Author name: Katreena Tolentino

The Flip New to this country. No longer working to be bent over, broken spines. Reading, “No Filipinos Allowed” –unwelcoming signs remind(s) me of the heart. America is in denial. Avoid the truth. It’s easier to neglect, blame immigrants (scapegoats). Patterns of: “History is repeating itself” Not understanding why I am guilty of the crime. […]

History Gathered around the fire, listening to my grandfather. His story begins, “I should have been dead a long time ago.”   With little food and tons of Mickey Mouse money, war placed him into circumstances beyond his control. Recognizing Pro-Asia campaigns as cover-ups for colonization, he stole   food for his family. But, was

Pledge I pledge allegiance to the Flag, Honoring our ancestors who built America From before Washington to the many unmentioned, I include the sacrifices of my mother and father.   And to the Republic for which it stands: I, too, stand with an open hand. My hand is placed over my heart As I promise

My Hero The journey wasn’t fitting into  the box: “The American Dream” But hope awaits the pursuit of possibilities that fed our souls when food was scarce. In the  light of turbulences, there lies  each breath of our “Hail Mary…” Full of grace, full of sorrows,  full of tears, my mother never  wavered to show

Tinikling Want to learn,      Tap, tap, slide.           Tap, tap, slide. How I move? Don’t get caught,      Tap, tap, slide.           Tap, tap, slide. In the snare. Trapped inside,      In, in, out.           In, in, out. No-man’s-land.

What does it mean to be Asian American? To be oppressed by the oceans constant clashes lashing out to drown the voices of our ancestors’ past so that our generation must ask if Angel Island and concentration camps were justified hate crimes just because of slanted eyes and that still exist today imprisoned not only

Parts of Speech “To be or not to be?” is never a question for           Verbs eat, pray, love is only a fraction of her true work She protests against structural           Prepositions inside, within, close to by not fitting a mold or checking a box Equipping