Looking around for 'heroes'

Last Monday, the last in the month of August, the nation observed “Araw ng mga Bayani,” or National Heroes Day.

- DR. JUN YNARES

We took the opportunity to reflect on the concepts of “heroes” and “heroism,” even as we asked ourselves if these ideas are still relevant today. We also asked if there are still “heroes,” and if so, where they are and what they look like.

We found this celebration an opportunity to reflect on those questions. More than ever, we appreciated the importance of setting aside a date to honor our heroes and to reflect on the meaning of this day.

The “Araw ng mga Bayani” was originally intended to be a commemoration of the “Cry of Pugad Lawin” — that event in our history when the members of the secret group “Kataastaasan, Kagalanggalangang Katipunan (KKK) ng mga Anak ng Bayan” decided to rise up in an armed revolt against Spanish colonial rulers.

Our nation started marking this day in the early 1930s. Perhaps, the government then decided that it would be good to set aside a day to honor a group of Filipinos who played key roles in the nation’s liberation from Spanish rule.

That group of national heroes for whom the “Araw ng Bayani” was designated included Dr. Jose Rizal, Andres Bonifacio, Apolinario Mabini, Marcelo H. del Pilar, Melchora Aquino, the painter Juan Luna, Gabriela Silang, and Sultan Dipatuan Kudarat, after whom the Mindanao province was named.