Recently, there has been a growing interest in the LGBT community, thanks to My Husband’s Lover. Its cultural impact is so broad that it trends on Twitter almost every night, and even spawned a proposed bill in the government (which I think is ridiculous). I don’t care much for the series but I’m glad that the show is breaking stereotypes and showing that gender expression is fluid and isn’t limited to effeminate types.
Ang Bonggang Bonggang Batang Beki will formally launch at the Manila International Book Fair on September 11-15. Read the Supreme interview here.
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The UP Babaylan and the UP Center for Women Studies’ Anong Pangalan Mo Sa Gabi? At iba pang tanong sa mga LGBT |
Anong Pangalan Mo Sa Gabi? (What is your name at night?) aims to address the misconceptions about the LGBT community by answering the most common questions asked of them. Some are innocent and well-meaning, but many are offensive and downright ignorant. Questions like “paano kayo dumadami?” (how do you have children?) and “paano ka umiihi?” (how do you pee?) are just some of the ridiculous questions asked, but answering them is the only way to enlighten people and inform them that gay people are exactly the same, who do the same things the same way straight people do. The answers are serious, witty, engaging, and hilarious.
Here are some of my favorites (most of them have been shortened):
Q: Anong klase kang bakla? (What kind of gay are you?)
A: Special kasi with egg. So, ikaw naman ang tatanungin ko. Anong klase kang straight? Asado o bola-bola? (Special with egg. How about you? What kind of straight are you? Asado or bola-bola?)
Q: Gay ka ba? O bi lang? (Are you gay or bi?)
A: …para tumaas ang halaga sa pamilihan, maraming gay ang nagpapanggap na ‘bi’ lang sila. Hindi original pero Class A sa mga peke. (To increase their market value, many gay guys pretend to be just ‘bi’. They’re not original, they’re Class A fakes)
Q: Sinong lalaki, sinong babae? (Who is the man and woman in the relationship?)
A: Kailangan ba laging may babae at lalaki? Hindi ba sapat na ang dalawang tao ay nagmamahalan? (Is it important to have a man and a woman? Isn’t it enough that two people love each other?)
Q: Ayaw mo bang magkaanak? (Don’t you want to have children?)
A: Ang pagtataguyod ng pamilya, pagpapalaki ng anak at pagiging isang mabuting magulang ay wala sa kasarian kundi ito ay nasa kakayahang magsakripisyo at magmahal. (The ability to raise children and be a good parent doesn’t rely on gender, but the ability to sacrifice and to love.)
Anong Pangalan Mo Sa Gabi? is available at the UP Center for Women’s Studies. Read about my article for Supreme here.