Perhaps Jessica Sanchez really holds her own against the
contestants of American Idol 2012. But when you hear of Filipinos calling dozens
of times to vote, distributing VOTE JESSICA leaflets at tanginang church, or when the Filipino supporters of Jessica Sanchez are
disproportionately large in comparison to non-Filipinos, you realize that ‘American
Idol’ is no longer a talent show but a display of tribalism, or, to use an
uglier word, racism.
Were Caucasian Americans torn between whom to vote for
among the Caucasian contestants? Did they repeatedly post on Facebook “Please
support Caucasian blah blah” or “Please vote for Caucasian blah blah” as though
the outcome of a contest based on flying votes meant anything?
So what’s with this attempt at crowning Jessica Sanchez?
What is it all meant to prove? And to whom?
All a Jessica Sanchez victory would show is that many
Filipinos here and abroad have nothing better to do, and have such desperate
need of self-affirmation, even if such ‘self’ is someone whose only relation to
them is mere ethnicity.
Related article: Filipino pride, about Manny Pacquiao naman,
the issues of which are the same as the Jessica Sanchez phenomenon.
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