The “American Dream” for Whom? Contouring Filipinos’ and Filipino/a/x Americans’ Discursive Negotiation of Postcolonial Identities

ABSTRACT

Contributing to efforts to “de-whiten” the communication discipline, this study centers the lived experiences of Filipinos and Filipino/a/x Americans as they navigate whiteness, assimilation, and colonialism in the United States. To contextualize how they discursively negotiate with the structures of power that (dis)advantage them, this study theoretically links postcolonialism, whiteness, and differential adaptation. Qualitative methods were utilized by interviewing 25 participants and conducting critical thematic analysis. Findings indicate that participants (de)legitimize whiteness, (dis)obey assimilation, and (mis)recognize colonialism. Discussion suggests how participants engaged in performative assimilation, paradoxical postcolonialism, and panoptic whiteness. Finally, different trajectories for Filipinos and Filipino/a/x Americans are offered.

KEYWORDS:

• Filipino
• postcolonial
• whiteness
• assimilation
• identity

Acknowledgements

Thanks to IC Global for the seed grant, to our anonymous reviewers for the strong recommendations, and to Dr. Sarah J. Tracy and Cary López for their valuable qualitative feedback. Most of all, maraming salamat to our Filipino/a/x participants who contributed their time, energy, and wisdom in building this knowledge.