Inclusivity as a way to #ResistTogether

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Inclusivity is the next step to the Metro Manila’s Pride March goal to #ResistTogether.

Regardless of the heavy rains, Metro Manila was brimming with color from this year’s Metro Manila Pride March 2019, held in the Marikina Sports Center last June 29. With an estimate of 70,000+ participants, their theme for the year, #ResistTogether, grows stronger. Metro Manila Pride fights for justice, sharing how “Pride is not merely a celebration of our community—it is a protest against the status quo.” With this year’s theme, the march is to advocate and uphold human rights and express their disagreement with current injustices and oppression present in the country, as stated by the organizers in their Facebook event page.

Hikaru Murakami, a 4th year Communications student in the Ateneo de Manila University, and Gigi Esguerra, an Ateneo de Manila University Communications graduate, were some of the participants who had marched together with the community last Saturday. In an interview with Murakami, she had said that “The number of attendees have increased and there is more intersectionality involved in the protests”, sharing about the changes she has seen from previous Pride March events. From members of the LGBTQIA+ community, to allies, children, parents, families, celebrities, and different religious groups, members from across the country are represented in the fight for justice. “The visibility of the community really arose as the years progressed”, Gigi Esguerra shares, being present in the marches since 2017. With the tagline #HereTogether in 2017, this had evolved into #RiseTogether in 2018, before this year’s message to #ResistTogether, a reflection of the inclusivity the community strives for.

The love and support shared by the thousands of participants and supporters during the event was ever present. This was seen through the support Gigi had received during, and beyond the event, after videos of her offering flowers to children and protesters had gone viral on twitter. She had decided to take this course of action to “make them realize that we as human beings are just as human as they are.” The action was to signify peace, choosing specifically the color yellow to “symbol of peace, brightness, and growth.” She herself has experienced a change of heart since her Pride March in 2017, where she said she used to fight back, and return the hateful words of the protesters. “I came from a place of insecurity, that's why when I was faced close to the hecklers and the protesters, I would often just shower them with hate”, she shares, talking about her realization to share love towards them instead.

Attendees of the march waved their flags with pride, raised signs on political commentary, and continue to support each other with love. The persistent growth of the Metro Manila Pride community is an action of empowerment. The inclusivity of their protests, the change of heart experienced by many, and their calls to love and give love, their goal to #ResistTogether faces a promising future.