- marginalization -

taking the definition from dictionary.com, to be marginalized is to be "relegated or confined to a lower or outer limit or edge, as of social standing" ... para sa aming mga pinoy na ofw, it's as good as saying na "na-racist" ka ...

when i first decided to go and work here in taiwan as a qa engineer, i never, never imagined that i willl experience racism ... tapos nung isang araw, it dawned on me na parang "normal" na lang na ma-racist ako ... teka, magdi-disclaimer muna ako ... i don't have this problem at my workplace ... sa labas ng opisina ko nararamdaman na ako ay isang indio ... isa pang disclaimer ... nde naman lahat ng tao dito ay racist ... pero meron pa din talagang nde - uhm, learned? ... might be my skin color ... may nabasa ako sa isang travel guide to taiwan, ang tingin sa mga dark-skinned ay "worker" ... so kelan-kelan ako na-racist?

^ nung naghahanap kami ng bahay ni chireh, we found a good apartment near guanghua ... the rent was 26K ... we told the landlady where we were working ... we had a little problem with the arrangement sa "pagpasok" sa haus ... we had to pass by our landlady's house ... it's not very convenient since you have to pass through their living room, dining room and several bedrooms ... there was an alternative way but you have to pass by the basement which was spooky ... chireh asked a local friend to talk to the landlady - given that her english was limited - to ask if there was any way to fix the basement ... instead of getting an answer to our request, we found out that the landlady was hesitant to have us as tenants and was even wondering how we can afford to pay the rent ...

^ i expected doctors to be compassionate and helpful at definitely, hindi racist ... i went to see a doctor for a reason that i can't remember now ... the hospital was supposed to be "foreigner-friendly" ... that for me means that speaking english shouldn't be a problem and my oh-so-limited mandarin won't be needed ... when it was my turn to see the doctor, i was asked - "ni hui shuo zhongwen?" (can you speak chinese?) ... to which i answered - "i-dyen-dyen" (a little) ... how long have you been here? ... almost 3 years now ... you've been here for 3 years and you don't know how to speak chinese? ... and the doctor was very incredulous ... ok, ok ... he does have a point but i went to see him to have something about me checked ... but it's definitely not my language skills ...

^ i was thinking of getting laser treatment for my varicose veins ... asking the dermatologist about the details of the treatment, i was told that it was expensive and was given the numbers - the estimated price ... i had to explain to the doctor that i was working as a qa engineer ... he later explained himself by telling me that most pinays are working as helpers or factory workers ... so there, i was stereotyped ... so much for my laser treatment ...

and the list goes on ...

pero idealistic lang cguro ako noon ... hm, ignorante ata ang mas tamang term : ) .... and now, i think i know better .... it is "normal" for people to see me as a second-rate citizen ... sabi ko nga, sa sariling kong bansa e nata-trato din akong indio e ... what more dito?