November 16, 2020
by: Zette Saquian
Our beloved country has gone through a lot of challenges and hardships throughout history. We had fought and stood our ground to protect our country and bring freedom and peace to our land. People fought hard and tirelessly to earn the freedom and independence that we deserved. Heroes were born, heroes who sacrificed everything they had for our beloved land, even if it meant losing their lives, they fought bravely with love and loyalty to their country. They were legends, they were symbols of patriotism and courage. They will remain heroes throughout generations.
What if only a few people remain who still remember? What if only a few people know who these people are? People who knew those individuals who fought for freedom, human rights, and justice. What if in time these people will be forgotten? What if our history will be forgotten or worse, rewritten into something opposite to what really is the truth. Rewritten into something that can bring confusion and conflict. How will we be able to convey the real history of the Philippines as time passes by so fast? Will we be able to correct the misleading and wrong information of our history taught in this generation? Will we be able to educate people on the truth about our history?
Teaching history might be difficult and can be uninteresting to some, but this is one of the ways to uphold and grasp the importance of our history. Especially nowadays, people tend to focus on technological advances rather than reading books and taking important details. If we ask individuals about a certain topic in our history, how many do you think will be able to answer it correctly? If we ask people to tell us the name of our National Hero or the Father of Katipunan, how many do you think will be able to answer? How many will be able to give you the name of the General who fought fiercely for his country and ended up betrayed by his fellow countryman? Maybe a few or maybe a lot? But what is the best way to spread and teach our history to individuals who are focused on social media and games? Easy, by taking advantage of this opportunity.
A group called Preen started a TikTok trend called Museo de Filipino. Their purpose was to educate, inspire, and to remember the people who bravely and honestly served our country. They created the trend not just for the future generations, but also to remind the generation today the importance of what these heroes or individuals have contributed to our country. The trend doesn’t focus solely on Philippine History, it also contains important individuals who were wrongly killed, stripped from their rights, unjustified deaths and accusations, laborers, and modern heroes. The group never thought that other TikTok creators would upload their own versions or entries of the content, and that’s how the trend started.
They believed that as time goes by, our history would be slowly forgotten and it’s our duty to uphold and to continue spreading the truth and knowledge of important events and people who were part of our history. Since nowadays, people tend to be more active on their gadgets, this is the best possible way to share and spread the educational videos in hopes of teaching and reminding people about the significance of our history.
What is inside the content? An individual portrays the certain person he or she has chosen, and there is an “on” and “off” button on the screen. Once it’s turned on, the inanimate will start to move and tell his or her story and his or her contributions to the country. The contents may be short, but it’s quite enough to spread the real story and to enlighten the people on the importance of such individuals to our country. The trend has gained numerous praises from netizens and suggesting that this trend must continue and Filipinos must watch these videos to be informed and enlightened of what our history contains and how it influences us today.
It’s quite satisfying to see people who continue remembering and advocating the significance of our history to our country. It brings pride and glory, knowing that these individuals are using this modernity to continue spreading awareness and sharing information to people who need to know the truth and the contribution of our history to our modern-day society. It only proves that despite all the adversities in spreading information, if you have the will to do so, then there will always be a way to reach out to people and educate them on what it truly means of being a Filipino.
Being a Filipino doesn’t mean that you have to follow everything in our culture, you can do whatever you want. You can support other products, cultures, people, and the likes. You have the freedom to do so, but what really makes a Filipino is never forgetting who you are and never forgetting where you came from. Whatever may happen or wherever you may go, being a Filipino means being proud of who you are and being ready to stand and fight for the country.
“Ang hindi marunong lumingon sa pinanggalingan ay hindi makakarating sa paroroonan.”
–Dr. Jose P. Rizal (Philippine National Hero)