Just Another Pixel: Dancing Inmates of Cebu with Michael Jackson's Choreographer

Last Saturday, we watched an episode of Jessica Soho Kapuso Mo about the Dancing Inmates of Cebu. If they don't sound familiar to you, head on to Youtube and search for their videos. You'd, then, see prisoners/inmates in Cebu Proviincial Detention and Rehabilitation Center (CPDRC) dancing along popular tunes such as Nobody by Wonder Girls and popular dance songs by Michael Jackson. Their videos are among the most popular in Youtube.

Here are the videos of the Jessica Soho episode featuring the Dancing Inmates of Cebu:

Now, you might think I'm glad that a group of Filipinos are that popular all over the globe. Well, yes, I'm happy they're popular but not with how they were featured in Jessica Soho.

Why? If you watched the videos, there was a part where Jessica asked one of the inmates what his offenses were that resulted to his imprisonment. The guy was too honest and mentioned his major offenses - robbery, drug trafficking, and the worst, he was a rapist. A FUCKING RAPIST. The moment I heard him say that, I was cursing in my head. So, I can't imagine how others felt when they heard his answer. I mean, committing robbery or drug trafficking might be a result of poverty, but raping someone? That's inexcusable!

Before I watched this episode, I was pretty ecstatic about the Dancing Inmates of Cebu, especially when I found out Michael Jackson's choreographer Travis Payne danced with them. I was proud of what Governor Gwen Garcia has done to improve or rehabilitate these prisoners to help them better their lives while they're inside CPDRC. Don't get me wrong, I still like the Dancing Inmates, but after I saw that short interview, it kinda pissed me off. It ruined the whole picture of these guys trying to do better. I guess I don't completely believe that people can change. And I don't think dancing can completely cure or get rid of the demons of criminals such as rapists.

I really tried to look at it the other way, but I guess Jessica Soho was trying to remind us, in a way, that the Dancing Inmates are, well, INMATES. They're prisoners who are in jail for a reason. I was glad to see that the governor didn't just allow them to go inside CPDRC without going through a certain process of approval/permission from the governor herself. Governor Gwen mentioned that they're still prisoners and even though they're popular, we shouldn't forget that they're in prison.

I know that it's still a good thing that the Dancing Inmates were given a chance to undergo rehabilitation. I understand that there might be a lot of them who committed their crimes due to alcohol or drug addiction. In that case, I believe they have undergone alcohol rehab inside CPDRC to completely erase the addiction from their system. Statistics have shown how drug and/or alcohol addiction can result to people committing crimes they won't even imagine they're capable of. That's how bad drugs and alcohol addiction can affect you. But, I believe that heinous crimes caused by these 2 addictions can be prevented if only the addicts and their loved ones had information and have recognized the symptoms of drug abuse and alcohol addiction.

However, there are still others who were not using and abusing drugs and alcohol when they committed their crimes. Although I believe that people can change, I don't believe EVERYONE will. And I sure pray that the dancing really helps them, but I still don't want to see them featured on TV. Imagine if you were a victim of one of these inmates, or you're a family member or even a close friend of a victim, how would you feel if you saw him on TV dancing and enjoying himself in prison?! I'd be enraged!

I just hope other TV shows would stop featuring them and try to be more sensitive towards the victims of those inmates. I don't care if they're THAT popular that Michael Jackson's choreographer came and danced with them. It was touching in a way because Travis Payne wanted to commemorate Michael Jackson. He did choose the right people to dance along to "They Don't Really Care About Us" with him. It had a huge impact on people, especially fans of Michael Jackson. But, I hoped they were no longer featured on TV.

I do hope and pray that all this dancing helped and continues to help the Dancing Inmates to improve their lives and be better. In the end, I still like seeing them dance together so I'd still continue on watching their videos on Youtube. I think that only Pinoy men can suck it up and dance in front of people and with the knowledge that there are millions of people who watch them worldwide.

Just Another Pixel

Feb 4, 2010

Dancing Inmates of Cebu with Michael Jackson's Choreographer

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