Are All Filipinos Poor? A Common Stereotype

     Hello everyone! For this week, I decided to do things a little different and chose a short excerpt from Kathryn Sorrell’s Re-imagining Intercultural Communication in the Context of Globalization, a reading from one of my Sociology classes last semester. I am reflecting on scenario five in the pictures attached below.

     After telling a story of how the Italian parent's of a Filipina-American's boyfriend thought she was a "maid" instead of the girlfriend of their son when first introduced to each other, Sorrells quotes that these relations of power "are deeply rooted in colonial histories and discourses and yet, are re-configured and re-articulated in the context of globalization" (p 176).

     She also elaborated on how cultural subjects and cultural objects "coalesce and collide in unprecedented ways..." forming "alliance[s] as well as tensions.. and conflicts" (p 176).

     I have discussed this with one of my sociology professors several times, how people outside the Filipino culture/ethnicity, especially those from the United States, tend to stereotype my country and its people as "poor,“ representing the “Statue of Liberty” major immigration myth. 

     I cannot stress enough the number of times I've been asked about how dirty my country is, if it is safe there, as well as questions about how my "accent" is not as "strong from someone from the Philippines," without knowing even one thing about the Philippines. One person even questioned me and where "my money came from" after seeing me wear branded clothes like Victoria Secret PINK. And while asking these questions instead of participating in the taboo of not talking about these things can help break the cycle of “stereotyping,” the fact that people can even ask these questions also show how they already have this mindset towards us Filipinos— that we’re poor.

     Reading this segment of this book made me realize that these stereotypes, as seen in the scenario given by Sorrels, goes way back in history and is rooted in several foreign power's colonization of the country, including Spain's 333 year colonization of the Philippines.  We have been seen as a poor country, as well as slaves and peasants for thousands of years in history, and while we are not exactly seen as these today, globalization has still carried these notions and unfortunately make us all seem like lower income and less educated individuals. It is true that several Filipino migrate to different countries like America, including myself, but that does not mean that every family that does so is poor and uneducated. 

     While there are several benefits of globalization, this is just an example of how this, plus the history of colonization, creates conflict and tension among Filipinos and those from Western societies.

     My hope is that people will learn to be less judgmental and stereotypical over the Philippines as well as countries all over the world.  At the same time, these experiences as well as this reading reminded ME not to judge other countries as well, and to be more open minded when it comes to meeting people from different places and remember that every country and its people are beautiful in their own ways.