Filipino Youth & Students for Philippine Self-Determination recognizes the 105th Anniversary of the Philippine-U.S. War
While the Vietnam and Korean Wars remain fresh in the
American historical conscience, one of the most brutal
wars in American history remains ignored, belittled,
and even in some cases denied. Today, Filipino youth
and students around the world join in solidarity to
observe the 105th anniversary of the beginning of
imperialist U.S. aggression in the Philippines. On
February 4, 1899 the United States fired the first
shots against the Filipino people at San Juan del
Monte, beginning the long and brutal Philippine-U.S.
war. Over 125,000 U.S. troops were sent to ?pacify?
the Filipino people, leading to the massacre of 1.4
million Filipino men, women and children from
1899-1913.
After more than two years of revolution led by the
Katipunan from 1896-1898, the Filipino people had
established their own government and declared
independence from Spain. However, Spain had subverted
the will of the Filipino people by "selling? the
Philippines for million to the United States
following its defeat in the Spanish-American war. The
United States, claiming to have ?liberated? the
Filipinos from their former colonizers, promised
independence and cooperation with the Filipino people,
all the while planning to simply replace Spain as the
new nation?s replacement colonizer.
The American takeover catalyzed Filipino
out-migration, which continues to this day. Seeking to
escape the poverty wrought by U.S. imperialism and
government corruption, Filipinos now leave the
Philippines at a rate of 1,000 a day for overseas
work, in search of the wealth stolen from them. One
out of every eight Filipinos on the planet lives
outside the Philippines, and Filipinos rank 2nd behind
Mexicans in yearly immigration to the U.S. Upon
arriving in their host countries, these Filipino
immigrants in search of the American dream encounter
the harsh realities of working class exploitation,
racism, poverty, exclusion from mainstream society,
etc.
U.S. interest in occupying the Philippines were
numerous ? regional economic and military dominance, a
market for U.S. surplus, and a source of raw materials
and cheap labor. These motives were as evident then as
they are today in the war against Iraq. In addition,
the Philippine-U.S. war exposed the racism inherent in
Western imperialism ? firsthand accounts of U.S.
soldiers in the Philippines compared combat to
?killing injuns and niggers.? Subsequently, many Black
American soldiers deserted the U.S. army to join the
Filipino resistance.
All Filipino people, particularly youth and students
as well as friends and allies, are called upon to
critically study this suppressed history, as its
historical legacy continues to impact the Philippines
and the Filipino diaspora worldwide. Furthermore, the
interests and jargon that propelled the U.S. into the
Philippines draws similar parallels to the current
imperialist war in Iraq.
Today, 105 years later, the Philippines remains a
neocolony of the U.S. ? an ?independent? country only
on paper, whose political and economic policies remain
subject to U.S. dictates. Although the Filipino people
fought to remove U.S. military bases from their
country in 1991, the puppet Philippine government
continues to allow over 3,000 U.S. troops to engage in
?war exercises? under the guise of anti-terrorism.
Last year, President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo accepted
6 million in military aid from the U.S., further
jeopardizing what little sovereignty the Philippines
currently has.
As Filipinos in the United States, it remains urgent
as ever that we not forsake this inherited struggle.
As citizens of the very country that has ravaged our
homeland, we embrace the task of educating, organizing
and mobilizing support for Philippine
self-determination here in the belly of the beast.
Just as anti-imperialist Americans such as Mark Twain
voiced opposition to the Philippine war, we speak out
today to oppose all wars of imperialist aggression, as
well as the ongoing plunder and oppression of third
world countries such as the Philippines.
Original: Remember the US-Philippine War