[ this post is in Taglish. ]
MADALAS AY twing may naririnig tayong positive news tungkol sa kabayan sa New Zealand, sinasalamin natin ito sa positibong pananaw sa ating mga sarili (positive self-image). Example: kung may matagumpay na yumaman or aktor na kinilala sa showbiz sa NZ or iba pang bansa, ang instinct natin ay sabihing ah, dahil Pinoy yan. Mahusay ang kabayan ko.
Natural lang ito, as we are all too willing or quick to project the good we see back to ourselves, when we see a familiar feature (such as being Pinoy) in others. We have a tendency to highlight the good we see in the media when it serves to remind us of ourselves.
Unfortunately, we are just as quick to dismiss news as NOT representative of ourselves when negative news involves our kabayan, even in everyday circumstances common to average individuals similar to ourselves in social, religious and financial standing. The saddest part is these kabayan could be our friend, colleague or even hero but for an accident of fate or timing. Just as we are biased in favor of kabayan in good times, we are biased against our countrymen in bad.
Again, let us give you examples Precious Reader:
“dati na yang masama at di talaga dapat pagkatiwalaan.” these involve crimes of theft, esp by kabayan in positions of trust. Itong mga huling buwan ay may mga nahuling may “malalagkit na daliri” habang inaalagaan ang kanilang mga senior citizen sa rest o retirement home.
Hindi yan ang ugali ng Pinoy na pinagsasamantalahan ang kahinaan o katandaan ng taong dapat nilang alagaan at protektahan, ang pinakamadalas kong marinig sa ating mga kabayang napakabilis humusga.
Hindi naman natin ang alam ng situation ng kabayan para gawin nya yung nagawa nya. Di basta-bastang sisirain ng kabayan ang pinaghirapan na career at permanent resident status (kundi pa citizen) dahil lang sa halaga ng ninakaw. Baka naman may dahilan para maging desperado ang kabayan sa ginawa nya.
Ironic, but the authorities in New Zealand are sometimes more understanding of circumstances that may have caused our kabayan to commit the crime concerned.
“nambabae / nanlalake kasi yan kaya (fill in the misfortune applicable). buti nga.” It’s becoming more and more commonplace to justify a kabayan’s misfortune by making conjectures about his/her marital or relationship status, using the above phrase.
I’m not sure if anyone here was born yesterday, but is anyone reading this faultless, immaculate and therefore able to judge everyone else? In the first place, if we may borrow and paraphrase from the Good Book, all have sinned and fall short of the Divine standard. If we use one’s marital or partnership status, present or past, as an accurate measuring stick of “deserving” accidents or misfortune, then maybe a lot more people would be getting hurt or suffering bad luck. Because at one point or another in our lives, a lot of us have made mistakes.
We don’t always know the full backstory behind every person’s marital or relationship status, and for that reason, maybe it’s not a good idea to pass judgment. This is especially true in our ethnic community, where summary judgment is often accompanied by malicious gossip and character assassination, the shoot-first-ask-questions-later method that is unfortunately very difficult to undo. Maybe it’s just me, but if you’re not gonna help, might as well not do anything na lang.
“pumatol yan sa ibang lahi, wala syang dapat sisihin kundi sa sarili nya dahil sa (fill in the applicable misfortune)” This applies not just in romantic relationships but in ordinary platonic and business relationships as well. For starters, it sounds egregiously racist, an irony for us Pinoys who claim to be victims of racism often and always.
It already sounds outrageous, the implication that we Pinoys can do well and get along only with ourselves. Without using empirical evidence, in fact the opposite may be closer to the truth: we Pinoys often get along better with other races and when we are without countrymen (or women). And yet, the moment something negative and tragic occurs, we blame the difference in cultures, the clash of civilizations. How about simple mistakes, or the clash of personalities and moods?
The sooner we accept that we Pinoys never fall into bad situations in a vacuum and need understanding without judgment, the better. Our kabayan need not just our help but to be free from our bias and prejudice. Only then can we as a community in New Zealand truly progress and be proud of ourselves as an ethnic group.
Mabuhay, thanks for reading!
