Filipino American creator says why he thinks many Filipino immigrant parents refuse to teach their children their native tongue: ‘It’s for the clout’

One creator is sharing his theory about Filipino immigrant parents and their reluctance to teach their children their native tongue.

On June 15, Jon (@jon.luigi), a Filipino American creator based in California, took to TikTok to discuss why he believes some Filipino immigrant parents refuse to teach their children the language — and he suggests it has everything to do with clout.

“One thing Filipino parents will probably never admit is that part of the reason why they didn’t teach their kids their native tongue is for the clout,” he says. “Now, it’s already been discussed that part of the reason why Filipino parents don’t teach their kids their native tongue is so that they assimilate into western society and not have to face any struggles like they did.”

This, Jon, argues, isn’t the case for “some” Filipinos.

“But let’s be real, some Filipinos, not all, but some, want their kids to be as westernized as possible for more self-serving reasons,” he says. “Because as long as proximity to western society is a marker of social status in Filipino culture, then teaching kids a language that would allow them to connect with other Filipinos is not gonna be a priority.”

The disinclination for Filipino immigrants to teach their children Tagalog may also be influenced by the history of colonialism in the Philippines. In 2019, the Filipino population in the United States was estimated at over 4.2 million. California is home to the largest population of Filipino Americans, at 506,000.

“There’s a sense that Filipinos tend to view their colonizers as better so they might not teach their children about their indigenous languages or pre-colonial Philippines and the richness and strength of the country before it was colonized,” Kevin Nadal, a psychology professor at John Jay College of Criminal Justice and Graduate Center at the City University of New York told NBC News of the families that immigrated to the United States in the ’60s that “want their children to assimilate.”

Filipino schools, however, have grown in popularity for their efforts in connecting Filipino Americans to their culture.

“What I like about all the Filipino schools, nationwide, is that we all really value preserving the culture and heritage, passing it down the generations, and being aware of what’s happening currently in history that affects us as Filipinos in America, and Filipinos in the Philippines,” Paolo Roca, former president of the Cerritos, California-based Filipino Cultural School also told NBC News.

‘Parents think speaking English = rich’

“I made sure my son learned Filipino regardless.. kids brains are like sponges, he could switch to English smoothly without any accent,” @torky14344 commented.

“Parents think speaking English = rich,” @caseyjamie12 wrote.

“agreed and another point is that if a Fil-Am goes back with their parents here it somehow elevates their social status if the kid only knows english..” @1990gagger wrote, to which Jon replied, “my point exactly!”

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