Fun Fast Facts:
- Homosexuality not a crime.
- Same-sex marriage not recognised.
- First pride parade in 1994.
- Multiple gay-rights organisations.
LGBT-friendly organisation: LadLad
- LGBT political party (English name: Come out).
- Founded September 21, 2003.
- Main focus: human rights.
- The Commission on Elections denied LADLAD’s petition to be allowed to run in the 2010 elections, on the grounds of “immorality”. On 8 April 2010, the Supreme allowed LADLAD to join the elections.
- The party received 113,187 (0.37%), below the optional 2% threshold needed to win a seat in Congress.
W3JOY interviewed: Boy Abunda, talk-show host and senior political advisor of LadLad, political party of the Filipino LGBTI community
There’s more awareness now in the country about the LGBT community in the Philippines. We’re getting there.
The same-sex marriage debate is raging in our country. It’s one of the most divisive issues.
We are not asking for special rights…all we need is to be treated like anyone else.
We are not promiscuous, we are people. People with spirits and souls. And we are productive members of society.
Who has not been touched by someone from the LGBT community?
We need to get into policy-making bodies, we need to get into Congress.
It is going to be an uphill battle, but it is a battle we intend to win.
Is this prevalent? Is this everywhere? I don’t have the figures, but these things are still happening. We have to keep on making a certain kind of noise…ask people difficult questions.
W3JOY interviewed Maica Lagman of Rainbow Radio Pilipinas, the Rainbow Rights Project and HeyWeeQender
On the Rainbow Rights (legal LGBT organisation).
As a community, we work together to demand equal rights under the law.
On Rainbow Radio Filipino
There’s no space in the mainstream media for LGBT. The only time when reporters [mention] LGBT people in the news is when there’s acts of violence….This subconsciously suggests to people that LGBT are sexual predators.
We show LGBT how we are, not what other people think we are.
On the major LGBT issue in the Philippines
Acceptance. Acceptance in the family, acceptance in the workplace.
It’s not really “acceptance”, people just tolerate it. When you say acceptance, it has to be full acceptance. Where you accept people for who they are, it’s not really conditional.
There’s really a stigma if you come out as an LGBT here. Not everyone has the luxury.
People treat you differently…we have instances of our transgender friends, they won’t get the job even when they are the most skilled for the job. The employer won’t tell them, “We didn’t give you the job because we know you are transgendered.”
We really don’t have laws that protect LGBTs from discrimination or from hate crimes.
W3JOY interviewed: Spirit FM‘s Romer and DJ Angelyne
W3JOY interviewed: Will
On the gay dialect of the Philippines
It’s actually Taglog but modified…they mix some other languages from some Asian countries and make them unique.
It must have been something that came about in the 70’s like a gay safety language.
Published on: Aug 21, 2012 @ 9:32
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 35:11 — 32.2MB)