Philippine Twitterverse is fuming over what many perceive to be a racist line delivered by a character in the Chinese drama Make My Heart Smile.
What caused the outrage is a scene where a female character is seen trying out different clothes while her douchey companion told her, “You look like a Filipino maid.”
Read: Pangilinan urges Duterte gov’t to probe alleged ‘colonization’ of Chinese tourists
Watch the scene below. Coconuts Manila has verified with a Mandarin speaker who confirmed that the male character told the woman that she looked like a Filipino domestic worker.
Misogynist, much?
this is not a mistranslation he said, “像菲佣” 佣 means servant/maid and Filipino is 菲律宾人 so “菲佣” means Filipino servant why some of the replies keep on excusing this racist drama pic.twitter.com/vJP5SFW84P https://t.co/mlU3HPkSHx
— ً (@riothyunsuk) February 9, 2021
While there is nothing wrong with being a domestic worker, it’s apparent that the man said that to insult his female companion. Filipinos are far from amused, with @CGVK1M calling the Chinese “bitter” because the Philippines owns the West Philippine Sea.
Beijing has built structures all over the disputed area, which Manila maintains is part of Philippine territory. However, President Rodrigo Duterte has been hesitant to call out Beijing for its trespass, leading to allegations that he is the Chinese Communist Party’s lapdog.
Read: We all need to stop using the terms ‘maid’ and ‘helper’ | Opinion
bitter lang kayo kase amin yung West Philippine Sea
— kat⁷ (@CGVK1M) February 9, 2021
“You may think we are maids, but the West Philippine Sea belongs to us,” said @Fruitwicetan.
Maid man kami sa inyong paningin , West Philippine Sea ay amin Parin. 😂
— 🐨 (@Fruitwicetan) February 9, 2021
User @yunhosquared noticed that most people blamed the scriptwriter for the slur. “[W]hat about the actors who agreed w/ saying that statement? [T]he director who also agreed? [N]ot one person from the whole production team thought that it’s offensive and wrong, to the point it got aired. [T]hat’s the saddest part,” he said.
i keep seeing ppl blaming the scriptwriter only. what about the actors who agreed w/ saying that statement? the director who also agreed? not one person from the whole production team thought that it’s offensive and wrong, to the point it got aired. that’s the saddest part.
— okarin (@yunhosquared) February 9, 2021
Thousands of Filipinas leave the country each year to work as domestic workers in Singapore, Hong Kong, Europe, and the United States. They often leave behind their own children so they could take care of other people’s kids.
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