Toxic Filipino Culture Norms That Need To Stop

Last night, I was reading a Twitter thread about toxic Filipino culture. The thread was very interesting to me that I find myself retweeting entries I find really relatable. Some open up about their experiences with insensitive jokes. Others get a little political and critical toward religious norms.

Toxic Filipino culture has been a constant topic of tired millennials and Gen Z. In a country that raises sheep, a generation seeks to take the lead, resist toxic dogmas, and shepherd a more progressive world. I really like to retweet the OP. But, I just cannot fit my thoughts into about 280 characters, which is Twitter’s limit for the post. So I came to terms, that this writing might suffice.

Toxic Filipino Culture Norms That Need To Stop

Family problems

First of all, I really love how close we are as families in this country. In fact, I love meeting distant relatives and tracing my heritage. I guess it’s just the history geek in me. However, no family is perfect. And, oftentimes, Filipinos are just not ready to address them. That’s why they grow in silence until everything explodes like a time bomb.

It is ironic to note that we are a Christian country and yet we tolerate evil within families. We despise adultery when it’s done by a celebrity, but when Tito does it, it’s fine. It’s the same case for other sexual issues. It’s sinful until a man does it. What is wrong is wrong, regardless of sex and gender. Another thing, household chores are not a gender role. These are life skills. We are patriarchal not because men lead but because men dominate.

We force our children to go to church but we do not show them how to be truly like Christ. Adults pressure children to study when they themselves shame academes and truth-tellers. What a sham.

Smart-shaming

Speaking of education, one major issue of our culture is smart-shaming. We are the only nation where language proficiency is a laughing stock. Just look at our comedy shows. When somebody speaks English, someone will banter “Edi wow, Ikaw na!” The same goes for those speaking intellectually.

One time, I just corrected fake news in our community group and say that it is dangerous especially when it is about health. Suddenly, the original post author bashed me. Other netizens ganged up on me and go with name-callings and stalking.

Reasons Why You Should Have A Cat at Home

Our problem in education is not just systemic. It has political and bigot undertones which tell a lot about our culture.

Toxic jokes that are not a joke

Filipinos are very humorous people. They love to joke around. Unfortunately, they do even in inappropriate situations. We have friends and families whose nicknames are racist or fatphobic slurs. Some do catcall and verbal harassments and when caught, “Joke lang.”

We greet people with remarks on their weight, appearance, or sadly life achievements which are nobody’s business but ours. Worst, they’ll tell you you are sensitive or stupid for not laughing them away. After all, like our collective mentality, it’s a joke.