Conquering Typhoid and Privilege

Well everyone, I've really dropped the ball on keeping this thing updated since I was sick. My illness did turn out to be typhoid as the tell-tale rash appeared after my other symptoms went away and my whole body itched like a madman for three days.

I suppose I have forgot to speculate on how I got typhoid. My host brother was just recovering from typhoid upon my return from Thailand. In Philippine culture, the table is set with community bowls and everyone uses their own eating utensils to dish out food from those bowls. My host brother had used his contaminated spoon and fork in the rice bowl, etc. and I could have easily contracted the liquid borne virus that way. That seems to be the most plausible means of contraction anyway.

During the duration of my illness, I saw two different doctors: a close family friend of my host mom and a close friend of my host dad. Neither of them had much of an idea of a diagnosis as the symptoms are basically those of the worst hangover one can imagine and closely resemble a flue. It wasn't until I called the Peace Corps Medical Officer about the rash that the diagnosis was official. She told me that if the fever returns after the rash, it's dengue, if it does not it was typhoid. I'd rather take typhoid as it doesn't live in one's system as a parasite for the duration of the host's lifetime. Bonus!

While I was sick, I went to the Dr.'s office twice. The second time I went, the lobby was full of patients who looked just as bad, or worse, than I did. I was the last one to arrive at the office but was called in first.

The fact that I was called in before everyone else, including the boy with the chewed up leg who looked like he had just been in a motorcycle accident, can be accounted for in any combination of three reasons. I am unfortunately not at leisure to pinpoint the reason as family friends are involved, though I will generally address the three reasons that typically influence situations like the one I was in.

• The first is "white privilege." White privilege exists almost everywhere (yes, even in the States) and in so many different forms that it's almost too large a concept to cover in a simple blog post. Oftentimes, especially in former colonial countries, white people are seen as a higher class or priority than people native to that country in particular. This concept, in the Philippines is called "colonial mentality" in collegiate sociology books published by Filipinos for thePhilippines. Colonial systems often teach the indigenous peoples that they are inferior, thereby subjugating them to exploit labor, land and resources unquestioned. To be blunt, the only characteristic that makes me seem like more of a priority over those in my community is the color of my skin, a mishap and stroke of chance over which I had no control. White privilege can be as simple as only being able to find Caucasian-shaded band-aids or as elaborate as constantly being treated as a guest of honor simply because you are white. I experience the latter on a regular basis, being asked to eat at weddings with the V.I.P.'s, not having to stand in lines, being asked to judge pageants, being consulted for a word of expertise concerning a community matter I know nothing about, etc.

A note to those in my community: I want nothing more than to be treated like the average Filipino with no consideration or privilege above anyone else. I would enjoy nothing more than being treated as amember of the community.

• "American privilege" is a very similar phenomenon though it is tied to nationality more strongly than skin color. There is still a tie to skin color as the broad perception (here in the Philippines) is that a "pure American" is white. Black Americans are not "pure." I don't even want to get into how preposterous a notion this is since a "pure American" was anyone living in North or South America before European colonization. But engaging these kinds of perceptions is another valuable opportunity for the Peace Corps and the diversity that exists within its ranks to dispel myths about the nature of people from the United States and the Americas in general. I do all I can to correct this but it's still an uphill battle.

• Thirdly and most optimistically, its because of the Compadre system, or system in the Philippines in which family members and close family friends are treated preferentially than the rest of the community. In all honesty, I think that this is the reason why I jumped to the front of the line. In Philippine culture, it would have been disgraceful, a loss of face and a source of shame to make me wait.

In any case, I am well and if anything, grateful to my doctors for their personal touch, care and personal investment.