Three people who were protesting outside the Asia Society headquarters in Manhattan’s Upper East Side were arrested on Friday, September 23. The demonstrators were there to express their outrage at the event transpiring beyond its doors: Ferdinand Marcos, Jr., the president of the Philippines, was invited to deliver an address on the occasion of this week’s United Nations General Assembly.
Just two days ago, on September 21, activists took to the streets of Manila to mark the 50th anniversary of the proclamation of martial law in the Philippines, when Ferdinand E. Marcos — the father of the current president — assumed dictatorial power. Demonstrators, chanting “never forget,” held placards denouncing the brutal killings, human rights violations, and corruption that defined his 14-year rule.
As of early Friday afternoon, before the talk began at 2:45 pm, a crowd gathered outside of the Asia Society, carrying signs that read “death to dynasties” and echoing the words of Manila’s protesters — “Never forget.” In a video posted on Twitter, the activists can be seen gate-crashing the event and forming a human chain in front of the door as personnel attempt to remove them from the premises. “Shame on you for giving a platform to Marcos Jr.,” the activists repeated.
A video shared with Hyperallergic shows one activist being ambushed by a plainclothes official while standing outside of Corrado, a café down the block from the Asia Society’s 70th Street location. “I was just going,” the activist is heard telling the police while getting handcuffed. A spokesperson for the New York City Police Department (NYPD) confirmed that three people were arrested.
An Asia Society representative told Hyperallergic that no arrests were made on its premises.
The Filipino novelist Gina Apostol, who attended the protest, told Hyperallergic that the Asia Society “should be more honest about the effects of their complicit decisions.”
“They know what the history of Marcos Jr. is and they must know of the historical distortions fomented and fabricated by his campaign that gave rise to his elections,” Apostol said. “Democratic ideals matter. Accountability for dictators and those who support them is important, and Asia Society’s complicity is not required. They could have chosen differently. That’s why as a writer who has done work with Asia Society I protest.”
Over 450 artists and writers, including prominent Asian-American and Filipino scholars, signed an open letter co-authored by Apostol urging the Asia Society to revoke the invitation and pledging to boycott the organization.
“We call out Asia Society for its embrace of fascism and historical lies in the person of Ferdinand Marcos, Jr.,” reads the letter sent to Kevin Rudd, president and CEO of the Asia Society, on Friday morning.
The missive was written by Apostol; Nerissa S. Balce, associate professor of Asian American Studies at Stony Brook University; Joi Barrios, a poet and lecturer at the University of California, Berkeley; public programs curator Nancy Bulalacao; and independent scholar Fritzie de Mata. Signatories include “many non-Filipinos but Asian Americans who are in solidarity,” Apostol noted, including Alexander Chee, Cathy Park Hong, Viet Thanh Nguyen, and RO Kwon.
When reached for comment, Asia Society provided the following statement: “We’re aware of the open letter and of course the protestors at today’s event. We want to be clear: we hear the criticism, some of which comes from people and organizations we admire and have worked with extensively, and we take it seriously.”
The statement continues: “Since our founding in 1956 Asia Society has been a forum for leaders from throughout Asia. We regularly host visiting officials with a range of perspectives representing various forms of governance, especially during the UN General Assembly meetings in New York. We believe it’s important to hear from and to question any head of state or senior officials whose views significantly impact Asia and the world. Today was no exception where questions were raised on a variety of questions to do with the Philippines economy, foreign policy, and human rights.”