A century ago the American colonial government in the Philippines created a wide-scale public education system throughout the islands. Bearers of Benevolence is an anthology of recollections, eyewitness accounts, and official documents from the participants in this historic undertaking--from soldier-teachers, authentic Thomasites, government beaurocrats, and Filipino students. Their voices speak of high hopes and hardships, self-satisfaction and sacrifice. This volume brings together a range of real-life responses to the official policy of "benevolent assimilation" and reveals its impact on individual lives. These are the stories of men and women in the early 20th century Philippines -- of Americans bearing benevolence to Filpinos and of Filipinos bearing benevolence-- and of both still assimilating the meaning of that experience 100 years later. "Hardships?...I think the only real hardship I endured during those first two years was the realization of the poverty and the meager outlooks, of the wholesale disease with no remendy, of the restraint, ignorance, and persecution in the lives of those poor little brown people. In the face of their hardships, my own privations sanke into insignificance. The work among the young people was most encouraging, the most satisfying I have ever been called upon to do, and I am very thankful that I was given an opportunity to share in it." -- Anna K. Donaldson, Thomasite, Iriga, Bicol 1901
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very informative and impartial. a lot of observations from the early american teachers in the philippines. i would say they were the precursor of the peace corps. ambassadors of goodwill. over all, i would say the thomasites were a bunch of good people with good intentions. i am not suprised that the filipinos loved the american because they made education reachable to the vast majority of the population. during the spanish regime, only the rich and the spaniards have access to education, hence there was a great desire and craving for the rest of the population. i know nothing is perfect, i know they may have been used by their govt for other motives but ask any elderly filipino 80 yrs old and above,about "peace time" - the period before world war 2. and they would say life was good. a lot of the thomasites came to love the filipinos and the country that they never left. there is a section of the north cemetery in manila for the thomasites. the sad thing though is after 100 yrs, it seems like all the thomasites' efforts were in vain. the philippines is like a house that has been neglected - that used to be beautiful and with a lot of potential.
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