Last May 18-21, the Student Trainers of the De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde through #WeCan2022: Pilipino Para sa Pilipinas championed its advocacy of empowering Filipinos with their indispensable role in nation-building, most especially during crises. Focusing on three—barriers to press freedom, the stigma and discrimination against frontline workers, and issues faced by ordinary Filipinos are long-persisting threats magnified by the COVID-19 Pandemic—the advocacy week brought together Benildeans and non-Benildeans in an array of virtual spaces.
Commencing this year’s #WeCan, a digital album titled “Mga Pahina ng Pag-asa” was launched on the Student Trainers’ Facebook page, @StudentTrainers. The digital album featured digital illustrations, photographs and literary pieces of Benildeans and non-Benildeans and their take on the theme, “Makabagong Pilipino sa Makabagong Panahon”.
Guests of different personalities from various sectors of the community meanwhile joined the roundtable discussion of #WeCan2022: Mga Tinig ng Tumindig. For the first segment, Professor Louie Ignacio PhD together with 4th-year clinician and student-leader Reyna Monica Gaspar shared the realities of COVID-19 and how they braved the challenges it comes with in their fields as a professor and a student-leader. Ana Patricia Non who recently received the Ambassador’s Woman of Courage Award of the US Embassy for sparking the Community Pantry movement in the Philippines, and changemaker John Mark Jacinto exchanged views about volunteerism along their virtual and grassroots experiences in community-building. Watch the recap video series featuring the guests of Mga Tinig ng Tumindig on YouTube here.
#WeCan2022: Bantayog ng Bagong Bayani culminates the advocacy week with performances and commentaries in a Facebook Livestream last May 21. The culminating performances showcased local talents from Catharsis along with Benilde’s Coro San Benildo and Saint Benilde Romancon Dance Company with no less than the inspiring commentaries of Atty. Chel Diokno and Mr. Teddy Casino.
As we await for what awaits next year’s #WeCan, we would like to thank our event Media Partners, #WhenInManila.com and the Benildean Press Corps, as well as Gold Sponsor, Partipost Philippines for making this event possible. Partipost is an app that rewards you for creating original content and sharing about the things you love! Download the app here.
