Filipino-Americans in San Francisco joined the Philippine flag raising ceremony at city hall to mark the 126th Philippine Independence Day.

Philippine Consul General Neil Ferrer said it is important for Filipinos to keep strong ties with the Mayor's office because of the valuable contributions of Filipinos to the city and the region.

"There are over 700,000 Filipino-Americans here and over 45,000 reside here in the city of San Francisco," he said. "They are engaged in all areas, whether in government, business, culture and the rest. We are part of the vibrant and dynamic community here in the city."

The Mayor's Office of Protocol, which hosted the event, said June 12 is an important day for San Francisco.

"The Filipino community is an important one in San Francisco," said Meron Foster, the city's deputy chief of protocol, "from the arts and the culture, food, but also the economic and educational, and also political contributions of your community is such a vibrant part of the city."

Community leaders said they were more encouraged to push for more Fil-Am representation especially in public service.

"We are underrepresented as it is here in the halls of City Hall," said Al Perez, San Francisco's entertainment commissioner. "We don’t have any elected officials yet. There’s not a lot of leadership of Filipinos at City Hall."

The city hall building also lit up the colors of the Philippine flag to add to the celebration.