A Story of Inspiration

In our first-ever installment of Where We Belong, Jalen del Rosario – the founder and creative director of DSPRA – sat down with cohost TK Saccoh, creator of The Darkest Hue. In this episode, Jalen shares what led him to create DSPRA, how being part of the Filipinx diaspora inspires him, and what inspired him to start Where We Belong.

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TK:
So, Jalen, what inspired you to create DSPRA in 2022?

Jalen:
Growing up Filipino-American in a Filipino household in a very not Filipino area, I always kind of felt this sense of being an other, not belonging, and just not "fitting in". I was aware of my culture and taught by my parents to be proud of it, but going outside my home and never feeling like my identity or heritage was something worth celebrating definitely affected how I felt about it. No one really celebrated us or made us feel like our identities were something that mattered or belonged where I grew up.

And then even when I would go to the Philippines, seeing my family and my cousins, aunts, uncles, grandparents, etc., I also kind of felt that same sense of not belonging. I didn't and still don't speak the language, so even though most of my family still lives there and is very much tied to the country and the culture, I was limited in how much I was able to feel included and connected to it because of the language barrier and the differences between Filipino culture in the Philippines and the American culture I was brought up in. I was raised by Filipino parents of course, but I just never really grew up being immersed in the culture in the way that people in the Philippines are.

It was tough, for sure, not feeling like I fully belonged in America or the Philippines. But when I got to college, I was around more people of color and a lot more Filipinos than I grew up with. Especially other Filipino-Americans who had the same experience of feeling like they didn't necessarily belong in either place. That said, I felt like I belonged with them and with the other people around me who weren't Filipino, but still could relate to the diasporic experience. Being around them and just having that experience with them really showed me that the duality of my identity was not something that was a curse, but really was a blessing – because having that dual identity meant that I have a lot in common, [not just] with people here in America, but also a lot of common people in the Philippines.

I learned to celebrate that duality. So that's what DSPRA really is to me now, and my goal is to have DSPRA be a celebration of what it means to have that dual identity, to be part of a diaspora, and to carry those two parts of yourself equally and celebrate both of them.

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TK:
What inspires you about being a part of the Filipino diaspora?

Jalen:
One of the things that really inspires me the most about Philippine diaspora – and something I want to cultivate through the brand DSPRA – is the sense of community. Being Filipino, there's always these little moments where I'll see a stranger or they'll see me, and somehow we just know we're both Filipino, and it's an instant bonding moment there. There's this word in Tagalog, "kababayan", which I think roughly translates to "countryman", and we always kind of say it when we see each other, or ask each other if we're both Filipino and smile when the answer's yes. 

There's just something really special about that, where we see each other and we know. That's just really inspirational to me. Having that connection with so many people – even if our lives don't really overlap in any other way – is something that I am really proud of and really enjoy about being Filipino. It feels really warm and comforting, and it's something I want to cultivate, celebrate and share through the brand DSPRA.

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TK:
What inspired you to start Where We Belong?

Jalen:
Storytelling, really. I think there's so much value in telling our own stories, and I wanted DSPRA to give people a platform to do that. I think being part of a diaspora and having this dual identity means there's so many times in which we feel like our story is not valid, because we don't "belong" to one place to another.

But I think as we tell our own stories, we allow people to see themselves in us. And so with Where We Belong, what I'm trying to achieve is to help others see themselves in all these different people's stories, understand that their identity – whatever it may be – is valid, and that not only do their stories matter, but they belong, wherever they choose to be.

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To watch the interview, visit us @dspraofficial on Instagram and TikTok