PRSRT STD U.S. Postage Paid Permit No. 746 Seattle, WA
VOL 34 NO 23
MAY 30 – JUNE 5, 2015
FREE
SPORTS Gunn secures spot at U.S. Open » P. 3
33 YEARS YOUR VOICE
Lawsuit accuses Port of Fighting Seattle of discrimination against modernConcessionaires claim racial disparity of minority-owned businesses at Sea-Tac Airport
day slavery
Photo by James Tabafunda/NWAW
Facing the facts about human trafficking
Waji’s at Sea-Tac terminal
By Jason Cruz Northwest Asian Weekly The next time you head to Sea-Tac Airport take notice of the concessions at the terminals. A lawsuit claims that the way the Port of Seattle issues its leases for businesses at Sea-Tac Airport is discriminatory. Three minority-owned businesses have filed a complaint in the U.S. District Court of Western Washington
against the Port of Seattle, its Chief Executive Officer Tay Yoshitani, and the Executive Director of Sea-Tac Airport, Mark Reis. The businesses claim that they were given remote locations at the airport with less foot traffic and the Port of Seattle imposed expensive “build-out” requirements that were not imposed to the same extent as non-minority businesses. They also {see SEATAC cont’d on page 16}
Sevadars serves!
Photos courtesy Sevadars
Local nonprofit offers meals and more to the community
Serving free meals in Pioneer Square
By Staff Northwest Asian Weekly If you go to Occidental Park in Pioneer Square on a Saturday morning, you will be greeted by long lines and dedicated volunteers. The long lines are for the food. And the volunteers are part of Sevadars,
a nonprofit group that serves free meals to the community. Apparently, the meals are popular, judging by the huge crowd that gathers while volunteers set up. The menu usually stays consistent, a combination of lentils {see SEVADARS cont’d on page 15}
Sister Mary John Mananzan
By James Tabafunda Northwest Asian Weekly Bruises and broken bones are just some of the visible signs seen in human trafficking victims. They accompany less visible and more tragic results such as psychological and emotional trauma and even death. Sister Mary John Mananzan visited Seattle University’s Campion Ballroom on May 18 as the keynote speaker in a forum billed as “Our Global Problem,” one of four scheduled appearances in western Washington. Former Filipino Community of Seattle President Alma Kern introduced her college professor, describing Mananzan as “one of the leading voices in the Philippines for everybody who is oppressed.” Mananzan, the host of “NunSense Makes Sense,” a Filipino talk show on the Global News Network, began her presentation, “Human Trafficking in the Philippine Context,” by telling the stories of two victims, Ligaya and Mary Jane Veloso, a 30-year-old mother of two children. Ligaya, a pregnant woman from
Cebu, believed she was getting a job as a receptionist at a Manila hotel with the help of her traffickers. Instead, they brought her to a brothel where other Filipino women were enslaved as prostitutes. “And there, she was raped right away,” Mananzan said. “After that, of course, she was used by many men.” With the help of a prayer group, Ligaya stopped working as a prostitute and took computer lessons. Veloso earned money for her family in 2009 by working as a domestic helper in the Middle East before accepting an offer to work as a maid in Malaysia. She ended up in Yogyakarta, Indonesia, and without her knowledge, her recruiter hid over five pounds of illegal drugs in her suitcase. “When they were inspecting her bag, at first, they didn’t see anything,” Mananzan said. “In between the two false bottoms, there were two kilos of heroin.” An unwitting drug courier, Veloso {see HUMAN TRAFFICKING cont’d on page 15}
The Inside Story NAMES People in the news » P. 2
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PICTORIAL Miss India Washington » P. 8
COMMUNITY Gang of Four » P. 9
BLOG Farewell to Imperial Lanes » P. 10
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