A Major Cultural Center of Hawaii: the History and the People - Essay Example

17 September What is a Filipino – American? Introduction I am a Filipino – American living in Hawaii today. But to understand today’s Filipino – American, or Pinoy, we need to learn about the history, the people, and the their culture as well as the culture of the Hawaiian isles in which I live. History of the Pinoy Filipino – Americans first came to the United States after jumping from Spanish vessels, in the early 1800s, during the famous Manila – Acapulco galleon trade under Spanish colonial rule of the Philippines. While the ship was docked on the West Coast of Mexico, they escaped and traveled onto Vera Cruz in the east where they either boarded another ship headed to Louisiana or traveled by land to Louisiana. Once in Louisiana, they settled and formed the Saint Malo village. These Filipinos were said, in an 1883 Harper’s Weekly report, to speak Spanish and a Philippine language, most likely Tagalog since it was reported as Tagalogas in the article. American colonization, however, paved the way for a mass exodus of Filipino to the US. One type of migrating Filipino was called the pensiondos, government scholars, who were sent to further their education and training. The others were workers, who came over as cheap. These workers came to be known as sakadas. And in a constant effort to recruit these sakadas the Hawaiian Sugar Plantation Association (HSPA) sent labor recruiters to the Phillipines and they set up recruitment centers in Vigan, Ilocos Sur, and Cebu. The first Filipino laborers, all Tagalogs, came to Hawaii in 1906. At first, they did not really want to come to Hawaii due to the distance from home and the rampant rumors of man eating animals upon the isles. But after persistence of the campaigns and the “success” stories of the first repatriated sugar workers or sakadas, called “Hawayanos” on the Philippines, encouraged Filipino migration. Over the years the migration of Filipinos to Hawaii grew from the initial 150 in 1907 to the average 7,630 arriving annually in Hawaii during the 1920s. However, in the 1930s, despite a temporary influx of Filipino migrants due to the Great Depression, the Filipinos had replaced the Japanese as the largest ethnic group working on the plantations. There were eventually, three waves of migration of Filipinos. The first wave was prior to the Great Depression and World War II. The second wave came just after the war and consisted mainly of immediate families and children of some of the pre- World War II sakadas. The third wave came due to the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965, which consisted of “relative-selected” and “occupational” migration. The Pinoys as a People Filipinos were chosen to work in the US since they were cheap labor and considered hard working. The HSPA, also, recruited the Filipinos since the Philippines was a territory of the US and they sought out those sakadas with lower intelligence so who would not know their legal rights about working on plantations. And since most of the sakadas brought over were men, when they got together in their off time for parties there was a chance of a married woman being abducted by a sakada or for his friend since there was a lack of single women. Furthermore, Filipinos were raised to think that every Filipino is an extended family of oneself, whether it is an uncle, aunt, cousin, lolo (grandfather) or lola (grandmother). The family is central throughout the lives of most Filipinos. As such, major personal decisions usually reflect the family consensus. And as tradition dictates, the younger family member’s successes and failures were always informed to and consulted on by almost every member of the family. Thus, family obligations were top priority for most Filipinos, over things, such as works and personal wants. The leader of the Filipino family is the father, ama, and as the oldest male is never questioned. But the one who regulates the household, including the family budget is the mother, ina. Furthermore, Children are raised to be cooperative, quiet, and submissive; being given very little independence. Culture of the Pinoy Filipinos are strong in faith which is handed down to them from each passing generation before them. However, what church they attend is not important, as long as it is the same faith as their families. Thus, you would rarely find a Filipino who changed his faith for fear of being ostracized not by his church, but by his own family. Throughout the years, Filipinos were brought many different faiths by travelers to their homeland. The Muslims brought Islam in the 14th century, during the Spanish rule Catholicism was the only acceptable religion, and the Americans brought Protestantism which led to grass roots evangelical movements such as Iglesia ni Kristo and Aglipayan. Now about 85% of the Filipinos are Roman Catholics, with many Protestants, Muslims, and members of Iglesia ni Kristo and Aglipayan living in the Philippines as well. There are also 43 languages and 87 dialects found amongst the 7100 islands in that comprise the Philippines, even though Filipino is the official language since August 6, 1987. But 89% of the population speaks nine of the languages. And there is a similarity amongst the vast majority since they belong to the Malay-Polynesian family of languages. And the average Filipino requires less privacy and personal space than the average American. Often, Filipinos stand close to one another when speaking to one another and when walking members of the same sex would hold hands. But some women demand the customary “No touch!” treatment. This means that a Filipino lady cannot let any man unless he’s her husband touch any part of her, even the tips of her fingers, to remain pure and virtuous. Filipinos are also smiling for no reason, use their lips to point things, raise eyebrows when answering yes, and nod upwards to greet people. Also, sweethearts and married couples refrain from public display of affection. And they make eye contact, its just not prolonged or direct. But if one refuses eye contact, Filipinos consider that untrustworthy. Furthermore, Filipinos greet their superiors with “sir” or ma’am”. Also, Filipinos when asking a question, offer an apology first. And when Filipinos cluck, it shows that they are angry. And they show their respect for tradition with white weddings, their observance of the holidays and celebrations, and they are cautious when it comes to supernatural beings and spells. Furthermore, they show respect for their elders by using “po” or “opo”, addressing an elderly person in the third person, and the kissing of the hand. Hawaiian Culture Lahaina, where our Pinoy lives, used to be the seat of power for the Hawaiian Kings starting with the great King Kamehameha, who managed to unite the Hawaiian Isles in the early 19th Century. Lahaina is Hawaiian for “Merciless Sun”. This city on the isle of Maui is arid and dry and receives only about 17 inches of rain per year. The highest temperature ever recorded in Lahaina is 93, while the lowest was 52. The city of Lahaina was the capital of the whaling in Hawaii, where at it height over 500 ships visited Lahaina in a year. By the late 1860s the whaling industry would die out giving rise to the sugar industry. Hawaiian society was originally divided into a strict caste system based upon birth. This system was very rigid and the royalty owned the lands which was passed on from both mother and father. They did have human sacrifices and used a landless untoughable group, like a Hawaiian aborigine called the kauwa. The Hawaiian religion which grew from a deep respect for nature showed in their beliefs that everything in nature was sacred. Worship took place in temples where they worshipped various idols. Also, they did commit human sacrifices. Thus, Queen Ka’ahumanu decided to destroy the heiau, the temples, and all religious idols paving the way for the Hawaiian conversion to Christianity. The first Christian mission was first built in Hawaii in 1823 and that same year the greatest Christian covert, Queen Kapiolani died. The missionaries upon Hawaii were attacked by the whalers. They eventually reconciled and the sailors donated the funds to build the Seaman’s Chapel. Today, the Hawaiian people express openness and have a giving nature, but they highly downplay the individual and the ownership of private property. Thus, the Hawaiians have given their aloha freely and all must honor a gift so precious. Music is recognizable and Hawaiians over the years made three contributed to music history: the slack-key guitar, steel guitar and ukulele. And the hula dance is now danced in celebration of the Hawaiian heritage, though at one time it was banned. Conclusion In conclusion, pinoys living in Hawaii are all of these things and more. Culture plays a major role in who they are. I am one of these pinoys. Living in a major cultural center of Hawaii that at one time was the capital of the Hawaii Empire of the great kings startint with King Kamehameha. References Claudio- Perez, Marina “Filipino Americans” California State Library. California State Library. Oct. 1998. Web. 17 September 2011 “Filipino Migration to the US” The Philippine History Site. The Filipino-American Historical Society of Hawaii and Operation Manong. July 2010. Web. 17 September 2011 Francisco, Johanna “Filipino Americans in Hawaii: Their History” Suite101.com. Suite 101. 5 Oct. 2001. Web 17 September 2011 “Maui HI! – Culture on Maui” MauiHI.com. Maui HI vacation guide. 16 July 2011. Web 17 September 2011 Read More