Ballard resident and human rights activist awarded MLK Medal of Distinguished Service

Local human rights activist Cindy Domingo has been given a prestigious award for her work.

Domingo was awarded the Martin Luther King Jr. Medal of Distinguished Service from King County Councilmember Jeanne Kohl-Welles for her work in District Four and throughout the region.

“Cindy Domingo’s activism is a family tradition buttressed with tragedy,” a press release from the King County Council reads. “Cindy’s lifelong fight for civil and human rights has included working to ensure that those who were responsible for the assassination of her brother, Silme Domingo, and fellow union officer Gene Viernes, were brought to justice.”

Cindy’s parents were active in Seattle’s Filipino Community, which inspired her interest in the history and politics of the Philippines, and to work to end the repressive regime of Ferdinand and Imelda Marcos. Cindy’s brother Silme was active in organizing Filipinos working in the fishing and cannery industry, union activity that lead to Marcos arranging the 1981 assassination of Silme and Gene Viernes. For the next decade, Cindy spearheaded the Committee for Justice for Domingo and Viernes (CJDV) in its successful efforts in exposing Marcos’ role in the murder and winning a landmark federal court judgement against Marcos of over $20 million.

Now, Domingo serves on the boards of national women’s organizations, including the National Asian Pacific American Women’s Forum and the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom. In Seattle, she works with the Church Council of Greater Seattle, LELO (A Legacy of Equality, Leadership and Organizing), and the Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance (APALA).

“Cindy Domingo epitomizes public service with her tireless dedication and long string of accomplishments in representing communities so often left from the table,” Kohl-Welles said in statement. “Even after many decades of exemplary commitment to her community, she continues to empower the marginalized by giving her time and energy to a myriad of organizations committed to a better King County and a better world. Cindy truly honors the legacy of Dr. King and has answered his call to service with strength, grit, and determination.”

Photo: Metropolitan King County Councilmember Jeanne Kohl-Welles with Martin Luther King, Jr. Medal of Distinguished Service recipient Cindy Domingo and her family, courtesy King County Council

One thought to “Ballard resident and human rights activist awarded MLK Medal of Distinguished Service”

  1. Congratulations to Cindy on such a prestigious award. I have not heard of her before, but I have read and see that she has done many useful and good deeds for community. She should be an example for all of us. I didn’t think about human rights before, but then we talked about it in college. I then used https://eduzaurus.com/free-essay-samples/human-rights/ to write an essay because I couldn’t handle it myself. From that moment I began to understand this issue and I am very pleased with the result of writing.

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