The events of recent months, and above all the wave of international terrorism that has reached Russia, have raised many questions, the very formulation of which until recently seemed absolutely incredible. Among them is the national problem in Russia. However, its discussion is mainly, as they say, at the household level - in the kitchens of apartments, in factory workshops, in public transport. However, recently, newspapers and magazines, radio and television have been increasingly involved in discussions. There is an alarming trend: among a significant part of the population, hostility towards "persons of Caucasian nationality", which many identify with Chechen bandits, is growing and gaining strength, and there are statements in favor of restricting entry to the capital and residence in Moscow of residents of the southern Russian national republics, as well as the Transcaucasian and Central Asian CIS countries. Meanwhile, the problem of the status and living conditions of people of non-indigenous nationalities is by no means a purely Russian one. There are such diasporas in many countries, and "embedding" them in another country and another culture is not always a simple and easy process. Nevertheless, world practice has accumulated a fair amount of experience in solving these issues in a civilized manner. National diasporas not only "get along" with the indigenous population, but also play an important and sometimes irreplaceable role in the social and cultural life of countries that have become a second homeland for hundreds of thousands or even millions of people. The experience of the United States is instructive, where for decades Chinese, Puerto Rican, Mexican, Filipino and other diasporas have co-existed with the English-speaking Irish and African majority. An interesting experience of" growing " into the American society of the Philippine diaspora is considered on the example of California - a region of multilingual and multiethnic origin.

According to recent estimates, the number of Filipinos living outside their country exceeds five million, and this figure is growing every year. They have transferred about $ 18 billion to their homeland over the past 10 years - this is the largest source of foreign currency earnings in the country. There are especially many Filipinos in the Middle East countries where they work

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in the service sector, in Hong Kong and Singapore, where they are used mainly as domestic workers, as well as in the United States. The Filipino community in the United States is currently estimated at 1.4 million people (according to unofficial data, about 2 million); most of them live in California.

The history of the Filipino community in California goes back more than a century. In 1565, the Spaniards started a trade, the main purpose of which was to supply Asian spices, dishes and fabrics to Mexico for further shipment to Europe. In exchange for these goods, Mexican silver was delivered to the Philippines. The first Filipinos arrived in Southern California in the Santa Barbara area on board the merchant ship "San Pedro", which sailed from the island of Cebu in the Philippine archipelago.

By the end of the 18th century, a network of Catholic missions had been built along the entire coast from San Diego to San Francisco. Some Filipinos are reported to have followed the monks and started a new life in the New World.

The next stage of relations between the Philippines and California came when it became part of the United States. A memorial plaque dedicated to the national hero of the Philippines, Jose Rizal, is now installed in one of the fashionable hotels on the main street of San Francisco Market. He stayed here for three days in May 1888, and then continued his journey by train, which took him across the country.

The connection between San Francisco and the Philippines is noticeable at the first acquaintance with the city. In the middle of Union Square, downtown, stands a monument "... erected by the citizens of San Francisco to commemorate the victory of U.S. naval forces under Commander George Dewey in Manila Bay, " according to the inscription on the pedestal.

After the end of the war, Filipinos received the status of "nationals", according to which they could freely immigrate to the United States. However, not being American citizens, they were denied many rights. The first wave of Filipino immigration to the United States occurred in 1903-1934. These were mostly "pensionados" - young Filipinos who were sent to study in the United States under a program adopted in 1903 and funded by the American Government. It was assumed that, in addition to learning, young Filipinos will get acquainted with the basics of a democratic state structure, so that later they can transfer all this to their own, national soil. In addition to the "pensionados", in the period from 1910 to 1938, about 14 thousand "independent" students studied in the United States, who came from the Philippines not at the invitation of the American government, but on their own initiative.

The first wave of immigration also included a large number of agricultural workers. So, if by 1910 about four thousand Filipinos came to Hawaii, then in the period from 1925 to 1929-44 thousand. Filipinos who worked in Hawaii migrated mainly to the states of the Pacific coast of the United States. And after working out a contract period, for example, collecting asparagus, they moved to other areas or states-California, Oregon, Washington, in order to collect other, later fruits and vegetables there. Unlike Japanese and Chinese immigrants, the majority of Filipinos did not settle in strictly defined areas.-

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the entire community, and migrated across the states depending on where the job was located. We learn about the life and everyday life of Filipino immigrants of that era from the works of Carlos Bulosan, who went from an agricultural worker to the first English - speaking Filipino writer to gain fame in the United States. About himself and his comrades - "American Filipinos" - he told in the autobiographical story "With America in my heart."

Filipinos who settled in cities worked as cooks, waiters, domestic workers, janitors, and drivers. In San Francisco, they lived in boarding-house hotels on Kearney Street near "Chinatown" - "Chinatown"; this area was called "Manila Town". In some years, the number of its inhabitants reached 10 thousand people, including seasonal workers who found temporary work and housing here. Most of the first-wave immigrants, from Northern Luzon and the Visayas, were unmarried, physically fit men between the ages of 18 and 25.

The second phase of Philippine immigration began in 1945. During World War II, two combat units were created, consisting of Filipinos living in the United States. In addition, thousands of Filipinos - directly residents of the country - fought shoulder to shoulder with the American army against Japanese troops. After the war, they were allowed to bring their families to the United States. This led to the fact that the number of immigrants from the Philippines in the United States more than doubled between 1940 and 1960.

In the early 50s, many Filipinos moved from the agricultural areas of the United States to the cities. A significant portion of the Filipino community in San Francisco settled first in the South Market area already mentioned, then moved to the Mission area, and later settled in Daily City.

The third and largest wave of Filipino immigration began after the passage of the so-called "Immigration Act" of 1965, which increased the quota for annual entry of Filipinos to the United States from 100 to 20 thousand people. Currently, about 65,000 people immigrate to the United States from the Philippines every year. These people are significantly different from their predecessors. For the most part, they are qualified specialists with a good knowledge of English. The proportion of men and women coming to America is now balanced, with many immigrating as families.

If earlier " American Filipinos "had a low income level and belonged in the overwhelming majority to the number of workers, now many representatives of second-and third-generation immigrants, having received a good education at American universities, join the ranks of" white-collar workers", working as accountants, doctors, engineers, teachers, editors. Especially popular are Filipino health workers-nurses and nurses, who can be found in any polyclinic, hospital, or nursing home. Having established themselves well, they easily find work in the United States.

A new generation of Filipino writers in the United States continues the tradition started more than half a century ago by K. Bulosan: they become the voice of the community, expressing its aspirations and aspirations. So, one of the recent novels by Jessica Hagedorn "Gangsters of Love" is largely the autobiographical story of a recent immigrant poet and singer trying to find her place in American show business. Born in the Philippines, Hagedorn spent her youth in San Francisco, where she established herself as a bright representative of the new generation of Filipino-American writers. A special place in her work is occupied by the study of the influence of America on Philippine culture.

Filipinos are now the largest group of Asians living in California. This is a consequence of the influx of large numbers of new immigrants and the high birth rate among them. In the United States, as well as directly on the archipelago, Filipino families are very large, even distant relatives live under one roof, as well as numerous "compadres" - godfathers and mothers.

At the same time, Filipinos, including the younger generation, did not completely Americanize, did not break with their traditional culture. Filipino youth are actively searching for their identity and exploring their roots. So, largely as a result of student requests, universities and colleges in California have opened courses on the study of Philippine languages, history and culture of the country.

The main focus of the Filipino community in the San Francisco area is now its satellite city, Daily City. According to 1997 data, out of 101,500 residents of the city, almost a third are Filipinos, so it received the unofficial name "Manila Town". A unique core of Daily City is the Sierramonte shopping center, where almost every second person speaks one of the languages of the Philippine Islands. Restaurant windows with names such as Casa Manila, Barrio Fiesta, Manila Bay Cuisine offer visitors to taste such Filipino dishes as adobo, pancit, kare-kare, turon, and enjoy national music. In grocery stores

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In addition to Filipino delicacies, stores always have "balykbayan boxes" - boxes used to send gifts to numerous relatives at home. In the kiosks of Daily City, San Francisco, San Jose, Los Angeles and other centers of residence of the Philippine community, you can always buy newspapers and magazines published and intended for it, such as Manila Bulletin USA, Philippine News, Filipinas.

In 1995, second-generation Filipino-American Michael Gingona became the first Filipino mayor of Daily City.

In San Francisco's South Market district, which also has a high percentage of Filipino residents, streets are named after Filipino heroes: Lapu-Lapu, Boni-fasio, Mabini, and Rizal. Nearby is St. Patrick's Church, which has one of the largest Filipino parishes; 80 percent of Filipinos living in California are Catholic.

Every year, the Pistahan Filipino-American festival is held in downtown San Francisco. This "traditional island" name is given to the open - air fair, which lasts for two days-Saturday and Sunday. The festival includes a parade "Pearl of the East" through the central streets of the city, as if transferring all its participants to the hospitable Philippines: here are Filipino beauties dressed in costumes with the finest embroidery, they are replaced by warriors with spears, as if they came here from the depths of time, followed by representatives of the organization of nurses and student fraternities in white coats. Everyone smiles and invites you to take a closer look at the Philippine culture at the main venue of the festival. In 1999, a prayer service was held at St. Patrick's Church before the festival began. The address of church leaders to the people spoke about the policy of nonviolence and family values, which are given great importance among people from the Philippines.

The festival ended with a performance by Filipino dancers, singers and theater groups. It was attended by folk dance ensembles that impressed the audience with their skill, performing a number with clay vases on their heads. There you can also enjoy national cuisine and buy souvenirs. Whole family clans of Filipinos came to enjoy the fiesta. The event was sponsored by numerous Philippine-American companies, which are engaged in tourism and cargo transportation to the Philippines, among others. The holiday was widely covered in a local television program, conducted in Tagalog.

The San Francisco Museum of Oriental Art recently organized an exhibition of works by Filipino artists "At home and abroad", which presented works by Filipinos of the younger generation. It was the first exhibition of its kind in the United States devoted entirely to contemporary Filipino art. Artists living both in the Philippines and abroad presented their works on historical heritage, self-determination, culture, and immigration, trying to find an answer to the question " what does it mean to be a Filipino at the end of the 20th century?". As part of the exhibition, the museum also organized a series of concerts and lectures, at one of which the famous Filipino writer Francisco Zionil Jose presented his works.

The history of the Filipino community in the United States is irrefutable proof that the national diaspora can become an integral part of the indigenous nation, while maintaining its cultural and national roots and maintaining ties with the country of origin.

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