CATHERINE JAYIN JUN/Daily Bruin Senior Staff Karla
Borromeo, a second-year cybernetics student, poses as a
protester during the 1970s at Wednesday night’s Samahang Philipino
"The Living Museum."
By Sophia Whang
Daily Bruin Senior Staff
Students dressed in sarongs and boxing gloves, and some covered
with fake blood, attracted a crowd in Kerckhoff Hall Wednesday
night, being too early for Halloween.
The commotion was for a program called “The Living
Museum,” which kicked off the October festivities planned by
the student group Samahang Pilipino to celebrate Pilipino American
History Month.
The exhibit, which took place in the Kerckhoff hall Art Gallery,
showcased some of the famous and lesser-known Pilipino heroes in
the culture’s history, played by costumed students.
“We chose the living museum because we wanted to start
with a program showcasing Pilipinos,” said Janice Quindara, a
fourth-year sociology student and president of Samahang
Pilipino.
“There are always the mainstream heroes like Lapu Lapu,
but people don’t get to know of other historical heroes,
figures that have influenced history in the Philippines and
affected a lot of movements here in the U.S.,” she added.
Lapu Lapu, the chief of Mactan Island almost 500 years ago, was
one of the historical figures featured in the exhibit. He is
believed to have killed Ferdinand Magellan during the battle he and
his tribesmen fought to defend their land in 1521.
Ryan Bulatao, a fourth-year civil engineering student,
represented the chief during the event, wearing garments and colors
particular to the tribe Lapu Lapu came from.
“I get a little hesitant, but I don’t mind wearing
it,” Bulatao said about his revealing costume. “(One of
my goals) is to provide insight on what we do on culture night and
to gain an understanding of our heritage and how proud we are of
our history.”
Among other admirable figures were Silme Domingo and Gene
Viernes, Pilipino cannery workers who organized against union
corruption and discrimination, fighting for better wages and
working conditions for Pilipino laborers.
Another figure is Flor Contemplacion, a Pilipina maid who had an
unfair trial. Even as evidence was found in her favor, she was
still executed. The Roman Catholic Bishop Teodoro Bacani later
declared her as a symbol of the millions of poverty-stricken
Pilipino immigrants who take chances abroad.
“There’s just so much more out there than
what’s taught in the classroom,” said Keith Enriquez,
fourth-year math student, historian of the group and organizer of
cultural events for the entire month. “There’s a real
lack of Pilipino education and Asian American educational
opportunities in general.”
Although UCLA offers classes such as History of Asians in
America this quarter, and a class on the U.S. and the Philippines
during spring quarter, Enriquez emphasizes how much more there is
to learn about the culture.
The tour guides at the “Living Museum” helped to
share more of the culture with viewers who came. The guides gave
detailed descriptions of the accomplishments and impacts made by
each figure, especially the lesser-known ones who are never taught
in lectures, and gave facts to clear common stereotypes.
“(The exhibit) is just something completely different from
where I’m coming from, so it’s really interesting to
learn about other people are their histories,” said Elisa
Sequeira, a fifth-year political science student.
“What I learned is the different struggles people go
through and it just gives you a different perspective on how
immigrants and communities of color are treated in the United
States that you never really hear about,” she continued.