Taking off from Russell Molina’s talk last August 29 for Filipino Week, here is one line that refuses to leave: “Martial Law is not an event. It is an idea. Ideas can be resurrected.”
It is a reminder that history is not a closed book. What we choose to forget can return; what we choose to silence can echo louder. To read, to question, to remember, these acts become our guardrails against the resurrection of ideas that once brought fear and darkness. This week, our library, the BA Library will highlight books on Martial Law as an act of remembrance and courage.
In doing so, we affirm the importance of human rights as the foundation of a just society. Above all, we honor our shared humanity by keeping memory alive through stories.
Salingkit: A 1986 Diary
by Cyan Abad-Jugo
Written as a diary, this novel traces the life of Kitty, a young girl navigating her friendships, crushes, and daily struggles against the backdrop of the 1986 People Power Revolution. It offers readers an intimate look at Martial Law’s final years through the voice of a child growing into awareness.
#FilipinianaXTOK #MartialLawLiterature #BookReview
Here is an executive summary of my talk with PASLI sponsored by Tuttle Publishing Philippines.
Resource Speaker: Zarah C. Gagatiga, RL – Teacher Librarian,
Award-Winning Author, PASLI PRO
This seminar highlights the importance of nurturing
Filipiniana collections that mirror the oral traditions and diverse lives of
Filipino children, promote bilingual literacy, and design community programs
that bring stories to life. It draws on Rosenblatt’s Transactional Theory and
Reception Theory to affirm reader agency and position reading as both a
personal and social act.
Connection of Activities to Objectives:
Curate Filipiniana Books: The Mini-Curation Challenge
directly engaged participants in selecting titles that preserve oral traditions
and meet children’s cultural and developmental needs. This addressed the first
objective by encouraging thoughtful, purposeful collection building.
Promote Bilingual Literacy: The Dual Language Read-Aloud
made participants experience firsthand how language shifts between Filipino and
English affect rhythm, imagery, and meaning, sharpening bilingual awareness and
appreciation of cultural registers.
Design Community-Based Programs: The Story-to-Program
Workshop challenged groups to transform folktales into inclusive community
activities (e.g., puppet plays, barangay storytelling circles), concretizing
how libraries can bridge culture and community.
Integrative Activity: The Reading Roulette embodied all
three objectives at once. By rotating books, participants saw reader agency in
action, experienced the value of diverse Filipiniana texts, and built a sense
of community by sharing insights with peers and the larger group.
When school libraries center Filipino folktales and works by
Filipino creators, they affirm children’s agency, nurture social reading, and
uphold access and representation as acts of justice. Folktales sharpen
metalinguistic awareness, preparing children to engage digital and AI-driven
tools with reflection, responsibility, and cultural grounding.
