Slaveships and Spaceships

I’ve been workin’ this slaveship

I ain’t made shit

I wish I could buy me a spaceship

And fly…

Craziness and media talk aside, this record off of Kanye West’s “College Dropout” exposes one’s relationship to his or her job. Articulated in this song is one’s frustration in the workplace by comparing his/her experience to that of slavery in a time where some may argue that we are in a time of “post-slavery”. Obviously, the institution of prison challenges this notion of post-slavery in addition to the lack of protection of workers’ rights for many migrant worker. The line, “I wish I could buy me a spaceship and fly” addressing two main points in describing one’s sentiments towards one’s job.

First. Confinement: The use of the word “wish” in relation to buying a “spaceship” implies a feeling of confinement, both monetarily and with one’s time. Monetarily, in that the wages one is paid does not match the labor that one puts in nor does it allow the worker to achieve a healthy and decent living for his/herself and/or his/her family. Additionally, the time that one must put in for his/her wages consumes one’s energy and time to take action to improve his/her current circumstance. This notion of not being able to disrupt this feeling of confinement results in one simply “wishing”, an act that is divorced of any practical action that is conducive to improving one’s circumstance. Therefore, this feeling of confinement, emphasizes not only one’s frustration with the workplace but also a feeling of hopelessness by resorting to the act of wishing as a result of their experience.

Second. Escapism. Much like “wishing”, the want to “buy” a “spaceship and fly” implies one’s want to escape his/her circumstance. This act of escaping manifests mentally in the workplace as many often disconnect one’s emotions and engagement in their labor. Furthermore, because “spaceship” and “fly” are often not possible for everyday people, what is implied is a kind of delusion or insanity that their experience in the workplace has driven them to. Wanting to fly represents this notion of defying gravity or, in this case, poverty which functions so strongly under a capitalist system that people feel so hopeless. Moreover, capitalists and employers benefit greatly from the worker’s internalization of hopelessness, as workers do not see the hope in mobilizing to challenge working conditions, poor wages, and the unequal relationship between themselves and their employer. Thus, what is perpetuated and reinforced is the normalization of unequal distribution of resources and power. Jaded and depressed by this perception and their circumstance, the worker, as a way to cope, may often resort to vices that in turn may often lead to other issues and problems. What becomes possible to the worker is coping by mentally escaping through such vices, since physical escape seems to be not possible.

So What? By now, one should know that what has been articulated is not an analysis of Kanye West’s song per se, but rather a somewhat deeper look into the psychology of the worker. A kind of internalized oppression that many workers, whether they are aware of it of not, have internalized and passively accepted. I am not implying that quiting one’s job is the solution, for I am aware that many people have families to support. What I am especially concerned about in this age of capitalism is the kind of future that our children will have. In all honesty it has been difficult for me to envision a future opposite of the present, considering the prevalence of individualism as well as the psychological oppression discussed above. Thus, this realization like many, present itself with a challenge that moves towards action. A type of action that is urgent and occurring in institutional, psychological, and cultural spaces. What that action specifically is… is not exclusively my choice, but as always must come from the collective. The workers.

Needles in a Haystack (BAYstack)

I am still processing...

Conference. Pinoys. Pinays. Midwest. It is the latter ("midwest") that does it for me. An experience like no other, meaning many things and experiencing of many emotions.

Curiosity: A 4 hour flight east of California and into the suburbs, full of corn fields, autumn leaves, and the brisk air made me curious of how Filipino Americans got down. How do did they see the world? How did the community organize? What were the issues that impacted the Filipina/o American community? What is Filipina/o American to them? And so the questions would be asked, digging away at the layers of class, religion, beliefs, and the impact of migration and history.

Shock: It is an initial response. The place where I had found myself was not California, nor was it San Francisco. I was not quite surrounded by organizers and students that were as hungry for knowledge and a Filipina/o American identity that went beyond Tinikling and Lumpia. I instead found myself in the middle of what felt like "Friendship Games", which is not necessarily bad, but it was not what I expected as I had expected a conference-like atmosphere where there was a strong interest in activism and change. Rather what unfolded was an energetic enthusiasm about school pride, cultural dancing (despite the mass mispronounciation of"Pangali"), and a variety show which included a Christian dance group. The impact of migration, history, class, and geography magnified the differences between myself, my peers (who I traveled with), and the college students that drove from miles out to express what they believe to be a Filipina/o American identity. It was an identity that seemed distant from "America is in the Heart", I-Hotel, and Ethnic Studies courses. This is not to imply that these are necessary for constructing a Filipino American identity nor that there is one true Filipina/o American identity. But it is these things among many other things that have helped many of my peers in the Bay Area construct a Filipina/o American identity that is critical and connected to the community and history.

Appreciation: I leave the midwest with a great sense of appreciation for the people, spaces, and experiences that I have been a part of and affected by in the Bay Area. I am not implying that I am better or more "Filipino", rather that the people, places, and experiences that I have had and are having in the Bay Area have helped construct a Filipina/o American identity that I am becoming comfortable with and a collective Filipina/o American identity that is critical and understands the urgency of changing the current conditions of Filipina/os locally and globally. This is not to say that ALL Filipina/o Americans in the Bay Area are organized, in fact there is still much work to be done as there are only a few that are organized and/or engaged in activism, but these people and spaces (http://filipinocc.org/, http://www.somcan.org/, http://www.bayanihancc.org/ - just to name a few...) are not hard to find and that the work that is being done is larger than what the numbers imply.

Moving Forward: As I delve back into the work and spaces that I am engaged in, the questions of "How do I get better? Am I using everything that is available to help create change? How do we build from what we have? How do we continue to challenge limitations and stretch the minds of the masses?" sounds just little more different. Once again, I am challenged, not in a way that is overwhelming but in a way that leaves me hopeful, despite the work that is required, as the people, spaces, and resources to answer these questions are not to far away. I suppose one can say that the "needles" in this "haystack" or should I say "BAY-stack" aren't that hard to find.

Columbus and Racism in 2009

"In 1492, Columbus sailed the ocean blue"

Columbus day has recently past and for many us growing up in a the public schooling system, this man is acknowledged for his so-called "discovery" of America. Absent from this narrative was the turn of events that happened to the indigenous people of the land. Event that were nothing short of enslavement and cultural genocide. My point here is not to debunk or discredit Columbus per se but it is to emphasize the fact that Columbus day is a manifestation of the racism and white supremacy that is ingrained in our schools and our everyday language that many of us often overlook, especially in 2009 in this so-called "post-racial Obama" era.

Best believe that the propagation of historical inaccuracies and the negation of indigenous people's and other folks of color's narratives are alive and happening (http://www.everythingesl.net/lessons/columbusday_celebration.php and also http://www.dltk-kids.com/crafts/columbus/index.htm). The power to write history or what we know as history is the power to impact the lenses that we put on as people or what is put on for us. What people know and what people have been taught are perspectives that are not disconnected from a culture, a bias, and a agenda that has very much to do with who is oppressed and who is not oppressed.

So given this situation, we must in 2009 and beyond become creators of language and lenses. We must continue to remember despite how painful our histories are. And while anger is often part of that process, it is a raw emotion, a human emotion that carries the frustrations, the injustices, and traumas ingrained in people's experience. Racism exist in many spaces and it is especially present in everyday language and the institutions that contribute to the languages and lenses that which people use to articulate/view the world, history, peoples, and themselves.

ARISTYLES

Beats

-ARISTYLES

Stand By Me

I recommend letting it load fully before playing through.

A friend of mines shared this with me and I thought I’d do the same. I remember hearing this song throughout my childhood as my father always kept the radio tuned into 96.5 KOIT. I was never really impressed by the actual lyrics of the song nor have I been big of a fan of covers, but I thought that the way this particular piece was put together was quite powerful.

Musically speaking, I thought the solos, voices, and intricate percussions was placed appropriately, giving the listener multiple ways of listening to the song without letting the song lose its true essence and feel as the composition became more and more complex. The playing of non-electronic instrument gave it a sort of intimate feel that I felt captured the rawness and spirit of street performance.

From a critical lens, despite the lack of female representation, I thought the way in which this piece started with one performer and then ending with many others, paralleled how movements are often sparked. Often times, all it takes is one person to outwardly articulate a sentiment many others have felt but could not find the words or space to express it. Additionally, the diverse blend of instruments reflects a successful movement in which every piece and part, even those pieces that are often overlooked or rarely credited, to be working in harmony and in cadence with each other. Lastly, movements are collective, allowing everyone to contribute in their own individual way while still remaining unified and loyal to the purpose of the song or movement. This notion of collectivity acts as a counter-narrative to western cultures’ articulation of myopic individualism. It moves beyond the limits and borders one person or one country (America). The piece acknowledges the other voices in a way that allows people to organically react or respond in a way that is constructive and beneficial to the composition of the song.

-ARISTYLES

Manong Al Robles

A hot Sunday morning, volunteers trickle into the SOMAarts building as the sounds of vegetable chopping, Bob Marley blasted over the stage speakers, and the chairs shuffling about into columns and rows in anticipation of the many guests. Family, youth, adults, manongs, manangs, community workers, and friends, all of which have been touched, inspired, influenced, and most importantly loved by Al Robles. Although he never proclaimed it, he was truly a legend of the Filipino American community.

As guests shared their stories of Al Robles, whether on stage or over food, I couldn’t help but notice that Al Robles was a man of multi-dimensions but of one purpose, which is to change community, change the world. His activism was not limited to his work with the International Hotel, but it was in his writing, his talk-story, and his interaction with people on a daily basis. Among all these dimensions and interpretations of this man, what stuck out the most, was that Al Robles was teacher. Not the type you typically see in a classroom or at an academic conference but on the streets of San Francisco where, muni stops, Thai food restaurants, and apartment steps became his classroom. Where teaching meant speaking as much as it meant listening. It wasn’t just about sharing stories, it was about sharing energy, sharing love, sharing perspective. It was about building relationships and changing culture.

Although my knowledge of Al is limited to a college course visit, his poetry, and a familiar face at a community event, it is hard to forget this man. Beyond his white hair and Hawaiian shirts, was an energy that resonated from his being. It is difficult to describe but it was a positive energy that can be felt through the sound of his voice as he recited poems about the manong and manang generation, as he described the Philippines, San Francisco, his love for food, and what it meant to be Pinoy or Filipino American. He was deep, he was as Jessica Hagedorn would say, the “Caribou kid”. Like Caribou, he was loyal, gentle, strong, hard-worker, and extremely humble. Although he will be missed, his impact and influence will never die as we will continue to reproduce and retell the things that he stood for across countless generations.

Thank you Al.

-ARISTYLES

Find out more about Al:

http://alrobles.manilatown.org/page-1/

Music and More

I started writing and reciting my own rhymes as early as 1999. I still got the notebooks to prove it. It's quite embarrassing reading back on the kind of basic ABC whackness that I was putting down at the time. Nonetheless, it was part of a process. A process of becoming as I would learn not just the forms and structures of the art of rhyming but also a deeper understanding of its true function as I found myself in moments of self-reflection and social critique. In a changing world, it has always been my constant. A tool for healing both the self and others. A tool for changing the world one listener at a time. A tool of documentation and counter-narration.

This past year, I've started to really rethink my approach to music in way it fits outside of the box of the "political rapper" as I have often been labeled but at the same time fulfill my responsibility to push culture in areas that have rarely been explored. Questions such as "How do i push diverse perspectives without being preachy?" "How can I make political, racial, class, gender, etc. consciousness cool?"

-ARISTYLES

1st Entry

I thought I'd post an entry to make this blog official. I will slowly be transitioning to this blog to hopefully make it a permanent space. For those new to this blog, you can find my old entries on www.myspace.com/aristyles. 

-Aristyles