Invisibility of Filipinos

Going through the detailed history behind the war between Spain and the Philippines as well as the war between the United States and the Philippines opened my eyes to the information I never knew before. Reading the articles assigned this week and visiting Intramuros gave me a different perspective on history, as well as mixed emotions about everything that had happened. History books in America never explained how the United States and Spain planned to a make a trade; America would give Spain money in exchange for the Philippines. Spain was losing to the Philippines in the war and they did not want to hurt their pride in the process so they agreed. According to Zinn’s comic Benevolent Assimilation, “Dewey and Spanish general Fermin Jaudenes agreed to stage a mock battle followed by Spain’s surrender” (Zinn, 2008, pg. 59). From there, the United States appeared as a hero to the people of the Philippines. Little did the Filipinos know that America would assimilate the country into the traditions of Western culture, continuing the assimilation Spain began in taking advantage of the country’s utang na loob, eventually creating the invisibility of Filipino culture that affects both Filipinos and Filipino Americans alike.

But how did it all start?

“The most of those People that Sit in Darkness have been furnished with more light than was good for them or profitable for us” (Twain, 2002, pg. 61).

Twain speaks to the colonization of the people in the Philippines, referring to them as the people in the dark. When the Spanish was in control of the Philippines, they were already starting to create change in the Philippines; the biggest influence they had was the change in the religion. Spain came to the Philippines and converted the Filipinos into becoming Catholics. Today, the Philippines still practice Catholicism; it makes me happy seeing people going to church here because every time I pass by a church on Sundays, the church is overflowing with people attending Mass. Crowds of people have to sit or stand outside because there isn’t any more room for them to sit in the church. Before, Intramuros was the covenant of religion and culture, surrounded by multiple Catholic churches still present in Intramuros today. The colonized city of Manila during the Spanish takeover held a lot of history about the wartime between the Philippines and Spain. An important part of Intramuros that we visited was the Rizal Shrine dedicated to Jose Rizal who fought for the freedom of the Philippines during the war.

Jose Rizal is known as the national hero who took part in Spanish war, fighting for the country’s freedom. It’s amazing to see how much Jose Rizal did for the Philippines; there is no doubt that he loved the country and would do anything for its people, even if it meant dying for his country. He was born into a wealthy family and was fortunate enough to be educated. With the knowledge he gained from his education, he used it to help the people, seeking change and equality. He was known for his civil rights, seeking reform and being a part of Katipunan, a Philippine revolutionary society fighting for freedom from Spain. Jose Rizal fought for change and equality in the Philippines and died for his country doing so on December 30, 1896.

After Jose Rizal’s death, Filipinos continued to fight for their freedom until the Philippines declared independence from Spain on June 12, 1898… only to fall into the hands of the United States. Ileto’s The Philippine-American War, Friendship and Forgetting speaks to the relationship between the two countries. “‘The Philippine-American relationship has been a special one, expressed in kinship terms like ‘compadre colonialism’ and ‘little brown brother.’ ‘Mother America’ is owed a lifelong inner debt, or utang na loob, by the Filipino people she nurtured’” (Ileto, 1998, pg. 3). The article creates imagery that America was a savior in taking the Philippines away from Spain as the Filipinos sat around and did nothing. It is from this takeover that developed the idea of utang na loob Filipinos have toward Americans.  Utang na loob is the phrase that someone has a feeling of debt out of appreciation to someone.

Discussion Question: Why do the Filipinos and the Philippines still have the feeling of utang na loob towards the United States even until now despite the deception behind the United States’ takeover of the country?

The United States began to mold the Philippines into the vision they had for the country, changing the government system, educational structure, and the culture of the people. The country was beginning to assimilate to the western culture, while slowly losing their primary culture and traditions. This shows “the ability to shift identities in changing contexts, should enlighten us about the whole issue of collaboration – collaboration not just during the way itself but throughout the whole period of colonial rule. It might even explain why Filipinos today seem to be so adept at handling tricky situations that demand shifting or multiple identifications and commitments” (Ileto, 1998, pg. 7). But this doesn’t mean that everyone is content with the western culture overtaking the Filipino culture. During the lecture with Professor Angel Shaw’s art students, Abbey Batocabe illustrated numerous paintings that spoke out to the Philippines and its culture. Her “Fading Away” piece spoke about the Filipino culture fading away with using the example of the architecture in the Philippines is changing into more of an American style. It was brought up that “Filipino media adapts to any culture while still incorporating Filipino culture, saying how the media has multiple personalities because it’s influenced by other countries” (Shaw, 2014). One student brought up that Filipino media and culture is still very young and is in the process of trying to figure out what Filipino media really is. Even Filipino media is being colonized.

In Campomanes’ lecture, he spoke about the reception of Filipinos and Filipino Americans in literature, relating it to the Filipino Americans present in today’s world. He mentioned that not many people, especially American born, want to return to the Philippines because of the comparison between the living situations. It is considered different and conspicuous when one returns to the Philippines, especially if the person is assimilated to American culture because people are conditioned to “forget [their] past and start anew” (Campomanes, 2014) when they come to America. “You don’t realize that you live in a society of difference until you go to another place and experience it” (Campomanes, 2014). During the discussion in class, a PWU student argued that Filipino Americans come to the Philippines for work just because they are able to use their English to their advantage to find jobs in the Philippines to help companies in transactions. But then Louie brought up how it isn’t our fault that we were born in America and are able to speak English. In the end, even though we have the privileges of living in America, we will never fully belong in America or in the Philippines. We are in between the two countries.

What Louie Said really struck home for me. Yes, I was born in America and I was raised in the American society but my parents raised me to have a mindset of a Filipina. I can speak the language, eat the food on a regular basis, follow the Filipino media, and live in the Filipino tradition but I am still influenced by the environment around me. Because I am part of the minority in America, I will never fully belong, even if I tried. Coming to the Philippines, I prayed that I would be able to fit right in but just by the mosquito bites I've been receiving these past few weeks, I already know that I am portrayed as an outsider here as well. It's the hard reality Filipino Americans must deal with, but it doesn't change my love for my culture. 

“There is something curious about this – curious and unaccountable. There must be two Americas: one that sets the captive free, and one that takes a once-captive’s new freedom away from him, and picks a quarrel with him with nothing to found it on; then kills him to get his land” (Twain, 2002, pg. 64).

The United States’ influence over the Philippines and its people has kept Filipinos from discovering what their true identities are, creating the invisibility of Filipino culture. Learning about the difficulties that the Philippines went through made me emotional throughout the week. I was disappointed that I didn’t learn about the history between the Philippines, Spain, and the United States sooner. Being colonized by the United States and Spain still has a huge influence on the Philippines, one being the fact that English is becoming used more commonly in the classrooms. Despite the long week of draining emotional information, I couldn’t help but be empowered by the arnis training classes Master Rey taught. It was through those training classes that I was reminded that even though the Philippines went through so much pain and suffering, its country and people continue to remain strong. The art of arnis was my simple reminder that I must continue to keep an open mind and stay strong no matter how tragic the true history of the Philippines is.

Discussion Question: Who is still left in the dark?

References

• Campomanes, O. (2014). Celebrity Cohort Phenomenon. [PowerPoint Slideshow]. Retrieved from the Philippine Women’s University.
•  Ileto, Reynaldo C. “The Philippine-American War: Friendship and Forgetting.” Vestiges of War. Ed. A. Shaw and L.H. Francia. New York Press: New York, 1998. 3-21. Print.
• Shaw, A. (2014). Art Gallery Presentation. [PowerPoint Slideshow]. Retrieved from the Philippine Women’s University.
• Twain, Mark. “To the Person Sitting in Darkness.” Vestiges of War. Ed. A. Shaw and L.H. Francia. New York Press: New York, 2002. 57-68. Print.
• Zinn, Howard. “Invasion of the Philippines.” A People’s History of American Empire. Metropolitan Books: New York, 2008. 53-72. Print.