Blessed Movement chairman Herbert Martinez (extreme left) with youth leaders protest China at the block showing of the docu-film 'Food Delivery'. (Photo from the FDNY Movement/Bong Son)
America was not built on fear. America was built on courage, on imagination and an unbeatable determination to do the job at hand.
— United States president Harry S. Truman
THE real measure of success of the docu-film ‘Food Delivery: Fresh From the West Philippine Sea’ is not in numbers nor in the praise given to it formal reviews but rather in the raw emotions shown by those who viewed the documentary.
In a statement following the rescreening of the film, Filipinos Do Not Yield (FDNY) Movement chairman emeritus Dr. Jose Antonio ‘Ka Pep’ Goitia enthused that what he witnessed in the movie theater’s audience was more than enough to give him hope that the youth of today are no longer asleep.
“Looking at the video taken inside the screening hall, you could feel the tension rise as scenes of harassment at sea and the struggles of Filipino fishermen unfolded on screen. Students leaned forward in their seats, whispering in disbelief, shaking their heads in anger,” Goitia shared.
“When the lights came back on, the room was no longer silent. Questions poured in, urgent, pointed and unafraid,” he continued.
A young man, waving the Philippine flag, asked, his voice breaking: “What are we doing about this?”
Another added to query: “Why are we letting them get away with this?”
These were not the words of a generation indifferent to politics—these were a clear declaration of a generation refusing to stay blind.
Goitia noted the shift in attitude among the youths present and with pride he described the scenario: “You can see it in their eyes. They are not just angry, they are ready. They refuse to remain passive. They know this fight is not just about territory, it is about justice.”
Thus, from outrage has grown a deeper resolve with many young people standing to speak up and stress that they have a duty to act, to spread awareness, to speak the truth and to stand against lies.
One student leader put it simply: “We can’t just rely on others to fight this battle. This is our fight too.”
For Goitia, the moment marked a turning point: “We are witnessing history in the making. The so-called apathy of (our) youth is gone. What we see now is a generation unafraid to speak, unafraid to challenge lies, and unafraid to defend our nation’s dignity.”
In the end, ‘Food Delivery’ was more than just a film—it us now seen as a mirror that has prompted a generation to confront the realities of our long suffering fishermen, the violations of our sovereignty and China’s propaganda distorting the truth.
The block screening of the documentary was made possible through the efforts of Blessed Movement chairman Herbert Martinez, together with other co-sponsored by those groups who stood firmly in support of the film’s message and the cause it represents, among them the Alyansa ng Bantay sa Kapayapaan at Demokrasya (ABKD), People’s Alliance for Democracy and Reforms (PADER), Liga Independencia Pilipinas (LIPI) and FDNY.
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