Pass The Quilt

Like many Filipinos my friends extend to many cultures.  Not too long ago on a warm spring day, a friend invited me out to the Turkish Festival at the new Great Park of Orange County.  He said there’s only one of these things in the United States and organizers spent a great deal of money on this thing.  I didn’t quite know what to expect.  I was rather surprised to see the detail and effort put into this thing.  When you walk in, you walked into a timeline.  Replica’s of architecture through time, beside them people role playing, and a wall detailing the history.  As I entered into the main area, incredible pictures laminated to temporary structures simulating important buildings filled the perimeter.  Then I noticed to my left the regions of Turkey are prominently displayed, all the while Sultans, clerics, musicians, and such paraded periodically through the main walk ways.  In the different areas, different performances were carried out to represent the diversity of culture through time and region.  A live televised show on how to make traditional dishes was ongoing throughout the day with samples abound.  I easily transitioned from there to the vendors selling kabaps, baklava, and a long awaited sticky ice cream.  For all the effort another coworker found an excuse to get into an argument with a Sultan (actor) over the inclusion, or lack there of, of Ataturk, the hero of Modern Turkey.  It was funny to hear him argue with a Sultan actor (was actually also a key organizer), but it was a valid argument.  This is a small point, but I wish I’d hear more feedback and argument from people about our own cultural fairs.

Some have accused me in the past of being less than Filipino for my lack of involvement in cultural clubs, fairs, etc.  Well, I feel like I’m spoken down to because I fail to pat someone on the back for being brown.  It just seems like too singular a thought.  The incident at the Turkish Festival showed the environment made an attempt to bring all aspects to the table in this event and invited this conversation.  A simple yet deep and meaningful conversation about who we are, our diversities, our evolution, our impact on society, and how society has impacted us.  And also display this to those not Filipinos to understand the complexity of our evolution if to not bring full understanding (because I hardly understand myself) but bring appreciation.

My observation of the festivals I have attended in America is as follows.  Some are focused and particular, just like the film festival in LA.  Others are based on former town relations and are discrete association celebrations.  These first two I actually wish they brought together in a comprehensive festival to celebrate regional diversity in perspectives, history, cultures, and the arts like what was displayed in the Turkish Festival.  Then there are the mass marketed Filipino festivals that seem more like swapmeets with pop culture talent shows.  In one I walked through, I had never seen so many Manny Pacquiao T-shirts (and Manny is my man…but come on), never handed so many religious pamphlets (in fact some went as far as handing them to my friend’s 5 year old), and never heard so much pop music in my life.  And surprise, I found out Filipinos eat lumpia, pancit, and rice.  Point is, the celebration of being Filipino is about also learning about the experience.  It’s not about just supporting because it’s Filipino.  To me, the big festivals have become more to do about buy from, listen to, and watch because he/she’s Filipino.  There’s not enough stuff that encourages you to think, to understand, to build your own personal identity.  There is not enough Filipino in our festivals.  There is far more history, pride, accomplishment, and things to be shared than comfortable stereotypes we rest our shallow identity on. 

I wear skin manufactured by time over generations from the Philippines, but I admit I’m very American.  That’s my short history.  As I venture into understanding the history that makes up my exterior, I would hope the modern day cultural festival would at least scrape the surface and encourage us to look harder into that aspects that touch us.  Instead, I find it rather tawdry and walk away with the lesson just be happy we’re Filipino, whatever that means.