Transcript

VOX POP BEGINS

For me, debt is owing someone as a result of their having given you something or as a result of you taken something from them.

It’s something you have to pay back, give back, because something was given to you either as a physical object or a favor, and then you give it back.

Utang na loob translates very well into public service, because if you're in a position of leadership, if you're in a position of influence, you do have a debt to the people that you represent.

VOX POP ENDS

INTRODUCTION BEGINS

In Blood Debts, we tell the stories of choices and sacrifices to pay back what is owed and pay forward something of value.

I’m your host, Leezel Tanglao.

On this podcast, we talk about one of the few through lines in people’s lives - debt.

You’ll hear stories from the Filipino diaspora around how debt has impacted all aspects of life from those in the medical field, public service sector to creative arts.

As a journalist, I’ve spent more than a decade reporting on the financial aspects of debt in diverse communities.

But many carry debts beyond money.

Almost everything I do on a day to day basis is because of a sense of debt. I have a sense of responsibility to my family, to my friends, to my community, and that governs almost every every decision I make.  

In this episode we talk to Joshua Ang Price, an election commissioner in Arkansas. We talk about what debt looks like in the public service space. 

INTRODUCTION ENDS

JOSHUA ANG PRICE: My name is Joshua Price. I am the election commissioner for Pulaski County, Arkansas.

And I also have a history of working for the federal government, for different agencies specializing in economic and community development.

And I'm fairly heavily involved in the nonprofit sector as well as local politics.

You know, when you are making decisions that can affect tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands of people, it it's definitely a responsibility that weighs on you. And you want to make sure you make the right decision.

And so you do feel a feel that sense of of that in that these folks are relying on you to make the right decisions for them.

So you want to make sure that you do your duty of diligence and represent them in the way that they would like for you to represent them and make sure you put their best interests first.

Well, I mean, I'm a little you know, it's the debt of gratitude. And I definitely feel that. Well, let's start on a smaller scale.

Like, I definitely feel that within my own family. I mean, it's as simple as that when you visit the Philippines. You have to bring us a little pasalubong.

There are certain things you have to do, show respect to your elders, your family members.

And I think that in in a peripheral way kind of ties into that. But then I feel like also in the Filipino community, we we use it as more.

Almost like a you scratch my back, I'll scratch yours type thing, like because you did something for me.

Now you owe me a favor. Oh, you know, you usually are going to do a favor for you and then I'm going to call in a favorite some some given time.

And I feel like sometimes the Filipino community, we we think like because somebody did something for us.

They're going to call it a flavor later. And it's almost like hanging over your head. And I could be wrong, but I don't think that's the spirit of what we've done a little of really is supposed to mean.

I take it more as a let me use this as a limit, as a personal example. And this is actually not within the Filipino community. But I when this happened to me, I took a very Filipino point of view from it.

And I think I may have told you the story before Leezel, but my old boss, when I first started working for the federal government, you know, we would travel all through the Mississippi River Delta region, eight different states, you know, ten or fifty two counties and parishes.

And, you know, really everywhere we went, I was the only Asian-American.

You know, there were really none, no Asian-Americans present at any of these events.

You know, we'd meet with state senators, state representatives, mayors, different elected officials, sometimes even US congressmen. And at every event, I would be the only Asian-American there. And I just took it in stride. You know, I'm there.

The work I was doing communications. And I was more worried about handling its talking points and wrangling the media and doing all that stuff, which I know you're very, very aware of, too.

So I was more like in the zone getting work done.

But then we would have downtime, you know, driving, driving back in the car for two, three, four hours or sometimes on a plane.

And I remember one time we were driving back from event and he said to me, you know, you did a great job today.

You always do a great job. You said, but I just realized you said everywhere we go, you're the only Asian-American in the room.

You're the only one that looks like you. So how is that affecting you? Are you OK? And I said, Oh, yeah, I'm fine. I said, you know, I'm kind of used to it growing up in Arkansas.

And he said, OK. He said, Well, I just wanted to check because he said, you know, as a white man that I blend right in.

And he said, I didn't know if people were treating you differently.

You know, these are very small rural areas that I never encountered an Asian-American before. And I just wanted to make sure you were OK if you had any issues.

He's like, I would want you to come tell me if anybody said anything to you. He's a good you're an important part of my team.

I highly respect you. And if anyone ever says anything to you or shows any kind of disrespect or racism, I want you to alert me right away. And so whenever that doesn't happen, you know that I'm I'm used to it.

I grew up in a small town in southwest rural southwest Arkansas myself.

I know how to turn on my southern accent when I need to and kind of make them laugh and blend in a little bit in that way, at least culturally, if not through my physical appearance.

And he said to me, he said, you know, I think you're very smart, you're very talented. You're an invaluable part of my team.

And he said, when we're in these situations, I just want you to know I may not be able to get you a seat at the table, but I can damn sure get you in the room.

And I do feel a debt of gratitude to him. I do. I feel I feel a little. Because this man did not have to. You know, we are. Yes.

But from the same state, but a lot of ways completely different in the way we were raised in our culture.

But he went out of his way to not only make me feel comfortable and accepted in these situations, but to promote me, to tell the people, you know, he's like, I've got the best digital comms director, you know, in the state on my team.

And I just always do whatever he can or he could to promote me, to empower me, to encourage me.

And when that's coming from someone who was a presidential appointee and Barack Obama, like you feel that, you know, you take is is a Filipino. I definitely took that in and I was like, wow, he didn't have to do this to me. But he did.

With one of the most important elections of our lifetime, Josh talks about the responsibility he feels in making sure everyone is able to vote and make their voices heard.

If you don't walk in to a situation where you're in a position of leadership and you're representing citizens and your in your county, district, city, whatever, whether residents, they want to be citizens, per say, for voting, of course, you ought to be a citizen to vote.

But for residents in your county, whether it's on a state level or county level, local level. If you don't feel that the weight of that responsibility to these people that you're supposed to be serving, then in my opinion, you're in the wrong job. You're in the wrong job.

You should go to bed stressed every night saying, what am I not doing enough for the people I represent?

Well, what what else do I need to do to make sure they have access to this opportunity or this service if if it doesn't weigh on your heart heavily?

I don't think you're in the right job.

You know, we talk about how certain presidents like Obama, you know, he's in the White House for eight years and his hair's all turned white. Your hair should turn white because you're you.

You are taking on such a monumental responsibility.

You were responsible for the rights and liberty and access to opportunities, education, health care, et cetera, voting for thousands of people, hundreds of thousands of people. That needs to weigh heavily on you.

It needs to weigh heavily on your heart every single day. That is my blood debt.

The people who selected me to be in this position. I owe them. I owe them.

They put me in this position so they would do a good job for them, make sure that they have access to the polls and we have enough poll workers and poll workers are staying safe and staying healthy.

That's all a blood debt, that I think in public service. It's very important because it reminds you why you're in that position.

You are there to represent the interests of others and ensure that they have access to these rights and these these government services and whatnot.

OUTRO BEGINS

There are many sides to debt.

This series intends to take you on a journey through defining and redefining debt through stories of Filipinos in the diaspora.

Upcoming stories from guests like Major General Antonio Taguba and rapper Ruby Ibarra are just a sampling of the journeys you’ll hear along the way.

That’s all for this episode, thank you for listening.

To find out more about the series and upcoming episodes and resources, visit Blooddebts.com

Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Blood Debts is produced and hosted by me Leezel Tanglao.

This series is a legacy project of the Filipino Young Leaders Program.

Shoutout to FYLPRO Batch 8.

This series is dedicated to all those who struggle to talk about uncomfortable issues and for all those who ever felt overlooked.

I see you.

I hear you.

OUTRO ENDS