(The first time I saw the Black Eyed Peas singing “Bebot” on MTV, I asked my nephew if it was a special Manila performance and he said it’s part of the BEP’s album. I must say it’s a fun song. Here’s an article in the Los Angeles Times on “Bebot” describing it as a “surprise phenomenon”.)
Filipinos’ hip-hop anthem
By David Pierson, Times Staff Writer
November 22, 2006
Hey, man, all of you listen
to me
Here comes the real Filipino
Came from the barrio – Sapang Bato
Went to L.A. and labored
In order to help my mother
Because life is so hard
But the disposition’s still bright.
—
SO begins the story of Allan Pineda, a member of the hip-hop band the Black Eyed Peas, who two years ago wrote a song about his journey from a poverty-stricken district in the Philippines to Los Angeles’ Atwater Village.
The lyrics were personal, written entirely in Tagalog, the dominant language of the Philippines. Pineda wanted to recount his experience as a Filipino American but wasn’t sure how much the song would resonate with others – especially the Black Eyed Peas’ teenage fan base.
The song, “Bebot” (Tagalog slang for “hot chick”), appeared on the Black Eyed Peas’ multiplatinum-selling album, “Monkey Business,” released in June 2005. The album contained several chart-toppers, but “Bebot” – as Pineda expected – wasn’t one of them.
But over the last year, “Bebot” has become a phenomenon in ways Pineda, 31, said he could never have imagined.
The musical story of his immigrant experience has become an unlikely rallying cry in California’s Filipino American community.
With its choppy beat and shouting chorus of “Filipino! Filipino!,” the song became a showstopper at weddings and birthday parties. Teenagers – many of whom don’t even speak Tagalog – choreographed dance routines to it.
But it was the lyrics, not the beat, that had lasting resonance.
The Filipino American community is famous for putting its cultural identity behind assimilation. Though they’re the second-largest Asian group in California behind the Chinese, they have never established set “Filipino” neighborhoods – the equivalent of Monterey Park for Chinese Americans or Little Saigon for Vietnamese Americans. There is a historic Filipinotown west of downtown L.A., but the U.S. census found that less than 15% of its residents are actually Filipino.
Many Filipinos arrive in the United States speaking English, immediately making assimilation easier.
“Part of the problem is we blend in so well,” said Winston Emano, an executive at an L.A.-based public relations firm and a community activist. “We have a rapid rate of assimilation. Put a Filipino in Antarctica, and in one month they’ll be one with the penguins.”
For Emano and others, “Bebot” is a vibrant reminder of their cultural past, an easy-to-digest history of their shared experience.
“It’s a cultural bridge,” Emano said. “Kids say, ‘Hey, he’s talking in my parents’ language.’ ”
Pineda was surprised by the passions “Bebot” stirred. So, early this year, he financed two music videos for the song.
The first paid homage to Stockton’s Little Manila, which was the largest Filipino community outside the Philippines in the 1930s and ’40s. It showed how migrant workers toiled to provide money for their families back home and offered a glimpse of the racism early immigrants encountered.
The second video showed Pineda’s early days hanging out in L.A. with his bandmates and mostly Filipino American friends.
The videos were big hits among Filipinos, who plastered Web links to them on MySpace and YouTube.
But Pineda now had a bigger goal. Though his record label felt the videos had limited prospects because they were sung in Tagalog, he hoped to prove the label wrong. He wanted the videos to air on MTV and VH1.
“There’s still a struggle,” Pineda said. “We just got to keep trying.”
When eating, we use our hands
What we eat, chicken adobo
The balut being sold at the
corner
Share the glass already
My friend, let’s start drinking.
PINEDA grew up in a slum outside Angeles City on the island of Luzon. His mother was Filipino. He never met his father, who was an American in the U.S. Air Force, Pineda said.
His first connection to the U.S. came when a charity group found him an American sponsor, who started sending him the equivalent of 7 cents a day to help pay for food. Pineda had problems with his eyes, so his sponsor – a lawyer named Joe Ben Hudgens – wanted to adopt him so he could receive better medical care in the U.S.
His mother agreed, and after seven years of waiting, he arrived to live with Hudgens, a deputy Los Angeles County counsel. It was 1989; Pineda was 14.
Hudgens was living in the Wilshire district at the time but decided to look for a neighborhood where there were mostly Filipinos. The best he could find was a block in Atwater Village, a diverse section of northeast L.A. that included some Filipinos.
“I didn’t want him to be lonely. I suppose I was thinking, ‘Let the neighborhood help raise him like they do in the Philippines,’ ” said Hudgens, now 69.
Hudgens, a single parent who spent long hours at work, encouraged Pineda to have friends over any time. Soon, they were practicing rap and dancing.
“I still don’t quite know how all this happened,” Hudgens said of Pineda’s fame. “He has a performer’s instinct. He loves to entertain.”
Pineda attended John Marshall High School, which, like the surrounding neighborhood, was a mix of cultures. Despite the cultural shift, he was thrilled to be in America. By 16, he was immersing himself in the local hip-hop scene. He went to parties at homes and nightclubs across Southern California, where he made connections that led to the formation of the Black Eyed Peas. The group rose to prominence in the late 1990s with an upbeat brand of rap and stunning dance moves. Their multiculturalism – Filipino, Latino and black members – set them apart.
But Pineda said that despite the success, he still felt a yearning to write and sing about his culture.
He wanted to pen a song about his roots that people could dance to. It took him about two days in the band’s sound studio in Atwater Village. Bandmate Will.I.Am, the group’s producer, came up with the beats and started Pineda on his way by chanting “bebot, bebot, bebot” in the cadence familiar to fans today.
He struggled with the right words, so he called a friend’s mother for translations.
“It was a hard task,” Pineda said. “I’d never written a rap in Tagalog before. It’s hard to rhyme.”
The song is filled with cultural references central to Filipino American life: They celebrate by sharing beer, using their hands to eat the nation’s signature dish (chicken adobo) and swallowing balut, fermented duck eggs still in their shell.
“Every Filipino can relate,” Pineda said.
In the modern video, the band arrives at a party riding a Jeepney, the ubiquitous mini-bus seen in the Philippines. An opening scene shows a doting Filipino mother asking one of Pineda’s bandmates if he wants chicken adobo.
The historic video resonated in other ways. Set in 1936, it begins with Pineda working in a Stockton asparagus field. Pineda said he wasn’t aware of Stockton’s history until he learned about it from the videos’ director, Patricio Ginelsa.
“I was overwhelmed,” Pineda said. “I could relate. They were farmers doing the same thing they do in the Philippines. And their main objective was sending money back home too.”
The Little Manila Foundation has been trying for years to generate interest in preserving the Rizal Social Club and other structures on the decaying Stockton street that once was filled with Filipino farmworkers.
Dillion Delvo, the group’s president, credits the video for a recent surge of interest in his district and efforts to preserve it.
“It’s very powerful for kids to see images of people who look like us from the past,” added Emano. “It opens up an entirely new world to them, one that they certainly can’t find in their history books in school. And it’s come from arguably one of the world’s most successful pop bands.”
Observe all the beautiful girls
Your beauty really drives me
crazy
The sweetness that is never
tiresome
You’re the only one I want to be
with.
UNTIL the song was released last year, the word “bebot” was something of a relic, even in the Filipino American community. Both the modern and the historic videos are filled with beautiful Filipino women dancing.
But as the song became a community touchstone, it also set off a backlash.
Some Filipino women objected to the portrayal of women in the modern video – both the sexy dancing “bebots” and the nagging mother.
Pineda said the portrayal of women in the video is a loving one, based on his memories of growing up.
“That’s the trait right there,” he said. “Go to a Filipino household and the mom is always trying to feed you. They’re always trying to advise you.”
Liza Marie S. Erpelo, 33, a language arts professor in Northern California, said it felt stereotypical to her.
“The mother was doing all this screaming,” Erpelo said. “I giggled at first; then I thought, ‘Why am I laughing?’ ”
One of Erpelo’s classes at Skyline College in San Bruno deals with Filipino stereotypes and the cultural isolation many Filipinos feel here. She is now using “Bebot” in her class, prompting heated discussions about the value of Pineda’s song as a rallying cry for the Filipino community.
“What merit does that song have, saying, ‘Hot chick, hot chick’?” she asked.
Whatever the effect, the videos’ sexy look definitely had an MTV flavor. And Pineda and director Ginelsa felt the videos had a shot at both MTV and VH1 despite the fact they were sung in Tagalog.
The “Bebot” team got excited when MTV sent a correspondent to do a segment on the making of the videos.
But the report ran only on MTV Chi, a year-old niche channel aimed at Chinese Americans.
By the fall, Pineda was more sanguine. He was pleased the song was a hit in Asia. He also was touched by the way “Bebot” was embraced by the Filipino community.
“I hoped it would be played in the States, but it is more popular in Asia, which I appreciate,” he said. “The main purpose was to get this out to the Filipino community. People don’t realize there’s a huge one in America.”
You’re Filipino – shout it out
– c’mon
If you’re beautiful – shout it out
– c’mon
If your life is valuable – c’mon
Thank you for your support.
ON a recent Saturday night at the Millennium Biltmore Hotel in downtown L.A., Pineda accepted the Role Model Award from the Filipino American Library during a formal gala attended by hundreds who dined on chicken adobo made specially by the hotel kitchen.
Pineda was introduced by fellow Filipino entertainer Tia Carrere, who said, “His story is the American dream.”
“Bebot” began blaring from the P.A. system and the guests jumped to their feet to cheer as the famously fashionable Pineda bounced to the stage in a navy blue suit, pink tie and glossy white sneakers.
After a few words of thanks in Tagalog, Pineda dedicated the award to his Filipino mother and adoptive father, both of whom beamed from the audience.
“I want to thank the Filipino community for embracing me as a Filipino artist in this game,” he said. “I represent Filipinos every day, every second. I’m a proud Filipino.”
Pineda shimmied and leaped offstage as once again “Bebot” filled the room.
It’s really nice to know that someone like Allan Pineda is using his talents to promote the Philippines, and most of all, he shouts to the whole world that he is a FILIPINO..
On the other hand, it is saddening to know some Filipinos who have just been to a foreign country for a while and yet kung magsalita eh slang na at halos hindi na nagtatagalog…
my kids here have some filipino classmates who grew up here already.. it seems hindi sila tinuturuan ng tagalog ng magulang nila kasi hindi sila marunong magsalita at hindi sila nakakaintindi ng tagalog…
itong si allan pineda ay tubong pampanga pero kaibang kaiba sa asal ni glutonia na ilang academic title ang ipinagmamalaking kakabit ng pangalan. totoo ang kasabihan, “wala sa lahi, kundi nasa ugali.”
I admire this Allan Pineda and his group. His success is something that should make Filipinos proud, esp. his pronouncement that he is a Filipino. Being born in (or having roots from) the Philippines and acknowledging one’s identity as such, make him doubly admirable.
Some notable “Filipinos” in the U.S. would rather be called “Americans” or some other ethnicities not connected with Filipino. I was told Hawaii’s Tia Carrere is one, ask Corky Trinidad and he will tell you more about her.
Ellen,
Thanks so much for this article, hindi na ako sano sa pinagsasabi ng aking mga pamangkin.
So, ito pala ang Allan Pineda of Black Eyed Peas my two teen aged nephews were proudly telling me about. I watched them in shows like Grammy, Mtv, etc., but wasn’t sure who’s the Allan.
I like his story, a very good lesson for Fil-Am teenagers whose tounges can’t even pronounced “nanay” o “tatay”. Marami sa mga batang fil-am, kung maririnig mo lang ay hindi mo aakalaing mga pinoy ang pinagmulan. Tama si Menok na hindi sila tinuruan ng mga magulang na ng mapunta sa “merika” ay ikinahiya na ang Fil dialects.
Pero meron din naman akong na-meet na iyong beybi niya ay kinakausap tagalog. Ang kanyang dahilan ay sa eskwelahan ay magiging dilang amerikano din ang dila niya, “pero dapat ay magkaintindihan kami ng maayos pag laki niya”. Talagang malaki ang role ng mga magulang sa kaalaman ng mga anak na magsalita ng lengwaheng pinoy.
Paano naman magiging makabayan ang isang pinoy kung hindi ma-appreciate ang kanyang wikang pinagmulan? Marahil ay isa itong dahilan kung bakit watak-watak ang mga pinoy kahit sa sariling bansa dahil ang mga opisyal na lengwahe ng mga rich ay Castilla o English, samantalang ang mga anak ay lumalaking walang sariling pagpapahalaga sa wikang Pilipino.
Tuwang-tuwa ako sa artikulong ito ni Allan Pineda, IYAN ANG TUNAY NA PINOY! Congrats!
Mrivera,
Papaano mong nalamang taga-Pampanga si Allan Pineda. Meron akong kakilalang Pineda, mga taga-Bataan at ayaw umamin na lahi silag kapampangan!!!
Chi, MenOk, my American born nieces and my own son speak Tagalog. Iyong ngang ipinanganak sa Pilipinas ang ayaw mag-tagalog at masisira raw ang acquired American accent nila! Stupid is as stupid does! Iniinis ko talaga. I don’t talk to them in English. Tinatagalog ko sila. Ang sarap batukan sa totoo lang!
On the other hand, at least, most people I meet now in SFO answer me in Tagalog when I talk to them in Tagalog unlike when we first went to the USA. The colonial mentality was so pronounced that I think I was kind of disillusioned with America because of these Filipinos who were native of the Philippines but prefered to call themselves as Filipino-Americans. Pwe!
Men0k & Chi, tama kayo. nasa magulang din yun kung ang anak nila ay hindi marunong magsalita nag wika nila, at hindi na marunong kumilala sa bayang pinas. Pero mas malaki ang influence ng kapaligiran, lalo na sa U.S.
Marami akong nakikitang mga bata (Fil-Am) dito na patuloy kinakausap ng mga magulang sa sariling wika, pero ang sagot ay English. Marunong naman silang umintindi, pero hindi lang makapagsalita. Kung magsalita man, ay “telegraphic” at pautal-utal, at ang at ang accent ay halatang slang. Kaya pag nakatagpo ng kapwa pinoy mula sa pinas, ay pinagtatawanan tuloy sila.
Pero kung sila-sila ang nagkukuwentuhan, pinagtatawanan din nila ang mga galing sa pinas. Marami din silang pintas sa atin, kala ninyo ba. Ang madalas nilang sabihin ay ganito: “Your English is funny.”
ystakei, have watched allan pineda’s life story in MMK which was shown during his first coming home to the pinas a couple of years back. he was adopted by an american philantrophist and honed his talents in the US where he joined a group of young artists and formed their band now known as the black eyed peas.
How admirable this Allan Pineda. His story and song must be inspirational to many Filipinos. On the other hand, Allan Pineda’s story/song is a wake up call to this country that the Philippines IS CLOSE TO BECOMING A COUNTRY OF BRAIN-DEAD PEOPLE! The brainy Filipinos have left the country!
Thanks for re-posting this article, Ellen. I would have missed it otherwise.
My nephews, proud fans of Black Eyed Peas, told me that this Allan Pineda was from outside Angeles city, Pampanga. Pineda’s are originally Pampangenos, not Bataenos. Because these are neigboring provinces, residents in their borders are mix already. My buong angkan is from Bataan but not near the borders.
Chabeli,
There are still millions of Brainy, smart Filipinos in the country, but it only takes a few tyrants to rule over them. Remember, Germany had been ruled by the Nazi and the German people as a whole can not do much about it. Even China, during the reign of chairman Mao, chinese by the millions, smart as they were, brave as the were, were helpless. Take a look what that little nimkoopoop is doing to the people of North Korea? Starving them to death, but still they chant for the world about their “dear leader” little tyrant. What we have in the country, is a little tyrant in disquise as a fighter for the Filipinos, while her, family and her cronies are grinding the treasury to the ground, corrupting the Military, even the already not so upright justice system and the forever on-and-off corrupt publice service sectors of every kind. the one reason that Filipino immigree, shine and recognize for their talents (as being useful) is the genuine rather than made believe popularity and of the ones that made it in the country. The natural talented Filipinos need some right connections to even make it in first stage, very few exemptions, like the Champion Pacquio, and few others, but just take a look at all the t.v. shows and movies, are most of them not the descendants of old corny actors and actresses of the past? Can these talents make it in real world? Like the poem I remember some 4 decades ago that says something (can’t remember the exact line) “there are many roses that bloom and smell just as sweet but whethered and died in the midst of forest without anyone seeing their beauty or smell their sweet scents.
Vic,
You make good points in your comments. Sadly, in this country, your potentials cannot be fully realized unless, as you say, one has the “right connections to even make it in first stage.” If only policies in the Philippines change and opportunities are available to a wider sector of our society, rather than the usual people, who when you really take a hard look, don’t have much substance, in which case, you tend to ask yourself, “How did he/she make it?” Only to find out that he/she was backed by so and so. It is rather unfortunate that this is the reality in the Philippines…and as to why many opt to get out than to stay and make this country better…it is possible that many of them feel that if the government has not uplifted their lives for so long, why should they sacrifice for the country?
Opportunities, particularly those that emanate from politics, are undoubtedly closed to most. Look at jobs in govt service, and one will understand why.
But there are sectors where merits are also followed. I can think of admin and faculty jobs in many universities, where decency and meritocracy at least have a room. In the entertainment industry, I believe merits also count a lot.
But not jobs at the top (e.g., state univs and colleges), because it is still Malacanan that determines who gets one. (I believe only UP has remained independent from Malacanan.) Another exception is in the public schools. I heard that positions for teachers there are for sale, esp. in Mindanao and other remote areas. Partly, this explains why good teachers are now joining the exodus.
It’s refreshing to note that at least a Pilipino from poverty -stricken made it through without cheating, lying and stealing. Tell that to bogus Gloria.
It brings tears to the eyes to hear of someone like ALLAN PINEDA shouting in America that he is Filipino and proud to be one, and in a song in Filipino yet. I have to get a copy of the song today and that video too.
It’s a welcome departure from the usual negative developments that’s everyday fare for Pinoys. Good work, Ellen! I appreciate the effort to provide your readers some feelgood stuff once in a while. We can’t help relating (or contrasting) it with the real issues.
Toney’s comment above is one example that made me LMFAO!
By the way, Ellen, Allan Pineda Lindo, aka Apl.de.Ap was born Nov. 28, 1974. Tomorrow’s his birthday then!
The first time we mentioned him here, and the video of Bebot, was in ellentordesillas.com/?p=558
Vic,
Tyranny is supposed to be a thing of the past. At least, it is what WWII has achieved in Japan for that matter. The Philippines could have been better if Filipinos have been wiser in their choice of people to run their government for them. What’s happened is they have allowed oppressors to rule them, not be public servants serving the people who pay their bills. But then, with majority not even having decent jobs and accounted for, they cannot claim that they are the ones paying the bills of these politicians and even bureaucrats who are being paid with funds received from Japan’s reparations payments that is the biggest of all those paid to countries occupied by Japan in WWII, and/or the monies granted and borrowed from countries willing to lend money to the Philippines.
Government is another give and take thing, not just take and take especially by the greedy in the government, elected, appointed and otherwise. Sad indeed!
Thanks, Tongue for giving the previous link.
I’ve been hearing a lot about this Allan Pineda of the BEP, and the funny thing is, not from fellow Filipinos, but from people of different nationalities. Shame on me, but, at least I can justify my ignorance about this guy. At my age his music is not my cup of tea,
however, upon learning who he is, I can’t help but to admire him so much without any reservation not only his life story of from rags to riches but his shouting for all the world to hear that he is so proud to be a Filipino, considering that he is not a true-blooded or a 100% Filipino. All Filipinos should really feel proud about Allan.
That’s a reality that all Filipinos must emulate wherever they are. It’s so sad to accept that some Filipinos when they become a hyphenated-citizen, they tend to forget that they are Filipinos. Relating themselves with the adopted country, they always talked in the first person and in some cases; they don’t even want to talk in Pilipino. Some even go to the extent of criticizing fellow Filipinos about their grammars and errors as if they were the originator of the language and acting as language police. That’s what we call exclusively Filipino trait, because over hear where I am coming from, criticizing somebody else manner and way of speaking is considered taboo and you never, never hear anybody but Filipino criticize you for committing grammatical error, and even tell you that your English is funny. That’s what become of a Filipino when they consider themselves no longer a Filipino, not like ALLAN, kahit na alam niya siguro ang baho at pagpapahirap ng pekeng gobyerno, ipingmamalaki pa rin niya ang Pilipinas at ang kaniyang pagiging Pilipino. Mabuhay ka ALLAN!
florry:
matanong kita? si Kris, Jo Ramos, Jinggoy/JV, Luli/Mikey/Dato ba ay proud na sinabi na Pilipino sila?
At least si Imee ipinakita nya sa pamamagitan ng Kabataang Barangay. Matatandaan din si Bongbong na nagsuot pa ng uniporme noong Feb 25,1986 sa balkonahe ng Malakanyang!
Nelbar:
yong magkapatid na Imee at Bong alam ko yong mga ginawa nila, pero doon sa mga nauna mong binanggit wala pa akong nakita sa kanila.
Malaysia’s plantations merger to boost country’s palm oil status —Yahoo!® News
Sun Nov 26, 12:12 AM ET
KUALA LUMPUR (AFP) – A merger of three Malaysian plantation conglomerates will create the world’s largest listed palm oil estate, and boost the country’s status as a palm oil producer amid growing regional competition, analysts have said.
The government-linked companies, Golden Hope Plantations, Sime Darby and Kumpulan Guthrie and six of their listed units, last week suspended trade in their shares ahead of what they said was a “major corporate exercise.”
Read the rest of the story here.
To all those who want to share published articles, please include the weblink address. Thanks.
ystakei Says: “Government is another give and take thing, not just take and take especially by the greedy in the government, elected, appointed and otherwise. Sad indeed!”
really. because glutonia’s kind of government is one that FOOL the people, OFF, away from the people, and BUY (some of) the people.
music is one thing filipinos can relate not only to other filipinos.we operate a local radio station here in oslo with only filipino music but a lot of our listeners are not only pinoys.often in our dedication program, callers are foreigners trying to pronounce titles of filipino songs like pagdating ng panahon.
ganyan ang pinoy. laging naghahanap ng mga kababayan na maipagmamalaki. para bang isang pangarap…isang inaasam.
para na rin sa sarili siguro…
ngunit bakit napakadali nating manghusga sa ating kapwa…..
‘hindi na marunong ng salitang pilipino ang mga anak…’, ‘filipino-americans ang nais itawag sa kanila…’
ilan sa mga pasaring. tumingin tayo sa salamin…ingles ang kadalasang gamit dito sa ‘blog’ ni ellen. kahit si alan pineda, hindi na niya ginagamit ang pilipino. malaki na siya nung dumating siya sa amerika ngunit nahihirapan na siya sa pilipino. kailangan pa niyang humingi ng tulong.
wala sa salita ang pagiging pilipino…..
At least si Imee ipinakita nya sa pamamagitan ng Kabataang Barangay. Matatandaan din si Bongbong na nagsuot pa ng uniporme noong Feb 25,1986 sa balkonahe ng Malakanyang!
—————————————————
hindi si imee ang nagtatag ng kabataang barangay.
ang diktador na si marcos ang nagtatag nito para pang goyo sa mga kabataan…..
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……………That youth politics in the Philippines takes contrasting directions is evident in recent history. On the one hand, there are youth groups advocating various anti-Establishment ideologies, from the national democratic Kabataang Makabayan (Nationalist Youth) of the 1960’s to the socialist Movement for the Advancement of Student Power of the 1980’s. On the other hand, numerous youth groups have also mobilized in support of conservative politicians, although few attempts have been made at systematically enlisting youth support for a particular regime. A notorious example in this regard is the Kabataang Barangay (KB, roughly translated as Village Youth). In 1975, two years after the declaration of Martial Law, then-President Marcos created the KB as his administration’s youth wing. Headed by Marcos’ eldest daughter, the KB was principally aimed at creating an institutionalized vehicle for co-opting youth politicians, dispensing patronage and organizing a counter-movement to student radicalism. Needless to say, the more politicized youth groups rejected the KB.
Most Pinedas are from Pampanga. And that includes Gloria’s compadre jueteng lord Bong Pineda. Those who say Fil-Am artist Allan Pineda comes from another Province is not only ignorant of this fact but don’t know who this member of the popular Black Eyed Peas is. Just because there are Pinedas in Bataan doesn’t prove the point. They could have originated from Pampanga. Next time, think before asserting your opinion!
hindinapinoy, whoever wrote that the Kabataang Barangay was notorious for mobilizing in support of conservative politicians has his history all wrong. Pang-goyo? Saan? Being one of the members of the pioneer batch, we enlisted the youth for activities that basically, would keep them off drugs.
I still keep my first yellow KB T-shirt that said “No Hope in Dope”. Our first project was to send kids 15-18 yrs old in batches to attend an anti-drug seminar in (Taguig or Tagaytay?). They went home and started organizing themselves from what they learned in the seminar and the first anti-drug youth movements were born. Pasay City’s drug trade at that time was fast becoming like that of Quiapo’s notorious Quiricada St., where peddlers and addicts trade their goods like puto. It was probably a way early precursor to Pasig’s “shabu talipapa”. Cuyegkeng St. in Harrison would have been a Quiricada had the KB not made its moves fast. Today, gone are the zombies plying their trade, nor would you see scions of rich families backing out of this narrow street in the latest Benz. No, we did not stop the illegal drugs in Pasay, but we did make a dent aside of course from those whose lives we saved by preventing them from picking up the vice.
We also developed kids with talents in music and theater. The Pasay KB Choir was elevated to the CCP Hall of Fame for taking the championship for 5 consecutive years. The Dulaang Kabataan, which Imee Marcos herself oversaw, produced outstanding theater talents out of ordinary kids. The group was responsible for bringing an impoverished Rene Requiestas out from the drug-infested environment of his tenement house in Taguig to movie stardom. The Dulaang KB was more into serious theater then and had no vehicle for this comic to showcase his talents. Imee took him in her TV programs, the rest is history.
The KB Chairman, sitting as ex-officio member of the adult Barangay Council, was charged with organizing sports activities as well as cleanliness drives, and other environmental projects. Being the Zone Head, we held yearly basketball, volleyball, and track and field meets within the zone composed of ten barangays and we did produce players who have become varsity and national team standouts. Some of our outstanding tracksters even made it to Michael Keon’s Project Gintong Alay that has kids like Lydia De Vega making our country proud.
The Pasay KB Federation saw its first president Ogie Aznar being named by Malacañang as the first Member of Parliament to represent the youth sector. Aznar was later followed by another KB leader, Ram Antonio. Aznar’s vice who succeeded him was Greg Alcera was later elected Pasay’s Vice Mayor. The Kabataang Barangay proved to be an effective springboard for future leaders willing to take on bigger responsibilities and larger constituents. Most young politicians of today are products of the KB.
What probably was very important in that in all these activities, the youth of the 70’s did their share in comunity-building as volunteers. What started the corruption, and cheating in the recent past SK elections is that the SK officers are paid monthly allowances. In Arroyo’s term, SK elections had been canceled and the chairmen, though overaged, were sitting in holdover capacity. Today’s SK is not as active and not as visible as our KB and many are getting their allowances doing nothing aside from being paid watchers of her party during elections.
Sino ngayon ang nanggo-goyo?
tongue,
medyo may nasagi yata ako sa iyong damdamin. pimupuri kita kung maganda ang nasalihan mo. ngunit hindi mo maikakaila na itinatag ng diktador ang KB laban sa KM. sino ngayon ang nang go-goyo? sino pa kung hindi ang mga nag-uuring mga nakaupo.
in a way i agree with hindinapinoy that wala sa salita ang pagiging pilipino.una una marami nga na hindi rin lumaki sa paggamit ng wikang pilipino.kahit na sabihin ng iba na ang wika ang pinakamalaking parte ng kultura ng isang bansa ay may exception din dito, tulad ng pinas. dahil sa dami ng islands na tinubuan natin ay mahirap maging isa talaga ang wika natin.sa sariling definition ko lang ay ok na rin kahit na anong linguahe ang alam ng isang pinoy.tutal nasa genes naman niya kung talagang pilipino siya. importante ay kung at ease siya na siya ay pilipino.
ang isang tao, lalo at katulad ni allan pineda, na kinikilala sa kanyang napiling larangan, hindi man makapagsalita ng alinmang diretsong katutubong dila ng mga pinoy, kung ipinakikita naman sa gawa at diwa ang pagmamahal sa kinagisnang kultura ay mas maipagmamalaki kaysa doon sa mga taong wala pa mang napatutunayan ay ipinakikita pang diring diri sa nakapamihasnang kaugalian ng kanyang mga magulang, nasa ibayong dagat man o nasa sariling bayan.
yeah, tama kayo.. wala nga sa salita ang pagiging Pilipino…
so pwede ng hindi magsalita ng Pilipino sa loob ng bahay kya hindi na natututo ng sariling salita ang bata… Ibig bang sabihin noon kapag nsa ibang bansa ka, sa loob ng bahay hindi nyo na rin dapat gamitin ang salitang Pilipino?.. the point i raised was, bakit ung classmate ng anak ko na Pilipino rin, hindi makaintindi maski isang salitang Pinoy?.. kasi hindi nagsasalita sa bahay nila ng Pilipino..
ang punto ko kasi may mga pilipino na nakarating lang ng ibang bansa akala mo wala ng dugong Pilipino kung magsalita at magkikilos pero ayon nga sa kanta “Kung pakikinggan, mali-mali naman”..
how would you instill into a child being a Filipino if the most basic of being a Filipino is not fed to him?..
oo nga naman (sabi ng balimbing). paano nga matututo ang bata kung hindi tuturuan? subalit ang ugat nito ay ang kaso ni pineda na bagama’t isinilang sa pilipinas at inampon ng nagpala sa kanya noong tinedyer pa siya ay wala nang nakasalamuha at nakausap kundi mga dollar spokening.
bandang huli lang, sa atin, bilang mga magulang nakasalalay ang pagtuturo upang bigyang halaga ng ating mga anak ang pagiging isang pilipino, kung inaari pang sariling ugat lalo na ‘yung mga nag-adopt na ng ibang citizenship.
Men0k, Mrivera,
Tama kayo. Meron din siguro tayong nalimutang banggitin sa puntong yan ng pagsasalita. Sino ang dapat paniwalaan kung Pilipino ba o hindi ang isang tao? Ang may ari mismo ng katawan (self) na nagsasalita o ang kausap na ibang tao (others)?
Kung bibisitahin natin ang comments ng ilan dito, parang sila (others) lang ang may karapatang magsabi kung Pilipino ba o hindi ang isang tao. Paano naman yung may ari ng katawan na nagsasabing Pilipino sila (o hindi Pilipino, o hindi na Pinoy)?
E-mail from Manny Ong:
I was reading on the Allan Pineda (Black Eyed Peas) articles and somebody from Hawaii mentioned Tia Carrera. If you dont know yet, Tia Carrera’s real last name is Janairo from Antique. My brother-in-law, Quiling Xavier Jr, says the father is from Culasi who settled in Hawaii.
hawaiianguy,
sa kaso ni allan pineda, mas malaki ang paghanga ko sa kanya tagapagkupkop, Joe Ben Hudgens. oooopps! huwag tataas ang mga kilay!
eto: “Hudgens was living in the Wilshire district at the time but decided to look for a neighborhood where there were mostly Filipinos. The best he could find was a block in Atwater Village, a diverse section of northeast L.A. that included some Filipinos.
“I didn’t want him to be lonely. I suppose I was thinking, ‘Let the neighborhood help raise him like they do in the Philippines,’ ” said Hudgens, now 69.
Hudgens, a single parent who spent long hours at work, encouraged Pineda to have friends over any time. Soon, they were practicing rap and dancing.”
a good man whose heart pours out all his understanding, care, and love to someone not his own.
ito ang wala sa ibang pilipinong sobra sobra ang salapi subalit ni hindi makapagbigay ng tulong sa mga kapus palad.
mrivera:wala nga sa salita ang pagiging pilipino kung hindi nasa gawa.
Yup, kunyari, makabayan sa salita pero wala sa gawa. However, it is better for one to express himself in the language he understands best of all. In fact, when you earn a living with language like I do, I often encounter the problem of putting across things in the language one understands best, for there is apparently a difference somehow in how one may think and feel in another language and having an understanding very different from how a native of the said language feel about a word as when a Japanese learning English has misunderstood “inspiration” for “intuition.”
That is why when leaders of Japan like Abe, no matter how good he is in spoken English having studied in the US himself or our Minister of Foreign Affairs who studied at Oxford University, more often than not hire a professional interpreter when talking and negotiating with leaders of another country like the US or Great Britain.
The Visayans may not be well-versed in Tagalog, but it is the national language of the Philippines that they should accept as it is by now. If they can master English, they can master Tagalog, which actually has basically the same structure as any other language in the Philippines.
In fact, knowing Ilocano and Tagalog, when I read letters of prisoners from the Visayas, I am able somehow to understand what they mean.
OK, so “gawa” matters, and so does right attitude, too, I guess.
ystakei:
iyong huling web page na napuntahan ko sa wikipedia , Lupang Hinirang, ay walang Ilocano translation. Bakit kaya?
Ang Pambansang Awit ng Pilipinas at naisalin na sa Bikolano , Cebuano , Ingles at Kastila
Noong nakaraang linggo na inawit ni Sarah Geronimo ang Lupang Hinirang ay talagang napapaluha ako.
Sabi ng mga kasama ko sa bahay habang pinapanood namin ay proud sila kapag inaawit sa ibang bansa ang “Bayang Magiliw”.
Kung sa Mexico daw ay may Rey Mysterio(wrestler) , sana sa Pilipinas naman din daw ay si Batista.
Walang Ilokano? Kasi Nelbar, the Ilocanos have accepted the fact that Tagalog is now the National Language of the Philippines, so what the heck translating it into Ilocano when the National Anthem is sang in the language spoken and taught there that is Tagalog. That is being more practical, I guess.
Eh anong gusto mo…gawing awit Kapampangan ang pambansang awit? Baka ang mga jueteng lords lang ang marunong umawit niyan. At imbes na umawit ay baka tahol lang ng tahol.
Kahit ano pang sabihin, ang Lupang Hinirang (Bayang Magiliw) at Ang Bayan Kong Pilipinas ay madamdamin lang kung sa wikang pambansa aawitin! O di ba?
What about “Land of the Morning”? That’s the English version of the national anthem. To me, whatever language we use or sing it has to come from our heart. Only then can we feel it and show our love. But singing, talking and writing are useless unless we act. What’s urgently needed today is ACTION. By action, I mean it’s time to get rid of this GMA once and for all. Calling all the freedom loving soldiers and groups that genuinely want a change…what are you waiting for???
Hi. I like the reply of one outstanding Filipina who was appointed to a prestigious post in the U.S. after doing excellent work in the Philippines. She replied somewhat like this “that it would be the “HEIGHT OF CONCEIT” if one would consider my talent a loss to the Philippines” or part of the “brain drain”. She believes a lot of talented and brilliant Filipinos choose to remain in the Philippines because they believe it is best for them and their country. I’ve observed that some people who set foot abroad have this hilarious sense of superiority. Those who leave are not necessarily more talented. They’ve lost hope or very desperate for money (these days most everyone needs money), or God has a plan for them to pursue opportunities and learn abroad then teach and share to Filipinos in the Philippines. I know Pinoys who didn’t even finish elementary school but made it thru prayer, talent and diligence in the Philippine business. I also know of Filipinos or Americans, Chinese, Canadians and Germans who have found their promised land of ABUNDANCE in the Philippines when in their own homelands they found NONE. The FACT is opportunity is available in any country like the Philippines.
“The FACT is opportunity is available in any country like the Philippines.”
Jaypee,
Name some good opportunities in the Philippines under Glueria. Maybe, the OFWs will return to the country if they would know where these good opportunities are. Afterall, most of them are already tired working overseas and have been missing their families already! The nurses and supermaids also may choose not to serve foreigners if there are good opportunities for them, too! Ituro mo lang sa amin at aming pupuntahan!
in a way i agree with jaypee that there exist opportunities even in the pinas.most often though opportunities are difficult to find and sometimes they knock in our doors only once.i know some chinese in my hometown during my childhood who started from scratch but thru hard work were able to build up their own business.pinoys are not specially known to be business minded like the chinese though.it takes a lifetime to build up a business enterprise and we are not known to be so patient either.there is nothing wrong either to work outside the pinas.we are islanders, most of us are poor and therefore difficult to see other countries than ours such that for many of us the only alternative is to find jobs outside.
jaypee, norpil, wala na ang mga oportunidad na sinasabi ninyo. matagal nang panahon ang ipinaghihirap ng mga tao dahil sa kasibaan ng mga ganid na pulitiko. kung meron man ngayon na katulad ng sinasabi ninyong umasensong nag-umpisa sa wala, sila ‘yung mga maaabilidad na swindlers na siyang gustong gustong kaalyado ng reyna anay ng malakanyang.
Darating ang panahon at malakas ang aking paniniwala na ang impluwensya “emperyong Majapajit” ay babalik sa S.E.A.(Timog Silangan Asya)at itataguyod ang “nining ng tagumpay”(sri vijaya) upang palaganapin ang kulturang NUSANTARA.
>I’ve observed that some people who set foot abroad have
>this hilarious sense of superiority. Those who leave are
>not necessarily more talented. They’ve lost hope or very
>desperate for money (these days most everyone needs money)
Kung ating ihahalintulad ang Alamat ng SAMPUNG DATU sa kasalukuyang pangingibang bayan ng mga Pilipino, isa lamang itong pagpapatunay na ang salitang pagtakas ay kahalintulad ng pag-iwas sa isang pagsubok o challenges na kinakaharap.
Ang ipinagtataka ko lamang, kung bakit sa hinaba-haba ng panahon ng pamamalagi ng mga Pilipino sa ibang bansa upang duon mamuhay at manirahan, ay pipiliin pa rin na dito bumalik sa Pilipinas at mag-retiro?
Wala pang Pilipino na maihahalintulad kay CECIL RHODES na kung saan ang kanyang layunin ay lalo pang mapalawak ang emperyo ng Britanya!
artsee,
ang nakakatakot lamang na patungkol sa sinasabi mo ay ang pagpapalawig ng “Emperyong Pinoy” na nasusukat sa pamamagitan ng pagsagana ng JUETENG, BINGO, anumang LARONG SPORTS NA MAY SUGAL, pagdami ng mga CASINO o anumang uri ng SUGAL.
“Of all the buildings, none lack pillars, bearing fine carvings and coloured” [Within the wall compounds] “there were elegant pavillions roofed with aren fibre, like the scene in a painting… The petals of the katangga were sprinkled over the roofs for they had fallen in the wind. The roofs were like maidens with flowers arranged in their hair, delighting those who saw them”.
—Description of the Majapahit capital from the old Javanese epic poem Nagarakertagama.
Another derogatory remarks against Capampangan by this jerk. Jueteng or gambling lords are everywhere in Luzon not just the province of Pampanga. To say that they keep barking is an insult not to these gambling lords; but to all the decent residents of Pampanga!
“Name some good opportunities in the Philippines under Glueria. Maybe, the OFWs will return to the country if they would know where these good opportunities are. Afterall, most of them are already tired working overseas and have been missing their families already! The nurses and supermaids also may choose not to serve foreigners if there are good opportunities for them, too!”
Hi everybody. Much as I would want to point where opportunities are to my people, I am not the all knowing oracle of Greek mythology. Spotting your opportunities, I believe is part of your personal journey of discovery. One has to define what makes an opportunity (i.e. priorities in life,time-line,fanancial goals etc.). Study yourself and take your cues from events and people that speak to you. I am not sure if it is Western and Eastern philosophy that advises “Life is not handed to you on a silver platter”.I advise reasonable caution and calculated risk which I learned from wise men and women.
from Chi:”Name some good opportunities in the Philippines under Glueria. Maybe, the OFWs will return to the country if they would know where these good opportunities are. Afterall, most of them are already tired working overseas and have been missing their families already! The nurses and supermaids also may choose not to serve foreigners if there are good opportunities for them, too!”
Thank you Norphil you are right in saying “there is nothing wrong with working overseas” because work is honorable anywhere. Every Filipinos’ effort count. Sabi ng kaibigan ko para iuwi sa ating Bansa ang kayamanan ng buong mundi yan ang plano ng lahat ng bawat Pilipino cguro. Maganda yon.
Ang gusto ko lang e, igalang ninyo ang lahing Pilipino natin lalu na yung mga nasa Pilipinas. E bilib na bilib yung iba sa atin sa ibang lahi eh nasa history books naman yung atrocious acts at KASIRAAN NILA. Buksan ang isip at mata. blunt ba?). Para igalang rin ang mga nanagtrabaho sa lahat ng larangan. KAYA MINSAN di nirespecto tayo sa ibang bayan KASI WALANG PRENO SA PAGBATIKOS,MGA OVER acting at mag insulto sA MGA PANGARAP NG PINOY/local authorities.
Mahalin yung bansang pinagmulan at kapwa nyo sabi akin ng isang Filipino na nagtrabajo once upon a time in a place far from home.