I've wanted a way to share, especially with Filipino children adopted abroad, just what it means to be a Filipino. It was one of my students' papers that made me think of using iamninoy merchandise, and when I told Rudd and Angelique about it they liked the idea and bought me a couple of t-shirts. I gave the first t-shirt to Richard and Katherine for their little boy, and today I printed up copies of this write-up in booklet form for Rudd and Angelique.

Ninoy Aquino is one of the greatest heroes of the Philippines. He courageously opposed the dictator, Ferdinand Marcos, even when his life was at risk. He was arrested and thrown into prison. He was tortured and released after many years, only on condition that he would go to the US and leave Marcos' injustices in silence.


But when the situation in the Philippines deteriorated beyond what anyone could tolerate, he came back to stand up for the suffering masses. When his friends warned him that if he came back he would be killed, he said the most famous line in Philippine history: "The Filipino is worth dying for."



And, sure enough, when he stepped off the plane in Manila, he was shot and killed.















But as with most deaths, that was only the beginning. He came back to stand up for the masses, but when he died millions of people stood up for him. They stood up to Marcos and deposed him from the presidency.

His wife, Cory, was elected to set the country back on the road to democracy, and when she died this last year, the country was flooded with yellow ribbons (her favorite color) and with posters that read: "Tita Cory, you are not alone."

The t-shirts that read i am ninoy show the same pride to be Filipino. Cory and Ninoy are real heroes for not only standing up for their country, but for making all of us stand up for it as well. Just the icon of Ninoy's glasses reminds us to live with an attitude that says, "The Filipino is worth dying for."