Quezon City mayor Joy Belmonte during the Pride march and festival on June 24.
Photographer: Lisa Marie David/Bloomberg
A Filipina Mayor on a Mission to Protect Queer Residents
In the absence of national anti-discrimination laws, Quezon City is making its own rules to create ‘the safest space’ for gay and transgender people in the Philippines.
For more than two decades, a bill that would prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity has made its way in fits and starts through the Philippine Congress. This year it was thwarted once again after evangelical groups raised objections.
Against the backdrop of those powerful interests, however, the Philippines is lauded for being one of the most LGBTQ-friendly countries in Asia. Gay and transgender people are also highly visible. This year’s Miss Universe Philippines recently came out as bisexual, and a Filipina won a major international beauty pageant for trans women in 2022. A Pew survey in 2019 found that 73% of Filipinos think homosexuality should be accepted.