Jose Calugas was a Philippine native and a World War II hero for his efforts in the Battle of Bataan. He is recognized as the only Filipino to earn the Medal of Honor. Born in 1907, Calugas grew up and went to school in Barrio Tagsing, Leon, Iloilo, Philippines. In 1930, at the age of 23, Jose enlisted in the US Army and moved to Oklahoma for training. Calugas eventually returned to the Philippines and served positions in both the 24th Artillery Regiment as a Philippine Scout and as a mess sergeant in B Battery, 88th Field Artillery Regiment. In December of 1941, the team of Philippine Scouts was stationed in the Bataan Peninsula to defend against Japanese attacks. On January 16, 1942, the defense lines began to come under attack from Japanese fighter and artillery attacks. Calugas and a team of soldiers moved to cross 1,000 yards of uncovered space to get to the gun site. Once Calugas reached the site, he regained the Philippine defenses with the help of some of the injured gun site soldiers. His help and defenses were able to hold back the Japanese attack on the 88th Field Artillery and save some of the soldiers by giving them time to retreat. Calugas was awarded the Medal of Honor in 1945 for Heroic Action.
A quarter of a million Filipino-Americans are veterans of World War II and fought under the American flag under the promise that they would receive full American citizenship and veteran benefits for doing so. However, none of these Filipino-Americans received these benefits until 2009. Even today, Filipino-American activists are working to recognize these veterans with the Congressional Medal for their wartime service to the United States and the Philippines. It’s important to recognize these figures of Filipino-American history as a reminder of our strength and bravery, as individuals and as a Filipino-American community. Jose Calugas and the 250,000+ Filipino-American WWII veterans show us that our selfless acts, whether they are recognized or not, have the power to impact thousands of lives. From the battlefield to our workplaces and classrooms and always in our everyday lives, we hope to remind you this week to be strong and Filipino-proud, just like Jose Calugas and our Filipino-American veterans. Mabuhay! - Jaana Tabalon and James Duce
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