“Puzzling but Not Surprising: Speaking English with Filipinos in the Philippines” suggests that one of the readily available ways to stop inequalities in the Philippines is to stop speaking in English. It starts with a brief history of the country’s pre-colonial legacies, how these legacies were circumvented by the colonial powers to help legitimize their positions, and how the system was further maintained to feed the status quo. It then proceeds with the premise that normalizing the use of English not only perpetuates these legacies but also hammers the difference between “us” and “them.” Ultimately, the privileged and the literate are encouraged to become constantly obliged to remain acutely sensitive to not allow English to become the new Spanish.

As seen on Rappler: [OPINION] Puzzling but Not Surprising: Speaking English with Filipinos in the Philippines