A Post Father’s Day Tribute to My Dad

I call him “Tatay”. He is my father, and for me, he is the best father a daughter or a son could ever have! Don’t we all wish that we are close to the man who sired us? Of course we do! When we were kids, we envied those children whose dads were fetching them from school, taking them to amusement parks, riding with them on the rollercoaster.

I’m very grateful that God gave me a father who loves me not just because I am his daughter, but because he is by nature a loving person.

I remember when I was still a child he used to carry me, when he saw that I was tired of walking. I think I was about four or five years old then. The three of us – my father, my mother and I (my sister had not been born yet) used to walk all the way to my grandparents’ house, approximately a twenty-five minute walk from our place.

He used to take me to carnivals, malls, bookstores, theaters, and every other place that a little girl like me was fond of visiting. When my mother and I would quarrel about petty things, he would act as our mediator; he was not taking my side all the time though, but he would make sure that both sides were heard and the argument would come to an end .

He had been there when the school required the parents to participate in certain activities; he taught me my first lessons in English, encouraged me to build and broaden my vocabulary that the next thing I knew, I was writing editorial articles at the age of 12.

He had never been strict when it comes to going out with my friends. He allowed me to enjoy going to places as long as it was safe. He’s always been after my safety but not up to the extent that he’s suppressing my independence. When I asked him to come with me because I was not familiar with many places when I was still applying for work, he never said “no”. I never heard him complain about the length of time that he was spending waiting for my exams or my interviews to be finished. All he needed was a broadsheet to keep him occupied during the long wait, or a guardhouse to serve as shelter during a stormy day.

I never heard him complain or get mad at me when I came home very late one time during my final year in college. I was supposed to be at school attending a symposium with my classmates, but instead, we all decided to go to the mall. I was supposed to be home at around 8 in the evening since my schedule in class during that time was from 3-7pm, but since my classmates and I got stranded because of a downpour and a flashflood, I got home around 1:45am the following day, and found out from my mother that my father was waiting for me at the waiting shed at the foot of the bridge.

I was really worried then, because I knew my parents had been worried about me. There were no cell phones yet during those times neither did we have a landline where I could call in case of emergency. I was ready to face their wrath. It was my fault anyway and I was willing to take the consequence of my action. But my parents, especially my father, who had gone up to the bridge to wait for me for more than an hour, with the mosquitoes biting him as he watched every passenger jeepney to see if I was inside, never raised his voice to me to ask “What have you done?” and instead, he asked me “Have you eaten? We were so worried about you. Go ahead, change your clothes so you can go to bed and get some rest.”

My father is neither overly protective nor overly lenient with his daughters. He always sees reason, always hears what we have to say and gives advice whenever it is necessary.  He values his principle over money, a trait, which I am proud to say, I have inherited.

He is my role model, my inspiration, my guide. I thank my Tatay for bringing me into this world, for always being there for me, for taking care of our family’s needs to the best of his ability and capability, for being a loving husband to our mother, and most of all, for being a wonderful father to his two daughters…We love you, Tatay!

Always The Wrong Color

It has always been a common knowledge that African-Americans are recipients of racial discrimination. While the white race was considered to be the superior race, the Blacks or Negroes were considered to be the inferior ones.

The African-Americans wanted to have equal treatment by everyone in every aspect. They believed that they were also capable of doing the things that any white man could do and they deserved to be treated fairly.

           
Since they believed that they should be given privilege to enjoy having an identity that was recognized internationally, they founded an organization that will ensure the improvement of their condition.

           
Although they had become a subject of permeative discrimination by the military when they fought in WWI, the battle from which they had been part of was the same battle that inspired them to establish an organization that encouraged national self-determination. They wanted the redemption of Africa; freedom for the black race.

           
Despite the discriminative treatment that they received from the white Americans, they still considered the United States as their fatherland. They believed that the fault of their country would be their fault as well; the blemish of their nation was mirrored in its people, and their being part of the American nation only meant that they also bore the same blemish.

           
They fought for their country despite their feeling of resentment and bitterness for the way they were treated in the past. The Negroes felt betrayed by their own country, for despite their determination to truly be a part of it, they felt they had been treated like dirt, looked down, and degraded; and because of this, they saw America as a shameful land.

           
W.E.B. Du Bois, the founder of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and also the father of pan-Africanism, cited in detail the reasons why the Black community felt betrayed.

           
He pointed out that from as early as the time of the Civil War, the Negroes had been subject to “pervasive discrimination” by the military (Du Bois 135). He was speaking in behalf of all the Negroes when he wrote:

            […] for America and her highest ideals, we fought in far-off hope; for the dominant southern oligarchy entrenched in Washington, we fought in bitter resignation. For the America that represents and gloats in lynching, disfranchisement, caste, brutality and devilish insult – for this, in the hateful upturning and mixing of things, we were forced by vindictive fate to fight also.

            […] We stand to look America squarely in the face and call a spade a spade. We sing: This country of ours, despite all its better souls have done and dreamed, is yet a shameful land. (135-136).

           
Du Bois made explicit description of the Negroes’ sufferings in the hands of their own countrymen. He described how Negroes were put to death by lynching or hanging without any lawful trial, and condemned the act as being barbaric. According to him, “[…] lynching is barbarism of a degree of contemptible nastiness unparalleled in human history”. (136).

           
He also mentioned the act of disfranchisement by the same country which they continued to live in and serve. Taking the rights of citizenship away from every black, according to him was the same as robbing someone of protection; protection of black against white, protection of poor against rich. He accused America of lying since according to him, it called itself democratic yet it deliberately took its citizens’ freedom away.

           
The fact that America never really intended for the Negroes to be educated as its people declared that the blacks cannot be educated; moreover, that the race which they considered inferior “threaten them with degeneracy”, (136) was both hypocritical and selfish gesture.

           
According to Du Bois, the Negroes were cheated in their own country:

            It steals from us.

            It organizes industry to cheat us. It cheats us out of our land; it cheats us out of our labor. It confiscates our savings. It reduces our wages. It raises our rent. It steals our profit. It taxes us without representation. It keeps us consistently and universally poor, and then feeds us on charity and derides our poverty. (136).

And finally, according to Du Bois, America was insulting the Black community by organizing a nationwide propaganda, which made it impossible for Negroes to live a normal life in a community without having to feel their inferiority to the white race. To reside, work, travel, play or be educated had become impossible for them to do without any fear of being rejected because of their color.

The African-Americans fought for their country and for the rest of the American allies during WWI; ironically, they came home to fight against the same nation, whom they defended; this time they were fighting a battle of races, seeking justice for having been treated in a manner which none of them deserved.

Works Cited

Du Bois, W.E.B. Returning Soldiers. The Crisis. May 19, 1919.

Jacques-Garvey, Amy. Speech Delivered at Liberty Hall, New York City. August 21, 1921. Philosophy and Opinions of Marcus Garvey. New York, 1923-1925. vol. 2. pp. 93-97.

Roark, James L. Patricia Cline Cohen, Sarah Stage, et. al. The American Promise: A History of the United States from 1865.  1998. vol. 2. pp. 135-140.

Looking Back

by ylecktrah

The Age of Enlightenment, also known as the Age of Rationalism or the Age of Reason, started some time in the 1600s and ended in the latter part of the following decade. During this period, French philosophers such as the Marquis de Condorcet, Rene Descartes, Denis Diderot, Voltaire, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Montesquieu and English philosopher John Locke, insisted that learning the truth could best be achieved through the use of reason.

           
These philosophers of the Enlightenment Age made numerous significant contributions to science as well as to many other fields through relying primarily on scientific method and intense study and experimentation. The ideas of these same great leaders, however, triggered the outbreak of two great wars – the American and the French Revolutions – in the latter part of the 1700s.

           
These people had high regard for man, being superior over all of God’s creations because of his ability to reason. Relatively, they contrasted reason with what they believed were in dominance during the Middle Ages – the uncritical acceptance of authority, together with superstition and ignorance. These individuals also blamed the leaders of the Roman Catholic Church for keeping the people in the dark in order to satisfy their personal ambition, which was to stay in power.

           
Among the products of the Enlightenment Age was Francois-Marie Arouet, popularly known as Voltaire. A native of Paris, France, and a son of a lawyer, Voltaire studied in a Jesuit school wherein most students came from the nobility. His company was sought by the Paris society due to his extraordinary ability to write verses, as well as his ability to make people laugh and because of his natural cleverness.

           
In 1718, he adopted his pen name Voltaire, which, according to a widely accepted theory, originated from a faulty arrangement of letters that made up the French equivalent of Arouet the Younger.

           
Voltaire became extremely wealthy through inheritance and wise investment. He also became popular and was considered to be the greatest French playwright of his time. However, in 1726, his success came to an end when the Chevalier de Rohan a young and influential nobleman had him beaten by his men before having him thrown into the Bastille again as prisoner. According to historians, it all started when the Chevalier de Rohan asked for Voltaire’s name in a mocking manner; the former’s question implied that the latter was claiming to be of noble descent when in fact he was nothing but a commoner.

           
During the time he was in prison, Voltaire was allowed to choose between remaining a prisoner in France or to be put on exile. Upon choosing the latter, Voltaire left France and lived in England for three years, where he found religious and political freedom.

In England, Voltaire was impressed with Sir Isaac Newton’s works as well as the reverence that the people of England gave him. In his letters, Voltaire’s commendation of English customs, its institutions and way of thinking seemed to indirectly criticize their French counterparts. Consequently, the French authorities expressed strong disapproval of his writings.

Voltaire was 83 years old when he returned to Paris, where he was received with enthusiasm. It was also where he saw his last play before he died.

And since his criticisms caused the Roman Catholic Church to refused Voltaire’s remains to be buried in the church ground, it was taken to an abbey in Champagne. However, it was transferred to the Parthenon in Paris in 1791.

Another French philosopher whose name became well-known during the Enlightenment Age was Charles de Secondat, also known as Montesquieu. Having inherited the title Baron de la Brede et de Montesquieu, was how he got his pen name. His greatest contribution was probably the influence he made in writing of constitutions all over the world. Montesquieu believed in the complexity of the laws that govern human nature and therefore he considered the study of humanity rather difficult.

In his Persian Letters, where he became famous, he ridiculed the Parisian life as well as numerous French institutions. In addition, he also criticized the French National Government as well as the church.

He was impressed with the political system of England when he came to live in the place for about two years.

The third French philosopher during the Age of Enlightenment was Jean-Jacques Rousseau. He was considered to be the most important writer of the said period.

According to history, Rousseau’s philosophy was the basis of political events that eventually triggered the French Revolution. It was also said that his works had strongly influenced the fields of politics, literature and education during that time.

To Rousseau’s belief, people, by nature are not social beings. According to him, if people were to live in a natural condition – that is, without language and were isolated – would not be motivated to hurt one another. He believed that, instead, that it was society which corrupts individuals, and causes them to be inclined toward selfishness and aggression.  

Works Cited

Bronowski, J., and Bruce Mazlish, “The Western Intellectual Tradition: From Leonardo to Hegel.” New York, New York. Harper and Row Publishers, Inc. 1960.