So, an article called “The Problem With Filipinos” has been posted and shared on social media over the last couple of days. A friend and colleague, Dr. Akissi Britton, shared and tagged me and a Pinay kasama-sista-scholar, Dr. Johanna Almiron-Johnson on it to get our takes on it.

First of all, especially, as tribute to the fake ass Philippine independence day, an article that spells out all of the problems of our community is such a tired and misplaced start. C’mon. Let’s get our lives and start in the place that’s most vibrant, exciting, thrilling, hopeful–the revolutionary mass movement in the Philippines. As Dr. Almiron-Johnson said and I quote

Deep as colonial is deep but it misses the FACT of Filipino history–namely our revolutionary resistance against imperialism and colonialism. It erases the fact that the Philippines continues to be one of the few countries in contemporary history to overthrow its own government not once, twice but three times by People Power. It’s easier to perpetuate the notion that we ain’t woke than that we always have been woke but the violence of white supremacy aka. American imperialism is as relentless as it always has been. What the article does get right is that the damage of colonialism is so far reaching and so deeply internalized that Filipin@s have figured out how to enjoy it. Our colonialism is so queer it hurts.

Ain’t nobody forgetting the travesties under the Marcos dictatorship. While the author states that we are “quick to hate and quicker to forget” but I think she is the one forgetting a mass movement’s continual projection and strategies to avoid re-electing a Marcos to vice presidency. Girl, it was us, it was our people: Filipinos were in the forefront telling the Marcoses to have several seats.

I mean, I could go on but really I wanted to write this because the problem with the identifying Filipinos as the culprit in all of our struggles is:

1. It doesn’t give Filipinos enough credit for the movement-building that’s happening in our homeland and in the diaspora. I mean Filipino/a-American youth are spending their summers connected to people’s organizations learning about indigenous people’s struggles in Mindanao! Not on that Gawad Kalinga-blame-the-poor-for-being-poor mess, but actual organized youth caring about what organized youth movements are like in the Philippines!
2. It takes American empire and monopoly capitalism off the hook for the conditions under which Filipinos “don’t know who we are”. We don’t know who we are?? Girl. Bye. We definitely suffer from colonial mentality and often over-value American pop culture but these are vestiges of American colonization and current neocolonialism and cultural imperialism (not just in the Philippines, either!). And as Dr. A-J has said up above, Filipinos have always been “woke” and there’s an unforgettable history and a vibrant movement TODAY that continues that legacy. Peep the list within my list below:

As the author Sade Andria Zabala predicted, yea, I’m mad. Why? Not because of

Pride

Pride

Pride

Because for someone who is “airing out” dirty laundry of the community, I hold dear and LOVE, I’m mad that she didn’t even take the time to research the deeply passionate, committed and revolutionary people who make up our community: the migrant worker leaders trailblazing the way for other Filipino/a migrants who are rendered silent because of a broken immigration system. The daily community organizers using their ivy league degrees to make Filipino/a immigrants lives better. The after 40-hours a week volunteers who are meeting until the wee hours of the night to coordinate campaigns to take back SoMa Pilipinas as Filipino/a American geography. The teachers from K-12 to the college classrooms making ourselves visible in the pages and history of the “United” States of America.

We are ALWAYS standing up for our rights. We are ALWAYS standing up and showing up for each other.

So the problem isn’t Filipinos. It isn’t ourselves.

The problem is the system that undervalues our migrant worker mamas, papas, titas and titos, kicking our our elders from SoMa blocks, militarizing our schools (right here in the Bay and in the Mindanao), pouring billions of dollars into political and economic occupation of the Philippines.

Now. The real problem is if you ain’t with the Filipinas/os working tirelessly everyday to upset the set up.