The Rainbow Blog Philippines

OK, there it be. We're all gays here. However, some are lucky, some are not. Some are blessed, but some are unfortunate. The world is not so fair. Oh, we always know that. It has been a fact that being GAY is a million times more difficult than being STRAIGHT. When you're straight, you find yourself your queen, and off you marry. With the diminishing male/female ratio, finding your girl is as fast as finding a strand of grey hair on a 30-year-old scalp. Whereas in the gay scene, it takes a lot to find your mate. You drool over these hotties at Downelink/Manjam/GayRomeo, but as reality would have it, JUST HOW MANY GUYS YOU LIKE HERE DO YOU GET TO ACTUALLY TALK WITH? So I did come up with a list of painful facts that spell out being GAY, as follows: 1. It takes a lot to be saleable in the market. 2. Tall + slim + toned = HOT. Otherwise = TRASH. 3. Being CHUB and/or EFFEM is a total CURSE. 4. 99% of gays are TOTAL FLIRTS. 5. The words "love" and "trust" are a p...

Kung hanggang ngayon tinatanong mo sa sarili mo kung straight ka ba? Maaring ito na ang tanong na pinakahihintay mo.... Kamay sa dibdib.... Bakla ka na ba? Ang tanong: Host: "May account ka ba sa Guys4Men (G4M) , Manjam, Downelink? Yes or No?" Contestant: "Meron. Pero hindi po ako bakla. Curious lang po ako." Host: "Ang tanong ilang beses kang na-curious?" Contestant: (umiiling hindi sumagot) Maari ngang curious ka, pero kong naging curious ka ng sobra pa sa isang beses. Kung yes, straight nga ba ang tawag d'yan? Curious ka kaya nag-open ka ng G4M, tapos ay hindi ka nakuntento join ka rin sa marami pang LGBT sites. Pwede mo na ring i-excuse ang pagiging Ms. Congeniality at gusto mo lang talagang maraming makilala kahit saang parte ng Pilipinas o ng mundo. Yun nga lang at puro lalaking hot at hubad ang katawan at pinapakita ang kilikili at nipples ang nasa contacts mo! Sige na nga at naging curious ka lang! Host: "Pumapatol ka ba sa kaparehas mo n...

Kanina habang nakasakay ako sa taxi pauwi, ang pinakikinggang istasyon ni manong taxi driver ay ang Wild Confessions na show ni Papa Jack. Ayaw ko mang pakinggan pero wala naman akong choice kasi ito ang kinaliligaya ni manong at saka wala na rin akong ganang magdemand pa kaya keri lang. Ang babaeng kausap ni Papa Jack eh nagkukuwento ng kanyang "wild confession" on air. Kahapon lang daw nangyari ito at parang nag-chorvahan sila ng kanyang ex ulit na by the way eh nagbreak lang sila nuong March 10 daw. Inamin ni Rose na ito na tomboy ang kanyang tinutukoy na jowa. Sa una ay natuwa naman ako dahil hindi siya nahiya na aminin na may karelasyon siyang babae. Ifa-fast forward ko na dahil hindi niyo naman kailangan na malaman ang kuwento ng chorvahan nila, tinanong ni Papa Jack kung tomboy itong si Rose. Sabi ni Rose "Anu ka ba eh ang landi-landi ko no". Pumanting ang tenga ko sa sinabi niyang ito dahil parang nagbibigay siya ng impresyon na butch lang ang tomboy. Heller...

Do we deserve this? The war at home by Chip Tsao HK Magazine The Russians sank a Hong Kong freighter last month, killing the seven Chinese seamen on board. We can live with that—Lenin and Stalin were once the ideological mentors of all Chinese people. The Japanese planted a flag on Diàoyú Island. That’s no big problem—we Hong Kong Chinese love Japanese cartoons, Hello Kitty, and shopping in Shinjuku, let alone our round-the-clock obsession with karaoke. But hold on—even the Filipinos? Manila has just claimed sovereignty over the scattered rocks in the South China Sea called the Spratly Islands, complete with a blatant threat from its congress to send gunboats to the South China Sea to defend the islands from China if necessary. This is beyond reproach. The reason: there are more than 130,000 Filipina maids working as $3,580-a-month cheap labor in Hong Kong. As a nation of servants, you don’t flex your muscles at your master, from whom you earn most of your bread and butter. As a pat...

There was a post in Rainbow Bloggers Philippines, but was removed by the author, regarding Designer Angelino "Boyet" Fajardo's wild behavior at Duty Free last March 13, 2009. Let's review this issue and check on the misleading concepts brought by the incident to the LGBT Community. As a part of RBP's advocacy on the dignity of the LGBT Filipino people, we are not suppose to hide Fajardo's behavior but simply express our notion on his unlikely attitude. Video: TV Patrol News on Fajardo's Unlikely Behavior @ Duty Free Throwing Stones. If we will search in youtube and look for his video, obviously, you will see a lot of negative comments. One of the example is this one: Tang ina mo Boyetta.... bakla kana animal kapa.....hindi ganyan ang mga taga Pampanga....anakputa ka...damonyos.....idemanda yan at huwag magpa ayos. mga pare ko sa duty free, kayong nasa fashion design, expell him please... she's a liability. we will not let this issue die. Let us give a...

Who could've thought that the cure to HIV-AIDS is the Bible all along? That putting this book over an erect penis before intercourse is the only guaranteed way to prevent the spread this disease. Any guess who the said this? Suprise! Suprise! Its the Pope. ------------------------------------------------------------------ May cause chafing "POPE Benedict last night claimed that placing a bible over an erect penis before intercourse is the only guaranteed way to prevent the spread of Aids. Speaking before his tour of Africa, the Pontiff said Aids could only be tackled by the 'traditional teaching of the church' and not a latex rubber sheath that contains infected semen and prevents it from transferring the virus to another human being. Experts said that either the Pope is suggesting the bible is used like a condom, or he doesn't know what a condom is. Dr Emma Bradford, of Reading University, said : "I guess you would have to rip out a few pages of Leviticus an...

Below is an article published in today's (March 27, 2009) edition of Business World, a broad sheet here in the Philippines. You can find the article in the S4 section of the paper. It is also available online via this link . Today's Business World featured BB Gandanghari along with a member of the Society of Transsexual Women of the Philippines (STRAP) , Nadine Barcelona. The article below served as a companion piece to BB and Nadine's feature. Liberation, BB Gandanghari-style By Pau Fontanos & Sass Rogando Sasot As advocates for the Filipino lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community, we watched in horror and disappointment as well-known members of our community, one after the other, came out on TV and other media disparaging Binibini (BB for short) Gandanghari. When BB Gandanghari first burst out into the scene, we, who make-up the T part of the LGBT community, were excited that at last someone as high-profile as BB had arrived and could potentially bring...

Once again, millions of people in hundreds of cities around the globe will come together, hand in hand, to vote their concern on climate change. Be part of the history. In the Philippines, ELECTION DAY IS TOMORROW, March 28, 2009 @ 8:30pm! Cast your vote by simply turning off your lights for one hour. Earth Hour symbolizes that by working together, each one of us can make a positive impact in the fight against climate change and the awareness to protect the environment. This is a message of hope. A message that we care about the escalating climate crisis. Ang Ladlad (FOR PARTYLIST), the biggest political party of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender Filipinos (LGBT) has declared its full support for 60 minutes. In behalf of its members and officers, I am asking everyone to participate and vote earth. Vote Earth! Be counted! Make a difference!

by Reign Loleng Recently, a friend forwarded a text message which supposedly lists the latest additions to the “Badingtionary.” I, almost automatically, forwarded the message to everyone on my list – I dream of a world that accepts baklese as a formal language, demmet! I am amazed at how the Pinoy gay lingo evolves. I observed that the language is almost 80% dependent on current events and pop culture so a revision is required every six months – at least. But anyway, here are some of the words that our people recently concocted: A Aglipay – ugly kept man/woman of a foreigner, “ugly Pinoy, ugly Pinay” Anjanette – “I’m coming!” B Barclay – Baclaran Bethlehem – testicles C Cadillac – to walk Chemistry – to joke, BS, kiyeme. So the one how jokes is a Chemist and the joke is Chemical. D Daisy Farm – Philippine Women’s University & J. Nakpil St., a place to pick-up teenage boys as in daisy-sais, daisy siyete… Difficult – poverty-stricken E Eclipse – to sleep Exhaust fan – a stupid person...

Soon another International Women's Month will close. Before it does, I would like to share with all of you an essay that I first read on my favorite blog Transgriot . The essay, written by Latoya Peterson of Racialicious , appeared on Transgriot as a guest post . I found the essay both moving and powerful. Moreover, it made me reflect on the kind of sexualization (and the violence that comes with it) that all women have to face all throughout their lives. It also reminded me of what Susan Brownmiller, in her book Against Our Will: Men, Women and Rape , observed: "Man's discovery that his genitalia could serve as a weapon to generate fear must rank as one of the most important discoveries of prehistoric times, along with the use of fire and the first crude stone axe." Although many have since criticized this observation as simplistic and overly exaggerated, it finds resonance in the essay below. Do read it and tell me what you think. The Not Rape Epidemic by Latoya Pe...

"Wonder Mom" is a show in ABS-CBN that caters to moms and moms-to-be. It gives useful and relevant tips mostly about raising a family, how to deal with kids, and, of course, how to be a "wonder mom." The host of the show is a "wonder mom" herself, Karen Davila, a renowned broadcast journalist here in the Philippines. They had a very interesting episode last Saturday. It's about those moms who have gay kids. And when I say kids, they're really just...kids. As young as 6 or 7 years old. They kinda have this small group that they call "Little Gay Sorority" or something like that. These kids had a choice to be guys. They're still young. But they chose to be true to themselves. Just like what I've always said before, being gay is a choice. And the kind of life that you will have as a gay person will also still always be your own choice and doing. It's pretty much a good episode. I was surprised how "out" those kids were e...

by the lesfriendly girl Hindi na ko mag-eelaborate. Ipoprove ko na lang. Three cases in point: 1. Meron na bang lesbianang stand-up comic sa Pilipinas? Wala. Puro bakla o trans M-to-F. Dahil ba hindi marunong magpatawa ang mga tomboy? Hindi witty? Hindi naman. Bakit si Claudia Cogan and other lesbian comediennes, keribels naman? Actually, may mga kilala naman akong mga bayot na kayang chumorva sa pagpapatawa sa stage. Kaso, baka hindi pa sila nabibigyan ng chance. Or, hindi lang talaga uso. 2. Ano ba ang event ng mga Little Lulu? Poetry reading. Film showing. Forums. Food trip. Talks over coffee. Board game marathon. Mga bandang kumakanta ng lesbian versions ng Bon Jovi at Alanis songs. Mga exclusive party na may mga pole dancers minsan. Ano beh, parang beerhouse lang. 3. Look at our publications. Pag nagbasa ako ng Baklese, hindi na ko makahinga sa kakatawa. Intro page pa lang, kinakabagan na ko. Pero parang walang joke book ang mga byaning sa ating beautiful islands, ati. Literary...

In response to the call of "new politics" in the country, the Party-list Law also known as Republic Act (or RA) 7941 was enacted in 1995. The passage of RA 7941 was in keeping with the Constitutional provision under Article VI, Section 5 that 20% or about 55 of the 250 seats in Congress must be occupied by representatives "elected through a party-list system of registered national, regional, and sectoral parties or organizations.” The main idea behind the party-list system was to level the political playing field, so to speak, particularly for so-called marginalized and under-represented sectors of society like peasants, women, farmers, fisherfolk, etc. Some form of this system is favored in some European states and elsewhere. With such a system in place, the political process is not left to be dominated by big political parties alone. Unfortunately, the implementing rules of RA 7941 are far from perfect and in the last elections in 2007, opened the law to abuse. The Com...

Lalagdaan na ni US President Barack Obama ang UN declaration na nananawagan ng worldwide decriminalization ng homosexuality. Ang nasabing deklarasyon ay una ng tinanggihan noon ni dating US President George W. Bush. Ipinaalam na ng administrasyon ni Obama sa French sponsors ang interest nitong mapasama sa mga supporters. Matatandaang binatikos ang administrasyong Bush dahil ito lamang ang tanging western government na tumangging lumagda. Kabilang sa mga lumagda sa UN declaration ay ang 27 European Union members, Japan, Australia, Mexico at tatlong dosenang iba pang bansa. "The United States is an outspoken defender of human rights and critic of human rights abuses around the world," sambit pa ni US Department spokesman Robert Wood. "As such, we join with other supporters of this statement, and we will continue to remind countries of the importance of respecting the human rights of all people in all appropriate international fora." pagtatapos ni Wood.

It’s called 10,000 Dresses and is written and illustrated by Marcus Ewert and Rex Ray respectively. I have not read it yet but I know that it has been getting rave reviews. Below is how one site, Sevenstories.com , describes it: Every night, Bailey dreams about magical dresses: dresses made of crystals and rainbows, dresses made of flowers, dresses made of windows. . . . Unfortunately, when Bailey's awake, no one wants to hear about these beautiful dreams. Quite the contrary. "You're a BOY!" Mother and Father tell Bailey. "You shouldn’t be thinking about dresses at all." Then Bailey meets Laurel, an older girl who is touched and inspired by Bailey’s imagination and courage. In friendship, the two of them begin making dresses together. And Bailey’s dreams come true! This gorgeous picture book—a modern fairy tale about becoming the person you feel you are inside—will delight people of all ages. I already checked local bookstores here and predictably, they don...

by Reign Loleng Last week, I was able to see a movie called “Booking” and boy was I disappointed. I meant to write a review the film, but during my research I was more interested with its lead star – Marco Morales. I googled him and boy was I overwhelmed with the throng of blog articles (and pictures) about him. Who is he? A friend told me that he was once a part of GMA-7’s Sunday afternoon show SOP and was a singer and a member of a boy group SOP Showboyz. So is he a singer? Not quite. I checked his filmography – not much there – and I noticed that he has appeared prominently in three films - “Booking”, “Butas”, and “Walang Kawala.” All three films are independently produced and let’s be frank about this, they all sell sex. Of the three, “Booking” and “Walang Kawala” are gay-themed and I happened to have seen both of them. So he is actor, then? Let’s check. In “Walang Kawala” he only appeared in few scenes but he is very memorable for showing his goods. He played a macho dancer so a...

BB Gandanghari has been visible online through different social networking sites such as plurk , twitter , facebook , flickr and friendster . Because of that, I think that it's about time for her to meet the bloggers. The event was sponsored by the Philippine Online Chronicles (or P.O.C) and they entitled the event "P.O.C. Presents BB". The event was held at Mag:Net High Street. It was supposed to start at 3:00 pm but it started around 4:30 pm because Bebe just arrived from the airport (I believe that she was with La Gretta in Bohol : ) ) Anyway, this was a great opportunity to ask her questions that we've been dying to know about. It some sort of became a "press con" but instead of the mainstream media being present, it was the bloggers who asked her the questions. There was a variety of questions from the bloggers: from serious to the very simple ones. She did not hesitate to answer those and was actually confident as she answered them one by one. Once...

By fullman It's back to barracks, pink soldiers. Contrary to what you've been hearing from your generals and the media, there is no clear go-signal yet for LGBT soldiers in the Armed Forces of the Philippines. First, some clarifications. There is no official ban for LGBTs in the military , hence no ban was technically lifted when top military officials made positive statements about allowing LGBTs in the Armed Forces of the Philippines. That said, it must be stated as well that the AFP has no policy explicitly allowing LGBTs in the military .  So the question to ask is: ano ba talaga, mga papa ? We've been getting mixed and confusing statements from the military establishments. In several committee hearings in Congress for the Anti-Discrimination Bill filed by AKBAYAN , representatives from the AFP would always bring 'unofficial' position papers stating that lesbians and gays cannot be allowed to join the military. In one hearing, the reasons they provided were abs...

by the lesfriendly girl I was a lesbian first, a blogger next. But that’s because I’ve always been a lesbian. Since I was born, even. I was a blogger when the social networking Multiply got famous. I first started posting personal blogs, then eventually what people would call “spam” – advertisements for events, sales and what-have-you for my lesbians organizations: Lunduyan ng Sining and GALANG (Gay and Lesbian Activist Network for Gender Equality). And then came the idea of blogging specifically for a lesbian target audience and setting up a separate site for it. I can say that Rainbow Bloggers inspired me – I saw them at the 2008 TFP Pride March stage and I had the most selfish motive to be up there with them (the selfishness has gone now that I’m a Rainbow Blogger *cough*). So I set up lesfriendly.com - my blog that talks about anything lesbian that pops into my mind. Anyway, fast forward to now, being a lesbian blogger has its perks. Due to the rarity of public Philippine lesbi...