I am now traveling with my mom and brother. We are going somewhere far from the metro. Away from the luxury. I'm kinda introducing them to my budget backpacking skills kunyare.
So after a very long travel, we got off the bus and hurriedly went to a sari-sari store where these two magkumare were chatting. I inquired about a certain place in Filipino when my mom blurted out, "Ayaw diha nak kay may iro!" (Stay away from there, there's a dog!) To my surprise, one of the ladies giggled and whispered, "Ay mga bisaya! Ituro mo nang maayos baka mawala." She giggled again trying to hold her laughter. Then the other lady continued giving us information but this time, her voice shifted with exaggerated hand gestures as if giving instructions to people who have difficulty in understanding.
I really convinced myself that she might just giving a plain comment but NO it wasn't just a comment, it sounded so degradatory that her giggles still ache my ears. Buti nalang talaga, I'm educated, professional and well-travelled (thanks to a good friend of mine for pointing that out) not to stoop down at her level.
I composed myself and replied in my most American sounding English (hahaha), "You know what Ma'am, never mind. Thank you, anyway. Actually, we were just trying to figure out if there are worth visiting in this place." But at the back of my mind, "You don't know who and what I am. You don't know where I am from. I can literally buy you, your kumare, and your sari-sari store! And I can buy your askal dog, triple of the total amount of the first 3 that I mentioned!" Chozzz lang. Hahahaha.
I actually don't understand why there are still these kind of people that exist. I even have a friend whose mother thinks that Bisayas are these maids and poor people from Mindanao or Visayas trying to make a living in the metropolitan and that Tagalogs are above us (Bisayas). To think, they are not actually that well off in the first place. I won't blame the media entirely. I blame their poor brains. God, please bless their brains.
I am ranting not because we are/were being stereotyped. I am posting this to remind a lot of you out there to behave like a human being who respects a fellow human being whether what or where he/she comes from. Whether he/she is someone with a degree or someone who is working so hard as helpers/utilities (in any form) to have his/her kids have a degree. #IRestMyCase hehe
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