Ethnic Identity In The Philippines

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When studying ethnic identities in today’s society, we often times only focus upon a few ethnic groups. These groups typically happen to be people who are identified as having white, black, Native American, and Hispanic descent. Other groups, who we do not typically learn much about, seem to be somewhat invisible because we do not shine the light on their own stories of both struggle and achievement. The fact that we overlook these other groups of people can sometimes become an issue. We cannot expect everyone to try to find commonalities and break the barriers that separate different ethnicities if we do not understand the histories behind each individual. One of these seemingly invisible minorities is the Filipino-American. Because …show more content…

They, like many other immigrants, also wanted freedom and independence from colonial rule. According to “Philippine Independence from the Americans,” the Filipino people did not feel as if they had the freedom that they desired and consistently revolted against the Spanish rule during the 19th century. Because of many failed attempts and tragedy from the revolutions, they would have to find a new way to break free from the Spanish colony. During the Spanish-American War in 1896 the Philippine citizens seized the chance to help Americans win the war in hope that they will win the freedom that they longed for (“Philippine Independence from the Americans”). The success for the Americans became a gain in the fight for independence for the Philippine country since the Spanish were no longer in control of the Philippines due to the Treaty of Paris in 1898 (Asis). However, as the freedom they sought for was still not entirely given to the people, the Philippines would be trapped in yet another war within the next coming …show more content…

Not only did it affect many troops, but the war started having a huge impact on many Filipino citizens as well. Many Filipinos were put into concentration camps after their villages were burned by American force in order to keep power (“U.S. War Crimes in the Philippines”). This continued until the war ended in 1902 after Theodore Roosevelt granted amnesty to the Philippines. The war resulted in over 220,000 Filipino casualties including both civilians and soldiers from “violence, famine, and disease” (“The Philippine-American War, 1899-1902”). Although the war had ended, and the Philippine people had made more progress in their fight for independence, they were still stuck under American

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