Movements in Movement: Filipino Diaspora Formation Through Contention

• In Event: 3539 - Violence and Its Consequences

Abstract

When Filipinos migrate and settle in other countries, do they automatically form a diaspora? In this paper, I show that migration alone does not create diasporas. They must be constructed through the formation of collective identities, and one way of doing this is through activism. Looking at the transnational movements against the dictatorship of Ferdinand Marcos and for migrants' rights, I reveal two elements that work together to form a diaspora: (1) loyalty and continued belonging to homeland and (2) solidarity with co-nationals/-ethnics. These elements get challenged and reconstituted in times of political unrest.

Author

• Sharon Quinsaat, Grinnell College