At first glance of the controversial article "The War At Home" by the Chinese commentator/writer Chip Tsao on one of the Hongkong broadsheets, I couldn't help but be enraged. This issue is no less serious than a Greek dictionary's definition of the noun "Filipina" as a "domestic worker from the Philippines or a person who performs non-essential auxiliary tasks", some eleven years ago, or last year's brouhaha on an episode of ABC's Desperate Housewives where one of the characters looked down on her doctor-neighbor using the term "Filipino" in her statement with a tone of obvious derision. What have we done to the world to merit such scorn?
Is there something wrong with the fact that we chose to leave the comforts of home to charter unknown territory in countries as progressive as the United States, or as deprived as Angola, to earn the much-needed money so we can provide for the needs of our loved ones left behind? Has it become a sin to scrub somebody else's floors, clean somebody else's toilets, feed and care for somebody else's parents/children, for us to be mistreated and abused? I cannot contain my disgust after reading the said article, satyrical or not. No one, and I mean no one deserves to berate us as a people. In this global community, we bring a significant contribution to every society that we serve--from the lowliest domestic helper to the highest ranking diplomat in the United Nations.
So excuse me for venting. My job may be lowly but that does not make me less human than the Chinese.
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