Stop praising ‘Filipino resilience’ amid huge unemployment, appeal Slater Young, Frankie Pangilinan
Slater Young. Image: Instagram/@thatguyslater
Slater Young said people should “stop romanticizing” the hardships that Filipinos are experiencing during the health crisis because “nobody wants to have to be resilient.”
“Can we please stop glorifying Filipino resilience?” the actor asked via Twitter yesterday, Aug. 17. “The most ‘resilient’ among us have it the hardest.”
Young’s statement came after Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said he was glad (“Ako po’y nagagalak…”) and “surprised at our resilience” because there were “only” 45% of Filipinos who are unemployed amid the five-month long quarantine measures imposed in the country. Roque said “it could have been worse” because the country is under “complete lockdown.”
According to the Social Weather Station (SWS), 45.5% or 27.3 million Filipino adults have been unemployed as of July 2020. This is a 28-point leap from the recorded adult joblessness rate in December 2019, which was 17.1%.
Can we please stop glorifying Filipino resilience? The most “resilient“ among us have it the hardest. Nobody wants to have to be resilient. Let’s stop romanticizing it.
— Slater Young (@thatguySLATER) August 17, 2020
“45% pa lang? It could be worse…,” the “Pinoy Big Brother” winner said in a follow-up tweet, in what appears to be a reference to Roque’s statement.
“‘It could be worse’ is an excuse,” Young asserted.
Without mentioning Roque or the survey, Young added, “‘It could be better’ is being accountable.”
45% pa lang? It could be worse
Oh 60% na? It could be worse
80%??? It could still be worse
“It could be worse” is an excuse
“It could be better” is being accountable
— Slater Young (@thatguySLATER) August 17, 2020
Similarly, Frankie Pangilinan spoke up about the topic on her Twitter account today, Aug. 18.
“[The] over-romanticization of adaptability and resilience is supposed to make us okay with repeated abuse,” she pointed out.
the over-romanticization of adaptability and resilience is supposed to make us okay with repeated abuse 🤡
— kakie (@kakiep83) August 17, 2020
Roque explained that the spike in the unemployment rate is because of the months of lockdown which affected the economy. Seeing the bright side in the situation, the spox said he was “glad” that at least it was not 100%.
Labor group Bukluran ng Manggagawang Pilipino slammed Roque’s “toxic positivity” on the matter. Meanwhile, some senators stressed that the figures should alarm the government and push it to ensure that proper assistance is provided to citizens who lost their livelihood during the COVID-19 pandemic. JB
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