“Chinoy” trends after video of Derek Ramsey hanging Philippine flag opposite neighbor’s house with Chinese couplet goes viral
Netizens weighed in on what it means to be “Chinoy” in modern Philippine society, after an Instagram video of Derek Ramsey hanging the Philippine flag on his balcony opposite a neighbor’s house that’s adorned with a Chinese couplet went viral.
In her Instagram story, Ramsey’s wife Ellen Adarna posted a clip that shows Ramsey hanging the Philippine flag on their balcony across the street from a neighbor’s house that was decorated with a Chinese couplet.
Adarna captioned her story with “I like the view #proudpinoy .😂😂😂 Patriotic 😂” and tagged Ramsey in the clip.
A Chinese or Spring Festival Couplet is a a pair of poetry lines often written on red paper and vertically pasted on both sides of the front door. Pasting couplets is an expression of people’s merriment and wishes for a better life in the coming new year. The Chinese community around the world celebrated this year’s Lunar New Year on January 22.
The clip shared through The Philippine Daily Inquirer’s Twitter account quickly went viral, with one reaction standing out in particular for provoking a discussion about how Chinoys stand in Philippine society and the myth (and facts) of Chinoy privilege. Chinoy is a portmanteau of “Chinese Pinoy,” Filipino citizens with mixed Chinese and Filipino roots or heritage.
In his quote-tweet, Chinoy television personality Richard Juan takes offense at Adarna’s and Ramsey’s IG video, calling it an “unwelcoming action” that makes Chinoys like him feel like they still don’t belong in the Philippines.
Some netizens sought to correct Juan’s impression by reminding him that he himself comes from privilege (a graduate of the much sought-after University of the Philippines) and that the richest families in the country are Chinoys.
On the other hand are netizens who agreed with Juan by pointing out that only a small percentage of Chinoys become billionaire tycoons thus become publicly visible and that a vast majority of them are hardworking people of average socio-economic status.
