Gideon Lapitan immigrated to the United States from the Philippines in 1990 after marrying his American pen pal, Betty. His story illustrates both the personal challenges of immigration, including adjusting to a new culture and language and experiencing discrimination, as well as the opportunities the US provided for improved economic conditions. While he initially struggled with cultural differences and an accent that hindered his work, over time he learned English, became a citizen, and found professional success through taking advantage of opportunities not available in his home country. He now considers himself both Filipino and American, but recognizes the profound changes that have occurred in the Philippines since he immigrated.

1. Story of Immigration: Opportunity, Identity, and Finding Hope in a New Country
Esther Lapitan
An immigrant’s story is not only about the history surrounding his or her time of
immigration, but rather it is a story of personal identity. Throughout the immigration journey,
many immigrants need to choose not only how they want to live their lives, but also what
direction they want to lead their lives. Their journey not only affects their own lives, but their
friends and family in both their home country and their new home. This is the story of Gideon
Lapitan, but it is not only his story, but the story of his journey to realize what it means to be
American. In order to tell his story, it is important to listen to the stories from those closest to
him—His wife, Betty Lapitan, and his children. As his daughter, it was important to not only
listen to him with an open ear and without being biased, but also to be compassionate about what
he wanted to share. This is his story. This is our story. But in the end, he lived it and it has
become his identity.
Childhood
Gideon Lapitan was born on September 1, 1955 in Cebu City, Philippines. He was the
sixth of seven children born to Felipe and LidaVina Lapitan. Growing up in the Philippines was
difficult. The Philippines had just gained independence from the United States in 1946 and had
just begun to establish themselves as an independent country.good historical context, more
discussion here to relate your dad’s experience to this colonial legacy Gideon’s family life was
also difficult. At the age of four, his father died, leaving his mother to care for her seven children
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2. alone. Gideon spoke of his mother fondly during the interview. He told of how his mother never
remarried and worked hard so that all of her children could attend college.
He explained the conditions that they lived in during his childhood. Each family had to
share a well for the entire neighborhood and they had an outhouse. People did not own individual
cars and would rent public vehicles. Some of the more well­off families would take in children
from other families. These children would do household chores and the families would feed and
shelter them. My Father’s family had help even though they were not rich. My Mother told me
that it was hard for my Father to adjust to having to do a lot of chores himself.
Adulthood
Gideon graduated from the Colegio de San Jose in Cebu City, Philippines with a degree
in Mechanical Engineering. One event that Gideon described was when he joined Intervarsity
Christian Fellowship and joined the protestant church. Previously, he identified himself with the
Catholic Church, although he was not a practicing Catholic. After college, Gideon worked as a
college professor and joined the Cebu Christian Church.
He did not discuss his childhood in detail. To Gideon, his childhood is not significant as
the future.nice statement Growing up, my Father would tell me that the United States was great
and nothing about his home country. I know very little about my family in the Philippines or
about my Father’s childhood.
View of America
The Philippine people primarily have a positive view of the United States according to
both Gideon and Betty Lapitan. Gideon described the United States as a “rich country” where
most people live in luxury. As a child, I often heard my Mother tell me about how when she
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3. travelled to the Philippines, everyone wanted to practice their English with her and often
complemented her pale complexion. Gideon speaks about how U.S. citizens would tell them as
children about the many freedoms and opportunities in the United States. U.S.­Philippine
relations are important regarding Filipinos’ views of the United States. The United States won
the Philippines as part of the Spanish­American war and held it as a territory until 1946. During
this time, the United States helped to build up the country’s economy and implemented a
U.S.­style democracy, and education system.Through the new education system, most Filipino
people were taught to speak English. Even after 1946, the United States still had significant
influence over the Philippines. Its impact on the country has been debated, but it did affect the
way that Gideon viewed the United States. The impact on the education system allowed Gideon
to learn English at a young age­­even if it was academic/formal English.
Marriage: Opening the Door to Immigration
In the United States, his future wife donated money to the Cebu Christian Ministry
Mission at her church, Grover Church of Christ. After receiving the donation, the Pastor’s wife
wrote to Betty and they became pen pals. She later introduced the two and they became pen pals.
They communicated both by mail and by phone and in 1989, Betty travelled to the Philippines
and they were married. After her visit, Betty traveled back to the United States and petitioned for
Gideon to be able to immigrate to the United States. She recalled the process with frustration.
She explained how even to ask a question, she had to fill out a questionnaire, pay a small fee, and
they responded to her saying that she filled out the wrong form. While I interviewed her, she was
still upset about the entire process.
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4.
Immigration to the United States
On February 14, 1990, at 34 years old, Gideon Lapitan was able to immigrate to the
United States under one minor stipulation—he had to have a U.S. doctor sponsor and treat him
due to a spot on his lungs. Gideon explains that his initial reaction to the United States was
positive. He had nothing to say, but good things about his immigration and how people treated
him. Betty discussed with me the first night that Gideon came to the United States. “My home
church rented us a hotel room near the airport so that he could rest after the flight. Then we
finally reached our new home, in Canton, PA.”
American the Beautiful: Living Up to the Expectations
When asked about the United States, he had nothing, but positive words. He did also
discuss some of the cultural differences. He discussed with me the differences between the two
cultures. He explained, “I can’t believe how much toys children have in the U.S. When I was a
child, I only had one toy.” All of these “culture shocks,” were less shocking, but rather
reaffirmed his belief that the United States was a rich country. Even in his employment, he does
not take anything for granted. He views the United States as being “the land of opportunity.” As
a child, I recall my Father studying for numerous tests and work opportunities. He has
accomplished a lot in his life and has definitely taken advantage of the opportunities that he has
in the United States. Even in a small town, he has gained a lot of friends and established himself
as a strong Christian and singer. All through my life, he was often asked to sing at funerals,
church services, parties, and weddings.
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5. Assimilation: Necessity or Voluntary? Nice title
“I first worked as a janitor and then I worked as a draftsman. It was easy to find a job, as
long as I was not picky.” In 1995, Gideon became a U.S. citizen. Some family friends presented
him with a U.S. flag commemorating his achievement. He would often tell others when they
asked why he chose to be a U.S. citizen that his family lives in the United States, that is where he
wants to be. For him, becoming “American” was important. He always reads newspapers and
looks up words he does not know. He tries to keep involved with American news, but also
American pop culture.
“At first, I offended several people because I was not… the things that are okay in the
Philippines are not okay in the United States.” In order to Americanize, Gideon relied on his
family to better understand American culture. When asked about how he tried to “fit in” with
American culture, he explained that he tries to keep up with sports and news, to better facilitate
conversation. He often practices his English and when he first came to the United States, he often
came home with questions about slang words and phrases. Betty recalls Gideon returning from
work and asking what specific gestures. “He often came home and asked me what some words or
phrases meant. He thought the middle finger gesture was a greeting.” Gideon explained how he
misused the word ‘nigger.’ He stated, “The slang words… I didn’t understand. Like for example
the word ‘nigger,’ I didn’t know it was a bad word, especially for black people.” He also learned
about some topics that were not appropriate to talk about. For example, he learned not to ask
“people how much they are making,” or “asking women how old they are.” But the community
feeling was something he found to be drastically different. He said that he missed “getting to
know the neighbors. In the Philippines, even if they’re a mile away, I get to know my neighbors.
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6. Here, I do not know my neighbors.”
Dealing with Discrimination: Being Asian­American in a Primarily White Area
Gideon explained his connection to other Asian immigrants in the Central and Northern
parts of Pennsylvania. “Two years later I found them [Filipino Community]. I got to know them
and started to attend meetings and parties” He described the Filipino community as slowly
“becoming Americanized. We still have parties and eat Filipino food.” As a child, I remember
my Father attending several parties. I never really went with him, but when I got older, I attended
a few parties. Some of the parties were for just Filipino people and I could not understand what
the other people were saying, but a few parties held in Elmira, NY included many different Asian
groups. They came together to eat and enjoy each other’s company. They were celebrating their
culture, but they also invited some white families as well.
Even with the community of Asian immigrants, the area was still almost completely
white. He explained the difficulties that he had with his accent. Even though he spoke English
well, he explained, “I am not a good communicator. I have a heavy accent and when I first came
here, some people had a hard time understanding me.” “I feel I was treated differently by some
people and not by others… It has affected my work. I believe that I am starting to win friends. At
first they weren’t friendly, but when they got to know me, we have become friends.”
Even though he did not discuss this in the interview, I recall when I was younger, my
Father coming home from work disappointed and angry that he did not get a position based on
his accent. The superiors did not specify the reason for him not receiving the promotion being his
accent, but rather that his communication skills hindered his work performance. It really affected
his self­confidence and I could tell, even at a young age, that it was not fair.
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7.
What does it mean to be American: Finding his identity
When I was growing up, I did not hear or learn my Father’s native language, Cebuano. I
never ate Filipino food or learned about the Philippines. My Father encouraged me to do
“American” activities and get good grades. He often told me to take advantage of my
opportunities because he did not have the same opportunities growing up.
When he first arrived, he was not able to find Filipino food, but Gideon slowly learned to
integrate his culture into his daily life. “I try to cook my own food. Sometimes I miss Filipino
food… I have to make it myself,” but what made it difficult was finding the ingredients. Gideon
explained that, “the ingredients can be found, but they are far away. They are about 60 miles
away”
After his cousin, Ruth Dejano, immigrated to the United States, I was first introduced to
my Filipino family. This was my first real experience with Filipino culture. After meeting Ruth
and her family, my Dad started to integrate his home culture into his daily life. I started to hear
my Dad speak his native language and saw my Father cook food from the Philippines.
He reflected on his experience on becoming “American.” “In some way it’s hard…
especially the language, but he considers himself to be American. He became a citizen in 1995.
“Because I married a citizen of the U.S. and now I live here, so that is why I became a citizen.”
The Philippines: Then and Now
“I visited twice. The country has changed a lot. The houses, when I left, were so far
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8. apart—now the houses are close together which is a sign of population growth. There are big
buildings. Commercial Buildings and the language has, some of the accent in the Filipino
language has changed. The culture has changed a little bit. Electricity is available in the day and
in the night. Telephones are everywhere. And I noticed more families have their own personal
vehicle. I see the improvement. I also noticed that we also used to have an artesian well and so
many changes.”
I have never visited the Philippines. My Mother tells me about when she visited the
Philippines and I have always been curious about the culture. My Father has always been
paranoid about me visiting the Philippines. I am fair in complexion, and my Father is convinced
that I will be mugged and shot. There is a little bit of truth in his paranoia, he is from the
Southern area of the Philippines where there is a large Muslim population that often holds
protests. There are also a large number of poorer residents who often target Americans because
of the stereotype of Americans being rich. When I told my Father that I was considering
traveling to the Philippines, he was upset. I felt as if he believed I was choosing to “not be
American” and that I am not happy with what he sees to be the best country in the world.
When he returned from abroad, my Father told me about how his family joked about him
being “American” and how strong his American accent was. He showed me a picture from their
family gathering and he was significantly lighter than the rest of his family. Although he did
enjoy visiting his family once again, he came home and told us that he missed the United States.
The United States was his home.
​The Asian­American Identity: Being Asian­American in 2012good
When I asked him what he considered himself, he first answered that he was Asian and a
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9. Pacific Islander, but when I asked him in the context of being American or not he said, “I call
myself an Asian American.” Even though he has adapted in the 22 years that he has been in the
United States, he said, “I miss the Filipino food, I could buy fresh meat and fresh fish. More
Filipinos are fishermen. I miss the Filipino gatherings—fiesta celebrations.” He has adjusted to
the United States. He enjoys American television, food, and culture. “My eating habit has
changed. I gained more weight, I ate too much.” “I do some exercise, but not a lot. I don’t do
much walking like in the Philippines. Here, I have a personal vehicle and I use my car even for
shorter distances.”
Even after 22 years of living in the United States, my Father often feels like he is still a
“foreigner.” There are often cultural references or phrases that he has not heard. He comes home
or even asks his family about what these mean. My Mom often has to explain to him different
cultural information and he often does not even understand after she explains.
In the community, Gideon has found his place. He has made many new friends and
become active in his new church. He joined the Grover Church of Christ and now serves as a
deacon as well as performs special music during services and participates in the church choir.
Betty explained that “Gideon has found his place within the church family. He has gained the
respect of the members by actively participating in events and helping out the community. He
has often volunteered to help mow people’s lawns and help build different house fixtures.”
Gideon has also found comfort within his place of employment. Even though there are still some
employees that discriminate against him because of his accent, he works hard to prove them
wrong. He spends his free time making sure that all of the work is completed and done well.
Much of my childhood memories are of my Father working at home, trying to prove that he is
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10. capable of his position.
Even though he has found himself to be more “Americanized,” he still finds pride
watching Manny Pacquiao box or rooting for the Filipino­American on American Idol. He finds
enjoyment out of talking to Filipinos even when he just met them in a gas station. He is
American. He is Filipino. My Father has slowly learned to be proud of all he has accomplished.
Conclusion
In conclusion, for my Father, it was not a matter of assimilating into American culture,
but rather finding a balance between life in America and the culture that he grew up in.excellent
Throughout his years in America, he has found an identity through close friends and finding a
balance between life fitting in with Americans and learning to accept what cannot be changed.
Although some elements of “Americanization” have been difficult, such as culture, slang, and
language, Gideon has adjusted to life in the United States well. He views the United States as a
positive country and feels privileged to live here. As an American by birth, I often do not view
America in a positive light, but my Father is able to look through all the negative aspects and see
America in the same way that he viewed it as a child. Finding a balance between identifying
himself as American, but also Filipino was important. Although he knows that he is sometimes
discriminated against or stereotyped, he works hard to earn the respect of others around him.
Even though he is not “American” by birth, he has claimed the right to be American. For him,
being American is not a privilege or a right, but rather something that he takes pride in. He
concluded the interview by saying, “I love living in America. I have so many more opportunities
and even though I do not understand the culture, I have made a life for myself here.”
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11.
Lapitan, Gideon, personal interview by author, March 3, 2012.
Lapitan, Betty telephone interview by author, March 15, 2012.
Lapitan, Gideon and Betty, e­mail message to author, April 15, 2012.
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