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| Why should you help? |
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| How can you help? |
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Filipinos marching down to Mendiola [Photo courtesy of www.pldt.com not the telco]
Former president Corazon "Cory"
Aquino, wife of the assasinated Senator Benigno "Ninoy" Aquino, flashing the
ever-famous LABAN sign of EDSA 1 that toppled the dictatorial Marcos regime. |
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Actor-turned-politician Joseph
"Erap" Estrada was voted as the 13th President of the Republic.
Having only served less than 3 years in office, he was impeached for incompetence,
bribery, and numerous counts of graft and corruption. He is now jailed and facing a plunder charge
punishable by death, a law he signed when he was a senator.
The irony of it all.
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In addition to an immense shoe collection, Imelda Marcos boasted her opulent taste with jewelries fit for a queen in the midst of the nation's oppresing poverty. View it here!
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Why should you help?
Currently there is no program available for Philippine Studies at the U of M. Students who
desire to learn more about the Filipino culture, history, sociology and health are
required to take courses that lump Filipinos into collective studies on South and
Southeast Asia, and other Asian studies courses. The few Filipino-centric courses
available on campus are buried in programs within programs, and are not prominent for
students of many disciplines to find.
For the Fall 2001 semester, the following are the only courses related to the study of the
Philippines, Filipinos and Filipino-Americans available at UofM.  Course
title: Asian Pacific American Women (3 Credits). How to find it: Go to
the School of Letters, Science and Arts (LS&A) course catalogue. Look for the program
titled "American Culture." This course is listed under the category
"Topics in American Culture" in the American Culture program. Instructor: Emily
Lawsin Course description: This course will explore the conception that individual Asian
American and Pacific Islander women have of themselves. The class focuses on oral
histories and autobiographies of Asian Pacific American (APA) women, providing a forum to
discuss their consciousness of gender, race, and class. The texts might include an
introduction to narratives, for example, by Chinese, Japanese, Native Hawaiian, Korean,
South Asian, Southeast Asian, and/or Filipina American women; thereby allowing students to
compare and contrast the experiences of different APA ethnicities and generations. We will
examine how these women became agents of social change, both publicly and privately, at
home and in their communities. (Note: The course focuses on women of and in geographic
area, not on Filipinas/Filipina-American women specifically)
Course title: Filipino American Experience (3 Credits). How
to find it: Go to the LS&A course catalogue. Look for the program "American
Culture." This course is listed under the category "Topics in Ethnic
Studies" in the American Culture program. Instructor: Emily Lawsin Course
description: This course is an upper-division interdisciplinary course on the experience
of Filipinos in America. We will examine Filipina Americans' role in historical events,
contemporary issues, and how these affect community formation and life in America. A large
focus will be on Filipinos of the midwest. We will also determine how Filipina/o American
issues are reflected through historical, sociological, psychological, autobiographical,
and literary texts… As we examine these issues, we will also attempt to uncover
"new" historical findings within our local Filipina/o American community.
Students will launch a new UM project of collecting oral histories of Filipinos of
Michigan, with a special emphasis on the Detroit area…as well as final project that
uncovers the history of Filipinos in Michigan. (Note: While this course is
Filipino-centric, it is difficult to find in the catalogue because it is listed in a small
program within a very large school/college of UofM)
Course title: First Year Filipino I (5 credits). How to
find it: Go to the LS&A Course Catalogue. Look for the program "Asian Languages
and Cultures." Find the course title, listed under the category "South and
Southeast Asian Languages." Instructor: Adelwisa L. Agas Weller Course Description:
First Year Filipino is a two-term sequence designed to give the student who has little or
no knowledge of Filipino the necessary basis for learning to speak it and to have an
acquaintance with the cultural context in which it functions…The oral approach is
greatly emphasized in the classroom, using questions and answers and short dialogues to
develop active use of the language in the most natural way possible. This is complemented
by the use of taped lessons…At the end of the first year, the student should be able
to handle brief exchanges in common social situations and to read and write simple
dialogues and essays in Filipino. (Note: While the course is Filipino-Centric, it is
listed under ALC and SSEA languages in the college of LS&A, making it difficult to
find.)
Course title: Second Year Filipino I (4 credits) How to
find it: See First Year Filipino I. Instructor: Adelwisa L. Agas Weller Course
Description: …designed for the student who has some knowledge of Filipino/Tagalog and
who wishes to develop some fluency in spoken Filipino and to be acquainted with Filipino
literature. It is a two-term sequence that is essentially a continuation of what
has been learned in the first year but there will be more emphasis on reading and writing.
Students who have not taken first year Filipino (Asian Languages 111-112) may take this
course if they pass a placement test to be given by the instructor. The format will be as
follows: two class hours a week will be devoted to reading and writing, one class hour a
week will be devoted to guided conversation. Readings will be assigned and these will
provide the framework for the conversation and discussion of Filipino grammar…By the
end of the second year, students should have acquired sufficient competence to handle
longer conversations, write letters and brief essays, read certain plays, and (with the
aid of a dictionary) newspapers and magazines.
Course title: Third Year Filipino I (3 Credits) How to find
it: See First Year Filipino I. Instructor: Adelwisa L. Agas Weller Course Description:
Various approaches will be used to improve students' proficiency in reading, writing, and
speaking the Filipino/Tagalog language. Students will be assigned a composition on
various topics to write each week. Letters to email-pals or articles written in a web page
will also be assigned. Several times during the academic term, the students will be
required to listen to audio-cassettes or view videotapes concerning the history, culture,
and/or politics of the Philippines in order to use them for their compositions or
discussions. Readings will include articles of topical interest, stories, poems, essays,
and others.
Out of the thousands of courses offered at the U of M, only five are related to the study
of the Philippines. Three of those five are dedicated to the Filipino language. One of
those five minimizes the study of Filipinos by studying only Filipina women as part of a
group of Asian women. Only one of the five classes studies the Filipino-American's
social-historical context in Michigan.
If a Philippine Studies program were implemented, more courses would be offered for
students to study the social, historical, economical, and anthropological contexts in
which Filipino-Americans existed and exist today. A program would provide a centralized
system in the courses being offered, making it easier for students to find courses and
give the study of the Philippines more visibility, creating more interest in the study for
other students.
Furthermore, you as a Filipino-American Michigan resident should
invest an interest in preserving the strong academic history U of M
has had with the Philippines.
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