Filipino American Narratives and their Absence

Asian Americans have long been underrepresented in American media. As Angela Castillo remarked in 2012, “[u]ntil the last two decades or so, Asians have been almost invisible in mainstream North American public and cultural spheres. Our economic contributions and labour have not been made evident; our stories do not make prime time TV shows, and the distinctions between us are often effaced and overlooked” (4). In the past couple of years, some progress has undoubtedly been made as public discourse has taken a newfound emphasis on diversity and demanded change in Asian American representation in film and television. These shifts are just the beginning in the long process of dismantling a system centered around straight white male filmmakers and stories, but these few successes have proven that an engaged, vocal, and critical audience has the power to effect change in Hollywood. But while this shift has led to a greater presence of Asian Americans in mainstream media as a whole, Filipino Americans seem to remain virtually invisible. Asian Americans are still certainly underrepresented overall, but Filipinos appear to be persistently and disproportionately so.

A look into Filipino American studies first and foremost reveals how startlingly little academia focuses on the group. What little research has been done typically centers itself around the question “why is there no Filipino American academia?” It all seems exceptionally odd considering Filipinos are one of the largest Asian groups in the United States (Hoeffel 15). So why, in time where issues of diversity are coming to the forefront and Asian American voices and faces are finally finding a place in Hollywood, are Filipino American narratives still so invisible?