Contact Bryon Senga of UP Center for Women's and Gender Studies at research.cwgs@up.edu.ph, sengabry@gmail.com to access article.

Contact Bryon Senga of UP Center for Women's and Gender Studies at research.cwgs@up.edu.ph, sengabry@gmail.com to access article.

Contact Bryon Senga of UP Center for Women's and Gender Studies at research.cwgs@up.edu.ph, sengabry@gmail.com to access article.

Contact Bryon Senga of UP Center for Women's and Gender Studies at research.cwgs@up.edu.ph, sengabry@gmail.com to access article.

Using a learner-centered, mixed qualitative-quantitative approach, we explored the needs, experiences, and contexts of sexuality education of Filipino gay and bisexual male college students. A convenience sample of 121 self-identified gay/bisexual male Filipino college students answered a structured questionnaire asking them to rate 44 possible topics they would like to be discussed in a classroom-based college human sexuality class. Topics most wanted by gay/bisexual learners were sexual identity and orientation, love, body image, HIV/AIDS, gender roles, and friendship. Survey findings are grounded in the context of learners' experiences of sexuality education which we explored using a focus group with seven selected Filipino gay students. Two hundred nineteen (219) suggestions made by respondents for improving sexuality education are also analyzed and presented as well as recommendations for further research. 

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This essay examines the performance and video art piece Cosmic Blood, by Gigi Otalvaro-Hormillosa, a queer Colombian and Filipina American artist based in the San Francisco Bay Area. It argues that Cosmic Blood is a performative intervention into dominant modes of reading the racialized and gendered Filipina body, as well as a critique of absolutist notions of national and ethnic belonging. Cosmic Blood challenges the inherent heteronormativity and masculinism of dominant notions of nation and kinship, accomplishing this imaginative intervention by its retroping of the past through a lens of queer desire. Within Otalvaro-Hormillosa’s retelling of the moment of first contact, queer bodily desire is the locus of power relations between colonizer and colonized. In this vision of the past, the figure of the Filipina is presented as a desiring subject, resisting the overdetermined tropes of woman as nation, territory, and land that are both a legacy of colonization, and a persistent narrative within contemporary articulations of national and diasporic belonging. In doing so, Cosmic Blood presents a possibility for forms of belonging that exceed the absolutism of race, ethnicity, and nation, while also imagining a utopian vision of the future that critiques the material conditions of the present.

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This essay examines Carlo Vergara’s graphic novel “Ang Kagilas- gilalas na Pakikipagsapalaran ni Zsazsa Zaturnnah” in an attempt to confront the media’s discourse on homosexuality. It posits that the adaptation of the graphic novel into a musical and film to “un-stereotype” gay men by repacking the gay persona as a strong superhero. The essay seeks to figure out whether Vergara succeeds in subverting the dominant patriarchal ideologies of homophobia and heteronormativity.

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Heteronormative assumptions in development discourse render queer experiences and their political implications largely invisible in studies of development in the Philippines. There is, however, a need to examine queerness in the context of intersecting power relations of class, sexuality, and gender. In this article, I share my experience of using the visual method of auto-driven photo-elicitation in research- ing the relation between queerness and globalization in the context of call center work and the globalized space of the Makati central business district (CBD). The data gathering activity involved two phases: the photography phase, where participants took pictures in response to prompts in a shoot- ing script, and the interview phase, where participants talked at length about the photographs they had taken. The photo- graphs and interviews were then coded to bring out pat- terns and relationships that describe a particular form of subjectivity, which in turn was examined within a network of discourses in discourse analysis. Upon discussing the con- text of the research as well as the concepts on which the data gathering method is based, I explore the usefulness of the method to research in general as well as its place in feminist research in particular. 

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This study features the living conditions of 10 non-heteronorm conforming older adults residing in Batangas and Metro Manila. It examines the relationship between the respondents’ experiences of gender-based discrimination and access to economic opportunities, as well as their sources of support from family or peers as they face challenges brought about by aging.

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The 20th anniversary of the Beijing Platform for Action (BPfA) and the release of the Commission on Higher Education (CHED)’s Memorandum Order No. 1 (CMO-1) on gender mainstreaming sparked an assessment of gender mainstreaming’s effectiveness in education. Conducted from October to December 2015, the paper is a case study on the gender culture of a school that is in the process of complying with CMO-1. This school is a private, co-educational institution of higher education (IHE) in the Philippines’ National Capital Region (NCR). Key informant interviews (KIIs) with two administrators, focus group discussions (FGDs), and in-depth interviews (IDIs) of 17 student leaders and volunteers revealed the students’ experiences in the campus that are related to issues of security (microaggression and sexual harassment) and equity (gender-fair language and gender stereotyping). Participants described the gender issues they faced in the absence of an explicit and overarching gender policy on campus. Notable themes include a culture that normalizes gender-based violence, the invisibilization of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) community, and the privileging of men in the IHE. The results of this paper were used to generate concrete policy and program recommendations in light of gender mainstreaming.

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This is an exploratory study of poor bakla youth in a rural area in the Philippines. It addresses the gap in knowledge since the bulk of the literature on the Filipino LGBT community focuses on the urban setting, especially in Metro Manila and with adults as respondents. Through in-depth interviewing, this paper pays attention to experiences of rural poor bakla youth which are shaped by their disadvantaged position in terms of gender, class, age, and rural-urban location. Using intersectionality as a framework, this paper exposes experiences that have been eclipsed in the Philippine literature on bakla, as well as confirms assertions in the current literature. Unique in this paper are narratives of not needing to come out as bakla, anecdotes of bakla’s conditional acceptance in a rural school setting, financial contribution as validation of worth vis-à-vis a marginalized status, androgynous performance of household tasks, and silence as discrimination management. It also resonates with the existing literature on the bakla, mainly in terms of experiences of discrimination by a macho figure, and the rights recognition and rights assertion of the marginalized. Among the examined vectors of oppression, rurality is least felt by the respondents as constitutive of their experience. Finally, this research can lead to possibilities of looking at the intersection of populism and gender. As Duterte plays the role of an iron-fisted father (Bello, 2017), how are the baklas identity in the family formed?

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This article focuses on the narratological strategies deployed by komix creator Emiliana Kampilan, whose multi-modal storytelling and editorial choices are grounded in Philippine feminist activism. By analyzing Kampilan’s online sticker series, first graphic novel, and editorial work for a lesbian komix anthology, this article traces how Kampilan draws together the discourses of gender, sexuality, and political engagement. We attempt to ground this strategy in the local production context surrounding lesbian narratives, where the struggle between visibility and misrepresentation continues to require narrative innovation across media. Deploying Sara Ahmed’s (2006) notion of queer orientation to tie in the discussion of the formal aspect of the gaze in comics—the narratology that allows sexual identities of fictional characters to find expression on the page—and the politics of looking at and between these characters, we argue that Kampilan’s project comprises a redirection of the gaze to the margins. Kampilan strategically romanticizes non-normative character representations and relations by re-orienting popular tropes: that is, selecting imagery already associated with traditional gender categories, she revises them to relay progressive and inclusive signification. Through close reading, we demonstrate how the confluence of subversive language and feminine- coded motifs, the collapse of historical time to simultaneously represent past and present politics, and the relegation of normative and patriarchal antagonism to the periphery, allow the creative work to challenge readers to relearn narrative cues and perhaps glimpse alternative horizons of a more inclusive Philippine society. 

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Space as practice is formed by responses to rules, expectations, cultural habits, values, and other particularizing elements in locations or situations (Lefebvre, 2014). In analyzing the nature of these spaces, gender studies find a specific interest in assessing how privileged, male-centric ways of framing space and place have subordinated certain mobilities of women (Massey, 1994) and lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people (Butler, 2004). This means that some spaces encourage non-discriminatory, humanizing, and socially enabling principles to work; while other spaces may promote sexist, discriminatory, and unsafe locations based on the person’s sexual orientation, gender identity, and expression or SOGIE (Doan, 2010) and age (Walsh et al., 2017). To identify the spaces that aging lesbians find themselves in or choose to be in, this study localizes the meaning of such spaces as either inclusive or exclusionary. Using the qualitative-case study approach (Creswell, 2014), this paper looks into the situation of six older/tiguwang lesbians in Davao City to help identify their spaces/locations, and discuss how such spaces can be considered inclusive or exclusionary. In this study, aging lesbians stay in and frequent the following spaces: home, neighborhood, friends, parks, and work. In these locations, spaces are inclusive if they dispose of gendered mobilities (Massey, 1994) while spaces are exclusionary when they do not challenge, or at least question, expressions of gender-based subordination.

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The COVID-19 pandemic created significant disruptions in the usual economic and social routines, which required a lot of pre-pandemic affairs to be recalibrated, revisited, changed, and updated to fit the necessities of the “new normal.” In the case of digital media, a surge of content arose largely due to its popularity, touching the themes of the pandemic centering on homosexual love and its relations to household affairs, family and personal relationships, and the professions. Dubbed as the “boys’ love” (BL) genre, it portrays many of the facets of gender roles that are widely discussed in gender studies and research, while working under the lines of exposition in relation to the effects of the pandemic. We discuss some of the themes of the Filipino (or Pinoy) BL genre that have implications to gender economics in particular, and gender studies in general. Given the presented facets and dynamics of gender in this genre, we indicate some possible future work, research, and other areas for discourse and enrichment under the themes of LGBT.

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Everyday sexism, which encompasses expressions of gender prejudice and displays of gender-discriminatory behavior in people’s daily lives, is a pervasive and impactful experience for many women. Most of the existing research on everyday sexism has been conducted in Western contexts, and has not explored possible differences among sub-groups of women, such as differences across sexual orientation. Drawing on insights from intersectionality theory and ambivalent sexism theory, the present research used an online survey to examine the incidence and nature of everyday sexism in the lives of heterosexual and sexual minority Filipino women and investigate how the intersection of gender and sexual orientation shape these experiences. Results showed an average frequency of one to two sexist events a day in women’s lives. Regardless of sexual orientation, the three most commonly reported forms of everyday sexist events were (1) comments reflecting gender roles and stereotypes, (2) jokes about women or girls related to their gender, and (3) ogling. Sexual minority women reported significantly higher frequencies of certain types of sexist events under the categories of traditional gender roles and stereotypes and sexual objectification compared to heterosexual women. Qualitative data from an optional open-ended survey item also suggest generally negative reactions to experiences of harassment as well as differences in heterosexual and sexual minority women’s evaluations of their experiences of benevolent sexism. Insights into the ways in which intertwining traditional ideologies of gender and sexuality give rise to these differences, as well as implications for further research about and efforts to challenge everyday sexism, are also discussed.

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Because of the vulnerability of Filipino youth to several sexual and reproductive health (SRH) problems, the comprehensive sexual education (CSE), as stipulated in the Responsible Parenthood and Reproductive Act of 2012, provides Filipino students with opportunities to be informed and empowered to make proactive decisions about their sexuality (Nyika et al., 2016). Although gender equality and equity are positioned as core values in this policy, prejudice and discrimination against the LGBTQ+ community remain pervasive and institutional in the Philippines (Thoreson, 2017). Thus, there is a need to evaluate CSE-related policies. This study conducted a qualitative gender analysis of CSE-related policies and programs following the Six Domains of Gender Analysis by the USAID Interagency Gender Working Group. The analysis showed that sexual health education in the Philippines excludes topics, perspectives, and health problems relevant to Filipino LGBTQ+ youth. This is because CSE in the Philippines follows a heteronormative framing focused on family formation and procreation, is largely influenced by Catholic doctrines, and deploys an individualistic discourse on SRH that falls under the same pedagogy that excludes the LGBTQ+ community. Policy and program recommendations are made in evaluating the design and implementation of Comprehensive Sexual Education in the Philippines.

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The University of the Philippines Diliman (UP Diliman) has always been an icon of progressive policies, leaders, and ideals. However, lesbian,gay,bisexual,trans,queer,andintersex(LGBTQI) students still express their narratives of discrimination without the intent of officially filing complaints. Allies and resources are present but a discursive barrier between victims and concerned offices is still barely addressed. This research attempts to analyze how victims of sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, and sex characteristics (SOGIESC)-based discrimination in the University express their notions of justice and accountability through the construction of interpretative and action frames which guide them in their pursuit of justice and accountability. It was then shown that victims of SOGIESC-based discrimination balance competing diagnosis and prognosis which sometimes compete with the University’s gender policy frames. These notions are also expressed in value-based evaluations of procedures which can discourage filing of complaints and encourage alternative mechanisms of accountability. Lastly, notions of justice and accountability have recognized the need for networks which play a vital role of consolidating resources to empower victims from the processing of their experiences to deployment of their actions. These three concepts ultimately broke down the subjectivities of victims and provided a clearer understanding on victim hesitations.

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What does it mean to grow old for older/tiguwang lesbians? In this study, seven key informants from Davao City were interviewed and two focus group discussions were organized to allow the participants to provide in-depth descriptions of their experiences and perspective concerning aging. The interview questions were informed by the life course perspective of Dewilde (2003). The unfolding themes were critically analyzed following Meyer’s minority stress perspective (2003). Privileging the assumptions of a narrative-constructivist qualitative method (Creswell, 2014), this study holds that the older/tiguwang lesbians construe aging as an intersection of perspectives, issues, responsibilities, and capacities. Such intersections are gleaned in the following meanings of aging: (1) as reflective of class difference – as a privilege given the demands of everyday struggles especially those who are tied to the daily grind of work, and as a possibility that demands preparation for some who can save, or have more than one source of income, (2) the process of creating/living with a family of choice, (3) having to bear the responsibility of taking care of one’s parents, (4) as a two- pronged experience of settling in a place, and cultivating resilience in confronting emerging issues, and (5) as a demonstration of agency as creators of their lived worlds.

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This interpretative phenomenological study aims to document and examine the experience of discrimination against Deaf gay men workers at the intersection of their disability and gender, particularly in recruitment and selection, provisions of reasonable accommodation2 at work, and workplace participation. The results of the in-depth semi-structured interviews with seven Deaf gay men workers and key informant interviews with three experts reveal the role of patriarchy in the centrality of the able-bodied, heterosexual image in the workplace and these Deaf gay men’s experience of distinct forms of discrimination on the basis of their disability and gender. Key themes that emerged include the convergence of gender and disability stereotypes, the ableist and heteronormative workplace practices, and the unequal power relations between Deaf gay men workers and their hearing heterosexual colleagues. The study recommends various workplace strategies such as (1) development and implementation of inclusive policies, (2) conduct of awareness-raising activities among employees and human resource professionals, and (3) adherence to the implementation of the law on reasonable accommodation. The study also seeks to advance the need to develop a feminist development approach that is markedly intersectional to capture the lived realities of marginalized people and communities holistically.

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This paper explores the health situation and health seeking behavior of tomboys, bakla, and minamagkit from Mountain Province. Minamagkit can be translated as “like a lady” referring to a person whose biological sex at birth is male, but whose gender identity and expression is female. The research objective is to document and analyze the general health situation of these groups and their sexual and reproductive health seeking behavior, using a gender and culturally sensitive approach. The research also employed the analytical lenses of intersectionality, critical medical anthropology, and ethnomedicine. Using intersectionality, the health situation and health seeking behavior of the tomboys, bakla, and minamagkit were analyzed taking into consideration the various dimensions of their identity such as gender, sexuality, ethnicity, indigeneity, socio- economic class, geographic location, culture, etc. The analytical framework of critical anthropology and ethnomedicine, i.e., using Western biomedicine, popular and folk medicine, were employed to arrive at a more nuanced understanding of the health seeking behavior. Like the general population in Tadian, Bontoc, and Sagada, the minamagkit, bakla, and tomboy key informants commonly rely on the popular and folk sectors of ethnomedicine. The popular sector includes strategies employed by the family and other significant social networks which are not part of the medical profession. The folk sector includes strategies employed by “nonprofessional” indigenous healers. Results suggest that the socio-economic status, gender/sexual identity, indigeneity and geographic location of residence, and the general situation of the health infrastructure in the Philippines and Cordillera significantly impact on the poor health situation and health seeking behavior of the tomboys, bakla, and minamagkit. The project consists of two parts. The first phase is the research on the health and well-being of the tomboy, bakla, and minamagkit. The second phase consists of sexual and reproductive health seminars, and providing medical tests related to cardiovascular, respiratory, sexual, and reproductive health.

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The advocacy for sexual citizenship in the Philippines has been arduous. This manifests in the decades-long assertion of the LGBTIQ+ movement for the passage of the Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity or Expression (SOGIE) Equality Bill which penalizes discriminatory acts based on categories of sexuality and gender. But the last decade witnessed success in localizing anti- discrimination legislation through the passage of many city and municipality ordinances. This political phenomenon created another space for LGBTIQ+ organizations to assert sexual citizenship in government policy and decision making. This paper explores how these organizations broker for recognition, inclusion, and acceptance of the LGBTIQ+ community in Quezon City and Manila. Using focused-group interviews with LGBTIQ+ movement organizations and strategic brokerage as an analytical frame, this paper finds that queering local governments observes a process where organizations proactively bridge the gap between communities and governments. Their roles as strategic brokers start with linking community concerns to state officials, networking with other organizations, translating LGBTIQ+ narratives for local policy making, and transacting with local officials. In the process of brokering, these organizations not only fight for sexual citizenship but maintain the civic space by capacitating local communities to initiate engagement and reminding the government of its responsibilities mandated by the ordinances. Amidst the many challenges in brokering, LGBTIQ+ organizations continue to persist and resist in and beyond these new spaces of contention and collaboration. 

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