A Family Disapproval Rating
GERALD. He/him/his. 60-70s. Filipino American. Trump Ally.
FLO. She/her/hers. 20s. Filipina Amerian. Pro-American Anti-Trump.
Lights up on the family kitchen with GERALD and FLO.a
GERALD
He is the American dream.
FLO
To be born with a wealthy father who gave him everything?
GERALD
He is a billionaire.
FLO
How do you know? Have you seen his tax returns?
GERALD
He is making America Great Again.
FLO
When did it stop being great?
GERALD
When all of those illegal aliens started coming into the country.
FLO
Dad, at one time, Filipinos were called aliens.
GERALD
At one time, Flo. But not now. We are proud citizens of this country who should always stand behind our leaders.
FLO
Didn’t you go to the Anti-Obama rally?
GERALD
That’s because he was dragging our country down.
FLO
And you don’t think that’s happening now?
GERALD
Totally opposite side of the coin. On one side is the bad side. On the other is the savior of the United States of America.
FLO
How united can we be if you’re always wrong?
GERALD
That’s the problem with you snowflakes. You always want to be right. Fine, you can be right, but we don’t have to even listen to you. You know why, because we don’t have to. So, just keep talking and talking because that’s all your good for. While the rest of us can just go on our merry way and see our economy grow. And when we see something stopping us from living the American dream, then we can do something about it.
FLO
Locking kids in cages is not the way you doing something about it.
GERALD
Fake news.
FLO
What’s fake about what you can clearly see with your own eyes.
GERALD
All that was produced in Hollywood! Where else do you think they can get all those Mexican extras?
FLO
I cannot believe that we’re related.
GERALD
You can’t?
FLO
Mom, can you settle this? Why did dad vote for that lying, perverse, racist, windbag, douche nozzle of a president?
GERALD
Do not disrespect that man.
FLO
I said called him the president.
GERALD
Do you know how lucky we are to be in this country? Do you know what it’s like to live in the Philippines? You owe your life to what this country offers you.
FLO
I do! I believe in the America that welcomes the weary, the weak and the poor. I fight for a Constitution that say that All Men and women too are created equal. And I will support a government that serves the people instead of serving a gun lobby who says that mental illness is the cause of all the mass shootings committed by young white males who gets their marching orders from your president when we tweets that this country is being invaded!
GERALD
We are!
FLO
If you believed that then why are we here.
GERALD
To be happy that we are here. You kids nowadays are so ungrateful for the opportunities we have here. Just keep quiet and you can live the American Dream.
FLO
That’s called living in fear. We became a country because of immigrants who took a stand!
GERALD
The longer you stand the harder you fall.
FLO
Well you really fell for all that right-wing bullshit.
GERALD
They’re called the right wing because they are always right!
FLO
So you’re saying that they’re right for taking away Obama’s bill for Filipino World War 2 Vets families to come here to take care of them?
GERALD
What are you talking about? That’s been the the law since 2017!
FLO
Not since the beginning of the month. Look.
FLO shows Gerald her phone.
GERALD
“The Trump administration is ending a policy that allows Filipino veterans of World War II to bring family members to the United States before their green cards are available, United States Citizenship and Immigration Services said Friday.”
FLO
So much for your president caring about some of the people that made America great.
GERALD
Fake news.
FLO takes her phone and shows Gerald all the other headlines from other news sources saying the same thing.
GERALD is stunned.
BLACKOUT
END OF PLAY