Wading through Whiteness: Reclaiming My Identity as a Filipina Immigrant April 15, 2019 by Sabrina Rivera Leave a Comment My very first experience of shame (that I can remember) occurred in the third grade after my family had emigrated from the Philippines to Canada. We were asked what we had had for breakfast that morning, and I volunteered "Vegetable soup!" as an answer. In response, I heard a chorus of laughter and a "What kind of weirdo has soup for breakfast?" On the surface, this … [Read more...]
7 Radical Filipina Women You Should Know November 16, 2018 by Maya Gittelman Leave a Comment Trigger warnings: mention of violence against trans women The Philippines encompasses over 7,600 islands, over 180 ethnic groups, and over 19 dialects. Philippine-Americans make up the second largest demographic of Asian peoples in the United States, and our diaspora of overseas Pilipinx (a gender neutral term for those of Philippine descent) is up to around ten million -- … [Read more...]
My Biracial Identity: Figuring Out Where is Home July 16, 2018 by Maya Gittelman Leave a Comment My ancestry manifests in me as the aftermath of an ongoing battle. My body is the convergence of bloodlines that span continents. My heritage is layered and not cleanly, textured with palimpsest and patina. I am dual, simultaneous. I encompass the oppressor and oppressed, the privileged and the disenfranchised. I am mixed. Specifically, I am mixed Filipinx and white. This … [Read more...]
