Professional Documents
Culture Documents
DEPARTMENT OF HISTORY
BY
The figure of Carlos Bulosan cuts a distinct outline in the history of Philippine-American
relations. His account of the exploitation and violence perpetrated upon Filipino farm workers in
the United States during the Great Depression, through the War and until the early 1950s when
McCarthyist hysteria started gripping the minds of the mainstream American population,
provides an incalculable source of a viewpoint that is not much read in mainstream historical
works even today. Reading Bulosan is reading not only the biography of a single Filipino coming
to grips with a new world of exploitation, it is the history of the whole uprooted Filipino workers
who sought to understand the America that was idealized and the America that was reality. This
paper aims to highlight the contradictions in the conception of America in the writings of
Bulosan as we will find that the praises he often sings for America, is for an abstract America
that is an almost utopian ideal divorced from reality. The paper will attempt to present this
seeming contradiction by looking at the works written by Bulosan, works written about Bulosan
and of the Asian immigrant in general, and lastly will draw on the author's own interpretation of
Bulosan as an artist.
More than as formal relations between the designated representatives of nations such as
officers of foreign affairs and high-ranking state officials and heads of states themselves, I
believe that diplomacy in its essence is the relationship between two groups of people. And that
those who represent these two groups of people do not necessarily have to come from the upper
and educated classes, that is, the elite. Cultural representatives speak more to the commonality
between two nations, that is, it aims directly at the heart of the peoples involved. Artists and
poets and their works in particular have come to symbolize more, have more concreteness to
people from other nations, than say, the impersonal and objective pronouncements of the heads
of states.
Although essentialism is much frowned upon nowadays, nothing speaks more for the
essence of a nation than their writers. There is the feeling that for example, the works of Ernst
Junger, the much-acclaimed German author who fought in the First World War and who is well-
known as a glorifier of war, speaks of the much-touted German penchant for efficiency and
social formality.1 On the other hand, however, we have the figure of Friedrich Nietzsche who is
much critical of what he saw as the mass behavior being promoted by the State and the Church.
This criticism makes him an ally of those on the leftmost of the political spectrum at that time,
And we can take other cases from other nations as well to illustrate this point although
each time we will be able to find exceptions as well. In the case of the Philippines during the
decades following its subjugation to the United States, the figure of Carlos Bulosan speaks a lot
to the conditions of the Filipino's image as a wanderer. Born in the early years after the start of
the United States' entrance into the Philippines, Bulosan grew up at a time when numerous
world-changing events were taking place. We see during this time the start of the Philippines'
incursions into the larger world, compared to its rather narrow confinement during the Spanish
occupation. Bulosan's oldest brother, Leon for example, was a soldier, a member of the
Philippine National Guard which was sent to fight in the First World War in Europe 2 (the same
comes from his acquiring a voice from his own education that made him able to express the point
of view of those like him. Coming from the lower-class, born from the Philippine peasantry of
illiterate parents, Bulosan was at a young age exposed to the ideal of the educated man. This was
hammered on by the years of toiling under the sun, breaking the soil with his brother and father
in their farm in order to provide for the education of an older brother in the city. Years later, when
writing of his experiences, he constantly speaks of the importance of education and how
important it is for people like him to be able to express themselves to the world. Bulosan saw
education as a weapon, a means of freeing man from his intellectual and actual bondage to forces
that he does not understand. Telling of this is his socio-economic understanding of the role of the
Roman Catholic Church in the Philippines. In his writings, he seldom discusses the priests and
the church in the Philippines except as owners of land, as owners of the means of production.
period of the 1930s when the Plains Region of the United States is being covered with dust and
economic conditions are bleak, his account of the conditions of the lower and working class
gives us a most important glimpse into the mind of those people like him, of Filipinos, mostly
young men from the provinces who sought to find greener pastures in the United States.
the things that he became once he stepped in the American soil. First, we see him as an exploited
Filipino worker, whose inexperience in a new environment made him vulnerable to the
opportunistic designs not only of white Americans but of other Filipinos as well (when he arrived
in the United States, he and others like him were sold for around five dollars as workers in the
canneries of Alaska). Later, acquiring more experience in this new land which he will sing
praises for, we see him as a vagabond, wandering place to place with the seasons in order to find
employment. In these wanderings, though we are presented with a knowledge that can only come
from someone who have toiled the earth, something that is highly idealized in today's tourist-
oriented society, this knowledge did not come, unlike the tourists of modern-times from a desire
not so much to wander and experience the earth, but from the basic necessity of having
The birth of Bulosan as an artist came, ironically enough, with the temporary ending of
his wanderings when he was confined in a public hospital for treatment due to tuberculosis as
well as other illnesses stemming from a life of hard labor and privation. It was in the
surroundings of the hospital while recuperating from an illness, after being told by a doctor that
he only has a few years left to live (he lived until 1956 way beyond the amount of time the
doctor told him he would live) that he was finally able to gather his thoughts and put them down
in writing. It was within the confines of the hospital, under the supervision of the doctor and
nurses, and with constant interaction with family and friends that the birth of Bulosan as an artist
took place.
That this all took place within a hospital takes on a more symbolic meaning in that
Bulosan has come to associate the benevolence of America with that of the public health system.
He once wrote a friend who took to an illness that if she were to go to a hospital, the best thing
would be to be hospitalized in a public hospital because in there, the doctors really cure your
illness and not put their stethoscope to feel for your pocket. 3 It is in the hospital that he
reminisced of two other young Filipino writers who sought to find their success in the United
States. The first one is someone that Bulosan actually knew and lived with for a time together
with another person in a rented apartment. He was brought home by his other companion, in a
rather sorry state and when they gave him food, he just gulped what was given to him like he has
not eaten for several days, as most probably he really was. The story ends in tragedy however as
he recalls that this young man who aspired to be a writer and who did actually pen down a poem,
jumped to his death from the building which they stayed. This is similar to another instance he
recounts where he meets another aspiring author who promised himself that he will be the
greatest Filipino novelist during their time. This ends in another sad note however as Bulosan
simply leaves the young man who pleads to him to stay on a while longer because he does not
have friends.
All of these aspiring writers were somewhat self-educated like him, were workers and
vagabonds as well who sought the greener pastures of the United States and saw only the same
poverty that they were escaping back home in the Philippines. We have in these young men the
image of the starving artist, constantly hungry not only for the warmth and food, but for
recognition as well.4 What inspired these young men was an idea that America had so much to
offer to them, that it is a place where they can express themselves in a new manner, different
from the conditions of the country where they came from. It is this difference, this feeling of a
3Letter to D, dated June 2, 1953, in Selected Works and Letters (p. 81).
new beginning that inspires, that frees the creative soul of the artist and although he may
not be able to achieve that which he so hardly sought after, as most often happens, still
the possibility alone of being able to express one’s self and be respected for this ability is
So what did Bulosan want to present to the world when he remarked, upon
discovering that he is actually able to write in his own words, 'understandable English,'
saying 'They can't silence me anymore! I'll tell the world what they have done to me!'? As
was already discussed earlier, Bulosan took a very pragmatic and practical view of his
writing, and that purpose was not only being the voice of those who do not have the
ability to air their grievances, but being a part of that movement for social justice itself,
so that really, writing is merely an auxiliary activity for, in the case of Bulosan in the later
Delano Roosevelt when Bulosan was asked to contribute an essay for the 'Four Freedoms'
series of articles which was published in the Saturday Evening Post Magazine on March
6, 1943. The late 30s until the mid 40s can be said to be the peak of Bulosan's literary
fame. A year before he was commissioned to write for the 'Four Freedoms,' with his
theme being 'Freedom From Want,' he already gained fame for publishing a collection of
2005, "Bulosan finally given place in America's Heart.") Also, in 1944 was the
translated into several languages. In order to understand Bulosan's role as the unofficial
diplomat not only of the Filipinos, but in this particular case, the workers in general, we
The Four Freedoms series was inspired by the Four Freedoms speech made by
President Roosevelt in 1941 which detailed that what should be aimed at are the four
freedoms of: 1.) Freedom of Speech and Expression 2.) Freedom of Religion, 3.)
Freedom from Want, and 4.)Freedom from Fear, for everyone in the world. It is worthy to
mention that of all the authors commissioned to write for this series, Bulosan was the
only Asian. The others were more popular and influential than Bulosan at that time as
well. These essays were made with matching illustrations by Norman Rockwell who was
a popular painter and illustrator whose works enjoyed a popular appeal in twentieth
century America. For the piece on 'Freedom From Want,' Normal Rockwell illustrated an
all gathered around a table covered with an immaculate white linen with accompanying
silver and porcelain-ware. At the very center, what Rockwell wants for us to focus on, is a
large recently cooked golden-brown turkey being carried and displayed on a platter by the
loving grandmother. The whole thing assumes an ironic character once we read what is
Bulosan does not write from the perspective of middle class America, but of the
lower and working classes. The first words of this essay: "If you want to know what we
are, look upon the farms or upon the hard pavements of the city. You usually see us
working or waiting for work, and you think you know us, but our outward guise is more
deceptive than our history," is very telling and honest.5 These words suggest an
estrangement between the working class and the middle and upper classes who are
usually the readers of magazines such as the Saturday Evening Post. Bulosan continues
with his elucidation of the mindset of those who labor, telling the readers that for the
workers, "freedom is not an intangible thing. When we have enough to eat, then we are
healthy enough to enjoy what we eat. Then we have the time and ability to read and think
and discuss things. Then we are not merely living but also becoming a creative part of
life. It is only then that we become a growing part of democracy." 6 Bulosan speaks from
years of toil and privation, his words ringing with the promise he made of telling the
world what they have done to me, or in this case, what they (who this 'they' is remains
wide open for speculation) have done for the working and lower classes.
In the next lines however, a very distinct shift occurs. Discussing the totalitarian
governments and why they hate democracy, Bulosan writes using the word 'us.' In this
instance, he no longer separates the lower and upper classes, but sees everyone as
Americans who have a deep faith for the workings of democracy however its enemies
may decry and spread lies against it. But afterwards, the voice shifts again to the old
register, speaking of the 'we' that are the workers who worked the canneries of Alaska,
5Carlos Bulosan, 'Freedom From Want,'
http://www.oovrag.com/essays/essay2008c-4.shtml (accessed April 2010).
6Ibid.
those who cut the timbers in Oregon. These are the ones who exist "In violent factories,
crowded tenements, teeming cities. Our numbers increase as the war revolves into years
The words Bulosan wrote in his 'Freedom from Want' assume an even bigger
significance when we realize the origins of Bulosan in the Philippines. Not only this, but
his early experiences in America as well, adds to the reality of his words. Given the
experiences he had with those white Americans who perpetrated numerous abuses and
murders of Filipino immigrants, his remark that sometimes he wonders whether they
truly are a part of America sounds rather mild when the clubbing and strikes they
received, as well as the more blatant remarks of 'why not send these monkeys back where
How Bulosan was able to present these views to the general public could be
explained by the prevailing view at the time of the Roosevelt administration which has
been regarded historically as more socially oriented in that it instituted welfare programs
and other actions that aimed at helping the poor and the dispossesed which was caused by
the years of the Economic Depression and the accompanying Dust Bowl phenomenon.
Given the popularity and the general approval of the American population towards the
Roosevelt administration, center left policies, which appealed more towards the industrial
laborers and farm workers, were much easier accepted relative to preceding and
succeeding periods.
7Ibid.
The reality of poverty which the Filipino immigrants experienced, that poverty
they hoped to escape from back in the Philippines convinced many of them of the need to
unite into larger organizational units in order to fight and ensure their democratic rights in
this new land which they claimed as their home. The unions are a very crucial topic when
discussing Bulosan, for in his later years, when the spotlight no longer shone at him, he
spent his energies towards his union in Seattle, writing in its publications.
Coming upon the writings of Bulosan, particularly his America is in the Heart,
one is struck first by the violence that is portrayed. It is this initial shock that makes the
reader realize that what he is reading will not be a light-hearted thing. And what makes
the reading darker is that Bulosan was writing from experiences from his real life.
Awareness of this violence is necessary and must not be shirked at since it is the fact of
violence that must be confronted first before one can say anything that is positive about
America and the people who are doing these violence, as well as the larger ideological
construct that made this violence and the larger culture of exploitation and inequality
possible. Bulosan's awareness and experience of violence then is something that is worth
exploring.
We see the most graphic picture of this violence in Bulosan's story 'Life and Death
hinted at in his other works, particularly in the 'ethnobiography' America is in the Heart.
In this story, we are presented by the narrator of his encounters with death, and not just
any kind of death, but violent ones. The character of the story then tells us of the death of
his mother due to childbirth, of the death of his friend through being gored by a carabao.
After this second incident, the character then recounts to us his experiences once he
arrived in the United States. The character of Leroy in this story, which Bulosan
befriended and emulated, is described as a labor organizer, someone who has taken the
task of organizing his fellow workers to call for the betterment of their condition. One
night while Leroy and other Filipino farm workers were eating, a group of white men,
armed with shotguns burst into their shack and forcibly dragged Leroy out. The other
Filipinos could not come into Leroy's aid because shotguns were pointed at them.
After the commotion, they ran outside: "We rushed all at once, stumbling against
each other. And there hanging on a tall eucalyptus tree, naked and shining in the pale light
of the April moon, Leroy was swinging like a toy balloon. We cut him down and put him
on the grass, but he died the moment we reached him. His genitals were cut off and there
was a deep knife wound in his chest. His left eye was gone and his tongue was sliced into
tiny shreds. There was a wide gash across his belly and his entrails plopped out and
spread on the cool grass."8 We find in America is in the Heart as well that lynching of
The character of Leroy was an amalgamation, that is, the real existing Leroy is not
that much important anymore compared to what he has come to symbolize in the writings
of Bulosan, that is the radical Filipino who has become enlightened of his and his fellow
Filipinos's condition and sought to remedy this condition sincerely, finding only
persecution and violence. Here the parallel with Rizal can be mentioned, as Bulosan
8Selected Works and Letters, "Life and Death of a Filipino in America," p. 54.
mentions Rizal in his writings. Rizal, the idea of Rizal as the Philippine national hero
who gave his life for the Filipino people, is not that oft-mentioned by Bulosan in
In the same way that Bulosan and the working class think of freedom in terms of
being free from hunger and exploitation, as we have seen in his essay on Freedom From
Want, his conception of the ideal America hinged on the experiences he had with
Americans who showed to him and people like compassion and understanding. This can
be seen in a description of a friend she had who regularly visited him in the hospital
Eileen's frugality was also conditioned by the past. She dreaded the approach of
winter, the horrors of poverty in Hollywood, where the economic pitch was sky-
blown. Yet she managed to send me flowers occasionally, on important holidays. She
was undeniably the America I had wanted to find in those frantic days of fear and
flight, in those acute hours of hunger and loneliness. This America was human, good
and real.9
In this passage, Bulosan saw in the character of Eileen a kindred spirit in that she too
was from the poorer segment of American society. We see in here that Bulosan’s
conception of the kindness and benevolence of America appears more coherent when
taken on a case to case basis of human interaction. At the human, experiential level,
America is the kind teacher who makes the effort of conducting informal teaching
successful white European immigrant who hires farmhands and treats them in a decent
manner, not cheating them of the pay which they so deserve. During that particular
incidence regarding his confinement in the hospital, America is the kind nurse or the
doctor who makes sure that his patients; even though they are poor and are not of
Those women especially who took care of Bulosan had a special place in his
conception of what America is all about. A particularly sad moment in his autobiography
is when he recounts his early life in labor organizing when he and two other fellow
Filipinos who were organizing labor were escaping from the clutches of several racist
Americans who tied them to a tree and attempted to murder them. After escaping and
running, he finally knocks on the door of a stranger where he was, oddly enough,
welcomed wholeheartedly by this woman. She took care of him, nursing his wounds. In
the morning, we find out that this woman was living alone and she tells Bulosan that she
wants to take care of him and that they should leave the house and go to the city. In the
city, Bulosan and the woman live together, her supporting him. It is not directly stated,
though implied by Bulosan, that the woman was a prostitute. She would leave in the
evenings, and come back in the mornings when Carlos is just waking up. One time, they
go out and have the time of their lives, going to bar, dressing beautifully and dancing.
Bulosan recounts that he could not believe that here he was in America with a beautiful
white woman dancing in the ballroom. Later, she faints and Bulosan calls a doctor. We
then find out that she is very sick. She dies due to syphilis and complications. And
V. America as Paradox
The fact that Bulosan was never able to come back home to the Philippines may
help in explaining the paradox we see in his presentation of America in his writings. I
mean, with no other choice left but to face the same circumstances at home in the
Philippines, what else can he really do? His labor organizing would certainly cast on him
the spotlight of government forces, not just the government forces, but the forces of the
local hacendero or landlord as well. Besides that there is the feeling of being ashamed in
his writings, of the sadness of not being able to actualize the dreams that his parents had
for him. Here we are reminded of that scene of his childhood wherein he was told by his
mother that he can now go to school, or that other moment with his father, after planting
10Ibid., p. 219.
their field with coconut that after seven years he would be able to go to school now and
maybe even become a lawyer. In later years, while in the United States, another case of
not living up to expectations would be his failure to strike it big in America and come
back home, to teach his younger sisters Francisca and Marcela to read, which was his
promise to them before leaving the Philippines. All of these seem to push Bulosan to
make his life in America, to make it there at whatever cost it might take.
It seems that Bulosan was at a certain level unaware of the incongruity, the
incompatibility of the pictures of America he presented. The reason for this maybe that he
was too preoccupied with labor organizing to bother with the details. The search for roots
led him to accept an America that is kind and loving and welcoming, no matter the
evidence to the contrary, as it can be said that this 'unwelcoming' parts of American
society comprise only a minority. What also eased Bulosan's attitude regarding America
are the various social welfare institutions of the government during the time of Roosevelt.
One only has to mention the letter to D which he mentions of his experiences in the
public hospitals of the United States where he has oftentimes sought succour from
various problems he had. There was the time while he was a vagabond along with two
other Filipinos when they were chased by police and one of them got caught in the train
and lost a foot. It was in the public hospitals that he told his friend D to go if she really
had no other choice as he sees that the private ones examine not you, but your wallet.
In this paradox is contained the question of who really owns America and who
comprises America. Bulosan waxes poetic about the working-class, the nameless
discriminated multitude that toiled the earth, worked the fields, and built the buildings of
the industrial cities. Somehow it is difficult, if possible at all to reconcile his praises for
America and the experiences he had of suffering and exploitation. Bulosan tends to think
of America through its people. And whenever we have instances of white people abusing
the immigrants we have one picture of America and whenever we have instances of white
people helping and being friendly and treating the immigrants like human beings then we
have that image of a welcoming America that Bulosan sings his praises for.
Conclusion
The paper presented Bulosan as a sort of unofficial diplomat between the United
States and the Philippines. Instances of violence and kindness, the opposite poles of
reaction by the Americans of Filipino immigrants in the United States in the late 30s in
the writings of Carlos Bulosan are presented and discussed as well. We saw that
violence perpetrated by white Americans upon the Filipinos and all the while praising
America as a great land whose soil he is grateful to have walked. This can be explained to
the experiential and highly personal nature of his narrative which was an autobiography.
Carlos Bulosan is crucial because Bulosan came from the segment of the population both
in the Philippines and the United States that are traditionally unable to make their voices
heard.
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