The City of Santa Ana is lighting its landmark Downtown Orange County water tower in the colors of the Philippine flag this month, a tribute to Filipino Americans and their contributions to the city, the county, California and the nation.
Filipino American History Month is observed each October. It marks the arrival of the first recorded Filipinos along the California coast in October 1587, which makes the Filipino American experience one of the oldest Asian American histories in the country. Santa Ana is home to a growing and active Filipino American community with a presence in healthcare, education, business, public service and civic life.
One of those public servants is City Councilmember Phil Bacerra, who is up for reelection in November. Bacerra's family history connects to a major chapter of California labor history. In a recent post honoring labor leader Larry Itliong, Bacerra wrote that Itliong and Philip Vera Cruz led Filipino farm workers off the fields of local grape growers to demand wages equal to the federal minimum wage, in what became known as the Delano Grape Strike.
According to Bacerra, Mexican farm workers joined the effort one week after the strike began, and the two groups later united to form the United Farm Workers of America. Years of organizing, marches and nationwide boycotts led to contracts with higher wages, healthcare and better working conditions. "I am proud that my grandfather knew Larry Itliong and that he was involved with these hallmark accomplishments in the labor movement," Bacerra added.
Orange County's Filipino American roots stretch back more than a century. Historians have documented Filipino laborers working in the county's citrus groves, bean fields and other farms during the 1920s and 1930s, in communities such as Fullerton, Anaheim and Huntington Beach. The community later grew through military service, education, professional careers and family-based immigration, and the county now has one of the largest Filipino populations in the United States. Groups including the Filipino American National Historical Society Orange County and Inland Empire Chapter work to preserve those stories.
Food is one visible expression of that influence. The neighboring Cerritos and Artesia area is often described as an unofficial "Little Manila," with restaurants, bakeries, markets and community organizations that draw visitors from across Southern California. Local diners and reviewers frequently praise Filipino eateries around the county, including Manila Grille and Maria's Kusina in Buena Park, Lola's by MFK and Kapit Bahay in Anaheim, and Terrace by Mix Mix in Costa Mesa, from Santa Ana chef Ross Pangilinan. For many families, such restaurants also serve as places where language, recipes and traditions are passed down.
Healthcare remains one of the community's most significant contributions. Experts estimate that roughly 150,000 Filipino nurses have immigrated to the United States since 1960, and about one in twenty registered nurses nationwide was trained in the Philippines. Filipino Americans make up a small share of the national population but a disproportionately large share of the nursing workforce. The Philippine Nurses Association of California Orange County carries that tradition forward locally.
Beyond nursing, the largest occupational categories for Filipino Americans include healthcare support and caregiving, management and business, office and administrative support, and education. The community is also heavily represented in engineering, information technology, accounting, government service and the military.
As the water tower glows in the colors of the Philippine flag through the month, it stands as a visible tribute to the generations of Filipino Americans who, in the words of the city's recognition, helped build Santa Ana, Orange County, California and the country.
