I was cleaning and thinning out my library (books and vhs) when I came upon an old VHS tape from 2001. The tape contained segment of a Bay Area Backroads feature on Arkipelago Books and South of Market sites and Daly City. The other segment is the booklaunch event of my first book, Coming Full Circle, emceed by Helen Toribio. Other participants are: Dr. Rosita Galang, my USF mentor, Marie Romero, Evelie Posch, Michelle Bautista, and the other authors of the book Teresa Ejanda, Laurie Quillopo, Peter Golpeo, Ruth Constantino, Luz de Leon.
At this event, Helen was commemorating and honoring the legacy of Virgilio Enriquez, NVM Gonzales and Bullet Marasigan as influential persons in the Fil Am community's decolonization movement. How strange it felt to be watching this now; watching Helen do what she does best - bringing people together, exhorting the good in the work that we do as individuals and as a community. Tears welled up as I remembered her and even as I type this now, I feel my heart sing in gratitude for having known Helen.
Helen was always the first to sign up for the Kapihans at my home or in other folks' home in the Bay Area. These Kapihans in the 90s were small gatherings of scholars and activists interested in the intellectual vocation. Whenever a scholar was visiting from the Philippines, we would gather and take advantage of the opportunity to dialogue with them. At these gatherings we have been fortunate to meet NVM, Ver E, Jimmy Veneracion, Johnny Francisco, Melba Maggay, Delia Aguilar, Felipe De Leon Jr., Rogee Pe-Pua, Beth Marcelino, and others. We have been enriched by these Kapihans.
Once, Helen asked me: do I still need to decolonize if I've spent most of my life as an activist? I remember telling her that her life work is an example of what a decolonized consciousness looks like. We often struggled with the language issue because she didn't speak Filipino. But she intuitively understood all the concepts we were talking about -- kapwa, loob, dangal, etc. Helen helped me sharpen my own perspectives because of the kinds of questions she asked.
In introducing my book, she said "at last...we have a word for what we have been doing all along: decolonization."
During that time I have not developed my understanding and knowledge about the Babaylan tradition and practice. But today I can say that Helen is a Babaylan in my life.
Recently, we had Prosy and Enrique at home and we discovered our common link thru Helen. Prosy said that Helen's home in San Leandro has always been her spiritual home in the Bay Area. She said that ever since Helen passed away, she has missed visiting her. We talked about Helen's presence in our lives and how her spirit continues to inspire us to this day.
Today is a good day and I have Helen to thank for it.
Showing posts with label Filipino American History. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Filipino American History. Show all posts
Sunday, August 8, 2010
Friday, July 23, 2010
The good work of FANHS
My Highlights from the FANHS conference:
- rooming with Karen, Bec, and Titania and Rocco
- the beautiful Seattle University campus
- youth participation: from Kodiak, Alaska; from PEP; from Virginia Beach, Va, youth from Seattle and Tacoma
- Bay Area Kulintang Ensemble: Titatia, Holly, Tala, Patty, Alexis, Pat, Olivia
- FANHS Sonoma County participation/Remembering our Manongs
- dropping in on simultaneous workshops: Battle of Ising in Mindanao, Fil Ams in Detroit, Virginia Beach/FANHS/FACS work with K-12 youth; panel on youth's voices, mestizas, etc., Camp FYA making Babaylan dolls - beautiful!
- authors' reception: being introduced by FANHS Pres Joanie Cordova (thank you!)
- selling copies of Babaylan books (thank you, Linda)
- Our BABAYLAN Panel/Workshop: Karen, Lorial, Bec, Titania plus Baylan, Holly, Pat, Alexis assisting with Kapwa Jammin.
- reconnecting with Emraida from Milwaukee, Amalia from Hawaii, Judy from San Diego, Juanita from San Francisco, Melissa from San Diego, Veronica and the Virginia Beach crew, etc...
- dancing the night away on Friday and Bec's cha-cha line...
- storytelling among friends...
and many more...
Monday, July 19, 2010
Celebrating the Galleon Trade?
Celebrating the Galleon Trade?
This news item reminds me of an encounter I witnessed about a decade ago at a conference. A group of economists from Spain, whose expertise is on the "economic gains of the Spanish colonial period in the Philippines," encountered historians from the University of the Philippines who spoke of the psychic and epistemic violence of colonialism among Filipinos. What was supposed to be an academic dialogue about the economics of empire-building became a confrontation and call for an accounting and responsibility; it became an emotional exchange. At one point, historian Milagros Guerrero recounted the violence visited upon the natives and to the land itself. I remember her saying that the old growth trees were so huge that it would take half a dozen people holding hands around the trunk -- these were felled to build galleons. She spoke of how the Babaylans were beheaded and fed to crocodiles because the friars were afraid of their powers.
The Spanish economists didn't expect that they would be called upon to respond to this accounting for a historical past that they are were not a part of. They are only economists and shouldn't be held responsible for what their ancestors did, they claimed. (Sounds familiar?) I remember the moderator trying to restore the dialogue to a strict academic discourse, but it was too late.
One moment that stood out for me is to witness the response of Fred Cordova to this encounter. He said that he has never heard historians from the Philippines before and certainly not this version of history. He was visibly affected by the stories he heard. And at that moment it was as if something - a window, a door opened up for him - a more profound appreciation of his historical self: a Filipino with a long history of resistance against colonialism. At that time, Uncle Fred has not been to the Philippines and later that year I heard that he had returned to the Philippines, paid homage to Rizal, was honored at Malacanang, met his relatives, et al. He has come home full circle. The vision of FANHS expanded and would be transformed, I believe, from this encounter.
Thus, when I read news items that focus on wanting to showcase the Philippines and the galleon trade, I feel saddened and conflicted. Sad because I sense that historical amnesia makes us, again and again, not want to revisit the past and critique it. This time in the name of Globalization. Sad because I see the connection between the galleon trade and the impoverishment of the Philippines. The galleon trade is a symbol of the economic success of the empire and now a symbol of the success of corporate globalization. But what has it done to us?
I feel conflicted because I understand the impulse to move on, to forget and forgive. Conflicted because I want the Philippines to shine - as a festival site, as a cultural mecca - whatever it takes to show the world how beautiful and bountiful our cultural capital is. But who benefits most from our human and cultural capital? Is it the majority of Filipinos in the homeland and in the diaspora or is it merely the elites and uppermiddle class folks who also have a hand in the silencing of history so that their privileges are maintained?
In a way this question of whether we should celebrate the galleon trade or not is similar to the question of Indigenous Peoples worldwide: should we really celebrate the genocides visited upon indigenous peoples, the environmental degradation, and thievery of resources that followed the empires wherever they went? If we now live in a post-modern realization of the horrors of this past and we want to live more harmoniously with the peoples of the earth and in balance with the Earth, perhaps we should be asking even harder questions: questions of reparations for example. Reparations for slavery for example (yes, there were Filipino slaves on those galleons!). And so on....
It is clear to me that my reflections always come from a historical perspective that is longer than the view of empires of the modern era. It is my exercise in lucidity and hopefully...in fecundity.
This news item reminds me of an encounter I witnessed about a decade ago at a conference. A group of economists from Spain, whose expertise is on the "economic gains of the Spanish colonial period in the Philippines," encountered historians from the University of the Philippines who spoke of the psychic and epistemic violence of colonialism among Filipinos. What was supposed to be an academic dialogue about the economics of empire-building became a confrontation and call for an accounting and responsibility; it became an emotional exchange. At one point, historian Milagros Guerrero recounted the violence visited upon the natives and to the land itself. I remember her saying that the old growth trees were so huge that it would take half a dozen people holding hands around the trunk -- these were felled to build galleons. She spoke of how the Babaylans were beheaded and fed to crocodiles because the friars were afraid of their powers.
The Spanish economists didn't expect that they would be called upon to respond to this accounting for a historical past that they are were not a part of. They are only economists and shouldn't be held responsible for what their ancestors did, they claimed. (Sounds familiar?) I remember the moderator trying to restore the dialogue to a strict academic discourse, but it was too late.
One moment that stood out for me is to witness the response of Fred Cordova to this encounter. He said that he has never heard historians from the Philippines before and certainly not this version of history. He was visibly affected by the stories he heard. And at that moment it was as if something - a window, a door opened up for him - a more profound appreciation of his historical self: a Filipino with a long history of resistance against colonialism. At that time, Uncle Fred has not been to the Philippines and later that year I heard that he had returned to the Philippines, paid homage to Rizal, was honored at Malacanang, met his relatives, et al. He has come home full circle. The vision of FANHS expanded and would be transformed, I believe, from this encounter.
Thus, when I read news items that focus on wanting to showcase the Philippines and the galleon trade, I feel saddened and conflicted. Sad because I sense that historical amnesia makes us, again and again, not want to revisit the past and critique it. This time in the name of Globalization. Sad because I see the connection between the galleon trade and the impoverishment of the Philippines. The galleon trade is a symbol of the economic success of the empire and now a symbol of the success of corporate globalization. But what has it done to us?
I feel conflicted because I understand the impulse to move on, to forget and forgive. Conflicted because I want the Philippines to shine - as a festival site, as a cultural mecca - whatever it takes to show the world how beautiful and bountiful our cultural capital is. But who benefits most from our human and cultural capital? Is it the majority of Filipinos in the homeland and in the diaspora or is it merely the elites and uppermiddle class folks who also have a hand in the silencing of history so that their privileges are maintained?
In a way this question of whether we should celebrate the galleon trade or not is similar to the question of Indigenous Peoples worldwide: should we really celebrate the genocides visited upon indigenous peoples, the environmental degradation, and thievery of resources that followed the empires wherever they went? If we now live in a post-modern realization of the horrors of this past and we want to live more harmoniously with the peoples of the earth and in balance with the Earth, perhaps we should be asking even harder questions: questions of reparations for example. Reparations for slavery for example (yes, there were Filipino slaves on those galleons!). And so on....
It is clear to me that my reflections always come from a historical perspective that is longer than the view of empires of the modern era. It is my exercise in lucidity and hopefully...in fecundity.
Sunday, July 18, 2010
The Delano Manongs
The Delano Manongs: first cut
We can never have enough documentaries and oral history about our history!
We can never have enough documentaries and oral history about our history!
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