The Filipino Cause

By Mr. Deeds

Cultural identity is something a lot of first generation Canadians wrestle with. A Canadian born from immigrants from the Philippines, I embraced my Canadian identity, but at the same time always felt a yearning to learn about my parents heritage and culture. From my early years through high school, I had various attempts at trying to recapture that lost heritage, but nothing I did ever really satisfied my yearning.

Back in my University days in Calgary, Alberta, I felt that there was a distinct lack of a Filipino presence on campus. Sure there was a Filipino Students Association, but that was a group that was mainly comprised of Fil-Can high-school cronies who had known each other and been together for years in Calgary. I joined up thinking I would find some kinship among this group, but I found little in terms of actively promoting Filipino culture amongst the group and the University as a whole. Believe it or not, I felt more at home and had more in common with small town White and foreign students whom I lived with in student residence. Though the Asian students knew of the Philippines, most Canadians had no clue. In a real sense, there was nothing around me to help reinforce my Filipino identity. But hey, as a student living in Rez, there was always partying and drinking to get things off my mind.

It was the night I drank the most I had ever (and will ever) drunk, that I had an epiphany. I do not have all the details, because for the most part I was in a drunken stupor, but from my night of binging, arose my concept of the Filipino Cause. Basically, it means to take all the experiences of our people and promote what it is that makes us Pinoy or Pinay and make sure that our 'essence' survives. This is no means an easy task because though it may be easy to define who is Filipino and who is not, it is increasingly difficult to define what it means to be Filipino.

I previously emphasized 'essence' rather than culture, because culture is a much more malleable entity, while essence much more difficult to alter. There are many sub-cultures that comprise the Philippines. Pinoy culture was never monolithic and static and is constantly being influenced at home and abroad. Filipinos of all backgrounds (ethnic, religious, socioeconomic) must work to find common ground. It is only then that the nation can move forth and be strong

For those living abroad, actively promoting our history, and language is a major part of keeping ourselves distinct and visible amongst the cultural mosaic in countries like Canada and the United States. It helps us to be proud of who we are and where we came from. However, while it is fine to honor and preserve our traditions of the past, we as a people cannot rely on that to tackle the new realities we are faced with. Knowing where we came from does not automatically prepare us for where we are going or where we want to be.

There are many differences among those Filipinos who now reside outside the Philippines: those who where born in Pinas and those born elsewhere, new arrivals and established, old and young, mixed and non-mixed... the list is endless. For some reason, though, we have generally remained a strong, close-knit people. In recent years, it seems as though some are emphasizing our differences more than in the past. This serves only to denigrate us all.

Essentially, the answer lies in debate and communication. We must continually voice our opinions and challenge each other's views, so we can better understand each other. It is often said that knowledge is power; I believe that knowledge is nothing without understanding. True understanding is as elusive as it is important, but I digress. Only when we understand and accept the differences amongst ourselves can we truly know what it means collectively to be Filipino, be proud of it, and show it to the world. Though I still consider myself first and foremost a Canadian, my Pinoy identity will always be firmly in my heart and mind.

The Filipino Cause as I see it is this: 1) Learning, promoting and preserving our collective history, language and culture amongst ourselves. 2) Communicating and understanding our own differences both at home and abroad. 3) Working together to synthesize 1 and 2 into Pinoy Pride and finding solutions to problems faced by Filipinos everywhere.

PS: One more note about pride. True pride, in this case Pinoy Pride, should never involve the exclusion or debasement of others. Such actions are more based on insecurity than pride. If one it truly proud of one's background, any kind of hostile exhibition of it is pointless. True pride comes from within and no amount of labels, t-shirts, on trash talk can replace it.

Take this hilarious test just to see how Pinoy you really are. Courtesy of the Philippine Review (August 1995)

Scoring: Give yourself 3 points if you can relate to the following characteristics, give yourself 2 points if it relates to an immediate family member (mom or dad), and 1 point if you know someone who has the characteristic.

Mannerisms and Personality Traits

You point with your lips.

You eat using your hands and have it down to technique.

Your other piece of luggage is a balikbayan box.

You nod your head upward to greet someone.

You put your foot up on your chair and rest your elbow on your knee while eating.

You use a rock to scrub yourself in the bath or shower.

You have to kiss your relatives on the cheek as soon as you enter the room.

You're standing next to eight big boxes at the airport.

You collect items from hotels or restaurants "for souvenir's sake."

Your house has a distinctive aroma.

You smile for no reason.

You flirt by having a foolish grin on your face while raising your eyebrows repeatedly.

You go to a department store and try to bargain the prices.

You use an umbrella for shade on hot summer days.

You scratch your head when you don't know the answer.

You never eat the last morsel of food on the table.

You go bowling.

You play pusoy and mahjong.

You find dried up morsels of rice stuck to your shirt.

You prefer to sit in the shade instead of baking in the sun.

You add an unwarranted "H" to your name, i.e. "Jhun," "Bhoy," or "Rhon."

You put your hand in front of you as if to make a path and say "Excuse, excuse" when you pass in between people or in front of them.

Your middle name is your mother's maiden name.

You buy tons of bath towels when they go on sale.

You love to buy sale items even when you do not need them.

You are a member of the "SDK" Club. (Samahang double knit).

You are still wearing outdated clothing you have when you first came to USA.

You send out RSVP invitation even if the party is to be at home.

You love to wear all you expensive jewelry's when attending parties to the extent of having 2-3 rings on both hands, 3 pieces of necklace or bracelets at the same time.

Vocabulary

You say "comfort room" instead of "bathroom."

You say "for take out" instead of "to go."

You "open" or "close" the lights.

You ask for "Colgate" instead of "toothpaste."

You ask for a "pentel pen" or a " ball pen" instead of just a pen.

You refer to the refrigerator as the "ref" or "pridyider."

You say kodakan instead of "take a picture."

You order a "McDonald's" instead of a "hamburger" (pronounced ham-booh-jer).

You say "Ha?" instead of "What?"

You say "Hoy!" to get someone's attention.

You answer when someone yells "Hoy!"

You turn around when someone says "Psst."

You say "Cutex" instead of "nail polish."

You say "for a while" instead of "please hold" on the telephone.

You say "aray!" instead of "ouch!"

You say "he," when you mean "she" and vice versa.

Your sneeze sounds like "ahh-ching" instead of "ahh-choo."

You prefer to make acronyms for phrases such as "OA" for over-acting, "DOM" for dirty old man, and TNT from well you know.

You say "air-con" instead of "a/c" or air conditioner.

You pronounce the following words: "hippopo-TA-mus," "com-FOR-table," "bro-CO-li," "and "Mongomerry Ward."

You say "brown-out" instead of "blac-out."

You say "Uy!" instead of "Oops."

You pronounce "F" for "P" or "P" for "F."

Home Furnishings

You use walis tambo and walis ting-ting as opposed to the conventional broom.

You have "Weapons of Moroland" shield hanging in your living room wall.

You have a portrait of "The Last Supper" hanging in your dining room wall.

You own a karaoke system.

You own a piano no one ever plays.

Your house is cluttered with borloloys.

You have a "tabo" in the bathroom.

You have a rose garden.

You have two or three pairs of tsinelas at your doorstep.

You display a big laughing Buddha for good luck.

You have a shrine to the Santo Nino in your living room.

You own a "Barrel Man" (shwing!)

You have a parol hanging outside the house during the holidays.

Your lampshades still have the plastic covers on them.

You cover your living room furniture with bed sheets.

You have plastic runners to cover the carpet in your house.

You refer to the VCR as the "Beytamax."

You have a rice dispenser.

You own a turbo broiler.

You own one of those fiber-optic lower lamps.

You own a lamp with the oil that drips down the strings.

You have a giant wooden fork and spoon hanging in the dining room.

You have wooden tinikling dancers on the wall.

You own capiz chandeliers, lamps, or placemats.

Automobiles

You own a Mercedes Benz and call it "chedeng."

You own a huge van conversion.

Your car chirps like a bird or plays a tune when it's in reverse.

Your car horn makes three or more different sounds.

Your car has curb feelers on it.

You hang a rosary on your car's rear view mirror.

You have those air fresheners in a bottle.

Family

You have aunts and uncles named "Baby," "Girlie," or "Boy."

You were raised to believe that every Filipino has an aunt, uncle, or cousins.

Your dad was in the navy.

Your mom or sister is a nurse.

You get smelling kisses from your grandma.

Your parents call each other "mommy" and "daddy."

You have a family member that has a nickname that repeats itself, i.e. "Deng-deng," "Ling-ling," or "Juhn-juhn."

Food

You put hot dogs in your spaghetti.

You consider dilis the Filipino equivalent of french fries.

You think that eating chocolate rice pudding and dried fish is a great morning meal.

You order things like tapsilog, or tocilog at restaurants.

You instinctively grab a toothpick after a meal.

You dip bread in your morning coffee.

You refer to seasonings and all other forms of MSG as "Ajinomoto."

Your cupboards are full of corned beef, hash, spam, and Vienna Sausages.

"Goldilocks" means more to you than just a character in a fairy tale.

You appreciate a fresh pot of rice.

Your baon is usually something over rice.

You bring baon to work everyday.

Your neighbors complain about the smell of tuyo on Sunday mornings.

You eat rice for breakfast.

You use your fingers to measure the water when cooking rice.

You wash and re-use plastic utensils and Styrofoam cups.

You have a supply of frozen lumpia in the freezer.

You have an ice-shaver for making halo-halo.

Your tablecloths have tell-tale "tuyo circles" on them

You eat purple yam-flavored ice cream.

You gotta have a bottle of Julran handy.

You fry Spam and hot dogs and eat them with rice.

You think half-hatch duck eggs are a delicacy.

You know that "chocolate meat" isn't really made with chocolate.

259-345 points: Welcome to America. Judging from your high score, you are an obvious transplant from the Philippines. There's no doubt what your ethnic identity is. You're Filipino, through and through.

173-258 points: Congratulations, you've retained most of the Filipno traits and tendencies your family instilled in you.

172 and under: You have OFT (Obvious Filipino Tendencies). Go with the flow to reach full Filipino potential.

All-in-One Sites:

RealPinoy.com (My personal favorite! Links, free e-mail, messageboards, chat; it's all here!)

Edsa.com (A plethora of Filipino websites.)

Tinikalang Ginto (The Philippines Most Comprehensive Directory)

UnitedFilipinos.com (Great resource for Filipinos; everything but the kitchen sink.)

pinoynet.com (Discussions mainly geared toward California Fil-Ams, but interesting nonetheless.)

Pinoywebsites.com NEW (Building a true, global Filipino community)

Pinoy Issues:

Brian's Cyber Bahay (Has some great essays on the Fil-Am experience. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED)

PinoyZone.com (A great site where different views come together.)

Philippine Political Update (Current events, lots of politcal commentary, the song, "Bayan Ko", need I say more?)

History and Culture:

Abode of Flipyankee: The Dark Living Room (Has an interesting section on Filipino Trivia. A MUST SEE!!)

An Online guide About Philippine History NEW

Faith in the Filipino (A wonderful site on the main historical events of the Philippines.)

Tagalog (The most comprehensive Tagalog language site, period.)

Recipe ni Lola Charing @ Owey.com (The BEST site for Filipino cuisine. Search for your favorite Pinoy recipes!)

Shopping:

Shop @ RealPinoy (Shop til ya drop!)

Pinoymall.com (Now shipping to Canada!)

Daily News

ABS-CBN NEWS (All the news you want!)

Manila Bulletin (The Philippines largest newspaper online)

Yahoo! Philippine News

Here are 4 ways your voice can be heard:

1) Send me a personal message @ mrdeeds1@yehey.com

2) Sign my guestbook and leave a message for all who visit this page

3) Join the many discussions at Talkpinoy

4) You can add your comments to the all the breaking news headlines at: ABS-CBN NEWS

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