Desperate Housewives jokes about Med Schools in the Philippines

It wasn’t even a racist remark.

It’s time for Filipinos to stop whining when a foreigner says derogatory remark about the Philippines or it inhabitants.

Racist jokes against dark skinned people, gays, bisayans and Batangueno’s accent in the Philippines have been going on and accepted as normal.

When somebody says “Yuck, hindi ako bisaya ha.” I find it offensive, but i received it with grace and self-control.

It is kinda offending that they relate the philippines as a place where cheating is rampant pero there’s some truth to the matter din kasi. I just hope the writers be a bit sensitive nex time.

It only speaks of a reality..

Instead of going to arms about the remark, I think we should focus on taking on the problem that spurred it, which is the rampant cheating in our country.

Oh come on people…where is your sense of humor?! Why don’t you just take it with a grain of salt will ya?

Reality is diplomas alone don’t make a doctor. The statement is invalid. Like I wrote in my blog, A lot of Filipino doctors migrate to the US and pass the same USMLE (United States Medical Licensing Exams) that US-educated doctors take. The fact that our Philipine-educated doctors pass the same examinations which requires a higher percentage score from them as foreign medical graduates proves that med schools in the Philippines are just as good as any other medical school in the US.

american suck !! don’t discriminate pinoy’s !! we rock !! and u guys suck….

fuck back america !

my take is that the line is derogatory and completely unnecessary for the script. it could have simply been “a diploma from the internet” or some jungle elsewhere. I am not raged by this incident. But I understand how people from the medical profession might feel about this.

“bato bato sa langit… ang tamaan ‘wag magagalit…” Some Filipinos find it funny, some made them mad… Can’t we, Filipinos, really can’t take a joke??? or are we just really guilty…???”

haha. exactly.. and as Abe already pointed out.. they’re into the “some” med schools. Imagine.. you see a lot of med schools since the start of the “Nursing” booooom! and I think the whole world knows that… even us. We know that there are now 6 month courses that will make a caregiver. The Med schools of this and that and this has appeared… established in the year… 2005 or 2006 or even 2007

speaking of racist well check this out
http://www.alistercameron.com/2007/03/15/another-stupid-seo-strategy-the-filipino-link-builder-who-cant-write/

After all I can’t see racism on the scene. It was just purely humor.

Noemi,

I personally know two doctors who studied in provincial colleges who are well-placed in the US as doctors.

I think even our papers exaggerrate the doctors-turned-nurses-in-the-US trend. Several of my high school batch mates are now doctors either in the US, Canda or Australia. So far none in the UK or Europe though there’s on in South Africa. Of course almost half of my WVSU high school batch went into nurses’ school. Most of them are abroad now as nurses.

this is so ******* hilarious. no, seriously, nakakatawa sya. and ang OA ng mga nag react negatively towards that. its a shame if some organization does a formal complain or whatevs about that, eh ung mga indians nga and the chinese hindi nag re-react against racial slurs thrown at them na higit namang mas nakakasuya, eh tayo pa.

“The comments were totally outrageous. We are sending a complaint to the US FCC, the World Medical Association, and to the TV network and producers of the show to ask that the same be rectified because it is demeaning to the character and dignity of Filipino doctors,” said Castro. FROM INQUIRER.NET

OMG! PLEASE STOP THEM FROM DOING THIS! MAS LALONG NAKAKAHIYA! this is so overacting. i cant believe our government sectors are acting this way. sasabihin pa nilang vehement protest ng buong sambayanang pilipino. protest their mouth.

pL
EASE READ AND SIGN. THANKS!
Joana Palomar, Spokesperson, Ugnayan ng mga Anak ng Bayan, 212-564-6057, ugnayan****@****.***

Statement of Ugnayan ng mga Anak ng Bayan (Linking the Children of the Motherland) on the Racist Comment Made Against Filipinos on Desperate Housewives

Progressive Filipino American youth in New York and New Jersey strongly condemn ABC’s Desperate Housewives’ executive producer and writer Marc Cherry and the other producers, editors and the director of the show for the racist remark made against Filipinos in the Sept. 30, 2007 episode. We join the Filipino community and its allies in demanding from ABC a public apology and recognition of the existence of systemic racism in the corporate media and corporate-driven pop culture.

In the Sept. 30, 2007 episode of Desperate Housewives, Teri Hatcher’s character is told by her gynecologist that she might be hitting menopause, to which she replies, “Can I just check those diplomas because I just want to make sure that they are not from some med school in the Philippines.” The comment reflects systemic racism at its worst. Targeting an entire education system (rather than targeting individuals based on skin color, which is how we have traditionally defined racism), the comment is based on the racist assumption that the products of a western education are far more qualified than the products of a Philippine education.

Filipino youth, conscious and aware of our history, know that it was the US who set up the Philippine education system in the first place when the Philippines was a direct colony of the US in the early 1900s. We understand that the main beneficiary of this crippled Philippine education system IS the US, especially in the medical field. The US opens and closes its doors to immigrants based not on qualifications, but on the need for labor. This was the case at the height of the “Brain Drain” in the 70’s and 80’s when there was an influx of medical professionals migrating from the Philippines into the US, and US immigration laws were relatively lenient. However, once saturated with medical professionals, the US closed its doors by setting up stricter immigration policies.

Filipino youth, conscious and aware of the issues of our community, know that the Filipino medical professionals who migrated in the 70’s and 80’s are becoming replaced by a new generation of service workers, mostly domestic workers, who hold the same degrees from the same colleges as the previous generation, but who are working much less desirable jobs. There is a systemic de-skilling of the Filipino community in which the primary beneficiary is the US, and in which the US corporate media and corporate-driven pop culture are complicit. This large-scale de-skilling of an entire population would never be acceptable to white Americans, but is so palatable that it is a punchline in a TV show. That is racism on a systemic level.

Ugnayan ng mga Anak ng Bayan condemns ABC and the staff of Desperate Housewives for being complicit in the problems that plague our community and for perpetuating systemic racism. We support the initiative of so many in our community who are taking action on this issue and urge all to sign the online petition: http://www.petitiononline.com/FilABC/. We will take action if ABC does not heed the demands of the Filipino community.

Ugnayan vows to continue the struggle of Filipino youth and all Filipinos against systemic racism; and to fight for the genuine development of our community and for the life and liberation of the Filipino people as a whole.

Demand an apology from ABC!
End systemic racism!

hahaha

masakit bang pakinggan ang totoo?

@newyorker
I wont specifically support the Filipinos’s anti-racism stance, i support the anti-racism struggle for all races! Be it Black, malay, caucasian, indians etc.!

Years ago in a sitcom of Lucy Torres, one of her scripts goes like this:

“Ang pangit mo naman, Igorot siguro parents mo”

The one non-Igorot guy from Starstruck 3 is famous for his line:

“Gusto si Marky ang maalis kasi mukha siya Igorot”

With these lines, aren’t we more ‘racist’?

Nagagalit siguro ang Pinoy dahil guilty sila.

Why is so easy for Filipino to get offended by vague ‘discriminatory(??- supposed-to-be-daw -)’ statements by other people when we ourselves practice blatant discrimination against each other?! And the way we discriminate each other isn’t funny at all.

Apology has been made here

North America New Bureau chief Ging Reyes, meanwhile, reported that some members of the Filipino community showed discontent despite the apology.

Reyes said Filipinos are demanding for a retraction of the insulting line in one of the episodes of the TV series. Filipinos want to see a scene where the medical profession in the Philippines is being praised by one of the characters.

Are we really that insecure that we react to every slight? This is just like a dumb kid calling you fat.

Even if you’re fat or not, will you whine that some dumb kid call you fat?

It was from a fictional tv show. Not a documentary. Not a newscast.

Will everybody please stop whining?

Kris,

Iba sa America.

don’t we say nasty generalizations about other groups as well, especially about Americans, Indians, and the Chinese?

Plus the only way they’d know about these things is if they have a Pinoy staff writer.

Filipino doctors are one of the best and respected professionals in the US. They are not from Nigeria or Nicaragua where they fake crednetials and open up back room clinics in NY only to be arrested and imprisoned! Theses fakes do not take the state board exams and submit medical credentials and take further studies. These FAKES dont make it in the US and they are big new in US tabloids.
Whereas, Filipino doctors and medical professionals almost always pass the state boards and academic credentialing and state clinical internships. They are most respected.
..some fake med schools in the Phils….this doesnt come easy..and it doesnt happen. THATS THE OUTRAGE!! If a fake filipino doctor exists in the US, you can bet my dollars, 5 filipinos will report him to the nearest US immigration themselves even for a measly $300 reward.
Recto diplomas are those for contractual workers who need high school diplomas to get dirt jobs anywhere.
Cheating in nursing exams? you think our students knew about this? It was the work of crooked officials in the PRC (Professionals commission) selling out exams to review centers for money at the expense of students who burn the midnight oil studying for the exams. These officals have been sacked!
AS a fact, anywhere in the world, Filipino medical professionals are the best,very communicative, caring and damn good at what they do!!!MABUHAY and FILIPINO.
Dont take Desperate Housewives slur sitting down!
Take a stand and be counted!

@ mae “Iba tayo sa mga chikanos,latinos, etc. Matalino at masipag at..”

see what I mean.

To Berlin:

When I mentioned chikanos and latinos, understand it in the context of professionals as i intented. Nothing derogatory.. They came by outrunning the police by jumping the fence and crossing the american borders. We, pinoys came by plane with ONLY an education to be proud of! Enough in our heads to understand the language of America and how it is said. You dont see filipinos gathered in a street corner looking for jobs in the early mornings to do someone’s lawn or paint someone’s fence, do you? It’s because we have the qualified education, and not just from some med school in the Phils. that doesnt exist. That “Desperate Housewives” episode really hurt!
Dollar for dollar, we work hard! not only for ourselves but for our families back home! IBA TAYO TALAGA! DONT YOU AGREE?

to jeffry..
can’t believe your sorry ass saying that about filipinos. I can tell you’re this backward thinking filipinos who were acting, talking exactly like you .. talks like a loser and takes descrimination as if it’s really a way of life… you’re sitting in your couch and don’t even care? don’t speak for filipinos because we are not even close to be like you .. we are the new generation of filipinos who care about our well being and our image and our country.. uwi ka sa bundok gago..

some people who posted here about the ethnic slur of terry hatcher just don’t have the clue of what is racism really is.. jeffry said, it’s not even a racist remark… i am a filipino and i would like to say that this is downright racism. and for anybody who’s fine with that slurs, you are not speaking for the whole filipino community.. speak for yourself and don’t claim you’re from the philippines..

Racism/discrimination of any form IS NOT ACCEPTABLE. PERIOD!

These producers/actors in the US better pray that they wont have a Filipino doctor handling them when they get sick…or else…

I think the remark is degrading to the Philippine Education in general and Philippine medical education in particular. The line could have been: “Okay. Before going further, can I check these diplomas cause I would just like to make sure that they’re not from med school in a third world country?”. Mentioning a specific country (like Philippines) in this case is very racist and discriminatory.

Look. it’s not Teri Hatcher’s fault, overall! It’s the writers! She was just hired to ACT OUT THE LINES OF THE SHOW! Now stop whining and BLAME THE WRITERS! And the people who tolerated it which resulted to AIRING worldwide –

wait, Teri Hatcher didn’t find it offensive, so

What a fucking cunt you are, America!

The implication that Filipino doctors are not qualified is insensitive and completely disrespectful to the thousands of Filipinos who have served all over the US. The derogatory TV episode has created a negative impression and racial stereotyping of Filipino doctors. This has undermined the integrity of the country’s medical profession. Their apology isn’t commensurate to the damage creted by their remark made in the show.

chinoy y ray whoever you are..

pinoy ka talaga. bato bato sa langit. pang medieval ngang thinking mo..

chinese ka ba o pinoy..

derogtory itong script na ‘to. bakit? dahil napakagaling ng medical professionals natin, especially UP trained dosctors. dalin mo ang american doctor dito sa pilipinas na kulang kulang sa technology at gamit, mangangapa sila for sure. every step of the way foreign doctors rely heavily on lab tests. sa PGH highly trained ang CLINICAL EYE ng mga doktor. mahihirap kasi mga pasyente kaya hindi pwedeng kaliwa’t kanan ang mga medical exams. dalin mo sa states ang PGH trained doctor and he/she will likely be able to function just as well. dalin mo dito ang american doctor na nakasandal sa mga advanced equipment at tignan mo kung kaya nila idaignose ang sakit ng pasyente ng kasing husay ng pinoy. SINO NGAYON ANG MAS MAGALING? pagamitin natin ng manual drill ang US trained neurosurgeon and see kung hindi nya madamage ang utak ng pasyente. sisiw lang ang paggamit ng manual drill ng mga local neuro surgeons natin. pagamitin natin ng electric drill ang neuro surgeons natin and they will more likely be able to do the job faster, better.

he situation has to be rectified.

Bullet points for EZ reading [for the tard to understand]

-Miriam racial slur on chinese >>>> this [did the chinese community go up and arms and rally their asses outside the senate?]

-We got mass cheating in med school exam [FACT]

-Mass med schools w/o even a 4 yr program [6mo caregiver? really now..]

-The Filipinos are overreacting

-Even we Filipinos call other filipinos “jologs” and loathe the “asa attitude”

oh and despite all this, the Filipinos will keep kissing American ass NO MATTER WHAT.. face it: tuta tayo ng kano

lastly, they already said sorry wtf is it that u want?

to kaz..

speak for yourself tuta ng kano.. not me and the rest of the people i know…. the new generation
of filipinos now are getting better. kung ikaw yong tuta tuta whatever .. deal with it but don’t speak for the whole filipino community..

we have descipline..
..i wait in line not like others in philippines who will jump infront of you
…we don’t make fun of other cultures in the philippines

just to name a few..

Chino yray replied on Oct 4th, 2007 at 4:30 am (28)

@newyorker

you dont have to post that here… I think alam na yan ng mga pinoy since it’s all over the net… and this is a “comment” section.

anyway, just to add, instead na ayusin nila yung pagawaan ng fake diplomas sa Recto (dahil mukhang yun naman talaga ang ugat nyang joke na yan) gagawa na lang sila ng sandamakmak na letter and petition asking for apology since mas madali daw yun at mas makikilala sila ng public or mas maganda tignan sa public pag ganun. LOOOOL

=====
To Chino Aray, este yray:

First, I believe, if you trace your genealogy, your not too far-off only a couple generations from your forefathers who have fled China because of poverty and other forms of injustices that rip the latter of their human dignity. And now, you suck; suckin’ like a LEECH this Phil. economy until it runs dry!

With your pseudonym, I won’t blame you to have such a MYOPIC view of the issue. You ARE CONDEMNED to manifest the GENETIC ABERRATIONS of your FOREFATHERS because of their systemic INVOLUNTARY STARVATION that have deprived them of the necessary nutrients to support LIFE itself.

Well, as a consolacion, some of them have had survived traversing the openseas, as SMUGGLED HUMANS and a palm-full of rice good for a rice-pudding meal of ONE WEEK!

So my two cents to everyone else who have the same view “assed” Mr. Chino here:

1. Don’t to so sensitive – Wait ’till YOUR OWN MOTHER GETS FUCK; or YOUR SISTERS GET GANG BANGED; or YOUR KID BRO GETS MOLESTED!

2. Look at the WORLD within the CONFINES of your PERIMETER FENCE; which you probably have in your house; coz your kind is so DARN PARANOID who have SUCKED everything in the LAND and secure those resources within the closed-confine of your VERY HOUSE; or is it FACTORY? Ahhh, it ALWAYS SEEMED INDISTINGUISHABLE, anyway; so it dosn’t MATTER; Your kind is worth the PIG PEN accommodation. bwhahaha. Please don’t be an AZZ-HOLE!

3. Don’t Particularize things!

Well, ABC writers and producers, are so darn “brilliant” to have the word “some” and people have particularized it to the Recto “thingie.”

Of course, in the U.S., they don’t have a Recto-thingie, beacuse that place is called “ghetto!”

4. Lastly, This is a FREEDOM BOARD, for which someone could freely express their sentiments on certain issues. No matter how simplistic the thoughts of the individual.

The person like Chino yray EVEN GOT the chance TO HAVE HIS VERY VERY MYOPIC VIEW OF THE ISSUE; OWING MUCH FROM HIS DIMINUTIVE MIND; WHICH IN TURN WAS LARGELY DEPENDENT from the SIZE of his BRAIN; WHICH WAS FURTHER contributed by the STUNTED EVOLUTIONARY PROCESS of his FOREFATHERS.

5. So… Bato-bato sa langit, kun matamaan wag mabukol! Heheheheh

Guess what???!!!

The ABC apology over the Desperate Housewives slur agst. us(Filipinos)was JUST a written apology transmitted to the Philippines BUT was not aired in the U.S. where the damage was done.!! THAT’S NOT FAIR, is it?

I demand that the apology be said on U.S. national television and also to include deleting the infamous quote from the series.

The apology was carried and broadcast only in the Philippines. Is ABC trying to save face by issuing a selective apology???

NAKAKAAWA TALAGA TAYO. Para tayong LAGAM na kumakagat sa HIGANTE….

You know what.. vent it our here: http://www.jihadonyou.com/103918/

=D

The writer is MARC H CHERRY, 45 yrs old. The Filipino basher is a self-proclaimed CONSERVATIVE GAY REPUBLICAN who lives since June 1, 2005 at 4352 Coldwater Canyon Ave, Studio City CA 91604. Please be kind to him.

http://www.tv.com/desperate-housewives/now-you-know/episode/1074352/summary.html

http://www.google.com/lochp?hl=en&tab=wl&q=4352%20COLDWATER%20CANYON%20AVE+STUDIO%20CITY+CA+91604

To Kris:

How can you say that Filipinos are double standard in THIS particular issue????
The ABC apology was only WRITTEN and BROADCAST in the Philippines…who needs the apology in the Phils?? Not even our President Gloria Arroyo needs it!!!! No one needs to hear the apology here in the Phils.!!
The slur was committed on U.S. television,seen globally by cable television… so, the least ABC can do is apologize ON TV in the UNITED STATES where they hurt most the medical professionals themselves and that would be enough for everybody.
In that way, a broaodcast TV apology in the US will be picked up globally by cable and the ABC error would be rectified properly.

There is no double standard here, sis!!!

Miriam did not go to China to apologize but apologized in the same media forum.

@mae

Does it have to be worldwide that it should only be declared as offensive??

Why is it hasrd for Filipinos to accept their own mistakes? PRIDE? Wrong sense of nationalism

How many times have our media made fun of the Visayans? Of the Igorots? RIGHT IN FRONT OF FELLOW FILIPINOS. Now that kind of discrimination is being practiced by many Filipinos. Many non-Visayans think that all Visayans have a funny accent. Many non-Ilocanos think that the Ilocanos are really ass-stingy and too dark. Now, tell me if it needs to be worldwide to be offensive and discriminatory.

We blow out Desperate Housewives issue out of proportion but we hardly care kung dito sa Pilipinas, Pilipino mismo ang naglalaitan?

What about that racism statement by Miriam Santiago right in front of the Chinese officials and Filipino-Chinese community despite all their contributions to our economy, culture and country! Imagine how the Filipino-Chinese feel that their own kababayans(non-Chinese) are the ones who discriminate on them. Imagine how the Visayans feel that it is their own countrymen who mock them? Many non-Igorots think the Igorots are dirty and barbaric. Many non-Muslims think the Muslims are outrageous.

WHAT ABOUT OUR OWN LOCAL MEDIA APOLOGIZING TO THE PEOPLE THEY’VE MADE FUN OF? WHY ISN’T THERE A PUBLIC APOLOGY?

Double standard it is. Fortunately for Teri hatcher, she’s predominantly Caucasian. If she was black, it is not far from possible that many Filipinos will use that degrading “N” word against her.

Think of the Filipino minorities and indigenous people that our local media and a lot of our countrymen are mocking EVERYDAY?

Double standard, indeed.

I’m not saying that the Filipinos in the medical profession do not have the right to complain. But heck, in the Philippines, the discrimination toward our own people and hardly many Filipinos care at all. Why, is it beacuse it’s okay to make fun of them because hindi naman kayong mga hindi bisaya, hindi Igorot, hindi batangueno, hindi Chinese ang na-ooffend?

It wouldn’t catch my attention if she said “|kasi hindi magandang pakinggan”. But no, she said “parang Bisaya”.

Let me correct that statement.

Like what Jeffrey said, it such a sad thing that Filipinos fight against racism against Filipino which is not a bad idea(a good step in fact) but the very sad part here? Many of our kababayans practice racism against each other and is accepted AS NORMAL and when our object of racism react, rathe than saying their apologies, sasabihin “ano ka ba, hindi ka na mabiro” “Ang pikon mo naman”. And then after uttering those words they continue with their insulting jokes even though they are aware that the other party is being deeply offended.

Can we all please stick to the main issue of this forum? Its precisely why we click on it and join this because of specific concerns.

There are other forums addressing other issues of concern in Topix or just log on Philippine Forums and we can address these other issues independently.

Like reading a book, we go chapter by chapter. If we are face to face in a debate, a moderator would say:…excuse me, you are OUT OF ORDER!

If we were all seated in a cafe, discussing this issue…wala na…LABO-LABO na ang usapan!!sabay, sabay pa magsalita….labas na ang karamihan.

Anyway, for purposes of ease and clarity, this forum happens to be just one of about 20 forums related to the infamous slur.

Yes, I think I have to agree with what this guy says on his blog:

http://asbb-foreignexchange.blogspot.com/2007/10/final-word-in-desperation.html
———————————————

I will end my commentary on the whole issue by simply asking why we think it is perfectly alright for us to do this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QusLouQhEfo

and this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VDQJGIFzV1Q&mode=related&search=

and even for one of our most respected politicans to say this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TBEuhLlNYTY

but when anyone dares to poke fun at a segment of our population like
this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tYB4H0Po0A0

everyone immediately cries racism and discrimination?

Your analysis (10) of the remark is by far the most objective comment that I have encountered regarding this issue. Honestly, I feel like some people are just unnecessarily magnifying the whole situation.

Smartphone (smartphone) – a lightweight ring up gubbins integrates the functions of a unfixed phone and handheld computer (PDA – Physical Digital Fellow-worker). The elementary smartphones were created in the late 90, and again mingle the functions of a agile phone, email, web browser, pager, GPS, as glowingly as a digital camera and simple video camera. The newer models are also normal PDA functions, such as private information management (Exclusive Intelligence Operation). Some models can read Office documents in Microsoft Division formats and PDF.

Historically the from the word go smartphone was already in 1992 – it was a prototype contraption called Simon, which IBM demonstrated at the clear COMDEX and launched in 1993 In as well to the mobile phone features it offered a calendar, discourse engage, adding machine, notepad, electronic mail and game. You have recourse to a distinctive light pen. Currently, smartphones represent a significant neighbourhood of the plastic market. In 2010 we sold the midwife precisely for 500 million. exam, and expected sales next year make escalation during 175% ].

The most commonly tolerant of operating systems, Wypożyczalnia smartfonów gadget conduct is Android, Symbian, iOS, BlackBerry OS, Windows Phone 7 (the successor to Windows Portable ]).

Devices popular in the U.S. market-place are basically a PDA with phone functions, while on the European and Japanese are most of all motorized phones with PDA functions.

The industriousness on the Internet – the simplest retreat to OPF
When we reckon with that the pension fund to choose, time after time guided by advertisements depicting the product. Superannuation companies implement marketing activities, so that was their put in superannuate fund to choose.
ranking ofe
Our revolution of OFE or the plebiscite of the contemporary pool should be preceded next to an test of competitive bids. Helpful including OFE ranking proves that we contribution on this page. If you metamorphose the pension funds, superannuate funds such ranking longing be reassuring for us because it presents information and results of own pension funds in recent years.
Switch in subsistence funds scheduled to such a statement would be altogether simple.
During analyzing the message and checking the results, which reached an unprotected allotment ready money in locale, we can correspond them with the word of competing social security funds. This desire entertain us to settle upon seeking themselves and offer to blow up a profession of accession to the OPF.
Unalloyed the utilization through the Internet
To undiminished a announcement of accession to ofei interest to us, click on the button on the main point that says “FURNISH IN THE APPLICATION.”
Formerly completing the request, despite that, we encourage you to familiarize yourself with our spot, presenting the ranking of shelve funds.

I don’t even know how I ended up right here, but I assumed this
submit used to be great. I do not understand who you are
however definitely you are going to a well-known blogger should you are not
already. Cheers!