Foreign Devils

What I imagine I look like in Asia before people
realize that I'm half-Asian

Growing up in the Philippines as a Filipino-American has definitely impacted the way I view the world. For one, I have developed a zen-like patience through simply dealing with traffic and the general lack of polite driver-y throughout the country. However, beyond my stereotyping of Asian drivers (of which I am one, so it’s okay), I believe that growing up in a country as uniquely placed as the Philippines has taught me something about the concept of “foreign-ness”. I am a man of many words, and one word which quite effectively encapsulates the topic of this post is “gweilo,” which is a derogatory Chinese word for foreigners. I’ve been led to believe that it sometimes translates as “foreign devil”.

The concept of a foreign devil is intriguing to me as I am quite frequently mistaken for one in my own country. Although I am half-Filipino, in the province I am frequently greeted with yells of “hey-Joe” (a throwback to the term Joe referring to American soldiers and thus, white people). Sure, there’s no malice behind this greeting, and some might even argue it is an attempt at friendliness but I disagree. It is simply another way for someone to let you know that you’re not “one of us”. I remember when as I child a tricycle driver (see picture for reference) once told my father to “go back to the States” and “get out of [the driver’s] country”. Even as an eight year old, I found this quite amusing. You see, my father was in his sixties (or late fifties, I’m not quite sure how old he is), the tricycle driver was probably twenty or so. All in all, I think this meant that my dad had probably been in the Philippines for longer than that man had been alive. The man then ill-advisedly kicked the side of our car, which then led to my father also ill-advisedly trying to start a fight with the man. I don’t remember the exact details, but given my father’s age I’m going to assume they engaged in a round of gentlemanly fisticuffs.

It took my father a while to get on the tights
and gloves, but I'm sure it was worth the effort

Not all my childhood was spent being mortified by my father’s actions however. From sixth grade onwards, I attended an international school with what is probably considered a very “diverse ethnic” population. I use the sarcastic quotes because I truly and utterly despise the use of the word “ethnic” (note sarcastic quotes once more). As I understand it, ethnicity simply refers to being part of a social group with common cultural traditions. Why is it then that “ethnic food” only ever refers to Indian, Mexican, or Chinese food? Do white people not have ethnicity? I understand that the vast majority of people do not have any intentions towards condescension and that the word is simply that, a word. But as a self-proclaimed man of words, I can’t help but wince (quietly and so that no one notices, because I don’t like preaching at people).  Much like labeling some people as foreign devils, I believe the term ethnic is incredibly divisive.  If we, as the current majority of white Americans, label others as ethnic then we tacitly imply that to be white is the default state of existence.  I consider myself quite lucky that I am both American and Filipino I get to see things from the perspective of both the dominant culture in America, and as a minority.  There is also the added benefit of being able to flee either country should things take a turn for the worse. Here’s hoping that the Philippines never goes to war with the US.

it's true because the paper says so

The point of this story is that the belief in “gweilos” and “ethnics” can end up becoming a self-fulfilling prophecy. If you tell people that they’re different then they’ll probably act different, and you’ll probably treat them as such. More importantly however is the fact that these words annoy me. If you think that that is a silly reason, then consider this: your complaint does not reference pachyderms, therefore it is irrelephant.

the blog is called pundemonium, don't act
so surprised that I make awful puns