In Our Image: a Reflection

In Our Image: A Reflection

After the 9/11 Terror Attack, the United States decided to launch a “war against terror”. Allied countries such as Britain at once joined the US in this war. Halfway around the world, the Philippines too, joined the US in this war. Truly, the Philippines is a loyal ally of the United States. It is funny though that looking back around a hundred years ago, these two forces were fighting against each other in very brutal war.

The Phil-American war was definitely a very bloody war. The Filipinos, who just recently freed themselves from the Spanish now faces a new invader, who once disguised as a friend and ally. It was a very brutal war. A lot of lives were lost from both sides. The church bells of Balangiga are witnesses of the atrocities committed not only by the Americans but also by the Filipinos.

However, the new imperial masters had a different face. Unlike the Spanish rule that seemed like the dark ages in the Philippines, the American rule seemed like the Renaissance. Improvement and development was America’s weapons to subjugate the fiery Filipinos. Definitely, this new imperial master has put on a benevolent mask.

One of the major contributions of America to the development of the Philippines is the public education system. During the Spanish times, only the rich were able to afford education. The masses therefore remained uneducated. Now when the Americans came, they opened education to everyone through public education. For the first time, the masses were now able to attend formal schooling, a positive change for the Philippine scenario.

Unlike the Spanish who refused to teach Spanish, the Americans insisted on using the American language as a medium of instruction so that instead of them having to learn all other Filipino dialects, the Filipinos will be able to understand them since they understand English.

To me, more than a tool for independence and progress, the American education that the Filipinos received was...