By Rodney J. Jaleco
WASHINGTON D.C. – For many Filipinos, his name is inextricably linked with film and stage. Today, however, there’s something else that keeps Bernardo Bernardo busy – teaching Manila-bound American diplomats the rudiments of life in the Philippines.
Bernardo is one of two Tagalog Culture and Language Instructors at the Foreign Service Institute, a US federal training organization run by the State Department and mandated to prepare American diplomats for overseas postings. The FSI gets about 50,000 students a year from the State Department and 40 other civilian and military agencies.
“Basically ang tinuturo namin ay proficiency sa Tagalog at saka ‘survival skills’ sa pagtrabaho sa Pilipinas,” Bernardo tells ABS-CBN’s Balitang America.
Although the exact number of diplomats is confidential, the US Embassy in Manila is America’s 4th largest in the world. The FSI helps train consuls and other future staff members of the Embassy.
“It’s service oriented,” Bernardo says about his students’ future assignment. “Tinutulungan nila ang mga Amerikano sa Pilipinas – mga citizens primarily, at yung mga tao na gusto pumunta sa Amerika bilang turista o imigrante o para magtrabaho.”
There are about 130,000 Americans living in the Philippines. In contrast, there are an estimated 2.5 million Filipino-Americans in the US, many of whom take a vacation regularly in the Philippines and are entitled to services at the US Embassy.
“Pinapakita namin bilang guro ng kulturang Pilipino kung paano ang takbo ng buhay sa Pilipinas, paano nila maintindihan ang colloquial speech kasi iba ang written at spoken lalo na sa medyo pa-elitista magsalita,” Bernardo explained.
He is deeply impressed with the desire of his students to learn about the Philippines. “Alam mo naman ang Pilipino mahilig tumawa, di ba? In love na in love tayo sa mga ‘si ako, si ikaw’. Ang mga Amerikano prone to make unusual mistakes na hindi sinasadya. Eh minsan talagang di ka dapat tumawa sa klase pero humahagalpak ako kasi iba ang ginagamit nilang salita,” he said.
“Sabi ko nga sa kanila yang estilo nila, hindi lang pang consul, ‘kung maisipan niyo tumagal sa Pilipinas puwede kayo mag-artista. Kwelang-kwela kayo’,” Bernardo jokes.
“They’re really nice, very young intelligent people. Sometimes may mga edad na rin, lalo na yung galing sa military. Pero ang importante seryoso sila na maunawaan ang buhay sa Pilipinas, kung paano sila makakapag-serbisyo ng maayos at ang papel namin ay tulungan sila matupad ito,” he said.
Bernardo perhaps set the mold of the Pinoy “screaming faggot” as Manay Sharon in Ishmael Bernal’s Manila by Night, for which he won an Urian Award. But he has also convincingly portrayed a gigolo (Forever Emmanuelle), a general in the Philippine revolution (Kapitan Kulas), and a heartless landlord who is pitted against Fernando Poe Jr. (Isang Bala Ka Lang 2), among others.
But his richest works are probably on stage. Bernardo has earned several scholarships in Los Angeles, San Francisco and London. He finished his Masters in dramatic arts at the University of California in Santa Barbara. He was “Prudencio” in “The Romance of Magno Rubio” that drew rave reviews at the National Asian American Theater Festival in New York.
Bernardo held stand-up comic shows in Seattle, Chicago, San Diego, Sacramento, Los Angeles, Juneau, Las Vegas and New York. Hen then moved to San Franciso last January to take the new job.
Bernardo taught “intermediate Tagalog” at the University of San Francisco. Most of his students are second and third generation Filipino-Americans eager to learn about their heritage.
“Ito yung mga apo-apo na nakakarinig ng Tagalog pero hindi naiintindihan. Nata-touch ako kasi ang reason nila para mag-aral ng Tagalog ay para makausap ang lolo at lola nila,” he explained.
Bernardo disclosed that the FSI’s George Shultz Training Center is separate from another facility in Monterrey run by the Pentagon that caters mostly to members of the American defense establishment bound for the Philippines.
“Nag-aaral din sila ng Pilipino language pati nga mga dialect sa Mindanao for instance, pinag-aaralan din yan para mas maintindihan nila ang kultura ng maigi,” he said.
He said the training at FSI can get intense. Students devote at least five hours a day, five days a week trying to learn Tagalog.
“Walang intensyon na gawin silang manunulat ng Tagalog o taga talumpati. Pero yung iba sa kanila gumagaling, daig pa ang Pilipino,” Bernardo declared.
“After 40 weeks kita kita mo ang improvement nila,” Bernardo proclaims proudly, “Tuwang tuwa ako kasi parang anak mo na natuto magsalita.”
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