IT all started with a tweet by a fashion designer who found the “yaya meals” being served at the exclusive Balesin Island Club as “offensive.”
Beyond the “yaya meals” issue, however, is something deeper.
“The yaya phenomenon — women leaving their families to care for the children of others — has been with us a long time. Since at least the 19th century, Filipino women have ventured outside their native villages to go to towns and cities to work as servants for the more affluent. They were often compelled to do so by poverty, a lack of other opportunities, and a desire to help their families. There was, of course, also the lure of the big town or city.” – The Yaya Sisterhood, PCIJ iReport June 2005 issue
Scroll down to the bottom of page for the link to the iReport article.