5 posts tagged “filipino”

With the brouhaha over the Philippine med school statement in the "Desperate Housewives" script, several bloggers have weighed in on the issue. I particularly enjoyed the post of Abe Olandres (Desperately Funny Friday YouTube Wrap), because he featured an episode on "Speak Out" where Filipinos got together to discuss what is means to be a Filipino, in the context of Fil-Ams versus FOBs.

1. Are you a Filipino if you don't speak Tagalog/Filipino?

Some parents in the US have tried to teach their kids to speak Tagalog, but when their children go to school, their initial interest in Tagalog seems to vaporize. A guest on the "Speak Out" show said that some parents don't teach their children Tagalog because they want their kids to easily get a job in the US.

Hmmm... having an accent will cost you a job? Perhaps.

Double-hmmm.... learning Tagalog will change your accent, even if you grew up in the US? Perhaps for some. But if you can copy the accent of other people, then you will realize that even if you know Tagalog, you can still sound British, American, Singaporean, or even Indian.

I met someone in a resto in the US. She sounded so American. No wonder. She's been living in the US for more than 25 years. Yet when she spoke Tagalog, she sounded like she grew up in Bulacan. No surprises there, because she lived for several years in the Philippines before she immigrated to the US.

2. What makes you Filipino?

If your ancestors are Filipino, then you're a Filipino. Yup, even if you don't speak Tagalog, Cebuano, Ilocano, Kapampangan, and any of the other languages/dialects in the Philippines. Yes, even if you don't act like a Filipino. And yes, even if you don't look like a Filipino.

And inescapably, even if you are not proud to be a Filipino.

I know of people who hate Tagalog, who wish they could be reincarnated as any nationality except as a Filipino, who want to just study in the US so that they can escape Araling Panlipunan here in the Philippines.

What if you don't have a single drop of Filipino blood in you? You're still a Filipino... at heart. Especially if you made the effort to speak Tagalog, if you spent a lot of time living amongst Filipinos in the Philippines, if you've embraced the culture of Filipinos, if you've absorbed some amount of "Filipino-ness" in terms of music and television shows, fashion, behavior, attitudes... Oh, make that "A Filipino in heart and in mind."

It's just like Pinoys who immigrate to the US and then try to assimilate the culture there. They become Americans in heart and in mind. Sometimes, they'll even intentionally speak Tagalog with an American accent. But that doesn't mean they're no longer Filipinos.

So that's what makes you a Filipino: your blood, your heart, and your mind.

Have you read NCSB Chief Slams Call Centers, RP Education Problems? National Statistical Coordination Board (NSCB) Secretary General Romulo Virola talks about the decline of the Philippines' education system.

I dunno. Perhaps he was too harsh on the pervasiveness of "Boom Tarat Tarat" or the national obsession with call centers. Even before the BTT chant, Filipinos have been avid television viewers. All these chants or songs will come and go, yet a lot of us will still be glued to the TV from 11am to 3pm daily.

And even if people stop watching too much television, how can we increase the competence of Filipino students in the fields of Mathematics and Science? Is it a lack of materials or teachers?

Perhaps as more schools get connected to the internet, some educators will share lessons online via YouTube. Then again, will our children watch a video on parabolas or how to determine the slope of a line? Probably not.

So what exactly is the missing ingredient? I wish we could find a way to improve our children's communication and analytical skills....

When Vox was a few weeks old, there were only a few Filipinos here. For a few more weeks, I began to wonder whether my fellow Pinoys preferred to stay in Blogger, LJ, Multiply or wherever they've been blogging.

Recently, after hopping from one PinoyVox to another, I was surprised to sense a sudden surge--a lot of Filipinos (based in the Philippines and in other countries) are sharing their thoughts and stories out here in Vox.

Let's see how things go and grow out here.

In the meantime, I'd better think of some kind of theme for this Vox blog. With so many places to build a blog in, it might be better to focus on certain topics in certain sites. That way, our readers won't keep wondering where they'll find what.

For Vox, should I focus more on writing and stories? We'll see...

There are two main groups in the Loboc Children's Choir: the teens, and the younger group. Even at their early age, you can already tell who the total performers are. :-)

And here's the older group:

You'll find more stories in our Bohol 2006 Travelogue.

I'm not sure, but perhaps Eloise is Pinoy?

Okay, Pinay.

For those getting confused, both men and women can be called Pinoy (if they're Filipino).