I ran across a tongue-in-cheek letter by a Pinay journalist, Vikki Ortiz, with the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel about how she would help the Milwaukee Bucks draftee, Yi Jian-lian, adjust to life as an Asian American in her town.
Yi is a 6'11" basketball player from China, who is supposedly not keen on going to Milwaukee. His agent may try to negotiate a way that he can play in a bigger city.
Ortiz was trying to show him the ropes of the Milwaukee social scene from an Asian American point of view. (She has a blog about the singles experience at the Journal Sentinal website.)
One of the things she mentioned in her "letter" was how Fil-Ams are considered good entertainers and dancers, and how Yi might find himself associated with this stereotype:
"3. Dance credits. Maybe this one applies more to Filipino-Americans, who're often stereotyped as being good entertainers, but it may come up for you as well. When you look like us, people like to assume you're a great dancer. Even if you hate dancing. Even if you couldn't step to the beat with a gun to your head. I, for one, love dancing, and appreciate the assumption. I'm sure my moves aren't any better than those of my white girlfriends. But people think they are - and that gives me dance floor confidence!"
It may be a stereotype, but if I were forced to choose which Asian American group had the best dance moves, Pilipinos would be right up there.
And when Ortiz says that her moves are no better than her white girlfriends, I'd like to think she's being disingenuous. (Unless she was totally whitewashed growing up, but even still... I'd bet her genetic makeup would predispose her to dance fever.)
The thought of a Pinay dancing diva reminds me of someone I heard on the radio this morning, who's Pinay and loves to dance.
I heard Wilma Consul report on the plight of Latino immigrants in the Baltimore area for WYPR, the local NPR station. (I assume she was talking mostly about undocumented immigrants.)
Years ago, I remember hearing a radio piece she did where she mentioned Fil-Am dance halls or dance parties. I think she was talking about the social dance scene in Daly City and South San Francisco.
Well, anyhow, it's nice to know an acquaintance from the past is on the local airwaves. Yeah, I've met her a couple times over the years.
I even think I've seen her "cut a rug."
Posted by raacluse at August 14, 2007 10:31 PM