E. J. R. David - We Have Not Stopped Trembling Yet: Letters to My Filipino-Athabascan Family

David, through his deeply personal words to his family and community, masterfully calls our attention to the systemic injustices that perpetuate themselves under the false promises of the American Dream; offered only to some, invisibly blocked to others. We, the witnesses and fellow victims to this truth cannot look awaywe must not. Maraming salamat , E. J., for your vulnerability and courage. May it serve to grow the awareness necessary to shift the trajectory of our future ancestors experiences.

Jorie Ayyu Paoli, Vice President and Indigenous Operations Director, First Alaskans Institute

David is gifted with the wisdom and philosophical acumen of an Elder. I emerged from the deep, dark truths about the aftermath of colonialism emanating from Davids heart with an amplified sense of urgency to instill hope, resilience, and belief in current and coming generations that this world can and will be a better place.

Pausauraq Jana Harcharek, Director of Iupiaq Education, North Slope Borough School District

David has written a spiritual, self-examination, and cultural critique of his American and his Filipino family. It reminds me of the duality of Black consciousness elegantly depicted by W. E. B. Dubois. In the final summation, he exhorts his native family to love and believe in themselves, to shed the idea that they are special because of their Americanness, and to reclaim their kapwa their humanity. He also challenges White America to find theirs. David has rendered a powerful and valuable meditation, guided by self-reflection and familial love, and grounded in intellectual discernment and a generosity of spirit. An inspiring and informative read.

James M. Jones, author of Prejudice and Racism, Second Edition

This book is a heartbreaking and heart-validating masterpiece about a Filipino American immigrant man who worries about the future of his children in what was once deemed a post-racial America. In his letters to his family, he tackles a spectrum of issues affecting people of colorfrom unlawful police deaths to historical trauma to immigration reform. His intersectional lens in understanding how his own multiracial kids may be forced to overcome obstacles like colonial mentality, toxic masculinity, institutional sexism, and stereotype threat is one that is rare, raw, and refreshing for an academic. He brilliantly uses personal stories, historical facts, and contemporary media accounts, while tying in scientific psychological and epidemiological research, to demonstrate how racism, classism, sexism, heterosexism, and other forms of oppression are slowly killing us. In sharing the grief, anger, and trauma of losing his childhood friend to unjust police violence, his voice becomes one that represents the weight that woke Black and Brown Americans carry with us daily, as we continue to survive, thrive, and tremble in this society.

Kevin L. Nadal, author of Filipino American Psychology: A Handbook of Theory, Research, and Clinical Practice

David takes often theoretical constructs such as internal oppression, white privilege, historical trauma, and provides visceral, emotional contexts through examination of his own personal life and the lives of his loved ones, both ancestral and current. He delivers those contexts through well-crafted letters to his wife, sons, and daughter explaining the complexities of their realities in an approachable, easy-to-understand manner. One of Davids most striking analyses is bridging the perceived gulf between Native Americans and his status as a Filipino who immigrated to Native American lands. This is an important work that ties together histories, generations, and peoples and provides the reader with a solid grounding to challenge the dominant narrative.

Bonnie Duran, Indigenous Wellness Research Institute, University of Washington

History is about stories of conquests through the ages. Historians often write those stories with a dispassionate view of colonization and oppression. E. J. R. Davids book gives a personal narrative on topics of oppression and racism to his family. Its also a gift to others whose voices have been muted. Letters to his family is a time capsule worth reexamining.

Jim Aqpayuq W. LaBelle

LETTERS TO MY FILIPINO-ATHABASCAN FAMILY

E. J. R. DAVID

Cover image and frontispiece: [Get rid of all Filipinos or well burn this town down letter], James Earl Wood collection on Filipinos in California, BANC MSS C-R 4, Box 2, Folder 18. Courtesy of The Bancroft Library, University of California, Berkeley.

Published by State University of New York Press, Albany

2018 State University of New York

All rights reserved

Printed in the United States of America

No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission. No part of this book may be stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means including electronic, electrostatic, magnetic tape, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise without the prior permission in writing of the publisher.

For information, contact State University of New York Press,

Albany, NY

www.sunypress.edu

Production, Ryan Morris

Marketing, Fran Keneston

Book design, Aimee Harrison

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Names: David, E. J. R. (Eric John Ramos), author.

Title: We have not stopped trembling yet : letters to my Filipino-Athabascan family / E. J. R. David.

Other titles: Letters to my Filipino-Athabascan family

Description: Albany, NY : State University of New York Press, [2018] | Includes bibliographical references.

Identifiers: LCCN 2017027514 | ISBN 9781438469522 (pbk. : alk. paper) | ISBN 9781438469539 (e-book)

Subjects: LCSH: David, E. J. R. (Eric John Ramos) | Filipino AmericansAlaskaBiography. | Filipino AmericansEthnic identity. | Athapascan IndiansEthnic identity. | Athapascan IndiansAlaskaBiography. | RacismUnited States21st century. | AlaskaRace relations.

Classification: LCC F915.F4 D38 2018 | DDC 305.8009798dc23

LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2017027514

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

For Margaret, Laka, Manu, and Kalu.

You all teach me so much.

For Pamiuqs family.

Quyanaqpak for blessing us with Pum.

The stories in this book reflect the authors recollection of events. Although the stories are verifiable by publicly available and well-circulated sources, some names, locations, and other identifying information have nevertheless been changed to respect the privacy of those depicted. The presented dialogues in various parts of the book have been re-created based on the authors memory.

Dear Reader,

This book is nonfiction. Although some identifying details have been changed, the stories I share in the letters are real and, consequently, so are the emotions, insecurities, and confused thoughts that I experienced. However, this is not a memoir. Although race, racism, and other forms of oppressionhistorically and contemporarilyare important and defining components of my life, they do not make up the entirety of who I am. Also, these letters were written as expressions of my struggles, anger, and anxieties that became especially salient during a particularly dark moment of my lifea moment sparked by the painfully tragic death of one of my best friends. Although some of my convictions and perspectives may have changed since these letters were writtenattesting to the state-dependence of extreme emotions, the ups and downs of life, the natural trajectory of growth and maturity, as well as the reality that racial identity development is never-ending so long as we are living and interacting with this racialized worldmany of my viewpoints shared in this book have remained the same and will most likely remain the same forever. In fact, I have expressed similar perspectives about these same topics in my previous works prior to writing these letters. Further, I also want to note that, in each of the letters I explore a set of issues or themes not necessarily because they apply only to the person to whom I am writing in the particular letteralthough this is sometimes the casebut also because I felt that there are certain topics that are more organically fitting to explore with a particular person compared to others. For example, just because I am discussing a certain issue with my daughter does not necessarily mean that the issue does not apply to my sons, and vice versa; its just that some topics more naturally come up in some conversations than others. Finally, although these letters were intended for my family, I know that the issues I have been struggling with are much bigger than me and my loved ones. Therefore, each of the letters is written to address broader themes that open up the conversation to many others who may share similar experiences. I hope other folks are somehow able to relate and connect.