"They are among the best of their generation."
"They are among the best of their generation."
The famed CBS newscaster and analyst Edward R. Murrow castigated Senator Joseph McCarthy for his anti-communist antics, saying: “We must not confuse dissent with disloyalty. We must remember always that accusation is not proof and that conviction depends upon evidence and due process of law. We will not walk in fear, one of another. We will not be driven by fear into an age of unreason, if we dig deep in our history and our doctrine, and remember that we are not descended from fearful men.”
Fearful men is what our police and military generals have become. In them, McCarthyism has been reborn! And the prime targets of their witch hunts are our young people—the student and the youth activists. If these generals were to get their way, youthful activism and idealism would be criminalized.
Such criminalization we must resist.
This is why I am defending student and youth activists who are being harassed and attacked by the Duterte government.
I am happy to be the counsel and defend Sarah Elago and the Kabataan Party-list from the ridiculous charges of child trafficking and abuse. The fact alleged is that Kabataan recruited minors (not true as all the youth involved are over 18 years old) to campaign for them during the party-list elections. Even if such facts were proven, it would be clearly be covered by the Bill of Rights—freedom of expression, freedom of association, and the right to participate in elections.
This is plain harassment and intended to intimidate. It will, of course, not succeed and the ranks of Kabataan, Anakbayan, and other youth organizations are swelling because of these desperate acts of government. As Sarah asserted in a privilege speech in Congress, Political persecution won’t stop us from standing with the youth, standing for our future” She does not mince words in explaining what is happening:
“The spread of lies, misogynistic and sexist attacks, and disinformation are systematically funded and thoroughly coordinated across platforms. The PNA (Philippine News Agency) played a crucial role in spreading these lies, most of the time without even fact-checking, and to add, the AFP and PNP through their vilification campaigns in the guise of anti-drug and anti-terror operations . . . We condemn these disgusting efforts of exploiting blatant lies to sideline dissent and persecute opposition. This is another shameless attempt to sow terror and divide among all those who exercise their civil and political rights, not only to be informed and struggle against abuse and tyranny, but also to initiate reforms and assert a better future. When our democratic rights are under attack, it becomes imperative to push back.”
I am a parent myself of social activists, who once were student leaders, and I am very proud of them. I think all parents should be proud of their children who become activists. We worry of course, my wife and I (we know the risks because we were both social activists during the time of the Marcos dictatorship), but we know that they are doing the right thing in working to make a better Philippines.
It’s the least I could do for Sarah Elago who is the target of so much vitriol and misogyny (including from lawyers who should know better) and other young people who are truly among the best of their generation.
In the last few weeks, I have known quite a number of the leaders of today’s youth and student movement.
One of them is Raoul Manuel, president of the National Union of Students in the Philippines. We saw this young man stand up to a senator, speaking truth to power, not intimidated even as that senator who is a former police general berated the soft-spoken student leader while other senators also took the cudgels for their fellow senator. Everyone who watched that exchange knows that the young man bested all of them.
Raoul is a summa cum laude graduate of the University of the Philippines, an applied math major and a son of an overseas Filipino worker. He could write his own ticket of success to any career he wants anywhere in the world. Instead, he has decided to devote the best years of his life to lead the Filipino youth in building a better country.
Alex Danday, spokesperson of Anakbayan, is also giving the best years of her life to lead other young people, especially those out of school to build a better country. Seeing Alex for the first time, one would underestimate her as she is only 20 years old. She grew up ain the province. But the moment she speaks, one cannot help but be impressed. In an Inquirer interview, she pushes back against the McCarthytites: “They discredit activism, they put a red tag on Anakbayan. They want to demonize activism within the youth. Ayaw nilang mamulat yung mga kabataan kasi they know how powerful the youth’s voice is.” (They don’t want to awaken the young community because they know how powerful the youth voice is.) . . . A tweet, a trend, paguusapan na siya, mababalita na agad. Hindi naman pinapakinggan ng gobyerno yung hinaing ng mga manggagawa at magsasaka eh. Hindi nila binabalita. So tayo meron tayong ganung kakayahan na gamitin yung boses natin. Gamitin yung talino at knowledge na na acquire natin mula sa mga eskwelahan na pinanggaling natin para gamitin yun to serve the people. (A tweet, a trend—people will start talking, it will make headlines. The government will not listen to the cries of workers and farmers, they don’t even make the news. The youth has that power, to make our voices heard. To use our knowledge that we have acquired in school and use that to serve the people).”
Serving the people describes best Ayna Punzalan, current Secretary-General of the Kabataan Partylist. In her younger years, she served as part of the Sangguniang Kabataan and was very much an active member of her church—teaching catechism and serving as lector and commentator as part of the special ministry of the word of the Sagrada Familia church. Now, aside from her work at Kabataan Partylist, Ayna serves as a National Convenor for Youth Act Now against Tyranny—a youth alliance which advocates the protection of human right while calling an end to the killings, tyranny and fascist attacks against the Filipino people. Though the struggle for a just society may be arduous, like with most activists, compassion, empathy, and love for her fellows serve her prime motivators for continuing to do what she does.
I have also met other student and youth leaders, including from the College Editors Guild of the Philippines and the League of Filipino Students. I hope to write also about them in the future. Suffice it to say for now that, contrary to what the fearful men are saying, these young men and women have not been brainwashed—they are smart, independent minded, disciplined yes, definitely passionate and courageous, for sure compassionate and kind. I would be proud of them if I were their parents.
Today’s activists are not the first group of young people I have engaged with. Having taught in universities all over the Philippines for nearly 40 years, I have taught, debated with, mentored and supported generations of Filipino activists. Today’s activists are not any different. They are among the best of their generation. We must shield them from the fearful men that hover in their midst, ready to sacrifice our future for their imagined fears.
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