More than 1,100 Filipinos and their supporters gathered across the United States and in Hawai’i to demonstrate against Marcos Jr.’s third State of the Nation Address (SONA), which was funded with a significant amount of PhP 20 million, while ordinary families struggle to afford food. Unlike the privileged ruling class who were present at the extravagant SONA event, the Peoples State of the Nation organized by BAYAN USA was attended by individuals who have been victimized by trafficking and wage theft, Filipino communities without homes, students facing financial difficulties in pursuing education, Jollibee workers who are denied proper working hours and fair wages, and numerous others. Their testimonials provide tangible evidence of the Marcos regime’s deceitful pledges to the populace.
