Congratulations to EWU McNair Scholar Brendan Roof for completing his McNair Summer Research Internship! He worked with mentor Dr. Paul Linholdt on his summer 2023 research, “The Other: Truth, Morality, and Bulosan’s Heart“. His research was presented August 16, 2023 at the McNair Summer Research Symposium.
Brendan explored how Carlos Bulosan, and his seminal work, “America Is In The Heart”, are an illustration of the complications of truth and morality in regards to Filipinos in the early 20th century.
Other research surrounding Bulosan, his seminal work, and the Filipino experience consults various perspectives and methodologies, namely, Bulosan’s 200-page FBI file, his poetry and letters, legislative action, and historical events surrounding his migration. The fecundity of Bulosan research has resolved decades-long debates on Bulosan’s end-of-life activity, his communist associations, and the intention behind his patriotic finish in AIH. In this presentation, I provide an accurate representation of the America Bulosan details by exploring the manipulation of truth and the moral hypocrisy of U.S. imperialism
Brendan is interested in researching Philippine literature in English, pre-colonial Philippine culture, the Filipino diaspora, Philippine politics, environmentalism, and foreign and domestic drug-reform and decriminalization. Brendan is dedicated to addressing the impacts of narratives in society, particularly those concerning race, drugs, and the quality of Filipino life.
