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Passion for Truth and Compassion for Humanity 

CHAPTER 1 - THE PROBLEM & ITS BACKGROUND

A. RATIONALE

Within this country’s conservative culture, it is a surprise that the LGBTQIA+

community has been around in the Philippines for ages, dating as far back as the

pre-colonial times where the boundaries of gender in indigenous communities are

almost non-existent. Gender crossing was popular back in the days of pre-colonial

Philippines. An example being the babaylans, who were usually priestesses but

that position can be taken by men who crossed genders, and they were properly

called the asog. There were also a lot of representation in the indigenous

mythologies. Such as Lakapati, who was known as a fertility deity bearing the

image of a hermaphrodite with a feminine physique. However, that all changed

during the era of Spanish colonization where the Spanish enforced gender roles

and heteronormativity and used oppressive, religious control on sexuality. The

patriarchal and macho mentality that the Spanish have brought in our culture

made gender crossing looked down upon on. With this in mind, this has certainly

affected the minds of the Filipinos and especially the Filipino LGBTQIA+

community up until to this day. While we are now in a much more open-minded
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Siena College, Inc.

Passion for Truth and Compassion for Humanity 

society where the acceptance of the said community is encouraged, bigotry and

homophobia still remained rampant in the country, especially within the religious

populace. Although movements such as the Home of the Golden Gays established

by Justo Justo, the 1980 Women’s movement which focused on the struggles of

lesbians and the first pride march in the Philippines on June 26, 1996 made way

for the journey to acceptance. As the community’s marginalization continues to

happen, raising awareness about the unspeakable discrimination they had gone

through throughout history and promoting more queer visibility would minimize

the stigmatization of the LGBTQIA+ community who are also part of the sexual

minority.

B. STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

Although this study generally aims to speak about the LGBTQIA+ discrimination

and visibility throughout Philippine history, it also specifically answers the

following questions:

● During the pre-colonial period, how is queerness normalized in communities?

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Siena College, Inc.

Passion for Truth and Compassion for Humanity 

● During the time of Spanish colonization, how did the Machismo mentality that the

Spaniards have brought to Filipino culture affect the social construction of gender

and sexuality?

● During the time of American colonization, how did the Americans affect the

stigma on queerness?

● During the implementation of martial law in 1972, how did it affect the queer

communities?

● How common is queer representation in Philippine mythology?

● How did the Filipino mainstream media portray the LGBTQIA+ community?

● Is the LGBTQIA+ community accepted or only tolerated?

● What would be the usual societal attitudes towards the LGBTQIA+ community?

● Who were the notable queer figures in Philippine history and what did they do?

● How did the LGBTQIA+ movements affect the Philippines?

● Can the common use of Filipino terms such as “bakla”, “tomboy” and the like be

more potentially damaging or liberating to the LGBTQIA+ communities?

● Is being queer natural?

● When did Philippine gay culture started?

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Passion for Truth and Compassion for Humanity 

C. SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

This particular study seeks to raise awareness on gender and sexuality

discrimination in the Philippines, and promote right queer visibility. By

conducting this research, the following people will benefit from it:

Students ​- for them to be aware and promote inclusivity among the members of

the LGBTQIA+ community as early as in their youth.

Parents - ​for them to be able to teach their children about awareness and

acceptance for the betterment of future generations.

The ​LGBTQIA+ community - ​for normalization and for society to treat them

better and minimize the marginalization of them.

The Filipino nation - this will open the eyes of Filipinos to the shocking reality

that the LGBTQIA+ community was subjected to. Open-mindedness and

acceptance will be more encouraged thus contributing to the betterment of this

country.
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Passion for Truth and Compassion for Humanity 

D. SCOPE AND LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY

This study will provide meaningful insight on the LGBTQIA+ community by

determining what we were like before the social construction of gender and

sexuality existed and what would be the root causes of bigotry and intolerance in

the Philippines, and acknowledging the queer representations and discrimination

throughout Philippine history. It would be also worth noting that the researcher

did not interview any individuals and instead relied on books and internet sources

as there is already material available on them.