Hontiveros debunks ‘I love my LGBT friends but…’ statements
Senator Risa Hontiveros answers questions from the media at the weekly Kapihan sa Senado on July 10. INQUIRER.NET PHOTO/CATHY MIRANDA
MANILA, Philippines — “I love my LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender) friends but…”
One may have heard this statement whether be it from a friend, overheard from a conversation at a cafe, or randomly read in a Facebook post.
But for Senator Risa Hontiveros, loving a friend who is a part of the LGBT community should not come with ifs and buts.
“No, mahal. If we really love them, we’d fight that they enjoy the same rights as we do,” Hontiveros, who is a known advocate of women’s and LGBT rights, said in a Twitter post.
“We’d educate ourselves about their struggles. We’d use our straight privilege to dismantle an old system that oppresses them,” the senator added.
“I love my LGBT friends, but…”
No, mahal. If we really love them, we’d fight that they enjoy the same rights as we do. We’d educate ourselves about their struggles. We’d use our straight privilege to dismantle an old system that oppresses them. ✊🏼💜
— risa hontiveros (@risahontiveros) August 18, 2019
The senator’s post came after transgender woman Gretchen Diez was accosted by a cleaning crew member as she was about to enter a ladies’ room in a mall in Quezon City.
Diez was handcuffed and arrested over unjust vexation charges but was later released after the cleaner apologized and backed out from filing the case.
READ: Transgender woman in women’s comfort room causes stir in QC mall
This incident prompted Hontiveros to call for the passage of the Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity, and Gender Expression (SOGIE) Equality Bill which she authored.
“Sa mga nagsasabing hindi na natin kailangan ng SOGIE Equality Law kasi tanggap na naman ang LGBT sa Pinas: A trans woman has just been humiliated in a mall restroom in Cubao,” Hontoveros said in an earlier Twitter post.
“Pinosasan at dinala sa Karingal! LGBT persons face harassment & discrimination every day. This must stop!” she added.
Sa mga nagsasabing hindi na natin kailangan ng SOGIE Equality Law kasi tanggap na naman ang LGBT sa Pinas: A trans woman has just been humiliated in a mall restroom in Cubao. Pinosasan at dinala sa Karingal! LGBT persons face harassment & discrimination every day. This must stop! https://t.co/B44TN9hKC2
— risa hontiveros (@risahontiveros) August 13, 2019
Hontiveros refiled the bill in the 18th Congress. /je
READ: Hontiveros makes fresh bid to push SOGIE bill
