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I Wasn’t Allowed to See Paris Because of My Brown Skin

The life of a Filipino crew member at sea.

By NapoleonPublished 3 years ago 6 min read
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I Wasn’t Allowed to See Paris Because of My Brown Skin
Photo by Fabien Maurin on Unsplash

Are most Filipinos closeted racists?

As much as I am proud of being a Filipino, I know this to be true.

This is a country where the locals from the metropolis would make fun of how Filipinos from the south speak the native language with an accent.

But at the same time, the same people would find it endearing when a foreigner tries to speak the Filipino language with a “funny accent,” especially if the foreigner is white.

The past

I’m not a cultural anthropologist.

My opinions are that of a 52-year-old Filipino who has seen so many times in my lifetime how some Filipinos act differently depending on the person’s skin color.

“A white-skinned person would always get a good seat at the table. ”

The Philippines has been under the rule of both Spain and the United States, and how can you change the belief engrained from generation to generation that a white person is superior?

Even today, having white, fair skin remains aspirational for young people.

“To be white means you are more beautiful, intelligent, and someone with more money. ”

The Philippines is one of the countries in Asia where whitening products are sold without shame, and even the biggest TV network still does “black face” comedy.

The love boat

I worked as a cruise ship photographer in 2006, and while I come from a low-income family, unlike many, working abroad wasn't a way to support my family, but it was to restart my life after years of being lost because of depression.

My Dad has a photography school. So I took his photography workshops, and in a few months, I was doing prenups and weddings.

I was also volunteering my time for a foundation that belongs to one of the wealthiest families in the Philippines.

Although the foundation helps children, I was able to photograph Filipinos you only read in glossy magazines. The ones we call Mestizos, the ones with white skin, and who control the Philippine economy. And because I was photographing the “who’s who in Philippine society,” my photos were published in the national paper.

One day, I got a call from my Dad's office about a company that is recruiting cruise ship photographers. I told the person on the other side of the phone that I am a photographer, but I am 36 years old.

He said: you could try and apply.

I did, and in six months, I set my foot for the very time in the United States of America, a place I only watched on TV — Alaska.

The TV Show I loved when I was younger was“ Northern Exposure. ”

I was among the very first Filipino photographer in the fleet. There is diversity in the cruise industry, but I also know that cruise lines hire Asians, and especially Filipinos, because of two things: first, Filipinos can speak English, and second, they are willing to work for less pay than their American or European counterparts.

The pay

When I signed in as a photographer, I didn’t know how much other photographers from other countries are paid. Later I found out that photographers from the Philippines, Mexico, and India are paid less.

The cruise line industry is where salaries depend on skin color, nationality, or both.

Only once you reach management rank, your salary becomes equal to that of any nationality.

The people

Most of the time, crew members get along well, but there would often be clusters grouped based on nationality, which would be visible in the crew dining areas and during crew parties. Maybe it's due to being homesick, which leads people to gravitate towards someone from a similar background.

But I also know that some Filipino crew members, for example, would look down on their Indian counterparts, and not because of the rank or type of work they do on the cruise ship, but simply because they are Indians.

On my first contract, I also gravitated towards fellow Filipinos, but eventually, everyone on my photography team loved me, and to this day, we are still friends. Also, on my first contract, I was part of an all-female team except for the manager.

Then contracts after contracts, I worked with photographers from different countries: from the UK, USA, Australia, South Africa, Mexico, Romania, India, the Philippines, and a few other countries.

I got along with each one of them.

Everyone knew I was paid less, and they hated the fact that I was paid less when I did the same amount of work. Additionally, I know I am as good or even better at photography. My Dad taught me well!

“But we don’t make the rules. The cruise lines do. ”

Here I come, Paris!

I am still very grateful for my time as a cruise photographer. My contracts were the best in terms of itinerary. I was able to do the world cruise, do Europe twice, and visit two important places as a Catholic: the Fatima in Portugal and Mary’s house in Ephesus, Turkey.

As anyone who works in the cruise industry, the most common destination were Alaska and the Caribbean. I love Alaska. The Caribbean is like home with all the beautiful beaches. But they are also short cruises — seven days — and it always means more work for crew members. Did you know crew aboard the cruise ships don't have any day-off?

In one of my contracts, one of my ports was Le Havre, and I knew it was the closest port to Paris, one of my dream cities aside from New York.

I said to myself, I would try to do everything to get to Paris.

If there was a tour, I would have joined as a crew escort. That is how we crew members get to see the lovely places guests see without paying.

We can apply to be a crew escort, which I don’t mind because a crew escort has to do very little except be friendly to the passengers or guide them. I genuinely like helping people, especially older people.

I had a good feeling that I would see Paris because I was allowed to go out in Marseille before Le Havre, a city in the south of France where I treated myself to a Parisian café experience — coffee, croissant, and French butter.

I also went to a Cathedral where I was the only person inside a lovely church.

And a few days before we docked at Le Havre, an announcement from the Captain himself — broadcasted in all corners of the ship;

All crew members from the Philippines and India are not allowed to leave the port and get on a bus to Paris, anyone who would try would be sent home.

My seat at the table

On the day I wasn't allowed to go out and see Paris because of my skin color or my being Filipino, I can’t compare my experience with that of anyone whose skin is black.

The kind of racism they experience every day hurts me to my core.

When I didn’t see Paris, I knew then that a cruise ship is like a mini America.

Anyone who isn't white needs to give up their seat when asked.

humanity
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About the Creator

Napoleon

Working to be a better storyteller everyday.

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