Can Filipinos claim 'Pacific Islander?' | Breaking The Tabo | Episode 3 | One Down

Filipino Americans are often wondering - are they classified as Hispanic, Asian, or Pacific Islander!?

In this week's episode, we explore the classification of "Pacific Islander" and if Filipinos fit into that definition, while also taking a look into the creation of the term "Asian American."
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One Down is committed to creating a sustainable platform for original and groundbreaking content that showcases our culture, contextualizes Filipino American narratives, and prompts dialogue surrounding the diverse experiences, identities, and talents that are often overlooked, suppressed, or erased; engaging with and building connections between community members both online and in the Greater Los Angeles area; working with established professionals to create avenues for the next generation of Filipino movers to advance in careers across the entertainment industry.

[thvtsydneylyfth]

I'm from Papua New Guinea and there is a large contingent of filipinos there. NONE of them have ever had a crisis as to how to identify as. This seems to be strictly an american thing.

[phoenixdown]

as a filipino, born and living in the philippines we call ourselves asian to be specific "SOUTH EAST ASIAN"

[ellona]

I grew up in the Philippines and I've never heard someone say Pacific Islander 🙄 we always knew were Asians.

[stringstorm]

To any Pacific Islander watching this, I would like, if my fellow filipinos would allow it, to apologize for the remarks these Filipino-Americans make.

We love them but they're just so detached from their culture and heritage after being exposed to the western mindset for so long.

[nesiannnblue]

I've spent a decade living in my Pacific island homeland Papua New Guinea before migrating to the states and literally all my filo friends in PNG identify as Asian. (south east asian specifically) This identity crisis seems to be a mostly filo american phenomemon. Thats just my observation

[stuka]

Why would you claim Pacific Islander? Philippines is part of Southeast Asia.

[yourhubrisisyourdownfall.]

I believe it's only Filipino-Americans who consider themselves as Pacific Islanders. Mainland Filipinos have always identified as Asians.

[StockyDude]

Literally nobody in the Philippines thinks they’re Polynesians or Micronesians. They know they’re Southeast ASIAN. In fact, the Philippines is a member of ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations). When I was 9 and moved from CA to the Philippines, all the Fil-Ams said they were Asian. When I returned at 15, half of them were claiming to be Pacific Islander. I think the confusion started when Fil-Ams born in Hawaii started moving to CA.

[jerryberry]

As a Filipino living in Australia. I can assure you that Pacific Islanders are definitely different from us in most aspects of the culture lol.

We may have common ancestors but for a number of millenia, we have become culturally separated from each other

[writersquill]

Born in the Philippines, raised in the USA since baby age. "Filipinos" (as a national identity covering many ethnolinguistic groups in the archipelago), we are very close geographically to neighboring countries in Southeast Asia, with cultural affinities much closer to Southeast Asians. Having lived there for a few years as an adult, I finally understood this much better. Go live in the Philippines and Southeast Asia for a few years, and learn.

[dreymamaril]

I am a pilipino and im proud for being asian/south east asian only some fil-am proclaim that there are pacific islander...

[designereats]

I’m Filipino-American and I consider Filipino as Southeast Asian not Pacific Islander

[chrisabrenica]

Personally, as a Filipino in the Philippines, I've always seen FilAms identifying as Pacific Islander as Southeast Asian erasure. Many in the West seem to forget that Southeast Asia is ethnically, culturally, and historically distinct from East Asia. The idea that being Austronesian makes us Pacific Islander is a big slap in the face when 90% of Austronesians are in Southeast Asia. Redefining Pacific Islanders to include Austronesian Southeast Asians, like how FilAms sometimes argue, is still Southeast Asian erasure because 60% of Southeast Asians are Austronesians and Austronesians played a principal role in shaping what Southeast Asia is today.

Everything about being Austronesian overlaps with being Southeast Asian, from tribal tattoos, to stilt architecture, to decorative dentistry, to maritime tendencies. Our cultural differences with other Austronesian groups in Madagascar and Oceania still connects us to Southeast Asia: Old World maritime trade, Hindu-Buddhist syncretization, Islamization, the Chinese tributary trade, colonial experience, genocide, slavery, metallurgy, rice agriculture, etc. Many of the distinctive aspects of Filipino culture always talked about by the diaspora are actually Southeast Asian: the tabo, the mano po, the idea of hiya and pakikipagkapwa, rice three times a day, food like sinigang, etc.

[xpm]

Lmao.. claiming to be Pacific Islanders but don’t know that there’s more to us than just Samoans or Hawaiians.. and most of the stuff you see on tv.. we’re welcoming to those that genuinely want to know about us.. ALL OF US..

As a Micronesian, specifically pohnpeian.. I get confused for a Filipina ngl.. but when I correct them they say oh so you’re polynesian, it makes me want to facepalm.. Plus the fact that the terms Polynesian, Micronesian, and Melanesian were given to us by the colonizers. You’re Southeast Asian.. our ancestors may have come from the austronesians but that’s as close as we’re gonna get with history..

[huh]

I'm from Hawai'i and filipinos are not Pacific Islanders. Sorry Fil-Ams you are nothing like Hawaiians, Samoans and Tongans. Filipinos have more in common with SE Asia ethnically and culturally than Melanesia, Micronesia and Polynesia.

[AMMbeatz]

In US census pacific islander are only considered for melanesia, polynesia and micronesia. Filipinos are in asian category.

[GaryHField]

This is extremely stupid. We are SOUTH EAST ASIANS, not Pacific Islanders. I won’t deny that we share common ancestry, because we definitely do. We are both Austronesians, and also both Malayo-Polynesians. But our identity, history and culture is tied to Asia. Pacific Islanders became isolated in the vast Pacific and developed isolated and unique cultures. We don’t. Our ancient cultures were moulded by heritage coming from Ancient China and India. Hindu-Buddhist cultural identity prevailed in our archipelagoes for hundreds of years. Our languages were greatly influenced by Middle Chinese and Sanskrit. Our dug artifacts were Asian. Our cuisine is heavily influenced by mainland Asia.

So, no. We Filipinos are South East Asians. We are blood related, but culturally and historically distinct from Pacific Islanders.

[johnamosclark]

Here in philipines we're not consider us as an pacific islander or hispani we consider are self as an asian filipino didn't know this argument

[voongnz]

In New Zealand there is a sizable Filipino community, and they are definitely not seen as the same or similar as the native Polynesian/Pacific Islander/Maori. They proudly refer to themselves as Asian and more specifically as South East Asian.

[ChocoStewart]

short answer: no filipinos are not pacific islanders