Category Archive for: pangyayari

radikalchick.lit

Owning EDSA: Silencing the critic

The letter dated March 2, 2006 surprised me for many reasons. For one thing it was not addressed to me, but was about me. In it I was judged as a bitter iconoclast who had made a career out of attacking people. In it I was judged for being disrespectful of my academic and writing elders. In it my immediate superior – the Chairperson of the department I was teaching in – was implored to reprimand me, for something that was considered as a “public attack” even when my comments were posted in a private egroup.

I was appalled. But also I was very afraid I would lose my job, even as I just passed my class observations with flying colors, as graded by this same Chairperson; even as I knew this had absolutely nothing to do with the teaching I so enjoyed doing. It blew over of course – the Department ignored the letter – and my fear turned to anger. (more…)

komentaryo

Andanar imagines destabilization, drowns in own false claims

We all know Communications Secretary Martin Andanar is not doing his job. He has no idea what his job entails, what it requires of him, and so he cannot even begin to meet its demands.

It was as such no surprise that in the face of claims by former police officer Arthur Lascañas about the role of then Mayor Rodrigo Duterte in the Davao Death Squad (DDS) and the spate of killings it was responsible for, Secretary Andanar decided to launch an all-out offensive on the basis of what he says is a “demolition job” and “destabilization plot” against the President, neither of which he has proof of.

His strategy? A series of false claims.

Then we watched as he unraveled in a little over 24 hours. (more…)

radikalchick.lit

Owning EDSA: Living EDSA

It would take me forever to get to the point where I stopped caring about the establishment. The first indication I had that I was coming into my own would ironically happen when I had both my feet in activism, and I was teaching in the Ateneo de Manila University as part of its Department of English.

It was February 2006. President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo had declared Proclamation 1017, purportedly because of intelligence reports that members of the military were planning to withdraw support from the president, and they would be participating in EDSA 1986 anniversary celebrations. It was the 20th Anniversary of EDSA, and rallies were being violently dispersed. Arrested were UP Professor Randy David and Atty. Argee Guevara (yes, that same Argee from my freshman year in college), but they were released soon after. The same was not true for the real militants. (more…)

radikalchick.lit

Owning EDSA: EDSA on repeat

By the time Angela won in the Centennial Literary Awards for her Tagalog essay on EDSA entitled “Himagsikan Sa EDSA: Walang Himala!” in 2000, I was more certain about my political beliefs and my relationship with the academe. I was not fearless, oh no! but I sure was becoming more critical. I knew enough about the literary and academic establishment to keep a healthy distance from it – thanks in large part to teachers who were still open to criticism. (more…)

radikalchick.lit

Owning EDSA: A daughter of uncertain times

Mine was a generation mostly uncertain and finding its footing in the political landscape. Done with whatever EDSA euphoria we inherited from our elders, apathy was the word used to describe us teenagers, also called generation X, who were in the University in the late ‘90s. We knew of how Marcos had stopped Voltes V from showing on TV, we knew of classmates in grade school whose fathers and mothers were in jail because of Marcos. But much of it – at least to me – was stuff for elders.  (more…)