SOGIE EQUALITY BILL

(Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity and Expression)

Transgender woman Gretchen Diez was rejected access to the women’s

bathroom by a janitress in Cubao Mall. She tried to record to document of
the discrimination, provoked the janitress who had her arrested, Hours after
her arrest, Diez was set Free. After the incident happened, Sen. Risa
Hontiveros call for Congress to pass the SOGIE Equality Bill or Sexual
Orientation and Gender Identity and Expression

In her privilege speech on Wednesday, August 14, 2019, Sen. Risa

Hontiveros said: “I am calling my colleagues in this plenary at sa Kongreso,
ipasa natin ang SOGIE equality bill. Para kay Gretchen, para sa lahat ng Filipino
lesbians, gays, transgenders, intersex, queers, at asexuals, na matagal nang
nakaposas sa panghuhusga, pangmamata, at diskriminasyon.”

In my own opinion, the debate about “SOGIE Equality Bill” is not necessarily
needed, there are so many issues needs to be solved in our country. I
respect LGBTQ+ members who deserved to be respected, not all of them
especially Gretchen. She has to know her limitations “hindi lahat ng gusto
mo mapapa sa’yo” at some point, she is right about the discrimination. It
has to be stopped kase napakadaming victims ng discrimination that can’t
speak out. She then made a resolution for the provision of restroom for
LGBTQ+ who felt deprived of their right for use of toilets. Being LGBTQ+
doesn’t give you any exceptions, both men and women in general follow
the same law, Gretchen and LGBTQ+ community should as well.