Tag: Philippines

Izzie Villanueva
TCCS ’19

On Saturday, October 13, 2018, Boston Pilipino Education Advocacy and Resources (PEAR) organized an action at Tufts University to continue the resistance against fascism and martial law. Organizers and participants wrote and painted on a cannon in honor of Filipino American History month in continuing the struggle for genuine freedom and democracy.

Hxstory of Painting the Cannon at Tufts

In 1977, the Fletcher School at Tufts University accepted a $1.5 million dollar grant from Ferdinand and Imelda Marcos, former dictator and president of the Philippines. According to the Marcos family, this money was given to fund the East Asian studies program and create an endowed chair of East Asian and Pacific Studies. In response, Tufts University offered Imelda Marcos an honorary degree.

On October 28th, 1977, Tufts students and faculty rejected these funds as a protest against martial law, the Marcos dictatorship, and US imperialism in the Philippines. In solidarity with the Filipino people who had been under martial law since 1972 under the Marcos regime, the campus quickly erupted into protests. Hundreds of students and faculty alike voiced their dismay with Tufts administration’s decision to take the grant, making it known that accepting money from a fascist regime cannot be free of political weight. Throughout their many visits to campus, the Marcos were consistently met by student protests drawing attention to their human rights violations in the Philippines.

This unrest led to the start of a tradition: Amidst protests, students painted the cannon for the first time as an act of opposition against Tufts’ willingness to host and accept money from the oppressive Marcos regime. The first painting of the Tufts cannon was a stand against martial law, political corruption, and human rights violations.

Martial Law in Mindanao

Today similar conditions in the Philippines persist: More than 25,000 Filipinos have been killed by government police and military since the commencement of Philippine President Duterte’s “War on Drugs” and implementation of martial law in Mindanao. Also notably, the U.S. military has given approximately $180 million in military aid to the Philippine military.

In May 2017, President Rodrigo Duterte declared martial law on the entire island of Mindanao. Martial law, which extends military authority and allows for warrantless arrests and heightened surveillance, was supposedly enacted due to the Maute group’s attack in Marawi City. The official proclamation states, “the attack shows the capability of the Maute group and other rebel groups to sow terror, and cause death and damage to property not only in Lanao del Sur but also in other parts of Mindanao.” However, “the social unrest and armed conflict in the Bangasamoro region of Mindanao must be placed within the proper socio-economic and historical context. Lanao del Sur, the province where the Maute group operates, has the highest poverty rate in the Philippines, yet remains one of the most resource-rich in the country, a prime attraction for foreign corporations for lucrative investments and large-scale extractive operations” (BAYANUSA). The martial law order was originally signed to be enacted for 60 days, however in December 2017, Duterte declared the continuation of martial law in Mindanao for another calendar year.

Isang Bagsak

Back at Tufts, there were speakers and performers who shared personal experiences and historical information about the past and current state of the Philippines and Filipinx diaspora in the United States and Boston. I was excited to perform a spoken word poetry piece, ‘Isang Bagsak,’ and lead then group in the Unity Clap to end of the action.

The saying “Isang Bagsak” has a powerful history. The saying was used with the creation of the Unity Clap during the United Farm Workers Movement in the 1960’s. During this time, farmworkers, consisting of mostly Filipino/Filipina/Filipinx and Latino/Latina/Latinx farm workers (with notable leaders Larry Itliong, Philip Vera Cruz, Cesar Chavez, and Dolores Huerta) were protesting unfair labor wages and working conditions. Though there were language barriers, the farmworkers wanted to create a way to show solidarity and understanding with one another; at the end of each day, the farm workers would start the Unity Clap. Later the saying was also used during the People’s Power Movement/Revolution in the Philippines in February 1986 when protestors were demanding the removal of President Ferdinand Marcos and an end to martial law.

The Unity Clap begins slowly to the beat of one’s heart to symbolize the solidarity and oneness felt through similar struggles and experiences. The clap gradually increases in speed into a thunderous applause, and at the height, there is a pause for everyone in unison to say “Isang Bagsak” and ending with one large clap. “Isang Bagsak” is Tagalog for “one fall, all fall”, which can also be read as “one rise, all rise”. Many current Filipinx organizers now use the Unity Clap to end events and actions as a way of honoring those who came and resisted before us, so that we may continue their legacy and fight in the present and future.

Like the Unity Clap, our collective action and solidarity celebrated and validated different experiences, while still allowing us to come together in resistance against oppressive regimes, both historical and of the present day.

Despite the rainy weather, it was empowering to see and experience the support and validation of so many people gathered for an action that we all felt genuinely passionate about. Like the Unity Clap, our collective action and solidarity celebrated and validated different experiences, while still allowing us to come together in resistance against oppressive regimes, both historical and of the present day. While this action was partially to honor Filipino American History Month, the struggles faced by Filipinos under martial law and Filipinos in the greater diaspora are still taking place today; we deserve platforms to express and honor the legacies of those who have come before us as well as current modes of resistance. I look forward to seeing and organizing future events with Boston PEAR and further exploring my own Filipinx-American identity.

Moving Forward

If you’d like to get involved and/or stay up to date on our events, like our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/BostonPEAR/

If you’d like to see a livestream from the day-of the action, click here.