Free food, dance, fashion and music are on the program this Saturday as the Filipino Pride Day Cultural Festival returns for another year in Jacksonville. The event runs October 10 at 903 University Blvd. N, and admission is free. Organizers describe a day built around Filipino art, traditional food delicacies, fashion, family games, dances and OPM-inspired music performances from emerging and popular local Filipino American talents.
The festival is put on by We Filipino Inc., a nonprofit 501(c) organization, according to Visit Jacksonville. The group’s current festival branding traces to 2019, but its roots run deeper: community records show We Filipino Inc. hosted local Filipino Pride Day events as early as 2009, and in 2015 the organization staged a celebration at Jacksonville’s Riverside Arts Market featuring traditional performances including the Masskara and Pastores dances, according to FPDJAX.ORG. Leadership on the project includes co-founders Rosabel Hill and Angel Demdam Borja, with Hill having previously served as president of both We Filipino Inc. and the Jacksonville Filipino School, per a Jax Filipinos post on Facebook.
We Filipinos Inc. says its festival also raises funds for local charities, with the organization’s work focused on health and well-being, social and economic development, education and cultural awareness. The group describes its broader aim as uniting and empowering Filipino and Filipino American residents in Northeast Florida, giving the annual celebration a community-building and charitable role alongside its cultural program. The organization’s stated mission and programs extend beyond staging the festival.
A Celebration of Filipino American Culture
Jacksonville’s Filipino Pride Day Cultural Festival celebrates Filipino American culture through a program of Filipino art, traditional food, fashion, family games, dances and OPM-inspired music…