ABSTRACT
Forming and separating itself as a distinct cultural group, the kabataang Pinoy (Filipino youth) sprouted along with urbanisation and the secularisation of education in the American colonial period. During this time, the autonomy of the youth expanded and veered away from the control and influence of their parents and vested themselves with their own cultural capital. The 1950s to the early 1960s saw the full emergence of a truly distinct youth identity nurtured by the stability of the years after the war known as “peace time”. The movement began among young people from elite families whose lifestyles mirrored Hollywood culture’s dances, fashion, and cars. From the mid-1960s to the 1970s, youth identity spread from the elite to the lower economic stratum as secular tertiary education became accessible to more Filipinos. Thus, sub-cultures began to emerge distinguishing the upper rung sosyal (socialites), comprised mostly of students from prestigious schools.
