MULTICULTURALPAEDIA: Pebrero 2013

The Phillipines to the United States: " We have a long shared history, from colonization to being allies that our politics and cultural outlook is copied from them, from the best to its worst characteristics."

THE DIFFERENCES IN CULTURE

The Filipinos are known to be FAMILY-ORIENTED, which causes a demand for respect especially for the older members of the family. If you disrespect a parent or grandparent or any older adult in the family, this is looked down upon. It also isn't common to put your elderly members in group homes. The older members of family live in the same house. Family is what's important. It is very common for the daughters and sons to live with their parents even well over their 20s, 30s, and so on. This trait causes kids to become too dependent on their parents. In one household, their can be an extended family living in it: grandparents, parents, children, nieces & nephews, grandchildren. Unlike in the US, the mentality is if a teen can support himself, he can move out when he's 18 years old or so. In comparison, Americans are less dependent on their parents than Filipinos A lot of COLLEGES here have parent-teacher conferences and permission slips for parents. They include your parents very much in your school life, despite if your already in college; which can be a good thing too.

Filipinos are very CONSERVATIVE. Well for example, US TV series such as 90210 & Glee are shows about teenagers and their lives consisting of drugs & sex but in the Philippines you don't see that kinda stuff much on TV series with Teens as characters. When there are Filipino movies with "sex scenes" that don't even show any breast, it's considered Bold, but in the states there isn't a label for that.

The "BAHALA NA" mentality. The positive side, is that this shows how RELIGIOUS the Filipinos are and their faith in God that He will help them no matter what situation. Majority of the Filipinos are Catholic with small percentages of other religions such as Muslim, Buddhist church of God, etc. Because of the Filipinos religious quality, they hold rich festivals and fiestas that fill up the streets to worship God. Praying is also a very common worship practice. In schools, we pray before every class and before every class dismissal. Because of Catholic being the adopted religion, abortion is illegal and divorce isn't possible because it's not allowed by the church. The negative side though is that this mentality may be seen as being PASSIVE. Bahala was actually derived from the ancient god, Bat-hala. So in translation it means, "It's up to Bat-hala/ God now." Showing that when times get rough, some Filipinos are known to believe that their current situation is their destiny and they can't do anything to change it.

The HAPPY-GO-LUCKY attitude. It is amazing to see the resilience of the Filipino people even in the worst situation. Wherever you are, you will see people managing to put a smile on their faces as if nothing was wrong. You can see their contentment in their smiles. The negative side of this attitude is that the Filipinos have this "feeling close" thing where in sometimes they don't know their boundaries. Sometimes they can say things that you would think was insulting (coming from an american culture) but they wouldn't know. Example: It is a very common/ normal statement here in the Phil "Tumaba ka (You got fat)." In the states that's really insulting and rude! But you have teachers and friends saying it to you. In the states, there are boundaries to what people should say to one another, especially if you aren't close friends. Sometimes they can say things that aren't appropriate at the time because Filipinos don't like to be sad or have a heavy atmosphere so they try to lighten it up by making jokes. A common joke is when Filipinos find out you're English speaking, they'll say,"Nosebleed ".

The "feeling close" attitude can also be shown in schools. The relationships between students and teachers in the US are very professional but here in the Phil there is a feeling of friendship and closeness; nothing sexual, but more on a level of friends because majority of teachers/ professors are young unlike in the states. There are professors that are only a year older than the seniors in college because schools believe that younger professors can relate and teach better to students.

Lastly, Filipinos or majority of Filipinos aren't as disciplined as Americans. Graft & corruption is embedded in the Filipino culture and government so laws and rules aren't implemented. Survival was they key and it didn't matter if it was by an honest hand or not. An when the Phil. gained it's independent, I guess this mentality and attitude went on, causing the corrupted to act out for more power & money.

A similarity, is that globalization is present in the Philippines, so having urban areas and Malls, clubs, music, bars, new model cars, technology have become part of the present culture of the Filipinos

DIGGING DEEP INTO THE FILIPINO CULTURE

1. Filipino children are taught the use of "po" (yes) and "opo" (also means yes) when addressing the elderly people. They also use other addresses such as Kuya (brother) or Ate (sister) before saying the name such as Kuya Paul (for an older brother) or Ate Ruth (for older sister) . Americans do not have any of those addresses when calling somebody who is older than they are. They just call them their names regardless of whether they are older or not.

2. Filipinos are known for being hospitable. This means welcoming, courteous, friendly even if you are "new" in the neighborhood. You will feel as if you belong. They treat you as a part of their family.

3. Lots of food among Filipinos. Chinese (such as chopsuey - mixed vegetables) , Italian (such as spaghetti) , Indian (like chicken cooked in coconut milk) , American (hamburgers) and lots of others can be seen everywhere. Filipinos like to eat. They have snacks in between meals not to include midnight snack which would mean a total of six eatings everyday. Americans do not eat as much as Filipinos do. And the funny thing is, Filipinos do not get too fat and obesity isn't a problem. Why? One, because they eat lots of fresh fruits and vegetables. Two, they perspire a lot because of the climate. And it might also be in the genes.

4. Filipinos have Siesta - a time to take a nap.

5. Filipinos celebrate fiestas - festivities.

These are just some of the differences. If you need more information. You can talk with a Filipino in your community so you can see for yourself what's the difference between the two cultures. Aside from the fact that you'll also make more friends.

GROUP CONCLUSION

Though the Philippines and the United States share many different cultures and have known each other some a long time, we still prefer the characteristics of the Filipino Culture. It is simply because though many say that most of the Filipino Culture are like adaptations from those of the Americans, still, the Filipino Culture has some unique traits in their culture. Looking at the Filipino Culture, it is really entertaining and one can easily connect it to its history. The Philippines sure is an open country since it is evident in its culture that it took some from many other countries it had the opportunity to get to know. Nonetheless and bias aside, we truly prefer the Filipino Culture not only because of the Culture per se but also because of how the people celebrate, promote and love their culture.