Wikipedia

26 June 2018

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colonial_mentality

A colonial mentality is the internalized attitude of ethnic or cultural inferiority felt by a people as a result of colonization,
i.e. them being colonized by another group.[1] It corresponds with the belief that the cultural values of the colonizer are
inherently superior to one's own.[2] The term has been used by postcolonial scholars to discuss the transgenerational
effects of colonialism present in former colonies following decolonization.[3][4] It is commonly used as an operational
concept for framing ideological domination in historical colonial experiences.[5][6] In psychology colonial mentality has
been used to explain instances of collective depression, anxiety, and other widespread mental health issues in populations
that have experienced colonization.[7][8] Notable Marxist influences on the postcolonial concept of colonial mentality
include Frantz Fanon's works on the fracturing of the colonial psyche through Western cultural domination,[9] as well as
the concept of cultural hegemony developed by Italian Communist Party Founder Antonio Gramsci.[10]

AM Oh Nov 19, 2016

Published on Nov 19, 2016

Colonial Mentality is the thinking that foreign talents and products are always better, and that the local ones are of poor
or no quality at all, and when we believe that nothing good comes out of our own country. But preferring an imported
talent or product over the local one, is not always colonial mentality.

2. Reasons that could also trigger Colonial Mentality • The culture and Philippine values (like amor- propio,hiya, utang na
loob) • Mass Media

3. Effects of Colonial Mentality • Becomes a burden and barrier to the progress of Philippine economy. • Filipinos’
preference for imported or foreign products influences their lifestyle. • Philippine culture – music, literature and films are
unappreciated. • Emigration

4. Ways to eradicate Colonial Mentality • DECOLONIZATION • Strict implementation of Principles laid down in the
Constitution and laws • Examine and rekindle their pride and dignity for being Filipinos • Nationalism

Sumie Okazaki,1 * E. J. R. David,2 and Nancy Abelmann1

http://www.nancyabelmann.com/wp-content/uploads/article-colonialism.pdf

Social and Personality Psychology Compass 2/1 (2008): 90–106

Colonialism is a specific form of oppression. An increasingly rich literature explores how the colonial subject is made
through elaborate systems that measure, compare, and explain human difference; these are the processes that justify
that radical imposition of the colonizer on ‘inferior’ people in need of intervention. Colonial regimes are elaborated
discursively by differentiating between the colonizer’s ‘superior’ or ‘more civilized’ ways of life and the colonized people’s
allegedly ‘inferior’ or ‘savage’ ways Scholars look to a wide range of domains to observe this subject-making: from
medicine, to city planning, to exhibition, to ethnography, to science, to history writing – and of course to more obvious
arenas of social control such as schools and the military (Anderson, 2006; Chakrabarty, 2000; Mitchell, 1991; Young, 1990).

The psychiatrist and noted postcolonial theorist Franz Fanon’s (1965) writings were influential particularly because of their
emphasis on the dehumanizing aspects of colonialism, pushing beyond labor extraction and exploitation to the realm of
the psychological, which is often elaborated by racist biological and psychological theories of the ‘native’s’ character (cf.
Memmi, 1967). Foucault’s (1970, 1977) theoretical apparatus has also been central to much of this work, enabling analysis
of the discursive exercise of power through the very emergence of particular kinds of ‘modern’ selves.
These histories have profound implications for the postcolonial search for cultural/national identity: when, as is often the
case, the modernity and colonial project overlap, it is hard to demarcate a ‘national’ postcolonial modernity for both states
and individuals – namely, to identify that which is authentically cultural. As is the case with most states, the domain of
culture is best thought of as an internal cultural debate that in the case of postcolonial states is encumbered in particular
ways.

Thursday, August 03, 2006

Colonial Mentality, "Damaged Culture," IMSCF of

Filipinos: Its Roots
" Fear history, for it respects no secrets" - Gregoria de Jesus (widow of Andres Bonifacio)

http://www.thefilipinomind.com/2006/08/colonial-mentality-of-filipinos-its.html

Bert M. Drona at 7:09 AM

Consequently, the native Filipino has been effectively and efficiently Americanized: conditioned to knowingly or
unknowingly think and analyze economic and political issues in his own homeland (and abroad) from the American point
of view.

In the long-run, his alienated heart and mind brought to the Filipino and the homeland only ever-deepening poverty, and
its consequent illiteracy, hunger and damaged culture.

To change this way of thinking, the American drilled into and residing in the Filipino mind need to be removed; for the
Filipino to be educated so as to arouse the "Filipinism" in his heart and mind in matters of national interests (economic
and political); for each Filipino to ultimately and most importantly, demand from his national leadership honest concern
and action for the impoverished native Filipino majority (Christian, Muslim, and the forgotten ethnic minorities), the native
common good.

ROOTS OF OUR COLONIAL MENTALITY

from "Issues without Tears", 1984

Leticia Constantino
We often hear Filipinos complain that as a nation we are afflicted with a colonial mentality. By this they usually mean that
we are excessively subservient to foreigners and unduly impressed by foreign goods. But an even more harmful aspect of
colonial mentality and one that is less recognized is our failure to pinpoint our real national interests apart and distinct
from those of our foreign colonizers.

Despite 35 years of independence, this trait has not been eradicated. Colonial mentality has deep roots in our history:
first, in the level of social and economic development we attained before colonization; second, in the nature of Spanish
colonization; third, in the impact of American rule; fourth, in the way we obtained our independence and fifth, in the neo-
colonial policies of the United States up to the present time.

Unlike India, Indonesia, Vietnam and Cambodia, we did not confront our Spanish conquerors as a people with a highly
developed culture and social structure. Our forebears lived in small, scattered communities based on kinship ties and
relied mainly on primitive agriculture which provided barely enough for their needs.
We were not a nation since these communities were separate, autonomous barangays. Trade among barangays and with
the people from neighboring countries was occasional and by barter. Religion was likewise primitive with no organized
body of beliefs or priestly hierarchy. All these made physical conquest and cultural domination quite easy for the Spanish
colonizers.

Unlike the Cambodians with their Angkor Vat and the Indonesians with their Borobudur, we had no monuments which
could remind our people of an ancient glory. When nations with advanced social structures and a firmly established culture
are colonized, their past achievements constitute the source of their separate identity which enable the conquered to
confront their colonizers with dignity and sometimes even a feeling of superiority. They do not easily lose their sense of
racial worth. Unfortunately for us, we were colonized before our own society could develop sufficiently.

Having but few cultural defenses against our conquerors, we soon accepted their superiority and began to acquire what
we now call a colonial mentality. Other Western powers initially instituted a system of indirect rule in their Asian colonies
by exploiting the people through their chiefs, leaving native social and cultural institutions largely intact.In the Philippines
however, our two colonizers consolidated their rule by working on the native consciousness, thus effecting great changes
in Filipino values and customs

The Spaniards forcibly resettled the scattered barangays into larger communities where the people could more easily be
Christianized and where every aspect of their lives, their customs and ideas could be scrutinized and shaped in the desired
colonial mode. In most communities, the Spanish friars represented both the power of the cross and the power of the
sword.

As pillars of the colonial establishment, most priests sought to develop in their flock the virtues of obedience, humility and
resignation. Spanish superiority was maintained and the "indio" was kept in his inferior position by denying him education
(there was no system of national education until 1863).The people were trained to follow and were discouraged from
thinking for themselves.

A thirst for knowledge was considered a dangerous and subversive trait which often brought actual misfortune or the
treat of hell. The "indio" acquired the habit of allowing his economic and social superiors to do the thinking for him, and
this attitude persists among us today, seriously undermining any movement for greater democracy. Under the Spaniards,
inferiority complex evolved into a national trait of Filipinos.

Ironically enough, by satisfying the Filipinos' desire for education and self-government, the American colonizers developed
a new, and is some ways, a more pernicious form of colonial mentality.

For while the Spanish arrogance and bred anger and rebellion, American education transformed the United States in the
eyes of the Filipinos from an aggressor who had robbed them of their independence to a generous benefactor.
The school system began Americanizing the Filipino consciousness by misrepresenting US expansionism and US economic
policies as American altruism toward the Filipinos; by denying young Filipinos of any knowledge of Filipino resistance to
American occupation and the atrocities committed the American military; by filling young minds with stories that glorify
the American way of life, American heroes and American institutions.

Americanization was greatly facilitated by the imposition of English as the sole medium of instruction. This made possible
the use of American texbooks. Education taught the Filipino youth to regard American culture as superior to their own
and American society as the best model for Philippine society. Of course, our americanization has been profitable to the
Americans because it kept on producing new generations of avid consumers of American goods. All these were ingredients
of a new type of colonial mentality.

Our so-called tutelage in self-government at the end of which we received our independence from our "generous teacher
and guardian" is partly responsible for our persistent failure to recognize that our real national interests are distinct from
and, more often than not, contrary to those of the United States.

American colonial policy gave the Filipinos their first experience in self-government in the legislative field. Since executive
power remained in the hands of the American governor-general and real, overall power resided in Washington, Filipino
leaders learned the art of adapting to American economic requirements while catering to their Filipino constituents' desire
for independence.

Periodic elections focused public attention on "politics", a superficial democratic exercise during which most politicians
pledged to secure "immediate, absolute, complete independence" without explaining that the economic dependence of
the Philippines on the US market would make such independence an empty one.

The Philippine elite, landowners who grew rich on agricultural exports to the US, largely controlled Philippine politics, so
most politicians in fact supported this economic dependence. Politicians therefore concentrated on the issue of political
independence and the people received little enlightenment on economic issues except from radical labor and peasant
groups in the 1930s.

The Filipino dream of independence remained limited to political sovereignty.The fact that we obtained independence as
a "grant' and not as a result of a victorious, anti-colonial revolution has obscured the real contradictions between our
interests and those of the US [we had no such blinders toward either Spain or Japan; we recognized the conflict of interests
between them and us.] But all the foregoing are part of the past. The Philippine republic is now 35 years old.

Why have we not outgrown our colonial mentality?

Of course, we now have an appreciation of our national identitiy, a feeling of cultural nationalism. We have discovered
ethnic culture and take pride in local art and music. In fact, US global policies can tolerate and even encourage such
expressions of a separate identity especially when they can be used to mask continuing economic domination.
Economic control is now exercised in more subtle forms - through transnational corporations (TNCs) whose requirements
are incorporated in Philippine laws and policies, through various forms of aid from countries like the US and Japan which
help to shape economic priorities and consumption patterns in ways favorable to the aid givers, through TNC advertising
and Western mass media which create new needs and tastes and mold our view of world events and, above all, through
loans from our World Bank and other international institutions which require as a prior condition our acceptance of a
national development program which ensures continued satellization of our economy.

Theoretically, the laws and policies we adopt to attract TNCs, whether we accept aid or not, whether we borrow from the
World Bank or not, are decisions freely arrived at by our own government. Rarely do we learn of the pressures exerted,
the demands made, the strings attached by these foreign entities.

Instead, our leaders deepen our misconception of the role and power of these external forces by presenting foreign-
designed programs that will further reinforce our dependence as examples of self-reliance and independence.

We must examine carefully from a nationalist perspective all aid offered, all loans granted, all programs suggested by
foreign governments and instituions. Only then can we begin to rid ourselves of our unfortunate inability to see the
contradiction between our interests and theirs, a feeling which is today the most serious aspect of our colonial mentality.

Colonial Mentality in the Philippines

APRIL 2, 2017 CHUBBYPLATYPUS

https://themindofthegarrett.wordpress.com/2017/04/02/colonial-mentality-in-the-philippines/

Colonial mentality more strictly refers to the attitude that indigenous people feel that they are inferior in some way to
their colonizers. In more contemporary times, however, it’s taken to mean the mentality that minorities or citizens from
other countries believe their own cultures are inferior to those found abroad. For example, Filipinos often romanticize
Western culture and prefer to indulge in American restaurants or consume Western media rather than supporting local
businesses that were created with Filipino culture. McDonald’s versus Jollibee is one example. Many customers might
simply just prefer McDonald’s due to its association with American culture and life, and therefore, American superiority.

The attitude of colonial mentality can largely be attributed to the Philippines’ lengthy history of colonialism. The
Philippines as not always an independent country, and existed under rulers such as Spain and the United States of America.
Spanish colonial rule can be blamed for the Filipino obsession with mestizos, especially their outspoken preference for
lighter skin color. The same can be said for the United States, and probably even applies to the US rather than Spain. Many
Filipinos prefer the lighter, creamier skin of Americans or Europeans than their own. Spanish colonialism has imprinted its
effects on our language, religion, and cultural values. American culture has had its own influence on the Filipino people as
well.

The Philippines may be considered a country that is very deeply ingrained with their colonial mentality, especially in
today’s youth. Colonial mentality is reflected in our country’s pop culture, media, and lifestyle. Instead of the country that
is deeply rooted in their patriotic pride, their sense of identity, and their traditionalism, the country’s people seems to be
ashamed of its flaws and inability to cope with other, more developed countries. Filipinos seem desperate to escape their
ties to their traditions and culture.

Colonial mentality can even be found in our language– you know, that strange, new mesh of languages that is known as
Tag-lish. Tagalog plus English. Tag-lish. Even in very small cultural cues, we can find our country’s obsession with another’s
culture, rather than promoting and reveling in our own. For Filipinos, getting rid of one’s cultural ties and heritage might
be as easy as changing clothes. The Filipino people are definitely experiencing the deterioration of our cultural identity.

The phenomenon of Taglish deserves its own paragraph. Of course, being proficient in English is an effective advantage in
the international market, but so many Filipinos prefer to stick with English in conversations rather than Filipino. The
assimilation of English lexicon into our country’s language can be seen as an attempt to “replace” Tagalog which may be
regarded as an inferior language. For those who think with the colonial mentality, using English rather than Tagalog would
make a speaker seem educated and more distinguished. English does have a notable position in the Filipino education
system, but it does not necessarily correlate to a higher intelligence. Thus, the idea of Taglish may be regarded as an
attempt to get rid of an “inferior” identity.

This colonial mentality is a part of the force that drives Filipinos to become OFWs, or Overseas Filipino Workers. There is
an innate appeal to get a career abroad or attain an education abroad for your children. Filipinos, no matter where they
are in the world, travel with the goal to bring prosperity to their family. This may or may not be successful, but it is still
regarded to be more preferable than working in your country. Filipinos who do end up living abroad can often become
attached to their new home, and become more distant to their homeland. These Filipinos may even be embarrassed of
their heritage or ignorant of it.

The American culture places a strong influence on ideas such as independence and individualism. This new mentality has
a strong societal influence that is impacting many individuals’ minds all over the world. American culture often promotes
a hedonistic lifestyle of pleasure and excess and overindulgence. American culture is often viewed by Filipinos as superior.
Filipinos’ obsession with American pop culture emerges, especially due to its association with superiority in order to be
seen as “better”. Filipinos might worship American celebrities, listen to American music, and eat American foods; of
course, there is nothing inherently wrong with enjoying another culture, but some Filipinos may bring it to the extreme
and lose themselves in “being American”- and in the process, losing their original cultural identity.

Filipino traditions are an essential part of the country’s cultural identity. The cultural values of the Philippines is often
divided between tradition and morality. These values give our culture a sense of belonging and pride. Thus, when cultural
values and principles are erased in a culture, the culture itself is being erased. This can be anything involved with the
culture. The arts, music, religions, and even food. Filipino clothing is also now heavily influenced by western influences. It
is very rare that you could attend a formal gathering in the country wearing traditional Filipino clothing, like the barong.
Filipinos may treat things part of their culture with contempt, instead preferring other cultures. Filipino folk music may be
looked down upon. Food preferences may ignore our own culture’s style of cooking (admittedly, this is very rare, as I’ve
never met a Filipino who didn’t enjoy Filipino food). The Filipino identity is slowly being erased- and it’s being erased by
Filipinos.
Filipino pride and resilience is what led the country to independence. Yet some Filipinos prefer to shed these Filipino traits
in favor of western ideals. Filipinos decide to drop the terms of respect they use while talking to older relatives and other
people. It’s not uncommon to see Filipinos who refuse to use Kuya or Ate or Tita. Even our own skin color is regarded as
something to get rid of or to hide. The white, creamy skin of Americans and Europeans is deemed more attractive; Filipinos
would willingly decide to look like them to associate themselves with an identity they are fascinated by but could never
truly be a part of. Again, there is nothing wrong with wanting to alter how you look, but being happy in your own skin, and
your own identity and heritage, is good.

Filipinos, Colonial Mentality, and Mental Health

A psychological approach to exploring the effects of colonialism among Filipinos

Posted Nov 02, 2017

E. J. R. David Ph.D.

https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/unseen-and-unheard/201711/filipinos-colonial-mentality-and-mental-
health
I was just in the Philippines recently, where I saw skin-whitening products and clinics everywhere! It is also where I saw
the pervasive vestiges of western colonial influences, from the widespread use of English and the regard of it as the
language of the educated or upper class, to the abundance of western restaurants and shops that make Manila seem more
Americanized than many places in America itself. All of these, of course, are remnants of the Philippines’ long history of
colonization under Spain and the United States. So colonialism, and its most insidious legacy, colonial mentality, has been
on my mind.

And it seems like it has been on other Filipinos’ minds lately too. For instance, the viral AJ+ video featuring Kristian Kabuay
shows that his quest to revive Baybayin is his attempt to restore and repair the immense cultural damages that colonialism
brought onto Filipinos. Also, Asia Jackson’s viral AJ+ video on colorism and anti-dark skin attitudes among Filipinos touch
on colonial mentality as well. And even further, I definitely made sure I brought up colonial mentality with major media
executives and politicians while I was in the Philippines, so it was at least temporarily in their minds.

So yes, colonial mentality—particularly skin-whitening—has been on many Filipinos’ minds lately. But as Philippines Vice
President Leny Robredo acknowledged when I asked her about it, it’s a centuries-old issue, and there’s been plenty of
work on it, going as far back as Jose Rizal! Indeed, many folks have documented and shared their painful stories, struggles,
confusions, and heartaches about colonial mentality throughout the years.

And over the past 15 years, there has been some efforts to quantify and “scientifically” capture colonial mentality among
Filipinos. First, there’s the Colonial Mentality Scale (CMS), which is a typical questionnaire that directly asks people if they
hold some signs of colonial mentality. The CMS asks people to indicate their level of agreement or disagreement with
statements such as, “There are situations where I feel inferior because of my ethnic background,” “There are situations
where I feel ashamed of my ethnic background,” "I would like to have a skin tone that is lighter than the skin tone I have,"
“I make fun of, tease, or bad mouth Filipinos who speak English with strong accents," and “Filipinos should be thankful to
Spain and the United States for transforming the Filipino ways of life into a White/European American way of life."
However, because people may easily lie, deny, or not know too much about their own attitudes and behaviors to
accurately report it, I also developed the Colonial Mentality Implicit Association Test (CMIAT), which attempts to capture
whether Filipinos have strongly and automatically associated Filipino culture with inferiority.

Although far from being complete and perfect, tools such as the CMS and CMIAT have allowed us to attach some
“numbers” to the very real stories that people have been sharing for generations.

And so, what does the data tell us about colonial mentality among Filipinos?

Here’s an easily-accessible infographic summarizing some findings, and below it are a few more details:

Based on the CMS, there seem to be at least five indicators of CM among Filipinos:

Feelings of inferiority for being Filipino;

Feelings of shame, embarrassment, resentment, or self-hate about being a person of Filipino heritage;

Denigration of the Filipino body (regarding white physical characteristics as more attractive, advantageous, and desirable
than typical Filipino physical traits such as brown skin and flat nose);
Discriminating against less-westernized Filipinos (e.g., making fun of people from the provinces—“Promdi”—or indigenous
peoples and regarding them as “backward”); and

Tolerating or minimizing historical and contemporary oppression of Filipinos (because such oppression is accepted as the
appropriate cost of civilization).

The CMS also allowed us to have an estimate on how common CM is among Filipino Americans. When explicitly asked
about colonial mentality, approximately 30 percent of Filipino Americans admitted to having at least one of the five
“symptoms” of colonial mentality. Only around 1 percent admitted feeling ashamed and embarrassed of their heritage,
and 9.6 percent admitted to feeling inferior for being Filipino. Only around 3.5 percent admitted to discriminating against
less-westernized Filipinos, and 10.5 percent admitted to regarding Filipino physical traits as less desirable than white
physical traits. Finally, 16.4 percent admitted feeling fortunate for having been colonized and feeling indebted to their
past colonizers.

However, when the CMIAT was used—a more subtle and less-direct way of capturing CM—approximately 56 percent of
Filipino Americans showed a tendency to automatically associate inferiority with Filipino culture and superiority with
American culture. In addition to providing us with what is probably a more accurate estimate of the prevalence of CM
among Filipinos, what the CMIAT studies also suggest is that CM may exist and operate outside of our awareness,
intention, or control. In other words, it seems as though many of us may have internalized the oppression of our culture
and ethnicity so deeply that it now exists and affects us automatically.

And as previously mentioned, CM has existed for generations. So how is it passed down intergenerationally? Research
suggests that our peers, family, and community seem to influence the development of CM among Filipino Americans.
Overall 96 percent of Filipino immigrants to the United States report being exposed to Filipino inferiorizing messages while
they were still living in the Philippines. Specifically, 85 percent reported seeing CM from their family, 88 percent from their
friends, and 90 percent from their general community. Perhaps the most egregious example of CM in the Philippines is
the abundance of skin-whitening products and clinics being advertised and sold everywhere. And according to a survey
conducted by Synovate Philippines (2004, Skin Whitening in Southeast Asia), at least 50 percent of Filipinos use skin-
whitening products. Furthermore, recent research also shows that skin-whitening use is most common among Filipinas,
and among the lower class and less-educated people in the Philippines.

Research also suggests that current experiences of racism are also related to CM among Filipino Americans. That is, the
more Filipino Americans experience the denigration of their culture and ethnicity, the more likely they are to develop CM.
And research shows that 99 percent of Filipino Americans report experiencing racism in the past year. Thus, it is very likely
that many Filipino Americans may hold CM.

But so what if Filipinos have CM, and so what if they’ve had CM for generations? Is having CM such a bad thing?

According to the World Health Organization, the use of skin-whitening has been associated with mental and physical
health damages. Overall, using tools such as the CMS and the CMIAT, CM has been shown to relate to poorer mental
health. Specifically, it has been shown to be related to lower levels of self-esteem, more depression symptoms, more
anxiety symptoms, and lower levels of life satisfaction. These correlates of CM are concerning as research also shows that
they typically co-occur with other troubling conditions like alcohol and drug use, and poor school or job performance. So
yes, having CM is a bad thing.
Although we have continued to improve our understanding of CM, there are still plenty more research questions that we
need to explore concerning CM and its implications. I truly hope that the tools we have now will make it easier for us to
engage in these explorations, and that more Filipinos will take up the task of tackling these questions.

Colonial Mentality’s Long Term Effect on the

Filipino People
https://prezi.com/o5mcztu8ogki/colonial-mentalitys-long-term-effect-on-the-filipino-people/

Kristine Baldwin on 23 November 2014

Filipino culture will disappear if the colonial mentality will persist.

The Philippines will have a hard time catching up with the modernization of the world.

1. The use of the English language is more preferred by the government, elite and middle class than the national language,
Filipino.

2. A majority of Filipino teens are more familiar or listen more frequently to American song than Filipino OPM.

The Philippines will not be able to progress economically.

1. A comparison of imported goods and materials with exported goods and materials.

2. The disadvantages of flourishing foreign business

The Philippines will have a hard time catching up with the modernization of the world.

1. Machines used by the agricultural workers need improvement because of its high demand and booming population
present in the country.

2. The Philippines is a country blessed with an abundance of natural resources but does not have the machinery or trained
authorities to extract them.

COLONIAL MENTALITY

The Effects Of Colonial Mentality On The Filipino Culture

Arnel T. Ambag Thyrell Luizuinni A. Baslot Che-Anne Mae T. Celeste Joymae M. Eltagon Josephine P. Namocatcat

https://arndreblog.wordpress.com/2016/05/17/the-effects-of-colonial-mentality-on-the-filipino-culture/

CULTURAL EFFECTS

As we try to consider some specific issues in the effects of colonial mentality in the Philippine culture, let’s define
first what colonial mentality really is and also it is necessary to have a little background of the Filipino culture.

Depletion of Filipino Practices

myth-of-the-great-cultural-divide-20140626-rappler (1)

Culture refers to the traits and personalities of a specific race. The Philippines is a known country for its cultures and
traditions having been influenced by foreign forces. Colonial mentality crept in our minds and it runs through deep
affecting our Filipino culture, practices and traditions. Before, women were generally diffident, refined and inhibited. A
girl before was not seen alone with a man, no touching not even her hands when talking to each other they were always
an arm’s length apart. On the other hand, a man before had to undergo and should pass several tests before they can date
a woman.And most especially, men were famous of the so called “Harana” or the old school way of courting or pursuing
the heart of a woman. But with the influence of western ideas of dating and courtships, these practices are now out of
the trend.

A different scene happens when the technologies and westernized way of living influenced the Filipinos where courting
takes place through social media like chatting, video calls, or texting which cause Filipinos have colonial mentality
(Anonymous, 2011).

Bayanihan is one of the most famous Filipino culture. It is assisting one’s neighbor as a group and doing a task together to
make the job easier. But those traits are gone now. Aside from the change of environment there is also a change in
people’s attitudes and dispositions. This perception was influenced by the western countries to be independent and
having the ability to do the things without the help of others or so called individualism. A group of sociology students had
conducted a social experiment entitled “The Lost Wallet” last April 15, 2016. The said social experiment came up with a
result that some of the Filipino people did not care for the owner’s feeling even though the wallet was placed in front of
the subject. Indeed, Filipinos are now influenced by western culture.

Another famous culture of the Filipinos is the “Utang na Loob” or debt of gratitude. This is where Filipinos would owe
somebody who has helped them overcome trials. However, because of colonial mentality, it somehow distorts the idea
of owing someone. Sometimes, individuals would prefer not to have an obligation of appreciation to somebody who they
believe is lower than them. Because of colonial mentality, there are individuals who rank others according to their
standards. A person with this mentality would not have any desire to owe somebody from the squatter. It also destroys
the Filipino’s culture of “Pakikisama” or Harmony (Anonymous, 2008).

Preference of the Filipinos in terms of products and entertainments

hqdefault.jpg

The status quo of our country in this modern time is that, we Filipinos are no longer the master of our homeland but rather
the aliens now control our economy. We are stuck in the hustle-bustle of choosing foreign products rather than our own
and that is why our country’s economy has drop vertically nowadays. In the Philippines colonial mentality is most apparent
in the presence of bias for Filipino mestizos (essentially those of blended local Filipino and white lineage, additionally
blended indigenous Filipino and Chinese, and other ethnic gatherings) in the diversion business and broad
communications, in which they have gotten broad introduction in spite of constituting a little populace in the nation (
Lago, 2012) that is the reason why the local brand Penshoppe imports international artists to endorse their clothing brand.
Hollywood films such as Civil War, Hunger Games, The Walking Dead and songs like Love Yourself by Justin Bieber, Thinking
Out Loud by Ed Sheeran and Work by Rihanna attract more Filipino audiences than “Original Pilipino Music” (OPM) and
Filipino Movies such as Orapronobis and Manila Sa Kuko Ng Liwanag by Lino Brocka. Plainly, the motivation behind why
the excitement business is giving much enthusiasm to the mestizo on-screen characters and performing artists is on the
grounds that they have more benefit in them. They discover more benefit in them in light of the fact that the Filipinos
venerate them and to the degree of adoring them and getting to resemble them. Those mestizos on-screen character and
performing artists get to be moment hits in our general public in view of provincial attitude. (Anonymous,2008)

In addition, in view of colonial mentality, most Filipinos see that having white skin improves them look. They have been
blinded into imagining that non-natives are better even in physical appearances that is the reason they attempt to
duplicate them and seem as though them. A case is the utilization of skin whiteners. The interest of skin whiteners in the
Philippines is high and is ceaselessly expanding in light of the fact that increasingly Filipinos need to be white to accomplish
the greatly sought outside look. A few Filipinos consistently squeeze their noses to make them less level and look more
European. They additionally avoid the sun or utilize skin brightening items to look whiter and respect English capability
and levels of Americanization as measuring sticks of insight and status.(Anonymous,2008)

Sadly, we have not been accountable in our stand about “Tangkilikin ang sariling atin”. It may sound cliche but the reality
is Filipinos do not live by it.

Factors that make Filipinos feel inferior to any other races

philippine-american-war-political-cartoon

Colonial mentality strikes in the confidence of the Filipinos or the inferiority complex. One factor that leads to being
inferior in one self is the language sensitivity. Just like in the Philippines whenever they are compared to a foreigner most
of the time they feel inferior and lose their confidence. In the Filipino perspective, speaking in English fluently is a
measurement of intelligence (Sta. Ana, 2013).

These are the Factors that make Filipinos feel inferior than any other races:Being a full-blooded Filipina and speaking as a
teen who is highly internet and trend conscious, We choose to narrow the factors into three. First would be something
that appeals to our inner vain selves – Beauty or more precisely, the world’s perception of beauty and attractiveness. It is
a shame how we – a race of naturally tanned skin, stout and round stature, and flat/button nose – try to whiten, trim, and
surgically ‘enhance’ ourselves in order to conform to the world standard of attractiveness. Our hair is usually more wavy
than straight and we seldom see Filipinos as tall as foreigners.Because of Spanish colonization, another factor arises way
back in the history of the Philippines where natives often judged by their physical appearances like their height, skin color
and pudgy nose or “pango”. Most Filipinos prefer to have white skin for them to look better. They have been blinded into
thinking that foreigners are better even in physical appearances that’s why they try to copy them and look like them. Also
during the Spanish Era, some were treated slaves and prisoners and that’s one of the reasons why the thought of
foreigners as why the superiors came into the Filipino minds (Anonymous, 2008). Yet due to colonial perception and
westernized idea of beauty, we force out bodies to succumb into ways which we are not. Because to us ‘lowly’ Filipinos,
Foreigner beauty is how beauty should be.Second: Education and language. You are smarter if you are fluent in a language
not you own, especially if it’s English. It is horrifying how most university students choose to be more proficient in foreign
languages i.e., English, and struggle when directed to write or speak in our own tongue. Also disappointing, how political
misgivings has stunted the growth of the education sector and pushed us to rely on foreign scholarships to get worthwhile
and internationally recognized post-graduate studies. Lastly, Workforce Seen from foreign countries, Filipinos = Domestic
Workers, Construction Workers, and such. Always the white collared workers on contract – always the employee, an
inferior wage. We were always the race who exports manpower because we cannot afford to give stable and sufficient
jobs to our own citizens and rely on rich countries. While some may argue that it is division of labor and it is a necessary
exchange skill, a symbiosis per se, it does not alter the fact that our OFW left the country because they would not be able
to support their families if they stay in the PH. This is rather alarming and sad, how being an OFW should just remain and
option. But due to economic and political reasons, our citizen are left with being and OFW (and eventually hoping to get
a GREEN CARD) as the ONLY option out of the murky waters of poverty in the PH. We see ourselves as inferior because
we look and act as if relying on other countries is our only option left.

The colonial mentality was eventually passed from generations to generations. And this way of thinking has also influenced
the way we see ourselves. We feel inferior and we feel so left behind that is why we tend to adapt their ways. As the old
cliché goes, “If you cannot beat them, join them!” We tend to let their standards be our standards as well forgetting our
own. English has been the measurement of intelligence and pearly white skin has been the measurement of beauty. This
is us now and this will be us in the many years to come if we will continue losing our loyalty and pride to our county and
our identity as Filipinos.At this point in time, we already have elected new set of leaders that will hopefully lead our
country into a new prosperous era, and the choice is in our hands if we’re going to let this mentality ruin us once again or
not. Because we tend to clamor for change, and even joining the bandwagon of CHANGE IS COMING hashtags, and yet we
do the complete opposite. Why have we not really outgrown our colonial mentality?