‘Four decades later, Filipinos and Americans would fight side by side as members of the original United Nations in the global war against Hitlerism.’
FREE men everywhere in my land–This wide American earth–do not wander homeless, And are not alone; friendship is our bread, love our air; And we call each other comrade, each growing with the other, Each a neighbor to the other, boundless in freedom.” [Carlos Bulosan, “I Want the Wide American Earth”]
It used to be Independence Day, then Philippine—American Day: “When President Marcos issued Presidential Proclamation No. 2346 s. 1984, reference was made only to Philippine—American Friendship Day, which was relegated to a working holiday. During the administration of President Corazon C. Aquino, the practice of celebrating Philippine—American Friendship Day and Philippine Republic Day as a non-working holiday was formally abolished.” [https://www.officialgazette.gov.ph/featured/republic-day/about/]
Be that as it may, now is a good time as any to recap on the entanglements between Filipinos and Americans: “I visited the larger cities of America, where I saw splendid buildings. The Americans have magnificent ideals. America is a homeland for the poor who are willing to work. I traveled across America and saw the majestic cascade of Niagara. I was in New York, the great city, but there everything is new. I went to see some relics of Washington, that great man whom I fear has not his equal in this century.” [José Rizal, c. 1888, From letters written en route from Japan to England across America to his friend Mariano Ponce and first published in Manuel Artigas’ Biblioteca Nacional Filipina, Manila, June 1910 and found in “Rizal’s Own Story Of His Life” edited by Austin Craig (Rizal research-professor in the University of the Philippines), Manila: National Book Company, 1918]
Following Rizal’s very brief take on the Revolutionary Commander-in-Chief of the Continental Army (1775—83) and first president of the United States of America (1789—97), we take this occasion to share a snippet of Washington’s correspondence with the Grand Lodge of South Carolina, May 1791: “The fabric of our freedom is placed on the enduring basis of public virtue, and will, I fondly hope, long continue to protect the prosperity of the architects who raised it.” [Julius Friedrich Sachse (Librarian, Masonic Temple Philadelphia), Washington’s Masonic Correspondence As Found Among The Washington Papers In The Library Of Congress. Lancaster: The New Era Printing Company, 1915] And a different snatch from Washington’s 110 Rules of Civility: “Rule No. 56. Associate yourself with Men of good Quality if you Esteem your own Reputation; for ‘tis better to be alone than in bad Company.” [https://www.mountvernon.org/george-washington/rules-of-civility/6/]
Indeed, the American Revolution was a key event in world history, highlighting many important social innovations: “Under the pressure of the American Revolution and with the events of the French Revolution unfolding before him, Paine was to go so far, before his death, as to advocate political democracy, equal rights for women, abolition of Negro slavery, international arbitration, rational conceptions of marriage and divorce, mercy to animals, pensions for the aged, maternity benefits, subsidy to the children of the very poor, municipal factories to take care of unemployment, labor unions, compulsory education, maintenance for widows, graduated income tax, abolition of expensive and useless rulers, reduction of armament by international agreement, and similar ideas. Even George Washington could employ such a man; he utilized Paine’s revolutionary writings as declamatory material for the soldiers at Valley Forge.” [Albert Weisbord. The Conquest of Power. Volume One. Book One: Liberalism. I. Liberalism’s Road to Power. Chapter Two, The American Revolution, 1937]
Despite this revolutionary record, the U.S. turned imperialist, which Rizal (also a Freemason) had started to notice: “Perhaps the great American Republic, whose interests lie in the Pacific and who has no hand in the spoliation of Africa, may someday dream of foreign possession. This is not impossible, for the example is contagious, covetousness and ambition are among the strongest vices, and Harrison manifested something of this sort in the Samoan question. But the Panama Canal is not opened nor the territory of the States congested with inhabitants, and in case she should openly attempt it the European powers would not allow her to proceed, for they know very well that the appetite is sharpened by the first bites. North America would be quite a troublesome rival if she should once get into the business. Furthermore, this is contrary to her traditions.” [The Philippines A Century Hence, 1889-1890]
The imperialists among the Americans used the Spanish-American War to frustrate the Filipinos’ own revolutionary war of national liberation: “Officers of our Government were instructed not to make any promises to the Filipinos as to the future. But the Filipinos themselves were not so informed. They were left to believe that, while fighting in cooperation with the American forces, they were fighting for their own independence. They could not imagine that the Government of the great American Republic, while boasting of having gone to war with Spain under the banner of liberation and humanity on behalf of Cuba, was capable of secretly plotting to turn that war into one for the conquest and subjugation of the Philippines. Thus, the Filipinos went faithfully and bravely on doing for us the service of allies, of brothers in arms, far from dreaming that the same troops with whom they had been asked to cooperate would soon be employed by the great apostle of liberation and humanity to slaughter them for no other reason than that they, the Filipinos, continued to stand up for their own freedom and independence.” [Carl Schurz, The Policy of Imperialism, 17 October 1899]
In the subsequent Philippine-American War (1899-1913), the Filipinos amply displayed their resolve to defend their newborn Republic. This armed struggle was coordinated by the central government (first located in Malolos) whose Council of Secretaries was Presided by Apolinario Mabini who was captured in September 1899. “Following his release, he lived for a while in a suburb of Manila, in a poor nipa house, under the most adverse and trying circumstances…In spite of his terrible suffering from paralysis, Mabini continued writing…voicing the sentiments of the Filipino people for freedom…Mabini’s logic was a real embarrassment to the American military forces, and in January 1901, he was arrested a second time by the Americans. This time he was exiled to the island of Guam.” [Philippine Press Bureau, Washington, D.C. “Mabini’s Decalogue for Filipinos.” 1922] In his Pacific island exile, the Brains of the Philippine Revolution kept a diary wherein the entry for the American national holiday reads: “This memorable day for the Americans of the Union was celebrated in Agaña with fireworks from Japan. For this purpose, Captain Shaw took us to Agaña to watch the celebration. Those who could not walk were brought in a car. We reached Agaña at about six o’clock in the afternoon and remained in the plaza until about eight o’clock when we got back.” [Diary of Apolinario Mabini, 4th of July 1901]
Four decades later, Filipinos and Americans would fight side by side as members of the original United Nations in the global war against Hitlerism.
“In air; On water and all over this very earth. We are millions working together. We are building, creating, molding life. We are shaping the shining structures of love.” [Carlos Bulosan, https://poets.org/poem/i-want-wide-american-earth]
