Courtesy of Ben de Guzman

More than 250,000 Filipino soldiers fought under the American flag in World War II. They agreed to fight in the U.S. military on the promise that the government would grant these soldiers American citizenship and full veteran benefits. However, these promises were not granted until President Obama took office in 2009, and hundreds of thousands of Filipinos did not receive the benefits they were promised.

Today, activists are working for Filipino-American veterans to be recognized with the Congressional Medal, as they are the only ethnic group who served in World War II yet to receive this honor.