Pinay on the Prairies: Filipino Women and Transnational Identities by Glenda Tibe Bonifacio (review)

Glenda Tibe Bonifacio’s analysis of Filipino women living on the Canadian Prairies is a welcomed contribution to the growing scholarly literature on Filipinos in Canada. Pinay on the Prairies presents an in-depth, and timely, profile of Filipino women in the Prairies, their lived experiences, and their activism. The current body of literature on Filipinos in Canada is characterized by an urban focus that dwells on Toronto, Vancouver, and Montreal; an unbalanced emphasis on Filipino live-in caregivers; and a separation between temporary foreign workers, permanent residents, and naturalized citizens. Bonifacio’s analysis offers a fresh analysis by moving away from these three characterizations. Her study looks at the experiences and profiles of various Filipino women of different immigration status in Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba, living in rural areas as well as urban centers. This is an important book that generates awareness of this Filipino demographic and encourages further research.

Bonifacio adopts a “Pinay Peminism” analytical framework. This is a feminist approach developed in the United States that “recognizes the same activist underpinnings of feminism in the West but draws on Filipino women’s particular histories of oppression.” (11) It acknowledges that the life of a Pinay (Filipino woman) can only be understood if Filipino sociocultural contexts are considered. In her analysis, for example, Bonifacio often refers to the strong sense of maternalism in Filipino culture that motivates women’s decision to immigrate, and explores what effects values such as utang na loob (“debt of gratitude”) have on Filipino women’s interactions.

For her study, Bonifacio interviewed roughly eighty Filipino women of different immigration and socio-economic status. Nearly all of her participants obtained a university degree, although it is not stated how many were attained in the Philippines and how many in Canada. The level of education of these participants reflects Canadian immigration policy’s emphasis on education, and refutes the stereotype that immigrants are unskilled and uneducated. Individuals entering Canada through the Live-In Caregiver Program must have the equivalent of a grade 12 education and complete a six-month certification course from a recognized institution in the Philippines; however, many have attained much higher degrees. The participants were interviewed over a period of time beginning in 2007 with focus-group discussions with thirty live-in caregivers in Southern Alberta (whether these were multiple or one focus group is not stated). Forty Filipino women participants were interviewed in different locations across Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba, in addition to some informal interviews.

The book begins and ends with a brief introduction and conclusion that set out the motivations for the book and summarizes its findings. The first chapter, “Gender, Migration, and Feminism,” outlines the method and analytical framework of Bonifacio’s study. The second chapter, “Pinay Migration,” contextualizes Filipino women’s immigration within the economic, political, and sociocultural background of the Philippines, and summarizes the characteristics of the Filipino global diaspora, and initial settlement in the Canadian Prairies. This chapter includes a thorough and in-depth demographic profile of Filipinos and Filipino women in Canada. Chapter 3, “Welcoming Prairies,” looks at how Filipinos judged their experiences in the Prairies, in particular how they were welcomed upon their arrival. One key finding in this chapter is that Filipino cultural networks and community organizations often replace governmentsponsored integration services. The following chapter, “Making Meanings: Identities and Integration,” looks at the variables that affect Filipino identity on the Prairies, including age, class, region of origin in the Philippines, religion, and sexuality. Bonifacio reveals that status in the Philippines factors into the creation of an identity in Canada, and that Pinay identity is in flux, as multiple axes operate with their own dynamic. The chapter, “Building Bridges: Activism and Community Engagement,” is the most well developed and engaging of the book. Focusing on the personal politics of her participants, Bonifacio demonstrates the participants’ strong sense of volunteerism driven by personal beliefs and experiences. There is a...