Strange New White World

Kaya Ortiz

‘You will be assimilated. Resistance is futile.’ The monotone voice, eerily shadowed by a thousand others, is sure, insistent. I keep my eyes on the television screen, a pillow clutched tightly to my chest. It’s the Season 3 finale of ‘Star Trek: The Next Generation’. Captain Jean-Luc Picard of the Federation Starship Enterprise stands up from his Captain’s chair. He doesn’t know it yet, but, by the end of the episode, Captain Picard will be captured by an alien species called the Borg. He will be injected with nano-probes to begin the process of assimilation, and then he will no longer be Captain Jean-Luc Picard.

Assimilation. It’s such a technical, scientific word. According to the Google Dictionary, it means:
1. the process of taking in and fully understanding information or ideas.
2. the absorption and digestion of food or nutrients by the body or any biological system.
3. the process of becoming similar to something.

— —

‘I'm so jealous of your olive skin tone. You always look so tan,’ Maddi says to me as we walk into the Clarence High School library.

I am fifteen. It’s April, three months after my family had migrated from the Philippines. I still can’t get used to the alien world of Australian public high school. I’m sure everyone around me can still see the Philippines on my skin, hear it in the rolling Rs and strong enunciations of my accent.

‘Oh,’ I reply. ‘Uh, thanks.’ I feel my cheeks warm. Inside the library, Maddi and I join the other girls who have adopted me into their friendship group. I listen to them chat and laugh as I smile and stay quiet. We eat our sandwiches and I try not to think about my mum’s adobo over rice, or turon glazed in sugar from my old school’s canteen. The ache in my chest and my stomach.

It’s 2011, and Clarence High School’s student population is about 95-99% white. With its locker-lined hallways and smartboards, shiny floors and computer-filled classrooms, this was a strange new world. But when I showed up to the first day of school in the maroon and green plaid winter skirt and my legs unshaved, I quickly realised that it was I who was the alien.

— —

2011

         ‘I bought my dress for leavers! Check it out –’

         ‘I’m planning to get my fake tan done at this place in town, it’s called…’

         ‘Do you have your shoes yet?’

         ‘Does anyone want to pool in to rent a Kombi van?’

         ‘Lucky you, you’re already so tan…’

         Chatter around the end of year formal dinner starts around September, at least for girls. Something that I had picked up on as I was learning how to be a teenage girl in Australia was that white teenage girls in Australia like to tan, whether by lying in the sun for hours or getting a fake tan. This happens to be the exact opposite of what teenage girls and women do in the Philippines, which is to avoid the sun at all costs and using umbrellas when one must venture into the sunlight, and titas recommending brands of skin-whitening soap to younger girls.

For the first time all year, I felt I had the advantage thanks to my Filipino genes. The tan I had when I first arrived in Australia had faded during winter. I resolved to try tanning. Deliberately. As if it didn’t go against everything I was taught.

It was November when the cold Hobart spring finally began to ease. Pink blossoms covered the trees and the days were lengthening like shadows. Just outside my bedroom window was the carport roof. It was the perfect spot to sit in the sun for an hour after school every day, wearing just a pair of shorts and a bikini top. 

As it turns out, sitting in the sun every day for a month will get you good and brown, especially if your skin is already somewhat melanin inclined. My friends praised my tan, and the turquoise dress and silver shoes combination I had picked out for the formal were in perfect harmony with my golden skin.

— —

In the context of Star Trek, assimilation is a threat: ‘Your uniqueness will be added to our collective,’ the Borg say from the safety of their cubic, asteroid-sized, indestructible, and ever-adapting vessel. Quite frankly, it’s an ugly ship. But the Borg aren’t particularly known for being aesthetically pleasing. A strange mish-mash of organic and technological material, their name is clearly a reference to the cyborg, itself a shortened form of the term ‘cybernetic organism’. The Borg do not reproduce organically, but technologically, via the mass assimilation of other species.

— —

History lesson: Republika ng Pilipinas[1]

1.     Millions of years ago, the archipelago is formed.

2.     The islands are inhabited by Austronesian migrants. My grade one history textbook says: Malay and Indones, Negritos and Aetas. They are short in stature and have kinky hair, flat noses, dark skin.

3.     Yes, this will be on the test.

4.     Chinese traders. Chinese settlers. Muslim traders. Small nations and polities form across the islands, each with their own leaders, religions, cultural practices and languages.

5.     1521. Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan sights Samar Island. He lands in Eastern Samar, claims the islands for Spain and begins converting Indigenous locals to Christianity. My grade one history textbook says: The Spaniards are tall and fair-skinned, with high-bridged noses.

6.     1543. The archipelago is named Las Islas Filipinas after King Philip II of Spain.

7.     1565-1898. Las Islas Filipinas is colonised in earnest by Spain for a total of 333 years.

8.     Yes, this will be on the test.

Test: List three long-lasting effects of Spanish colonisation.

1.     The country is still named after a king who likely never stepped foot on its land.

2.     Anywhere from 20-30% of the national language are Spanish or Spanish-derived words.

Ex: the most common greeting, kumusta, is directly derived from the Spanish greeting como esta.

3.     My family and many others bear Hispanic surnames despite having no history or records of Spanish ancestry. For these families, any records of pre-colonial names and histories of bloodlines have largely been lost, if they ever existed.

— —

2014

         ‘Where are you from?’ This time, the question comes from a random customer whom I will probably never see again.

         ‘My father is Filipino,’ is the answer I’ve taken to repeating. It usually satisfies the elderly white man or woman asking. It would be far too complicated, not to mention inappropriate, to launch into my life story while I’m selling lottery tickets and magazines. Like, oh, I was born in Hobart. Oh, yes, no, I’m not white. Oh, I grew up in the Philippines. Oh, I’m the product of a mixed-race marriage. Oh, you can tell from my accent? Oh, oh, I’m an immigrant, I’m a citizen.

         Why are you asking?
        Why do I dread it?

         I don’t know.

This is what I do know: I’m nineteen. One year into my undergraduate Arts degree at the University of Tasmania, working a casual retail job, and partnered with a white man. In class and at work, I can almost pull off an Aussie accent. I forget how to say a word in Tagalog. I forget how to say whole sentences.

What I don’t know: I barely notice that I’m the only person of colour in my lecture hall, workplace, or friendship group.

But I still get asked, ‘where are you from?’

         ‘My father is Filipino.’

         A friend figures out that I never learned the nut bush.

         ‘My father is Filipino.’
        I say a word differently, or with the wrong accent.

         ‘My father is Filipino.’

         A lecture at uni is on the topic of race and I slump down in my seat, heart thumping.

         ‘My father is Filipino,’ I say. As if I am not.

— —

(Continued) History lesson: Republika ng Pilipinas

9.     1896-98. The Philippine Revolution leads to armed conflicts around the archipelago. The Spanish-American War comes to the Philippine islands, leading to the country’s independence from Spain.

10.  1899. The First Philippine Republic is formed, but it is not recognised. Spain is forced to cede the colony to the United States of America. The Philippines is declared ‘unfit for self-government.’ American occupation is met with resistance from the First Philippine Republic. Hostilities between America and the Philippines leads to the Philippine-American War.

11.  1901-1935. The country is governed by an Insular Government under the authority of the United States, to prepare the Philippines for full independence.

12.  1936. The Commonwealth Government is established to allow for a ten-year transition to independence.

13.  1942-44. Japan occupies areas of the Philippines during World War II.

14.  1946. In spite of the war, the archipelago achieves independence in accordance with the original timeline, with the US ceding sovereignty. Although the Philippines becomes a Republic, it remains dependent on the US.

15.  Yes, this will be on the test.

Test: List three ongoing effects of American colonisation and Western imperialism in the Philippines.

1.     Colourism leads to widespread popularity of skin whitening practices and disproportionate representation of mixed-race celebrities in the media.

2.     Filipinos account for the fourth-largest number of immigrants to the United States.

3.     English is one of the country’s official national languages, along with Filipino. Only these two languages are taught in schools, despite there being up to 187 languages spoken throughout the Philippines.

— —

2011-Present

         ‘What accent is that?’

         ‘Hey, if you’re Filipino, why do you sound American?’

         ‘I bet I can guess where you’re from based on your accent. Canada, right?’

         ‘Where in America are you from?’

         ‘Did you go to an international school?’

         I stare at the random white person asking. I take a breath. Years of American occupation, education, television and politics flash before my eyes. I imagine bricks falling from the sky, burying me; kids calling me American just because I’m half white. American cartoons on the TV growing up. Knowing more about American elections than Philippine elections. American English as the standard language for teaching in schools. American missionaries welcomed by my great-grandfather into the remote Indigenous community of which he was the chief leader.

‘Oh yeah, well, the American influence is pretty big in the Philippines.’

— —

The Borg first appear during the second season of Star Trek: The Next Generation, in the episode ‘Q-Who?’. After being hurled across the galaxy by a powerful alien entity named Q, the starship Enterprise and its crew are faced with the Borg’s relentless brutality for the first time. Only one member of the crew, a humanoid named Guinan, has any idea what they’re up against.

INT. CONFERENCE ROOM ABOARD THE ENTERPRISE.

Seated in tall-backed chairs around a black reflective table are Captain Picard, First Officer William Riker, Lieutenant Commander Data, Counselor Troi, and Guinan. To the left, a row of windows looks out to the black, star-studded galaxy.

PICARD: What happened between your people and the Borg?

GUINAN: I wasn’t there personally. But from what I’m told, they swarmed through our system. And when they left, there was little or nothing left of my people.

RIKER: Guinan, if they were that aggressive, why didn’t the Borg attack [the Enterprise]? They could have but they didn’t.

GUINAN: They don’t do that individually. That’s not their way. When they decide to come, they’re going to come in force. They don’t do anything piece-meal.

DATA: Then the initial encounter was solely for the purpose of gathering information.

GUINAN: Yes.

PICARD: How do we reason with them, let them know that we’re not a threat?
GUINAN: You don’t. At least, I’ve never known anyone who did.

— —

History lesson: ‘Empires on which the sun never sets’

1.     The Spanish Empire, also known as the Hispanic Monarchy and the Catholic Monarchy, colonised and controlled territories throughout the Americas and other parts of the world, including, in Asia, the Philippine archipelago, through the late 15th to early 19th centuries.

2.     The British Empire was, at its height, the largest empire in the world. By 1920 it controlled 24% of the Earth’s land mass, leaving a cultural, political and linguistic legacy that is widespread to this day. Along with that legacy is a hidden history of violence enacted upon the native inhabitants of their colonies, and the ongoing colonisation in these places.

Test: List three examples of ongoing colonisation in former Spanish or British colonies.

1.     For one reason or another, the question of my ethnicity comes up in conversation. ‘My dad is Filipino, my mum is white,’ I say.

‘White? Do you just mean Aussie?’ is the reply I receive.

2.     The so-called holiday still nationally known as Australia Day, and still widely celebrated every year on the anniversary of the country’s invasion.

3.     The ongoing oppression and marginalisation of First Nations people in Australia.

Ex: The destruction of a 46,000-year-old Aboriginal heritage site by mining company Rio Tinto.

Ex: On-going removal of Indigenous children from their families and communities.

Ex: Over 400 Indigenous deaths in custody since 1991.

— —

2019

‘Do you guys listen to K-pop?’ Dan, our somewhat socially unaware housemate, asks. He’s sitting at the kitchen table playing music on his Bluetooth speaker. He doesn’t wait for an answer. Predictably, a K-pop song comes on next. It’s a catchy tune, with a word or two of English amidst the Korean lyrics.

‘It’s so strange how they just randomly have lines and verses in English.’ Noah says. Still scrawny at seventeen, he’s the youngest in the house. His comment strikes a nerve, but I brush it off.

Later, I think of a million things I wanted to say in reply, and none that I had the nerve to. Like:

-     It’s not strange.

-     In the Philippines, most people speak at least two languages. My father is fluent in five, conversational in another two: Tagalog, Bisaya, English, Subanen, Chavacano, Tausug and Ilonggo.

-     The language in my child mouth was a blend of Tagalog and English, a tongue weaving seamlessly between the two. This language has its own name: Taglish, spoken also by my family, my peers, and the wider community. I learn later in life that this practice has a technical term within the study of linguistics: code-switching.

-     None of this is strange.

-     Being monolingual is strange.

-     K-pop is not strange for using a language that imposes itself upon the world as a universal standard for communication in almost every area of business, study and media.

-     I speak only English now, my tongue loosened from its Filipino roots. The Tagalog in my head fades in and out of consciousness. So far from home, I have found no one who would hear me and not say, ‘you are strange,’ but instead, ‘I understand.’ So I keep quiet. I translate.

-     Even this is not strange.

— —

2019

‘Look what I got for you!’ Nathan says, holding up a green mango. I’ve just walked into the kitchen to find him unloading groceries. He’s grinning at me, and as always his too-long caramel hair is fluffed up around his head.

I examine the mango. It’s not quite the right variety, but this far from home I’ll give anything a go. ‘Oh, thanks. You know what will go perfectly with this?’ In the fridge is a jar of bagoong, a sautéed shrimp paste used in Filipino cooking. I take it out and set it on the counter.

‘Really?’ Nathan asks, his blue eyes wide. I nod, and begin to peel the mango, then slice it into slivers. Inside, the mango is almost yellow, almost soft. It’ll do just fine.

I spoon the bagoong onto the sour green fruit. Nathan watches as I bring it to my mouth, lick my fingers. My face scrunches involuntarily as the sour umami flavours hit my tongue. I can’t even remember the last time I ate this. For a second, I’m back in the school canteen, handing ten pesos to the food vendor for a serving of green mango.

I make some for Nathan to try. He takes a careful bite, chews thoughtfully. ‘Wow, that’s strange.’ I try not to cringe. ‘But I like it!’ Then, Noah walks in. ‘Hey, man,’ Nathan says. ‘You have to try this, it’s really weird but it’s good!’

Noah tries it and agrees with Nathan’s assessment. Neither of them want anymore, so I stand at the counter and fill my mouth with sour mango and bagoong until all that remains are green skin peelings. I try not to notice when they look at me like I’m an alien. 

— —

Test: Answer the following questions.

1. What is the cost of colonisation?

A hundred thousand names.

2. What is the cost of migration?

A language. A tongue.

3. What is the cost of assimilation?

My skin. My body. My heart. 

— —

After the first encounter, the Borg become one of the most ominous threats the United Federation of Planets has ever faced. A collective hive mind, they have one goal, and they make it clear to anyone who crosses their path. It is not so much a warning as it is a death sentence: ‘We are the Borg. Lower your shields and surrender your ships. We will add your biological and technological distinctiveness to our own. Your culture will adapt to service us. Resistance is futile.’ 

— —

Star Trek:

Berman, R., Hornstein, M., Lauritson, P. (Producers) & Frakes, J. (Director). (1996). Star Trek: First Contact [Film]. Paramount Pictures.

Hurley, M. (Writer) & Bowman, R. (Director). (1989, May 8). Q-Who [Television series episode]. In Roddenberry, G. (Creator). Star Trek: The Next Generation. Los Angeles, CA: CBS Television Studios.

Memory Alpha Fandom Wiki. (2018). Assimilation. Retrieved from https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/Assimilation

Piller, M. (Writer) & Bole, C. (Director). (1990, June 18). The Best of Both Worlds [Television series episode]. In Roddenberry, G. (Creator). Star Trek: The Next Generation. Los Angeles, CA: CBS Television Studios.

Borg. (2020, May 31). In Wikipedia. Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Borg&oldid=959866257

History:

British Empire. (2020, June 5). In Wikipedia. Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=British_Empire&action=history

History of the Philippines. (2020, June 4). In Wikipedia. Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=History_of_the_Philippines&oldid=960720848

Munroe, R. (2014, September 10). Will the sun ever set on the British empire? The Guardian. Retrieved from https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2014/sep/09/sun-ever-set-on-british-empire

Philippines. (2020, June 6). In Wikipedia. Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Philippines&oldid=961166871

Republic of the Philippines National Statistics Office. (July 2014). The Philippines in Figures. Retrieved from https://www.census.gov.ph/sites/default/files/2014%20PIF.pdf

Spanish Empire. (2020, June 1). In Wikipedia. Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Spanish_Empire&oldid=960171063

Spanish language in the Philippines. (2020, June 2). In Wikipedia. Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Spanish_language_in_the_Philippines&oldid=960386523

Other:

Allam, L., Wahlquist, C. & Evershed, N. (2020, June 6). Aboriginal deaths in custody: 434 have died since 1991, new data shows. The Guardian. Retrieved from https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2020/jun/06/aboriginal-deaths-in-custody-434-have-died-since-1991-new-data-shows

Australian Associated Press. (2020, May 31). Rio Tinto apologises to traditional owners after blasting 46,000-year-old Aboriginal site. The Guardian. Retrieved from https://www.theguardian.com/business/2020/may/31/rio-tinto-apologises-to-traditional-owners-after-blasting-46000-year-old-aboriginal-site

Fernandes, D. (2018, October 9). As more Aboriginal children are removed from families, critics say government risks a second Stolen Generation. The World. Retrieved from https://www.pri.org/stories/2018-10-09/more-aboriginal-children-are-removed-families-critics-say-government-risks-second

Zong, J. & Batalova, J. (2018, March 4). Filipino Immigrants in the United States. Migration Policy Institute. Retrieved from https://www.migrationpolicy.org/article/filipino-immigrants-united-states

[1] Translation: Republic of the Philippines