Now that the hullabaloo over the article written by HK Magazine columnist Chip Tsao has subsided we could hopefully devote the same time and energy to look at the other issues that his piece brought up to the surface.
Foremost of these, I think, is the reality that many Filipinos do go abroad to work as household helpers. Is that a bad thing? Generally speaking, it probably is. I don’t see how doing menial tasks like cleaning house, washing the dishes and doing the laundry for a foreign master can be good. Besides, no one takes on the job of a household servant because of calling or passion. Those who go into this kind of work do so because of plain necessity and therein lies the problem.
What is it exactly about Tsao’s column that got many of us all riled up anyway? Was it his characterization of his imaginary household help and her circumstance or was it the phrase “a nation of servants”? It was probably both although many of the news articles and blogposts on Tsao’s article did show that more focus was given to that “offensive” phrase.
A quick Google search brought up this definition of the word “servant”: a person working in the service of another (especially in the household).
It appears that the word is not inherently derogatory. I guess it all depends on the context by which it is used. In any case, recent events have shown that it was easy for us Filipinos to find offense in being described as “a nation of servants.” Is it possible that we hate being called “servants” because we ourselves made the word and its vernacular equivalent “katulong” derogatory? Just consider the fact that we have become so uncomfortable using the term “katulong” that we even had to coin the seemingly more polite version “kasambahay.” I wonder when, how and why did “katulong” become a dirty word?
But, as I proposed earlier, the biggest issue here is the fact that many of our countrymen still find themselves faced with the choice of seeking work as household help. Why don’t we address this instead? We can do so not by flaming each and every person who describes us as a nation of servants but by forcing our leaders to find, formulate and implement measures that would ensure that no Filipino will ever need to work as a servant anywhere including our own country.
My sentiments exactly, BP.
We can bawl all we want and thump our chests at the indignity of it all, but at the end of the day, millions of our kababayans still have to clean toilet bowls or drive trucks through deserts or what have you — so that their families can live better lives.
I think what is even more insulting than Chip Tsao’s column (which I actually found funny) is that we call our overseas maids, laborers, and what-not “mga bagong bayani” or new heroes. They get greated at the airport by President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo or some other official, then… That’s it, pancit.
Anyway, congratulations on your complimentary compliment. You really do write sparkling stuff.
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lpgd Reply:
April 5th, 2009 at 11:09 am
sparkling?!? i think not but i try… really hard.
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I was trying for a more British tone.
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