Not many other countries allow people to come in and become a citizen of their countries so it would be rare for someone born in the U.S. to refer to themselves as anything other than Americans. The same goes with my friends from the UK, Germany or any other countries. It may happen but in my travels around the world I have never experienced it.

What I’ve been leading up to in the previous paragraphs is there is a controversy going on in certain parts of the U.S. about dual citizens from the Philippines and why they have did it. Some Filipinos believe that it is for the benefits of unlimited purchase of real estate or being allowed to own businesses in the Philippines while enjoying the benefits of living in the U.S. These people who are against Filipinos obtaining dual citizenship for the previous reasons argue that many people who obtain dual citizenship don’t even teach their children how to speak Tagalog and refer to themselves only as Americans, leaving their Filipino heritage behind. Still others obtain a dual citizenship and refer to themselves as Filipinos confusing some who want to know where their allegiance really lies.

My wife is in the group of people who while obtaining dual citizenship has embraced both countries. She and I plan on moving to the Philippines to live out our later years only returning to the U.S. to visit with family sometimes. We have made our children (and grandchild) aware and proud of their Filipino heritage. We also have encouraged them to visit the Philippines as often as possible. My wife votes in Philippine elections and pays her taxes just as she does in the United States so I would hope that many Filipinos would respect her as she chooses the label of Fil-Am.

One of the videos concerning this controversy is on YouTube and I am including it at the end of this post Please comment and tell me how you how you refer to yourself and why.