Xyza Cruz Bacani’s Empathetic Lens
/
Xyza Cruz Bacani (Photo by Edric Chen)
In a world where the stories of the marginalized often go unnoticed, Bacani’s work as a documentary photographer and artist has illuminated the lives of one of the most vulnerable groups in the global workforce: migrant domestic workers. Through her lens, Bacani has brought attention to the suffering, resilience, and humanity of Filipino migrant women by advocating for their rights and amplifying their voices in a world where they are often portrayed as voiceless.
“I don’t like when people say my work ‘gives voice,’” explains Bacani. “Migrant workers already have a voice, it just needs to be amplified, and the world needs to listen better.”
Bacani is the author of the book, We Are Like Air which depicts the story of migrant workers in Hong Kong. “We Are Like Air is a very personal and universal story of love, family, and sacrifices. We Are Like Air because migrant workers are like air. We are important. We are a necessity for a society to survive, but we are often unseen. Just like air. Without air, we suffocate and what the metaphor of air as migrants is trying to convey is this idea of being essential but not recognized.”
We are Like Air by Xyza Cruz Bacani published in 2018
Conduit of Good Things
Bacani adeptly captures the isolation, the emotional strain, and the personal sacrifices of migrant workers through her photography and journalistic endeavors. Her work has been featured at JFK International Airport in New York, her name written in bold black letters against a purple background, alongside her iconic black and white photos.
“That’s really when it came full circle for me. I came to this country a decade ago on a scholarship, unsure of myself. And now, in this very same airport, my work is on display!”
Bacani hails from an indigenous mix of Isinay, Gaddang, and Igorot roots. She was a second-generation migrant worker before she became an artist who regularly spoke at foreign migration conferences like the UN, and similarly reputable venues in education spaces all over Europe, Asia, and Africa.
“This work is important to me because almost everyone in my family experienced migration. As an artist I have been trying to live with purpose, always aspiring to be an artist-in-service because I really want my work to be in service to the community. I want my work to be the conduit of good things for the community that I serve.”
“The Filipino culture is beautiful because of kapwa (fellowship) because it is between you and me,” says Bacani. Similar to Ubuntu in African contexts, it is this idea that we have to think of others in any moment of discernment.
“We need to be able to see beyond our pain in order to help others,” says Bacani. “We should serve our kapwa in ways that allow us to be remarkable ancestors. We are all somebody’s future ancestor and the decisions we make today will impact the future.”
Homesick, a painting by Xyza Cruz Bacani, 2023
Her mother, Georgia Bacani, has been working in Hong Kong for the past 28 years for a well-to-do family in Hong Kong; the same family that Xyza used to work for when she was younger. “My mom is the strongest person I know, and she moves through the world with so much grace. She is a person who understands the meaning of sacrifice without having any bitterness in her heart.”
Xyza Cruz Bacani's Curtains exhibition in Para Site, Hong Kong. Image courtesy of Para Site.
Labor Army of Women
According to the Philippine Statistics Authority, around 55.6 percent of Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) are women, meaning the majority of migrant workers abroad are female, which means that roughly 1.20 million Filipina women work as migrant workers. The majority of Filipino migrant workers work as caregivers and nannies.
Luckily, Xyza and her mother have a great working relationship with her former employer, Ms. Louey, in Hong Kong. “Ms. Louey is one of my greatest influences,” says Xyza. “She always encouraged me to keep learning on my days off and I eventually learned Cantonese. Eventually, she loaned me money — my three months’ pay in advance — so I can buy my first camera.”
Bacani was always an avid reader, her imagination consistently cultivated by the likes of J. R. R. Tolkien, and history’s literary greats. Her key Filipino influences were Jose Rizal’s two famous novels, El Filibusterismo and Noli Me Tangere.
“I can still remember these novels very well and it opened my eyes to the problems of colonialism. I realized that the stories about the Philippines were always coming from the eyes of the colonizers. We should have more books and stories told by our fellow Filipinos.”
Advocacy and Change
Due to the extreme wealth inequality in the Philippines, Filipina women work abroad as domestic workers. This often means sacrificing not only their own wellbeing but their family life, as they spend years away from home in order to send back remittances to improve their family’s life.
“Migration could be a beautiful thing,” Bacani says. “But problems arise when there is not enough support, information, and resources. There should be protections in place in both the host country and the home country so that people have the opportunity to improve their lives without fear of exploitation.”
Her work reminds us that the plight of migrant workers—particularly women—is a global issue that demands greater attention and action. “Migration is a human right, everyone around the world should have freedom of movement, it’s not just for expats and white people.”
“I don’t like when people say my work ‘gives voice,’” explains Bacani. “Migrant workers already have a voice, it just needs to be amplified, and the world needs to listen better.”
By criticizing policies that disregard the gravity of poverty and exploitation, Bacani helps shift the conversation from mere survival to the recognition of the dignity and humanity of migrant workers. “When you think about it, being a domestic worker is a really noble job; it’s a very important job so we must regard it with the dignity it deserves.”
Bacani’s powerful storytelling has played a pivotal role in advancing social change, and her work has been honored through the House Resolution No. 1969 by the House of Representatives of the Philippines. Her work also lives in the Museum of the City of New York and various museums around the world. Her achievements include an M.A. in Arts Politics from New York University, and she has been recognized as one of Asia Society’s Asia 21 Young Leaders, Artpil’s 30 Under 30 Women Photographers, Forbes’s 30 Under 30 Asia, and BBC’s 100 Women of the World.
Xyza Cruz Bacani exhibition in John F. Kennedy Airport Terminal 4 started in 2023
Her work has also been showcased in Italy, UK, Prague, Thailand, Bhutan, Kenya, China, and Singapore. She is currently doing a commissioned work with various organizations including the New York State Council of the Arts and has been the invited artist to a group show by the Asian American Women Artists Association of San Francisco. Her upcoming exhibitions will delve into the nexus of climate change, migrations, and human rights. Her journalistic endeavors have appeared in NPR, The New York Times, the Washington Post, and elsewhere.
Elaine Joy Edaya Degale is a Black-Filipina writer and lecturer at community colleges within the City University of New York (CUNY), and has an Ed.M. and M.A. from Teachers College, Columbia University.
She graduated cum laude from Mount Holyoke College where she studied International Relations and Development, and continues to support literacy and food programming efforts in indigenous communities through her Community-Based organization, OperationMerienda.org.
More articles from Elaine Joy Edaya Degale
