#U.S Imperialism

[irithnova]

Notes on Empire of Care by Catherine Ceniza Choy

The scapegoating of Filipino nurse immigrants: Filipina Narciso and Lenora Perez are examples of two nurses who were scapegoated.

Filipino nurses with temporary work visas, H-1 visas, were exploited

Mass murder cases involving Filipino nurses included the 1996 Richard Speck massacre. Some of his victims were Filipino nurses and the only survivor was one of these Filipino nurses

The only survivor - Luisa Silverio

The victims

The 1975 Veterans administration hospital murders that happened in Ann Arbor, Michigan, and involved the previously mentioned nurses Narciso and Perez, bering initially convicted and then later acquitted. They were accused of poisoning and conspiracy

These cases reflect how US imperialism shaped the treatment that was levelled at Filipino nurses

During the late 1970s, Filipino nurse organisations emerged in order to combat the exploitation and discrimination that Filipino nurses faced

There is still a huge gap in the study of Filipino Americans. Quoted from Sucheng Chan's essay on Asian American historiography

"Despite the steady progress in Asian American historical scholarship, significant gaps remain. The most glaring is the absence of book-length studies on Filipino Americans"

American imperialism still shapes the way in which Filipinos - especially Filipino women are perceived

Jesse Ventura, an American politician in his autobiography "I ain't got no time to bleed" reminisces on his days as a Navy Seal stationed in the Philippines.

He talks about being young with a large libido, and how the abundance of Filipino women for him and his comrades to take home relieved that.

He spoke of going through less hurdles when he came to getting a Filipina to sleep with him compared to American women back home. In other words - Filipinas were easy.

This is a reflection of how US imperialism has shaped how the Philippines is viewed.

Filipino women are used in order to portray the Philippines as a feminised, hypersexual, always-willing paradise for the pleasure of Western men.

This depiction of so called "love" between Filipinos and Americans erases the long history of US violence, US domination, the colonial relationship between the US and the Philippines and the history of sexual violence perpetuated against Filipino women. Not to mention the destruction of the environment and spread of disease

US military presence in the Philippines also helped in influencing migration patterns.

By 1970, there were more Filipino men in the US navy than the Philippine navy. This was due to the active recruitment of Filipino men into the US military

Yet another example of how the US imperialist narrative erases truths about history and the lived experiences of Filipinos:

Filipino American organisations had to convince Minnesota legislature to correct a plaque commemorating the Spanish-American war.

The plaque stated that it was honouring the fact that the war was fought to free the Philippines from the tyrannical Spanish

This is unequivocally untrue and rings back to the concepts of American exceptionalism - The US being far more "benevolent" to it's colonies than their European counterparts.

The war was fought in order to defeat the Spanish - not to liberate the Philippines.

The Philippines then fought against the US for independence thereafter

America's so called "forgetfulness" when it comes to Filipino-American history continues to hurt Filipinos.

In particular, Filipino American war Veterans who struggle to fight for their access to veterans benefits.

[araguaneys]

nah ik theres no way to keep a civil conversation or change some of ur minds but you all have worms for brain if you srsly still believe some countries are socialist or communist and not full blown far right dictadorships in disguise, and honestly you're all racist as fuck you're only able to talk about my country in relation to the u.s and what they say about us, newsflash assholes we're real people with complicated histories and bad governments precisely BECAUSE of u.s/western imperialism and european colonization, you can hate the u.s and also hate our dictadors who also kill us, most of the time this world its an evil vs evil situation, youre so reductionist and racist you cannot even imagine our ppl are humans who are able to do bad things and abuse each other. I hope u all look inward.

[liberaljane]

Digital illustration of an indigenous man with two braids wearing a jean jacket. There's text that reads, 'Columbus didn't discover anything.'

[hylialeia]

I get that everyone's feeling a lot of feelings right now but one thing is certain and that is that you could not pay me to blame Palestinians for this. even if Harris had lost only because of her stance on Gaza (which she didn't and honestly the mere suggestion that she did is laughable, based on the statistics), both US candidates openly campaigned with pro-genocide stances and promises to gleefully advance the USAmerican war machine. this wasn't a "leftist tantrum over an imperfect candidate", this was a horrifying and genuinely sickening choice. I have never known what it would feel like to have to vote for someone who enabled the genocide of my people, friends, and family, and I absolutely fucking refuse to hate those who do.

[thejakeformerlyknownasprince]

I've seen a lot of folks talk about how in-universe things would be different in a modern AU, but I'm curious if you have any thoughts about how Animorphs and its world building would be if it were being written now in a (post?-) war on terror world rather than a post-Vietnam War world.

So this'd be speculation, but. But a lot has changed since 1996. We'd probably get YA Animorphs if published today (sigh), and we'd definitely get 6 or 12 oversized tomes rather than 54 slim paperbacks. On the plus side, we'd get canon queer rep, especially Tobias and Marco, and we'd get updated animal facts.

And then there's the War on Terror. Controversial opinion: I think it wouldn't change that much about Animorphs, because it's obvious in hindsight that Applegate saw the foreverwar coming.

Like, look at Marco's speech in MM2 about how the U.S. is "always on the lookout for new enemies... Enemies 'R Us, EnemyMart, J.C. Enemy. Don't worry, we'll find one." Or his point in #46 about how "global warfare is a thing of the past. That’s what people think, anyway" and the inherent danger in war becoming this glorious abstraction to too many Americans. Look at Visser's point about how humans "tear down a living man but revere a dead one" and use tragic deaths to forward the political agenda, whatever that might be. Look at Jake's job in #54, developed because "terrorism had grown... religious extremists... antigovernment paranoids... latter-day racists."

And then look at the andalites. "Police force of the galaxy" (#8), "Meddlers of the galaxy" (HBC), who often do more harm than good to the planets they try to save. They try to use their tech and military advantages responsibly... but not so responsibly that they're willing to give up even an iota of power to save lives. We first meet the andalites as the absolute good guys, and then over the course of the series that foundation crumbles (#8), and crumbles (#18), and crumbles (#19), and crumbles (#38), until Jake and Eva are "making deals with taxxons and yeerks to gain a victory fast enough to keep the andalites from deciding... to blast the entire planet out of existence and take out the bulk of the yeerk race along with the human race" (#53). Sound like any countries you know?

Anyway, Animorphs shows the Afghanistan War wasn't caused by the Sept. 11 murders any more than World War I was caused by Franz Ferdinand's murder. Applegate was writing in a U.S. itching for any moral-looking excuse to go to war, and clearly she knew it.

[hadesoftheladies]

palestine is a wake up call to all the people in the global south and all countries and peoples that have experienced colonialism by western empires. especially following the western world's response to ukraine.

when you're flooded with footage of children starving, their bodies shredded by missiles, shrapnel and collapsed buildings, when you see once vibrant, beautiful lands reduced in seconds to rubble . . . you realize how easy it is to provoke a white man. all you have to do is a be a person of colour on your land with all its natural resources. that's it. all you have to do is exist on the same soil as your ancestors. and if a white man says you're in the way of his expansion, it doesn't matter what moral ethics you think white people have. it really doesn't matter what you expect of a human being. what conscience you think they have.

you will die. no one will rescue you. they will murder you. torture you. they will justify it. they will make jokes about it. and years later, when it's not too inconvenient for their people to feel guilt, they will feel sorry and still make what they did to you about them. about their "human complexity" and their "nuance." your people will be dead for thousands of years before they "apologize" (not to you but) to their descendants. and even then they'll lie. they'll blame the "internal conflicts of the region." conveniently leaving out who supplies the guns and military gangs. why. what they get in return.

what's happening in congo, tigray, palestine, haiti, iran, afghanistan, etc is not an isolated event. you cannot afford to think so. it's literally what they did from the 17th-20th centuries. the exact same tactics. the exact same propaganda. these are millions of people dying and set up to die within this year alone.

white man sees resource, white man cuts a bloody path toward it. he is superior, so it's his right. it's that simple.

if you are self-righteous about politics (especially toward western empires like france, britain, russia, canada and the u.s., etc.) please understand that the only thing between your "peaceful" or stable country and all-out war is how agreeable you are to the demands of these empires. please don't think these people have evolved or will consider you in any way. they will nuke you, too, if you resist. that isn't peace. we don't have peace with them. they aren't peaceful. complying under threat of war isn't peace. coercion is not consent.

if these insane people can hear from the mouths of their own scientists that their wars are killing their own people and accelerating the death of life on this planet, i don't know why you'd think they have a shred of humanity left in them. that there's anyone in this life they could possibly care for.

reject that lie. that you can appeal to their humanity. how many fucking "peace talks" have we had since hitler? for fucks sake. begin to build your community and focus your aid and efforts on each other. be aware, but also think smaller. focus on local businesses and markets rather than imports. let's change the way we consume (this is hugely important). wherever you are, whichever people concern you, take care of your own communities. give back. even if you're part of the diaspora. just find a way to give back and strengthen your communities. don't let "the drain" empty out in the west. i'm not claiming its simple work, or that i have all the answers. i'm just saying increase your awareness of how these empires and their propaganda function and don't give into them however you can afford to. you know what you can do. you know your own communities and countries better than i do. and we all know that one of the prime ways the empires keep us weak is by destroying or own intracommunity solidarity.

because there is no UN we can appeal to. there is no western "mediator" we can rely on.

they'd kill us all if it wouldn't tank their economy.

internalize that. don't ever let them coax any trust out of you. there is no "international unity" we can have with them because their prosperity will always require our suffering. resist, at least, by reclaiming your mind from them. see them outside of how they have conditioned you to see them. every time your president shakes one of their hands, see the blood smearing them.

don't trust a single word out of their dirty, lying mouths.

[gothhabiba]

As noted in post-colonial and gender studies, there has long been a pattern of homogenizing and victimizing discourses, particularly in international agencies and NGO’s, that highlight the need of Western nations to intervene on behalf of “third-world women” and “save” them (Spivak 1988; Wood 2001). Robinson-Pant [notes] that it is common for women’s literacy programs, in particular, to become the gateway for other development interventions such as family planning or child nutrition. Collins and Blot note that literacy projects are not power neutral and argue that,

the interconnectedness of literacy, power and identity formation are unavoidable in thinking about relationships between colonizers and colonized. Colonized discourses often emphasize the “inherent” goodness of bringing education, enlightenment and civilization to formerly savage peoples – literacy becomes a legitimizing narrative for other colonial projects (2003:21)

Such positions were evident in U.S. government discourses about literacy and development during the time the Passerelle program was being developed [in Morocco]. This can be seen for example, in a speech made in 2006 by Dr. Paula Dobriansky, the former U.S. Under Secretary for Democracy and Global Affairs, in which she advocated for better education for adult women in developing contexts. In her speech, Dobriansky argued that women and girls should be viewed as “untapped resources” and “vital sources of human capital” for future economic and social growth (Dobriansky 2006).

Thus, in addition to gender, of central importance to understanding the power structures and ideologies underpinning USAID’s Passerelle methodology[] is a consideration of how discourses about literacy often link it up to notions of social and economic development. Collins and Blot (2003) identify these discourses as forming the “Literacy Thesis” [...]. They explain that,

the central claims of the [literacy] thesis are that writing is a technology that transforms human thinking, relations to language, and representations of tradition, a technology that also enables a coordination of social action in unprecedented precision and scale, thus enabling the development of unique social and institutional complexity (Collins and Blot 2003:17)

Numerous critiques of the literacy thesis [...] have since questioned whether literacy can in fact be viewed as a universal, unitary skill that is determinate of social realities or if it is rather embedded in and shaped by the particular, historically contingent cultural contexts in which multiple literacies can occur. [...] Despite [...] challenges to the literacy thesis, its pervasiveness in academic literature, development agendas and the pedagogy of local literacy programs in Morocco is striking.

Given the 2004 Free Trade agreement between the U.S. and Morocco, the emphasis on relationships between literacy and economic forces by U.S. officials, such as [...] Dobriansky, is not unexpected. Prendergast (2003) for example, has argued that since literacy is usually acquired in relation to institutions, it is necessary to consider what other functions these institutions serve. A significant portion of American financial and pedagogical support for adult literacy education in Morocco is funneled through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), as illustrated by the Passerelle program. Among USAID’s “strategic objectives and goals” in 2006, was the goal of “Democracy and Economic Freedom in the Muslim World,” a plan, which “[confronts] the intersection of traditional and transnational challenges… [combining]… diplomatic skills and development assistance to act boldly to foster a more democratic and prosperous world integrated into the global economy.” Thus, any literacy promotion by USAID in Morocco should be considered in light of its broader mission statements and how increased literacy in Morocco is being imagined to align advantageously with them. USAID’s role and interest in promoting literacy in Morocco, can also viewed as a form of literacy sponsorship (Brandt 2001). Brandt explains that sponsors of literacy should be understood as “any agents, local or distant, concrete or abstract, who enable, support, teach, and model, as well as recruit, regulate, suppress, or withhold, literacy – and gain advantage by it in some way” (19). [...] Furthermore, Brant notes that, “in whatever form, sponsors deliver the ideological freight that must be borne for access to what they have” (20). In addition to transmitting ideological freight, perhaps indirectly, regarding language varieties and scripts, USAID also explicitly imposes ideological frameworks regarding notions of gender roles and human rights through the inclusion of Moudawana [Moroccan Family Legal Code] content in the Passerelle classroom.

— Jennifer Lee Hall, Debating Darija: Language Ideology and the Written Representation of Moroccan Arabic in Morocco (PhD dissertation), 2015, pp. 76-9.

[mariluphoto]

via IG: hate5six

[irithnova]

Notes on "Empire of Care : Nursing and Migration in Filipino American History"

Previous post:

Filipino nurse Patrocinio Montellano was a nurse who was interviewed for this book

Art by Filipino-American artist MYSTERIOUSxBEAUTY

She was an accomplished woman, furthering her nursing career in the US by taking post-graduate courses.

She eventually secured deployment through the aid of Americans such as William Musgrave, former director of the Philippine general hospital.

In 1924, she returned to the Philippines, becoming the field representative and nurse supervisor of the Philippine chapter of the American red cross.

None of this would have been able to happen had it been a few decades earlier - when the Philippines was under the colonial rule of the Spanish.

Under Spanish rule, Filipinos were only offered unequal opportunities rooted in gender by the education system implemented by the Spanish at the time.

Because of this, very few Filipino girls were permitted primary education given to them by Spanish charitable institutions.

Women were outright excluded from the University of Santo Tomas - the Spanish university in the Philippines

This was until 1879, when a school of midwifery was opened

When it came to specialised health care jobs, only midwifery was allowed for Filipino women to enter into

Traditionally, Filipino women would take on the role of the caretaker at home

Filipinos would also rely on indigenous healers

On the other hand, in Spanish medical institutions, usually Spanish Friars and Priests were the caretakers.

Sisters of Charity, along with a European nurse, arrived in the Philippines in 1862 to work at the San Juan de Dios hospital.

Spanish surgeons and male Filipino physicians would practice both generalised and specialised forms of healthcare.

In the 19th century, elite Filipino men (called ilustrados) were encouraged by the Spanish government to further their education in European countries.

Jose Rizal - a Filipino national hero and ilustrado was a doctor of medicine himself.

Filipino women were outside banned from these opportunities

US colonialism did implement some changes of opportunities that Filipino women were offered - as Montellano's story reveals.

The opportunities that were now offered were nursing, education - and travel opportunities to the U.S

These opportunities for both work and travel were closely linked.

Montellano's account demonstrates how like clockwork, the beginning of the U.S colonial rule marked significant transnational relations between the U.S and Filipino women

Montellano's socioeconomic and geographic mobility was enabled by these relations

Montellano was aided by American physicians and nurses in order to reach her employment goals in the United States

Montellano's experience in the US helped her secure an advanced nursing career upon her return to the Philippines.

Montellano notes that it was also her sheer determination and courage that helped her progress her career - even against her father's wishes.

The literature on women and imperialism challenges the perception of imperialism as masculine.

American women's participation in U.S. colonialism in the Philippines has been overlooked.

U.S. colonial nursing played a crucial role in American modernity and American women viewing themselves as civilised.

Filipino nurses' perspectives reveal the role of Filipinos and Americans in Philippine nursing.

Nursing and medicine legitimised U.S. colonial agendas and social hierarchies.

Western medicine is often seen as a humanitarian effort, making it difficult to critique its exploitative effects

Reynaldo Ileto noted that it was even difficult for the most nationalist Filipino writers to criticise the US sanitary regime as it saved countless Filipino lives.

Reynaldo Ileto, Filipino historian

The introduction of professional nursing in the Philippines had both liberating and exploitative aspects.

This chapter highlights a period of transnational mobility in Filipino American history.

American and Filipino nurses shaped Philippine nursing through travel, teaching, training, and practice.

This multidirectional mobility has been overlooked in Asian American histories.

The formation of a gendered labor force laid the foundation for significant migrations of Filipino nurses later in the twentieth century.

[undergroundrockpress]

Washington Free Press, 1969.

[justacynicalromantic]

Russian oligarchs close to #Putin are involved in the production of #UAVs for the #Russian army.

Meanwhile, they are behind one of the largest investors in the U.S. defense industry and the social network X, while their kids enjoy a luxurious life abroad.

[milkboydotnet]

Marcos Jr. sells out PH sovereignty for US war preparations vs China

NDF-International | National Democratic Front of the Philippines

April 10, 2024

Marcos Jr.’s trip to the United States for a trilateral summit with US President Joe Biden and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida is an utter and complete sell-out of Philippine sovereignty to US war designs in Asia. The so-called “trilateral summit” is set to discuss “maritime security cooperation” between the three countries.

Marcos Jr. is willingly offering the Philippine archipelago to serve as a ‘theater of war’ by allowing the US to position its military arsenal on land, sea, and air. The Philippines is a crucial piece in the “US Island Chain strategy” to contain China. The Philippines’ strategic location allows the US to constrict regional waterways and position readily deployable military air power in close proximity to China. In order to achieve its objectives, the US is escalating war preparations in the region by encouraging Japan and other imperialist allies to join the geopolitical chess game.

In the said trilateral meeting, Marcos Jr. seeks to further increase US military footprint in Philippine soil while talks are underway with Japan for a reciprocal access agreement that will allow Japanese military presence in the country. In fact, preparations are already ongoing for the biggest Balikatan Exercises in history which is expected to draw at least 16,000 troops to participate. The Balikatan war games this year aims to test the so-called ‘Comprehensive Archipelagic Defense Concept (CDAC)’ patterned after US imperialist war plans in the region. These actions form part of the US strategy to provoke China into “firing the first shot” demonstrating the US government’s bloodthirst.

On the other hand, Marcos Jr.’s actions prove his outright subservience to US imperialist war preparations and his readiness to drag the Filipino people in the middle of a brewing inter-imperialist conflict. Marcos Jr. must be held accountable for his reprehensible sell-out of Philippine sovereignty and his blatant disregard for the lives of the Filipino masses. More importantly, the Biden administration must be denounced for its continued exportation of wars of aggression from Ukraine to Palestine and now using the Philippines as a pawn in its attempt to stifle China’s growing influence.

[nando161mando]

This is also how easily US imperialist propaganda gets manufactured on Reddit

[lonestarbattleship]

The broken armor plate intended for the third Yamato Class Battleship, the Shinano (信濃, Shinano Province) on display at the U.S. Navy Memorial Museum at the Washington Navy Yard, Washington, DC. This plate would have gone on the turret face and is 25" thick!

It was captured by the American Forces after war and sent the U.S. Naval Proving Ground, Dahlgren, Virginia for testing. This particular plate was tested on October 16, 1946 and was penetrated by a US Navy 2700-lb 16" Mark 8 Mod 6 AP with inert filler.

"Complete penetration and plate snapped in two through impact between side edge and upper end of curved gun port hollow. Hole more-or-less cylindrical, with little difference between front and back of plate. Numerous small cracks also put in plate around impact. No damage to projectile indicated, though projectile had considerable remaining velocity and ended up in the Potomac River, never being recovered. Considerable amount of lamination noted in hole (layering effect parallel to face, much like pages in a book glued together)."

Information from NavWeaps.com

If you wish to read more about the tests, click here, link and link. There's too much information for me to condense into a post.

NHHC: NH 82599, NH 82597, NH 82596, NH 82598

[wiltedprayers]

re gen kill — excellent so far. episode 3 made me so sick like I honestly think it's much more raw & unfiltered than bob/maybe even the pacific.... shows that make you want to throttle the tv screen

[fictionandmusic]

“they don’t even both suck” are you fucking kidding me.

is this the same joe biden who’s turned his back on every disabled person in this country by promoting the eugenicist LIE that the covid pandemic is over??? who’s never said the words long-covid or acknowledged it exists?? (incredibly reminiscent of reagan’s response to hiv/aids….)

is it the same guy who has been continuously sending weapons to the Zionist occupation of Palestine, regardless of their unrepentant genocidal behavior?? who’s willingly swallowing their lies & propaganda because it benefits the united states? who said “if there were not an Israel, we’d have to invent one”?

who gives a fuck if he’s “negotiating a ceasefire” it hasn’t fucking worked. hamas has proposed multiple ceasefire plans that have been rejected every time. we wouldn’t need a ceasefire if the USA stopped fucking arming & funding the zionist entity in the first place!!