On Sundays We Play

On Sundays We PlayOn Sundays, We Play is a project documenting the social worlds of Filipina migrant domestic workers through their own words. It follows the lives of women who have made the complex decision to leave their families behind to toil overseas as domestic workers in Singapore households. While this opportunity enables them to provide financial security for their children and loved ones back home, it of course comes at a cost. This publication explores how

On Sundays, We Play is a project documenting the social worlds of Filipina migrant domestic workers through their own words. It follows the lives of women who have made the complex decision to leave their families behind to toil overseas as domestic workers in Singapore households. While this opportunity enables them to provide financial security for their children and loved ones back home, it of course comes at a cost.

This publication explores how the women navigate their days off, which often falls on a Sunday (or every other Sunday in some cases). Assembling at Kallang, Singapore’s old airport, this day becomes the only opportunity for the groups to congregate, socialise and support other domestic helpers, including those from Indonesia and India.

During the week, these migrants are devoted caretakers and housekeepers, but on the weekend, they transform into athletes in shiny uniforms, radiating sporting prowess and sass on the courts as they play weekly volleyball games to stay fit and feel empowered. Sometimes they play to raise funds for sick family members back home or for disaster relief in home-town villages.

Within this book are photographs, poems and essays by the migrant women about creating a sense of place in Singapore by building individual and collective resilience. It also explores the flow-on impact of Singapore’s visa system, which determines the rights and privileges of migrants. For instance, they are entitled by law to a minimum of one day off a month, yet employers can set curfew hours that curb the amount of free time the workers can spend outside their home.  

Published by Gantala Press, the book was organised by Dr Kristine Aquino, James Loganathan, Selvaraj Velayutham and Amanda Wise, in partnership with HOME Singapore, Migrant Writers of Singapore, and the migrant worker volleyballers in Kallang. Proceeds from sales going towards assisting the women run their Sunday leagues and charity games.

Publisher: Gantala Press
ISBN: 978-621-8395-00-8 (paperback)
Published: December 2023
Dimension: 215mm x 180mm
Extent: 120
Finish: Paperback
Languages: English and Tagalog