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Is There a Filipino Identity?

Is There A Filipino Identity? A glimpse of our historical past will surely reveal who the Filipinos really
are, the Filipino identity as it is called. Yet, due to external factors like technological advancements
and colonial influences, the true essence of being a Filipino now reaches the point where it is slowly
degrading. Evidently, our colorful history truly defines our identity as a Filipino, but as I said earlier,
changes threatened this identity. Now, despite of these changes, “Is there still a Filipino identity? ” Let
us consider for example our national flag which is the symbol of our nationality.

This rectangular piece of cloth identifies us being a Filipino. But according to Prof. Randolf S. David,
“We may sing the national anthem, as the flag is raised, and recite the pledge of allegiance everyday,
but these do not do not automatically evoke in as a consciousness of being a part of a nation. ”What’s
the use of uttering such if we don’t even recite it by heart? In other words, we are just taking it for
granted. National symbols like our national flag may give us a sense of being a Filipino, but these do
not reveal our identity.

Like for example, the barong tagalog, “without doubt, it is the garment of defining moments in the lives
of Filipinos, from cradle to grave. The barong reminds the Filipinos of who they are. ”It may really
identify us apart from other nationalities, but it is only an external identification. Knowledge of these
symbols is not enough to identify yourself as a Filipino. What really matters most is our culture.
Culture is our identity. ”Filipino cultural values are widely-held beliefs which make some activities,
relationships, goals and feelings important to the Filipino people’s identity. ” Yet, observance of this
culture is now deteriorating.

The culprit behind this is our colonial mentality. “The Filipino way of thinking that everything foreign is
good is still embedded in his personality. ”We prefer foreign culture more than our own. Now, I can
conclude the fact that there is still a Filipino identity. Yet the identity we have in the past is different
from what we have now. Ronnie John Pascua SOURCES: Ma, Corazon Alejo-Itila, Mitzi Marie Aguilar-
Reyes, and Anita Feleo, Garment of Honor, Garment Of Identity (Manila: En Barong Filipino, 2008),
17,271 Tomas D. Andres and Pilar B. Ilada-Andres, Understanding the Filipino (Quezon City: New
Day Publishers, 1987), 5, 151.

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