A Study of Asian American Issues in the United States - Nicoline Pedersen - Krista Celo - Eden Stilman - Seren Ventullo

OVERSEAS FILIPINO WORKERS

"You had pigtails and didn't speak any English at all." daughter with the most educational opportunities as possible. Growing up in the Filipino school system, Marlyn was faced with learning the history of an entirely new country. Overtime, the two of them together began missing their home country, their loved ones, and the versions of themselves they had left behind in the Philippines. Although Marlyn and her daughter were finally in the same place geographically, a new distance emerged between them: culture. Behavior Marlyn saw as disrespectful, her daughter saw as standing up for herself. After a few more years, Marlyn decided that the two of them should become citizens to provide her A CULTURAL SACRIFICE

WHY OVERSEAS?

It is estimated that today, 10 million Filipinos are working overseas, sending an estimated $27 billion to their families back home in the Philippines. Filipino workers often move abroad with the primary goal of helping their families and making their lives a little easier and more financially stable. Many also have hopes of one day bringing their loved ones to the United states with them.

MARLYN HENNING

Marlyn was born in San Jacinto, Philippines in 1955. Marlyn's father, a bus driver and the sole earner of the house, struggled to feed and support his six children and his wife. By the time Marlyn had grown up, being the youngest of the children, her grandparents had saved up enough for her to attend nursing school. Her first job in Saudi Arabia allowed her to return home only once a year, sending the majority of her pay to her parents in the meantime. Marlyn became pregnant and returned home to give birth to her daughter, but per her contract, had to soon leave behind her newborn to continue work overseas. When her family was in a more financially stable place, she moved back home to be with her child and set her sights on America. But in order to keep her job, Marlyn had to send her daughter to live with her grandparents in Long Beach, CA so she could focus on her work. In order to provide as many opportunities as possible for Marlyn's daughter, her family made many cultural sacrifices, including use of their native language.

NOW

In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, with employment rates skyrocketing, the overseas Filipino worker population has been hit especially hard. The number of Filipino workers that have had to return home to the Philippines is nearing 200,000 due to lost jobs.

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