A Response to Dr. Kevin Nadal on Charlottesville

Original Article by Dr. Kevin Nadal:
​www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/dearfilipinoamericans-lets-talk-about-charlottesville_us_599723d9e4b03b5e472cef1c

"...Please don’t speak on behalf of the Filipino American community, particularly if you do not have empirical evidence to back your claims."

Right back at you, Dr. Nadal.

My life is filled with all interesting kinds of people - religious, atheist, white, black, brown, camouflage, and probably even some who may identify as unicorns. But I only feel the need to mention that because you've made it into a matter of intersectionality in which you attempt to get Filipino-Americans, like myself, up on some type of victimization leaderboard. These folks weren't brought into my life proportionally by race, nor was it from colorism or inherent colonial mentality.

They're in my life because they're all exceptional individuals with differing principles and views whose shared experiences offer value to my life's continually evolving perspective. And in my life, I choose not to be a victim of microaggressions, subjectively offensive statements, or whatever instances of racial oppression you bring up as an attempt to unify us through.

I acknowledge that racism exists on many fronts, but using the Charlottesville incident in order to draw attention to Filipino-American racism incidents from decades ago is comparing apples to oranges and, quite frankly, in poor taste. Productive approaches to the issue begin with a perspective that views everyone as individuals, not by separating them into categories. Singling out why some Filipino-Americans associate mostly with whites, or why you state there's not enough empathy for blacks, only continues to polarize the race issue further without pushing towards a solution on how to strengthen and unify today's social fabrics during nationally traumatizing events.

Now I'm certainly not speaking on behalf of all Filipino-Americans, and I kindly ask you not to as well. This is a visceral and deeply reflective response to you from a Filipino-American male who was raised in both racially homogeneous and diverse environments throughout my 31 year residency in the U.S. so far. But let me summarize that all as a simple response from an American individual who wants to make a real difference - not through identity, victimization, subjective balances of empathy, or inherent privileges and disadvantages, but through true empowerment of the American individual. Like you, I will reflect on the parallels of historical events, but with the intent of creating a dialogue that strengthens the sense of self-worth to any engaging individual over perpetual victimhood.

I'm now asking you to expand your perspective and approach in the aftermath of this event.  I acknowledge that our nation does wade in troubled waters from time to time, but we can all get through it with true empowerment of the American individual. When this strong nation bleeds, we patch it up together through resiliency and power. That's how we begin contribute toward the right side of a unified future.