MANY Americans (including Fil-Ams) heavily invested in the recently concluded US Presidential elections. Some contributed cash for their candidates, others volunteered to help in their campaigns, and many were passionately engaged in the presidential debates, to persuade others to vote for the candidate which they thought was the better choice to lead this country.
On November 6, the American people made their choice. President Barack Obama has been re-elected through gaining the required absolute majority of electoral votes and the absolute majority of the popular votes.
Some kababayans in the United States and from the Philippines (who were rooting for an Obama re-election) were wondering why there were Fil-Ams who supported Gov. Mitt Romney and the Republican Party. After all, they would say, the Democratic Party has positioned itself as the party that looks after the needs and interests of the immigrant communities and of the disadvantaged sectors of society.
Some speculated that Fil-Ams who voted for Romney did so because of colonial mentality and racial discrimination, alleging t hat Republican-leaning Fil-Ams have a low regard for persons of color, (especially black people) thanks to more than three hundred years of western colonization and mental conditioning, that “white is beautiful.”
They said that Republican-leaning Fil-Ams could not fathom the idea that a man like Barack Obama can be elected, and even be re-elected, as President of the United States.
While there may be kababayans who consciously or subconsciously think this way, I believe this is a hasty generalization of how Republican Fil-Ams made their choice. The truth is, many Fil-Am Republicans seriously weighed in on issues.
This good family Fil-Am friend of mine from the South voted for Romney because as a self-employed doctor, he believes Obamacare does not help his practice at all. He also worries about how it will affect the capacity of small businesses to keep full-time employees. His daughter is married to an African-American and they get along very well.
Another Fil-Am from the West Coast supports the Republican Party because of the long wait his family has been enduring, to be reunited with other family members that they petitioned for, based on US immigration laws.
They have paid all the required fees and did all the necessary filing, but are still waiting for their priority dates to become current. Many kababayans like him, believe the US government should be strict in implementing immigration laws, especially during these tough economic times.
They do not agree that scarce jobs and limited resources should be shared with the undocumented, at the expense of those who comply with immigration rules and pay their taxes.
There is another long-time Republican Fil-Am who believes that the Republican party stands for her own religious values and moral principles. She was raised Catholic in the Philippines and disagrees with the Democrats’ position on pro-choice, abortion and the use of artificial contraceptives.
She also says she respects gay people. What she opposes, though, is the sexual act between people of the same sex. She affirms that she does not discriminate against them, in fact she has a son who is gay.
Conversely, it is also unfair to characterize Fil-Ams who voted for President Barack Obama as mendicants, lazy, non-religious and dependent on government. In fact, many of them are highly educated, gainfully employed and hardworking.
Most of them are also Catholic Christians, who believe the Democratic Party embodies social justice and Jesus Christ’s teaching on “love for others.”
This is why many criticized Romney’s statement, that President Obama won because he gave “gifts” to targeted voter groups:ethnic minorities, women, youth, etc.
They say this unfairly mischaracterizes them, as much as Romney’s previous statement that “47 percent of Americans — those who are dependent on government, who believe that they are victims, who believe that government has a responsibility to care for them, who believe that they are entitled to health care, to food, to housing, to you name it — will vote for Obama no matter what.”
They asserted that they voted for Obama because they believe that his policies and leadership are what the country needs to move forward.
Here are some of the comments of our kababayans who voted for Obama, responding to Romney’s statement:
“Romney was promising lots of ‘gifts’ too, for the very, very rich. Problem is, he didn’t win. He lost, fair and square, and with very little grace. Defeat shows a man’s true character.” – Tammy Monsod
“Romney’s loss is attributable to a combination of forces, but mainly because of his untrustworthiness (changing his position on countless important issues), a deemed major character flaw (remember his ‘47 percent’ comment). He double talked his way through the campaign. Shutting up at this time instead of trashing the voters will do him and his, seemingly out of touch, party good.” – Oj Jorge
“We got no gifts, other than we already have our innate gifts of talents, time and limited retired incomes that we maximized, synergized and let out in full bloom to vote and re-elect President Obama. Why? No self-respecting woman would vote for a presidential candidate who does not know what he stands for, who panders to any base, who flip-flops, and who demeans women…” – Prosy Delacruz
“It might be true, Pres Obama supported same-sex marriage and promised immigration reform before the elections and Hispanics thought he owes them his victory!
But although [these] might be true, [they are] part of a political strategy of changing [the] face of America brought by open immigration that Republicans must realize. Obama won and he is our President…we need to support him for the sake of this country.” – MariFren Ranile
The aforementioned misconceptions and statements from both sides of the political fence against one another may be indicative of the divide among our kababayans here in America, enflamed by heated passion for the recent political season. But the election is over. Our divided past need not affect our future, as members of the Fil-Am community.
The recent conciliatory tone of the leaders in Washington (both Republicans and Democrats) should, hopefully, motivate us to go past our differences, and focus more on what we share in common.
Regardless of whom we voted for, we are all Americans and we are all in this together. The success of the Obama presidency in the next four years will be the success of America. We can only hope for real results from Washington to solve the nation’s problems — hijacked for so long, because of the political gridlock.
Cheers to a new beginning! HAPPY THANKSGIVING!
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Gel Santos Relos is the anchor of TFC’s “Balitang America.” Views and opinions expressed by the author in this column are are solely those of the author and not of Asian Journal and ABS-CBN-TFC. For comments, go towww.TheFil-AmPerspective.com, https://www.facebook.com/Gel.Santos.Relos
