Exposing the Frontier
Filipinos have a colonized history for more than four hundred years are situated within a complicated, diasporic experience in America. Through America’s victory from the Philippine-American War, America’s occupation continued the colonization of Filipinos after the Spaniards. Eventually, the country guarded its power and status through implementing alienating strategies. An example stems back from World War II. Though America called out for the aid of Filipinos in the war and promised to provide benefits afterwards, the country failed to uphold their agreement and instead implemented the Rescission Act of 1946 which states that wartime conduct of the Filipino veterans is not considered “active military, naval, or air service” under U.S law. The act left many Filipino veterans not only unrecognized but also unable to receive benefits and therefore live an unsuitable standard of living. For the past seventy years, Filipino veterans continue to struggle for their representation and fight against the perpetuated colonialism that persists through the present.
In recognizing the power of photography to shape the politics surrounding a subject, my project attempts to critique the colonial gaze towards Filipino veterans. My work encompasses the collaboration with the Filipino community based in Downtown Los Angeles and with the organization Justice for Filipino Veterans (JFAV). The five sets of diptychs consist of archival photographs collected from the organization Visual Communication and juxtaposed to modern day shots of 92 years old Filipino veteran, Rufiniano De Castro, and JFAV’s annual march and rally on Veteran Day. This work have enlighten me about the history connected to my Filipino American identity and the significance it brings in thinking about photographed, colonized subjects. My hopes for these photos in the future are to be expanded through including more Filipino veterans and their histories. These photos aim to not only bring justice and recognition to Filipino veterans but ultimately unpack the long history of subjugation and colonialism of Filipino veterans.