UPenn student, Eliana Atienza, 19, who claimed she was ‘homeless’ after being kicked off campus over anti-Israel camps is the daughter of wealthy Filipino TV star whose family flaunts extravagant lifestyle on Instagram
One of the leaders of the anti-Israel protests that took place at the University of Pennsylvania revealed that she was left “homeless” after being removed from campus for her role in the anarchy.
Eliana Atienza, 19, who calls herself a climate activist and community organizer, made these claims in an interview with The Philadelphia Inquirer. The sophomore made similar comments in an interview with NBC Philadelphia.
Protests engulfed college campuses across the United States amid Israel’s response to Hamas’ brutal attack on the Jewish state on October 7.
The Filipino mother told the newspaper that she was banned from going to her student house because her student card was disabled after she was given a mandatory leave of absence. “I’m the only one left homeless by this,” she said, adding that friends offered to help.
Atienza added that her family are all in the Philippines. Since that interview, it has been revealed that Atienza is a member of a wealthy, prominent and highly politically connected family in her home country.
Eliana Atienza, 19, said she could not go to her dorm because her student card was disabled after she was placed on mandatory leave. ‘I’m the only one who became homeless because of this’
Atienza’s father Kim, better known as Kuya Kim in the Philippines where he is a well-known TV talk show host
Kim pictured with Atienza’s mother, Felicia Hung Atienza, the couple are celebrities in their home country and Felicia once graced the cover of Tatler magazine
Atienza’s grandfather, Lito, pictured with his presidential running mate Manny Pacquaio, perhaps the Philippines’ most famous person
Protests engulfed college campuses across the United States amid Israel’s response to Hamas’ brutal attack on the Jewish state on October 7.
Her father, Kim, is better known as Kuya Kim in the Philippines, where he is a well-known TV talk show host.
Kim shares his lavish lifestyle on social media and posts a video showing him enjoying caviar during a first class flight, reports the Washington Free Beacon. Another video on his Instagram shows off his impressive collection of motorcycles.
Atienza’s grandfather is Lito Atienza, a prominent politician who served as vice speaker in the country’s House of Representatives and ran for vice president alongside boxer Manny Pacquiao, perhaps the most famous Filipino of all time and homophobe.
The pair finished a distant third behind Ferdinand ‘Bongbong’ Marcos Jr.
In July 2022, Kim made welcomed television cameras into his home for a tour showing off his collection of fossils, dinosaur eggs and his exotic pets.
Kim also said he owned two BMWs used by the Nazis in World War II.
According to her mother, Felicia Hung Atienza’s LinkedIn page, she graduated from Donald Trump’s alma-mater, The Wharton School.
After graduating, Felicia held leadership positions at Merrill Lynch and JP Morgan before opening the Chinese International School in Manila, the Philippine capital, in 2007.
Earlier this week, Kim posted photos on Instagram showing his family at his wife and son’s graduation ceremonies from Tufts University in Massachusetts. His wife was studying for a qualification in food sciences.
On her website, Atienza jokes that she: ‘Enjoys drinking coffee and crying during protests (non-negotiable)’
In January Atienza went on holiday to Antarctica, pictured here, only four months later she would become homeless
Lito and Atienza will submit their certificate of candidacy as president and vice president in October 2021
The Free Beacon reports that Atienza said on Instagram that he was a victim of ‘administrative violence’.
‘I am also an international student. The university knows this. This is their weapon. “I am so disappointed to go to an institution that resorts to administrative violence,” she wrote.
The same report notes that Atienza went on vacation to Antarctica in January.
On her website, Atienza jokes that she: “Enjoys drinking coffee and crying during protests (non-negotiable).”
In another part of the site, Atienza talks about how she was once drugged online for social justice activism.
Just this week, a half-dozen University of Pennsylvania students were among 19 pro-Palestinian protesters arrested while attempting to occupy a school building, university police said Saturday.
Their arrests came a week after authorities broke up a protest camp on campus and arrested nine students — and like other colleges across the country eager to prepare for commencement season, either negotiated deals with students or called in police to dismantle protest camps.
Members of Penn Students Against the Occupation of Palestine announced the action Friday in the school’s Fisher-Bennett Hall and urged supporters to bring “flags, pots, pans, noisemakers, megaphones” and other items. said in a press release.
Officers could be seen “within an hour,” The Philadelphia Inquirer reported. University police, supported by city police, then escorted the protesters out and secured the building, news media reported.
After clearing the building, police said they recovered “lock-picking tools and homemade metal shields made from oil barrels.”
The exit doors were secured with zip ties and razor wire and barricaded with metal chairs and desks, while windows were covered with newspapers and cardboard, and bicycle racks and metal chairs blocked the entrance, police said.
Seven of the students arrested Friday remained in custody Saturday pending misdemeanor charges, including one person who assaulted an officer, campus police said. A dozen were issued citations for failing to disperse and obey police orders. They have been released.
The attempted occupation of Fisher-Bennett Hall came a week after city and campus police broke up a two-week encampment on campus and arrested 33 people, nine of whom were students and two dozen of whom had “no Penn affiliation ” had, according to university officials.