Filipino American History Month in October commemorates the first recorded presence of Filipinos in the continental United States on October 18, 1587. Filipinos arrived on the Spanish galleon Nuestra Señora de Esperanza that landed on Chumash and Obispeño lands (Morro Bay, California). The Filipino American National Historical Society introduced October as Filipino American History Month in 1992. Today, many people in our community celebrate this month by organizing events to raise awareness about the role of Filipino Americans in U.S. history.

Filipino American history encompasses the effects of colonialism and war, labor, global migration and activism of the diaspora in this country. The official theme for 2025 is "From Quotas to Communities: Filipino American Migration and Movement," commemorating the 60th Anniversary of the 1965 Immigration & Naturalization Act, the first federal immigration law to eliminate national origin quotas that had favored Europeans and limited people from Asian countries from immigrating to the United States. This legislation opened the doors for thousands of Filipino immigrants to come to the United States and form thriving multigenerational communities.  Read more from the Filipino American National History Society here.

At San Diego Public Library, we celebrate Filipino American history, heritage and culture through programs, book displays and collections.
 

Featured Programs

Filipino American History Month Festival
Saturday, Oct. 4 | 2 p.m. | La Jolla/Riford Library

An all-ages event featuring Philippine folk dancers, singers, food and fun for the whole family.

Historian, lecturer and author Bonnie M. Harris, Ph.D., and Tracy Badua, an award-winning Filipino American children’s book author as guest speakers.

More Filipino American History Month Events

Resources

Filipiana Collection at Skyline Hills Branch Library
The Skyline Hills Library features a special FILIPINIANA Collection that includes Adult and Juvenile Fiction, Non-fiction, paperback novels and CDs. Visit Skyline Hills Library to browse the collection. 

Filipino Cinema on Kanopy
Stream classic movies from Filipino Cinema for FREE with your library card on Kanopy. Titles include Bamboo Dogs, Bitter Melon and Midnight Dancers.

LOTE4Kids: Filipino (Tagalog) Collection
LOTE4Kids allows children to enjoy the magic of books in World Languages from home. Each book is provided with Tagalog and English translations to help develop multilingual reading and listening skills.

Around the Community

Filipino American History Month Celebration at University of San Diego
Oct. 1 | 6 p.m. | Copley Library

Videos