(Picture taken from: http://www.eastasiafair.com/wp-contentuploads/2008/12maid-in-malaysia-2.jpg )
Millions, literally millions, of Pinays are branded as "mukhang longkatuts" in the Philippines. The phrase literally translates to English as "looks like a maid".
According to widespread perception, a Pinay who is "mukhang longkatuts" possesses certain facial features which would distinguish her as belonging to a category of the Pinay population characterized as, well, primarily ugly and totally unappetizing to discriminating eyes. This pathetic categorization carries with it the implication that the Pinay in question might actually be a maid employed in some well-to-do household.
Pinay maids in the Philippines are generally characterized as maleducated, barely literate, and totally incapable of rising above their status as mere servants--i.e., drones of manual labor inside the house. They are said to speak with an accent that many Pinoys mock as--if not painful to the ears somehow, then certainly almost unintelligible in a hilarious way. It can be said that owing to these qualities attributed to Pinay maids, they are relegated to a social standing far below the mainstream society.
Perhaps at one time in US history, African-American slaves were suffering under the same burden of...unequal treatment and regard. Up to now, African-Americans tirelessly speak of the discrimination their ancestors had to endure under the white folk. One can imagine that for a person to look like a black servant back then would attract scorn and avoidance. They even say that remnants of the same attitudes remain today.
Then again, what is a "mukhang longkatuts" person, anyway? Are there any definite and empirical parameters for this? Granted that the person above is an actual Pinay maid, and that she can be said to look the part, then perhaps maids of foreign nationalities must also have a facial appearance that distinguishes them from, well, the not "mukhang longkatuts". Consider the two maids below:
(Picture taken from:http://images.google.com.phimgresimgurl=httpwwwdelivery.superstock.com/WI2231433/PreviewCompSuperStock_1433R-946897.jpg&imgrefurl=httpwww.superstock.comstock-)
Both are maids, and yet it would be apparent that the woman on the left would not be "mukhang longkatuts".
In any case, the Americans recently elected a president who perfectly looks like an African-American slave. Could it be said that, for Americans somehow, he is a "mukhang longkatuts"?
Perhaps someone would be kind enough to truly differentiate what is "mukhang longkatuts" from what is not? And by the way, do the longkatuts and those who look like them deserve their treatment?
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Kamusta,
ReplyDeleteSa aking napapansin at nababasa sa mga usap-usapan dito sa Blog na ito, halu-halo ang aking nararamdaman. Nariyang napatawa ako sa mga batikos sa ating kapuwa, nariyang mapag alab ang aking damdamin sa ibang pananaw at kurot sa aking pinagmulan. Sa aking palagay ay marami sa atin ang nalilito at hindi alam ang sisisihin, kung kaya't pati ang ugali na binuo sa atin ng kapalaran at panahon ay ating pinupukol. Sa aking pananaw ang ating pagiging mababang katayuan (ayon sa panimbang ng mas may dunong o ng nagdudunong-dunungan ngunit hindi makalapit sa ketongin kaya't nambabato na lamang.) mababaw lamang ang pinanggalingan kung kaya't hindi matukoy, marami ang hindi sasang-ayon ngunit tayo ay matagal nang nasupil sa sarili nating bansa kung kaya't kahit tayo ang dapat nagtataas noo sa Pilipinas ay tayo ang nakayukod at parang nakikitira. Sa ating mga mata, simula noong mapaalis ang lahat ng mananakop sa ating bayan ay tayo ay naging malaya. Edukasyon ay malayang ibinigay sa lahat, nakapaloob rito ang pinakamalaking disenyo ng ngayon'y ating kinasasadlakan. Maaring nakakatuwa na marami sa ating ninuno ang nasabihan ng kanilang guro ng "beri gud" at sila ay tinaguriang mga mabubuting magaaaral, dahil sa sila ay bumigkas ng "good apternoon, dog, ket, epol at ang mga salitang nagpapahiwatig na ang "batang ito ay may anking talino". Sa kabilang banda, ang ninuno ni Yaya, Juhn, Tita Baby, Manong Rey, Let-let at Mak-mak ay tinawag na "bobo" dahil hindi alam ang ibig-sabihin ng ket o kaya ng dog man lang. Dahil sa kung saan siya umuuwi ay wala namang ganung bagay na nakikita bukod sa kanyang kubo, inang, tatang, kapatit na tinatawag nilang beybi (tunay na pangalan ay Maria Leticia), si puti na aso at ming-ming na pusa. Si kalabaw ay wala namang pangalan at sila manok ay magkakamukha kaya't di pwedeng pangalanan. Sabi nung batang tinawag na bobo ay, siya naman ay bobo kaya't hindi na lamang niya kikilalanin ang mga dog at ket sapagakt nakakahiya naman sa mga guro na siya ay napagiwanan, sa kanyang buong kabataan hanggang ika limang baitang ay tinatawag siyang "bobo" isang pangyayari ang naganap kung kaya't natigil ang pagtawag sa kanya ng "bobo". Siya ay tumigil NA sa pagaaral sapagkat sabi niya ay siya raw ay "bobo" naman dahil hindi siya natutong mag-ingles. Saan naman niya gagamitin at kanino niya e-ensayuhin ang paggamit nito? Kay tatang na nagbubunkal ng lupa o kay inang na laging nagpipili ng bigas? Ang wikang Ingles ay malaki ang naitutulong nito sa ating hanap-buhay, marami rin ang hanggang ngayon ay "bobo" dahil walang alam sabihin kundi "yo" at Fack Yu", kundi naman ay "you know?" at WRU? Bakit hindi na lamang natin tanggapin na hindi tayo amerikano at kahit kailan ay hindi tayo kailangang maging amerikano para maging tao? Ibaba na natin ang krus na pasan ng ating mga Yaya, Tita Beybi, pareng Juhn at Rhey lahat tayo ay may angking talino at ang nagiging hadlang ay kailangang patunayan mo na matalino ka sa pag depensa nito sa salitang ingles. Hindi nakakahiya ang ating wika, ito ang wika na pinagdanakan ng dugo at pinag-buwisan ng buhay ng ating mga bayani. Tayo'y ginagawang mga alipin sapagkat nasasa-atin ang magandang ugali ng isang alipin, Mahiyain, Magalang, Mapagkumbaba at Mahilig matuto ng ibang salita. Malaking kalokohan ang ginawa sa ating lahi, ipinamukha sa atin na "Cool ang mag ingles kahit puro "y'know" at y'see" sa gitna ng bawat salita at alam ng mga amerikano na ito ang magiging epekto nito. Na habang tayo ay nagpupumilit na matutunan ang kanilang salita, sila ang magdidikta kung paano natin sila titingalain. Sana ay may mapulot kayo sa aking munting tinig, nasa sa inyo ito kung paano ninyo tatanggapin ang aking opinyon. Lumapit kayo sa may ketong upang malaman na sila ay may damdamin at huwag puro bato ang ipukol, hindi mawawala ang sakit nila sa pamamato ninyo.
Gumagalang,
Cris Villanueva
Thank you for posting this, Reg. It's unfortunate that we perpetuate the vicious cycle of self-hatred, long after colonization has ended. A good friend of mine introduced me the idea of "internalized racism:" the concept of emotional and psychological trauma of being put down and kept down. I suppose the psychological scars of being branded as inferior takes many, many generations to overcome.
ReplyDeleteWhen we were growing up in the '80s, the aesthetic to aspire to is European: light skin, angular features. After being away from Manila for over 16 years, I came back last year to find that Korean telenovelas are all the rage. Now it seems that Filipinos are infatuated with the East Asian aesthetic and revere folks who look Japanese, Chinese, Korean, i.e. light-skinned Asians.
When will we grow to love and embrace our brown-ness?
i really don't know who taught us Pinoys that having brown skin, black hair, dark eyes, and a slightly curved ( instead of sharply angled ) nose is supposed to mean that the person looks like a maid. i mean, maids can look like any other person!
ReplyDeleteand why does the term "longkatuts" carry with it a derogatory element, anyway? it's all so confusing. i mean, we demean maids, and yet millions and millions of Pinoy mothers work abroad as maids. Pinoys supposedly extol the virtue of the Overseas Filipino Worker as the "modern hero", and yet what they do abroad and what maids do here are practically the same. aren't local maids, then, also "modern heroes"? just because they earn a lot less and yet do essentially the same thing, they are automatically branded as something like stray dogs?
i mean, i have a friend who works in the broadcast business, and my friend's mother works as a maid in the United States! my friend graduated from college in a prestigious university because of the mother's efforts in cleaning house diligently for her American employers. is the mother, then, a "longkatuts" or not?
i just don't understand why Pinoys always exercise double standards about their own race. it totally escapes me.