Arts & Culture on Boracay Island
Even well known travel advisers, when they talk about culture on Boracay Island, they talk about street vendors that sell hats and jewelery on the beach and elsewhere.
The truth is, there is no culture worth talking about. Let’s talk about the ones, who could have had some kind of a cuture, but who are completely being ignored and given no chances at all to participate at the cake of yearly growing tourism industry.
The original people of Boracay are called the “Ati”. They are dark skinned people, also, due to their color of skin on the very far end of wages in hotels and restaurants which were built on the land that once was teirs.
If you want to know, how high black skin in the Philippines is ranking, you just have to observe the increase of skin whitening products of a billion dollar industry.
No self defence from the Ati.
The Ati follow a culture of non agression and therefore were and are not able to defend rights for their land. Their spokesman, Dexter Condez, was murdered on his way home, just coming from a community meeting. The Ati were claiming land on Boracay and Mr. Condez was fighting for his folks for the right to that property.
As taking a stroll alongside the beach, you will find may Ati begging. Basically the Ati are being ignored by society for the color of their skin, lack of educaton, - which maybe does not go along well with the idea of a paradise the way tourist industry wants to show it.
They just don’t fit in the commercial concept of so called “Paradise Island”.
So far for culture. You will find few artissts anlongside the beach, who will sell their “selfmade” hancrafted goods. Also a few perfoming artists, such as jugglers or mimes, that will perfom in the street jus right there, where they block it off so people are lead to go to the restaurant that pais them.
So – if you are into art and culture, Boracay may not be the right place to go. Let’s honestly put it to the point. Boracay is a very beautiful party place. Not more – not less.
Thank you for having visited the site Arts & culture on Boracay Island.
