DAVAO CITY (MindaNews / 29 June)—Davaoeños celebrated the first city-wide AlterPride march Saturday morning at Roxas Avenue, with the organizers pushing issues like safe spaces, mental health, and the importance of the SOGIE Bill and gender-sensitive policies.
Ken Ryle Hinoiales, deputy director of the Ateneo Samahan Productions (ASP), noted how AlterPride’s conception was through the recognition of various LGBTQIA+ struggles instead of a mere celebration of gender identities and expressions.
“We do pride marches not just to show our colorful dresses or to march, but because we are forwarding an advocacy,” Hinoiales said, noting that pride marches “have always been a form of protest.”
Organized by the Ateneo SAMAHAN, Ateneo Libulan Circle, and the Sentrong Ateneo Public Interest and Legal Advocacy, the event highlighted LGBTQIA+ issues, including safe spaces, mental health, and the importance of the SOGIE Bill and gender-sensitive policies.
Oscar Obena, of the LGBT Davao City Council, expressed the importance of the AlterPride March towards local queer communities in Davao due to numerous unresolved cases of “structural discrimination.”
“There are 143 cases of discrimination that remain unresolved, from employment to health. That’s why I’m so happy that this event is organized so that our community does not forget that pride is a form of protest, not just a celebration,” Obena stated.
Participants from various local socio-civic organizations also joined the march to showcase the importance of tackling the intersectionality of LGBT issues, recognizing that these struggles are often compounded by other factors such as class, age, and socioeconomic status.
Nadz Nadong, of Tambayan Center for Children’s Rights, emphasized the significance of the event for the visibility of the LGBTQIA youth’s clamor for representation.
“For us as an organization, this is not only an event organized by Ateneo for celebration, but for LGBT rights, especially since we have many partner children and families who are members of this community. We believe that LGBT rights are also children’s rights, so this event is important for the visibility of LGBT youth,” Nadong said.
To Prof. Hadji Balajadia of Ateneo de Davao University, the march was a continuation of the long fight for the rights of sexual and gender minorities that began with the Stonewall Uprising, one of the first LGBTQIA protests that occurred in New York City in 1969.
“We are commemorating these arrests in a protest because 55 years ago, being gay was a crime. As long as there are lesbians, transgenders, and gays who are not recognized in our society, the pride protest will not end,” Balajadia said.
AlterPride is also a commemoration of the 55th anniversary of the Stonewall Uprising, where queer individuals fought back against police raids, harassment, discrimination, and the criminalization of non-binary gender expression. (Alyssa Ilaguison / UPMin intern)
