Be proud of your ethnicity.
I just read someone’s statement about how they didn’t like their Filipino nose…
I’m proud of mine,
for it represents the remainder of our roots… small parts of what was not taken from us by the Spaniards.
Although my father’s mother is of Spanish and Irish descent, my appearance represents the genetic imprint my culture has left on me. It’s a constant reminder that the tribe my grandmother was from stood their ground and refused to be colonized by the Spaniards numerous years ago. We got labeled the most barbaric out of all the tribes for it.
That’s why our skin is darker than the rest. We refused to let them take what was ours, and our leaders fought for us until death.
I’m proud to be Filipino. I’m proud to be Ilocano. My tribe was known to defend the other tribes, and yet we get judged by other Filipinos because we’re more indigenous in appearance.
My family is from Tarlac,
and we’re proud.
Wore this to the much awaited Bloggers United Bazaar last Saturday. Bloggers United is a bi-annual event wherein style bloggers sell their pre-loved clothes to their readers! Haha, sounds cool right? This is something I always look forward to because this is the day I meet most of my readers! I wanted to dress comfortably but all my readers are so stylish so I had to look my best as well, haha! Thank you so much to everyone who came, dropped by my booth, bought my stuff and sent me gifts! I really appreciate all of them! Till the next one!
What I’m wearing: denim jacket with leather sleeves (Forever 21 Men), tank top (Topman), fanny pack (Herschel Supply Co.), cap (SM Accessories), bracelet (SM Accessories), swap watch (Tomato), pants (Topman), boots (Palladium). Hype this on lookbook. nu here.
Denim jacket with leather sleeves from Forever 21 Men | Grey tank top from Topman | Since it’s impossible to wear a full on leather jacket at this time of the year, leather sleeves will suffice. Plus the denim jacket creates a nice balance—making the look more casual.
Fanny pack from Herschel Supply Co. | It was the perfect bag for this event because I needed something to keep my sales and valuables.
Cap from SM Accessories | I’m currently going through a ‘cap’ phase because I’ve been too lazy to fix my hair these days. Booo.
Swap watch from Tomato | Currently addicted to these quirky watches from Tomato! I love the idea that you can swap the faces and the straps! Plus the straps (you can choose from 30 colors) sells for only php350 and the faces for only php500! Available in all Tomato stores and online www.tomato.ph.
Boots from Palladium | I’ve been eyeing on this pair ever since I saw it at The Flatshop in Glorietta last month and I finally decided to buy it! I wear them almost everyday because it’s badass, comfortable and adds a lot of attitude! Plus, they make sloppy outfits look stylish.
Photos by Hezron Peralta
more thoughts re: charice "coming out"
and there’s the whole piece around non-pin@y queers talking about how they hate how she has to apologize or whatever
without knowledge of the philippines or philippine cultures and pop cultures. like…as someone who speaks and understands filipino and watching the interview, boy abunda even asks charice about why it is that she has so many apologies and there’s something so specific about the philippines, as a post-/neo-colonial space, as a space that has inherited many violences on behalf of catholicism, as a space that has always had gender variance and sexuality beyond confines of “queerness,” that compels charice to apologize.
she explicitly says she is proud of herself and that she loves herself. but she also explicitly foregrounds this act of storytelling, of letting the public into her life specifically for the filipin@ people.
she says it from the beginning of the video, that she wanted to return home to do this because she owes it to her own people. so to the fact that non-pin@y folks are talking about her apologizing: she wasn’t talking to you. she went home for her people. this language of “coming out,” of her being a “lesbian” fails here. these are mistranslations.
Are we currently on a Pilipin@ Renaissance?
This is what me and a friend of mine was talking about earlier today. We pretty much talked about how within recent years there has been growing interest on cultural practices from our dances to music. With shows such as Amaya and the recently finished series Indio, there has been an interest in our mythology and folk/spiritual beliefs as well as our pre-colonial and indigenous past. There is more people also knowing and learning about Baybayin and our traditional tattoo’s.
Even in the media, despite problems that the media always has, popular stations like GMA and TFC I’ve noticed in recent years, especially within the last 2 years, have broadcasted programs and documentaries on indigenous art and pre-colonial topics such as the gold of our ancestors and using traditional musical instruments in some station ids and ads.
Don’t get me wrong, the media has showcased some aspects of our culture in the past, however I’ve noticed within the last 2-3 years that they are showcasing it a lot more.
So coming back to that question.
Are we currently on a Pilipin@ Cultural Renaissance? If we are, lets hope it continues to where we can say we are proud to be Pilipin@, not because of some celebrity in the West being part Pilipin@ and things like that, but because of our very strong and rich heritage and culture that makes up and is our identity.
