anthro 133 first draft(2)

8/6/2019 Anthro 133 First Draft(2)

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Lupang Arinda. A small community found in the crossroads of Taguig, Pasig, Cainta and Taytay,

on the borders of Laguna Lake. Originally inhabited by local farmers, the area was once calledLupang

Swerte for the abundance of crops during summer and the bountiful fish during rainy season. During

1995, President Fidel V. Ramos, under Proclamation 704, declared 80 out of 171 hectares as a

resettlement area intended for the informal settlers along Pasig River. However the beneficiaries

refused to relocate, reasoning that moving from one danger zone to another isunreasonable. But as the

saying goes, one mans trash is another mans treasure, as informal settlers from nearby cities occupied

the vicinity as authorized by their mayor.

With the ever changing dynamics of the political landscape, the sudden issuance of Executive

Order 854 revoked Proclamation 704 and ordered the immediate demolition of the area. Facing the

threat of losing their homes, the residents of Lupang Arinda banded together to assert their rights to

take over the neighborhood. Although it temporarily removed the threat of demolition, it still has not

guaranteed their ownership of the land.

An intended resettlement area, Lupang Arinda is still surrounded by a mesh of sociopolitical

issues that makes it controversial; it became infamous with the unforgettable Ondoy tragedy. The

residents were blamed for blocking the flow of water from the lake which contributed to the massive

flooding that submerged huge parts of the region. This incident led them to be seen in a negative light

that made them subjects of further scrutiny by the public, adding to the web of issues shrouding their

community.

The chain of events had an enormous impact on their living conditions. As the people continue

their fight for their land, they must also engage in another struggle: everyday survival. They are forced

to enter menial jobs just to make ends meet. However, their income-generating activity is not the sole

factor for their hand-to-mouth existence. We must also give equal attention to their commendable

ability to maximize whatever scarce resources they have. Specifically, this paper aims to look into the

role of the women in the difficult job of simultaneously maintaining the household while finding

innovative ways to stretch the limited means. It also explores the womens view on the economic

aspects of their lives such as the choices that they make concerning their daily expenses and conditions

that put economic constraints on them. Lastly, this paper attempts to understand the bearing of the

often unnoticed complexity of the socio-economic roles of the women of Arinda to their everyday lives.

Home is where the heart is.

Majority of the families income comes from the fathers who are minimum wage earners. The

men are free to engage in income generating activities such as working in profession outside their

Comment [M1]: JUDE, KAW NA BAHALA SA

TITLE, GANDAHAN MO AH!



community since it is their wives who are in charge of child care activities and household management.

These responsibilities at times can completely occupy their full attention, as two of our respondents

who were taking care of young children said.Aling Susanna k apag sinisipag would make suman from

her house and would sell it in the community. But on the birth of her fourth child, she could no longer

do this because as she said Hindi ak o mak abwelo ngayon gawa ng may maliit pa ak o. On the other

hand, the two mothers whose children were all school-age had sari-sari stores in their homes as their

sidelines. Although taking care of older children is less intensive, the mothers still chose to set up their

extra source of income within their residence.

We saw that these findings are in accordance withBossens (1989) locational model that women

are more likely to choose activities that are compatible with childcare duties. Since the sari-sari store is

at their house, they can still prepare meals for the family, maintain the houseand attend to childrens

needs when they return from school. Since majority of the children of Lupang Arinda attend the public

elementary school in their community, their classes take up only half of the day. With that set up, thechildren are at home the other half of the day and since, their mothers are working from their homes,

they are not left unsupervised and unattended.

Our three interviewees whose youngest child was already in college still hadto engage in

activities near the home. One makes homemade delicacies and delivered it to a store, the otherhas a

vegetable stand in the main road while the third is a sub contractual seamstress working just a few

meters away from her home. Even though, they could choose to enter professions that were away from

the home seeing as their children are no longer completely reliant for their survival, they still continue

to stay in their chosen business. It could be because the mentioned self-employed women were

already in their businesses since they were young as they shared.

Childcare is the utmost priority for these women. Some gave up their sideline in order to give

their full attention to their infants while others decide to work at home so that they can stillbe there for

their children, even up to the day that they are all grown-up.

Housewife lang po

The labor that housewives put into the household tasks is not included in the Gross National

Product. This does not mean that their contributions are useless. In fact, their thankless jobs are vital to

the growth of the said measure of financial wealth of a country.

The women we interviewed were responsible for budgeting the money they received from their

husbands. They had to make sure that a family of four to seven members would be able to eat three

times a day with only P150 to P300. In their daily budget which seems to be surprisingly small, they

were able to fit in the cost of food, allowance for the children and basic necessities such as water, wood

or gas and electricity. Half of our respondents said that the allotted budget is enough, while the other

had disagreed and said that it was lacking. But they were all in consensus that they spent their budget

wisely. As Aling Susanna said, Ang pinupuntahan ng pinagk ak agastos k o ay para rin sa amin, k inak ain



namin. Aling Nenette who is primary breadwinner stressed the importance of proper budgeting as she

said that Kailangan k asi eh, yun lang k i k itain k o.

While their husbands are busy bringing home the bacon,the women have to stay at home to

attend to the concerns of the family. This includes raising the children which is brushed aside as the god

given duty of mothers and is not considered a full time job.Also part of their not a full time job is

keeping the house clean, washing and ironing the clothes of the whole family and making sure that

there is food on the table. In more affluent households, theirdomestic duties fall under the job

description of the household help that are paid a monthly salary.But this is not the case for the women

we interviewed, as they do not have extra money to pay for help nor is it in their scope.

During the course of our interaction, the mothers did not complain about the fact that they

were housewives or about their workload. In fact, they see themselvesas housewives who have an

important role in the family precisely because of their responsibilities that are deemed insignificant inthe macro level. Because of this internalized sexual division of labor, in doing their part, it enables their

husbands to earn money for the whole family.

Nothing too fancy

In the attempt to understand the underlying motives of women in making economic choices, we

investigated what their priorities are and how it influences their views and decisions. Majority of the

women gave prime importance to food security, in fact allocating more than half of their dai ly budget on

food. Also, whenever they have extra money, they would prefer to spend it on food, like merienda for

their children. Another significant expenditure for these mothers is their childrens education. Although

most of the childrens education is free, the mothers allot a certain percentage of their money for

school-related expenses such as baon and projects.

Aside from these major costs, some of them also save whenever possible to be used primarily

for house renovations, their childrens future and emergency situations such as illnesses and days with

no income.

When asked how they would spend a million pesos, everyone immediately answered a new

house to be the first on their list. The second and third place goes to businesses and the security of their

childrens education respectively. They also agreed that the spare money (if there is some left) would

be saved while a few mentioned giving balato to neighbors. A striking commonality among their

responses is that no one wanted a car, claiming they have no use for it. Also, everyone settled for a

simple yet comfortable lifestyle, nothing luxurious or too ambitious. As Aling Susan aptly said,Simpleng

buhay lang Hindi bongga. They also did not want nor needed anything for themselves; rather they

preferred to spend for the benefit of the whole family.

While most people would usually box them in two extreme notions of either desiring nothing

beyond daily survival or all the comforts the material world can offer, we have seen that in reality, they



lie half-way between these ends. They opt for choices that would not go beyond their means and are

guided by their family-centered values and personal bel iefs in decis ion-making. They are also inf luenced

by their worldview that not all that glitters is gold; that being worldly will not necessarily lead to

happiness and contentment.

These mothers mindsets are grounded on their daily experiences. They attribute value to a

particular commodity not based on its monetary value, rather on its functionality. This explains why they

would prefer a gas-efficient motorbike as t heir primary transportation compared to a high-maintenance

car. And as mothers, their decisions revolve around the welfare of their children, sometimes to the

extent that they put themselves last. Sayang eh, yung ipapaload k o baon nalang ng mga anak k o,

Aling Vilma replied when asked regarding her personal expenses. These women were molded by their

everyday living conditions to be innovative and practi cal to endure economic hardships they are faced

with.

More than just money matters

Are women just passive and dependent beneficiar ies of their husbands? Are they really non-

participatory to the economic system? X?

Our encounter with these women proves otherwise. We have found out that contrary tothese

beliefs, women of Arinda play a vital r ole that complements the income-generating function of the

husband. They are tasked with the herculean responsib ility of making sure that their familys basic

needs are met by efficiently fitting the meager income into ever increasing demands.

The rationale behind their economic choices is rooted to the provision of their childrens needs.

Their basis on what is economically rational and morally right is the benefit of their children.

Interestingly, they all aspire for an uncomplicated and easy lifestyle, not extravagant yet not too

bare. The sim plicity of their thinking has its pros and cons. On a positive note, it can be viewed as a

reflection of their practicality. It is also imply that they have an accurate grasp of the reality of their

situation. On the other hand, others may see it as self-handicapping by limiting their ambitions and goals

instead of aiming higher.

In our quest to discover the invaluable yet often undervalued importance of women in the

economic sphere, our misconceptions were shattered. There is more to women than being meek and

dependent housewives. They are an invis ible yet undeniable hand that dictates the movement and

balance of wealth.

Comment [M2]: FILL IN THE Xs PLEASE

anthro 133 first draft(2)

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