It is a busy, festive, and colorful sight. Loud, congested crowds forming on a hot and sunny June day.
The Yellow, Red, White and Blue seen all around, waving proudly and worn everywhere. Food stalls with chicken and pork barbecue, steamed rice, squid balls, pancit and halo-halo. And, the crowds are getting hungry.
Everyone from local and homeland businesses, non-profit organizations, and various mongers set up their tables, with their offerings of overseas Pinoy TV programming, craftily-engineered flip-flops, mediocre nods to hip-hop culture, and pleasant surprises like t-shirts for a cause.
Yep.
It must be the Philippine Parade on Madison Avenue.
I must make a confession.
I’ve always hated cared little for the whole event.
But this year was a pleasant surprise.
The first time I attended in 2005, it was a little much for me. For one thing, I couldn’t believe a stick of grilled chicken pieces cost $5. People my age dressed up in ridiculous du-rags, headbands and oversized bootleg NBA replica jerseys. And these groups stared at each other like shit was gonna go down.
(To be fair, this year, food was a little more reasonable.)
Apart from random groups handing out contraceptives and hair conditioner packets, I never found anything else amusing.
At least Shake Shack was on the premises.
I had always then questioned the ultimate purpose of the gathering. Yes, I get it. June 12th is our Independence Day. We as a people overseas gather proudly to commemorate this important historical event.
Hooray.
But why does the whole procession here feel so… fake? It’s like this long and tiresome gathering, ultimately ending with blank stares at each other, and horrendous singing onstage.
Ok, fine. I’ll give this one up. It can be amusing.
Don’t get me wrong. I appreciate the effort. If anything, I guess what ultimately frustrates me is that I am seemingly a part of the generation that doesn’t quite get the whole ideal. And during the proceedings, we seem to be more American than Filipino.
Something fundamental is just a little off. And a little more creativity wouldn’t hurt, apart from banner-carrying organizations in short shorts and fanny packs strolling through Madison.
But I digress.
One thing evident though is, despite my criticism of certain aspects, we are still without question the most warm and hospitable people in the world. We gladly assist people. We are generally polite and respectful.
I guess ultimately, it is something to be proud of.
And as the day died down from all the ruckus, we actually met some pretty interesting people. Namely, a non-profit organization that sold T-Shirts to help out the displaced and homeless in the Philippines, and a group of entrepreneurs that want to share their innovations, one step at a time.
Gawad-Kalinga is a non-profit organization dedicated to helping address the poverty issues back home. It is a gallant effort, really, and one that could use all the help they can get.
We also met Daniel and Jason, the two brains behind the flip-flop phenomena, Tribu.
We are a people constantly evolving. There are certainly pros and cons, but the future is bright for Filipinos who continue to aspire and work towards their dreams.
I just hope we do not completely forget who we are.
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