCO CARILAO

ANTONIO BAQUIRAN

WALTER CASINGAL

ARANCIAS DAPA

ALFREDO DIAZ

JOSE GENITO

VICENTE LIM

MAILAGROS DE VERA

VICTOR MARTIN

FRANCISCO QUISMUNDO

JOSE RED

GIL ROXAS

ESPIRIDION VILLANUEVA

RICARDO ROMMUALDO

CRISENCIO SARMIENTO

ERNESTO ARES

ELODIO TOLEDO (VIETNAM)

VICENTE ARMANDO

CRISANIO ANTONIO

ESCOLASTICO VALERIO

GERARDO DINSAY

MORITO PACIFICADOR

LEONIDO CASPE

MARIANO AUREUS (POSTHUMOUS)

It is interesting to see the women’s faces during the presentation. Women are now getting closer to combat line. For continued support for the recognition of the Fil-Am veterans the following ladies were also given awards:

Linda Mayo

Josephine Raga-Adea

Linda Arellano

Carmen Flores

Angelita Pena

Lourdes Corrales

Helen Castillo