The Bahaghari Atheists and Agnostics Society (BATAS), the LGBT arm of the Philippine Atheists and Agnostics Society (PATAS), held its grand meetup event last Saturday, September 21, 2013 at the Conspiracy Bar in Visayas Avenue, Quezon City. The event was primarily in honor of our guests from the Home For The Golden Gays, a sanctuary for LGBT elders, headed by Mon Busa. Rath Ryott, president of PATAS, and Regie Pasion were our lively hosts for the evening.
Lovely guests from the Home For The Golden Gays
Atty. Lily Milla of CHED’s International Affairs Service and a firm supporter of LGBT rights was one of the key speakers for the night. She spoke of measures done by the government in support of the welfare of LGBT community and how gender, sexuality, and individuality issues are given prime attention in state universities.
Ralph Alvin Rapadas of Tiger Freethinkers shares the perspective of youth on LGBT issues. Like atheists, many young LGBTQIAs encounter discrimination even from friends and family, people who are supposedly the main core of their support group. He shares that educational institutions, especially those run by religious groups, are the perfect place for correcting misconceptions by the more impressionable minds. With the progress of technology, social media may then be utilized to discuss (not argue or dispute) with friends and help in correcting misinformation and misconceptions. He invited the young ones to help in the LGBT advocacy, even through what may seem to be small ways of helping, like blogging, attending rallies, joining partylists and activities in school.
Jan Gabriel Castaneda, a research assistant at UP Center for Women’s studies, shares that our problem in society may be because LGBT issues have limited portrayal in media. LGBT stories are limited to stories relating to oppression or to comical characters. He said that there’s a need to reframe the image of LGBTs. The society will not understand if it is not given stories to understand it. Rather than speaking for being an LGBT or a man or a woman, we are encouraged to emphasize the real human emotions.
Fau Cabantog, recalling the discrimination she received from colleagues, was inspired to write poetry about love and equality, which she beautifully read during the event.
You call me Carefree doesnt mean no worries
Was born straight but chosen to be happy
Just because I am seventeen and young
I am as good as you, don’t get me wrong
I tend to fall in love with ‘same’
No don’t judge me as if I’m lame
We are in the even plane, my dear
It’s becoming rubbish due to your fear
That book teaches you vehement awe
You might have forgotten, I am not your foe
Don’t mock me for I am your neighbor
Nor misread this issue by a naysayer
Fellow, Love is my companion
I am who I am, not for discrimination
You may find me cool, sometimes pretty
I’m not dizzy, you are no better than me
I might come in a ‘dressed’ manner
At times being called cross-dresser
Finding myself gazing at ladies then
I’m on the same road with my girlfriend
As a flower that blooms in the future
So as in our love there will be no rapture
My Siren, whose heart gets united with mine
I’ll cherish it more than pennies and a dime
Don’t kick me around coz I just fell in love
Like you, here I am, seeking for a dove
Fellow, love is my weapon
I am who I am, not for commotion.
You call me fence sitter, for me it’s not cozy
Been misunderstood by many
I have amorous glance to one and the other
They’re telling me it’s not proper
Some utter I’m in process, for some bent
They don’t know my heart’s not for rent
Can you spot the difference then?
Whom I love the most amidst of them?
No, I am not in an unsound mind
For such loving someone is surely fine
Look, my love is not an ornament
For you can feel it is a strong sentiment
Fellow, love is my motivation
I am who I am, not for objection.
You call me strange, that’s what you think I am
Don’t make me feel my choice is like sand
That in one blow of the trivial wind
Can expel my love which you view as dim
Man, you simply miscontrue the truth on us
Our love to our partners will not end to rust
Not the rumor that spreads like chatters
Nor even what I normally do in bed matters
No, don’t shut my rights within limits
Nor even tell our feelings are void to your kids
Neighbor, I never told you, ‘It’s you, whom I hate’
Though you’re claiming I’m in a confused state
Fellow love is my resolution
I am who I am, not for oppression.
You can see me out, but some ‘stay in’
‘Pride and Proud,’ two words to which I cling
Don’t try to cure me for I don’t have disease
Nor even treat my gender as if deceased
Don’t deny me a home or a job
Nor even withhold my rights due to love
I was keeping myself in my sleeves
For there’s no freedom in the land that I live
But, here I am, calling out to you..
For you to know where I’m coming through
To my friends, whom I put my trust, do you?
To my family, you can hear my voice, aren’t you?
Fellow, love is my conclusion
I am for equality, not for division.
- FMC
Faustina Cabantog
Beatriz Torre of Filipino Freethinkers noted in her talk that there’s indeed a need for more support for the LGBT elders because the focus had been given more to the youth. She wishes for a society with more empathy and more fabulous, removing the need for LGBT people to hide who they are.
Couple Lhoung and Bill talked on their experience in nurturing a long-distance relationship, which have already lasted for four years. Lhoung also urged everyone to fight for marriage rights equality.
Rath Ryott, in his talk, shared some counterarguments to common reasons homophobics give on why being gay is wrong.
Thomas Fleckner, Vice-President of PATAS, pointed out that LGBT communities must withdraw support for religious institutions that cast them as sinful or sinners.
Why Atheism and LGBT’s belong together
“Our Grand BATAS meet up today is marking the next step within our LGBT wing. I am tired of LGBT abuses and discrimination…. PATAS will move forward for Human rights, humanity, love and reality.”
When I was 4 years old, I was placed into primary school. I also remember the name of the school, it was Themes Ditton Primary School, in Surrey UK. One day there was a photo shooting, and at the back of my head was a sign board with the words “Jesus loves you Thomas”
Now what would they have said, if they would have known, that I was a gay, a homosexual, a person that should be put to death, according to the bible, or at least a sin and an abomination? That I also would decide, at the age of 18 to sign out of the Protestant church?
Atheism and homosexuality are often stigmatized in society. Atheism is compared to Satanism in The Philippines, and homosexuality is either tolerated as an entertainment, a role as a clown of society, or if it is kept secret. Out of the religious point of view it is a sin; a religious invention of course, but that is what the LGBT peoples have to cope with when not knowing an alternative to the religion they were labeled to.
More and more LGBT’s are receiving better protection and equal rights. The progress is slow, and as this is arising, we can see most of the support from secular states, in terms of law changes, and from Atheists and Humanists, because of the defense and acknowledgment of the basic human rights. Homosexuality is not a choice or against nature, as religions claim. And the proof is all around us. In more than 1500 species we can observe homosexuality, and definitely, when asking gay peoples, or just by observing history, we know that we are what we are. If homosexuality would be a choice, why wouldn’t gay peoples live the easier way? Even if threatened by death, as we have seen during WW2, or now in countries where homosexuality is illegal. And all those countries are religiously strong, allowing, yes even asking religion to be a part of the government.
“All atheism and all homosexuality are parasitic and feed from the same table of immorality to further their cause of demoralizing the nation.” This is something typical for religious peoples and authorities to do.
Peoples of another sexuality are judging my sexuality
Peoples of religious groups are judging my sexuality based on one book
Religious organizations are judging my sexuality through doctrines, making a claim which is not universal but limited
Religion is judging my sexuality as unnatural, ignoring the proof of more than 1500 species showing homosexual behavior.
Religious representatives are claiming homosexuality to be a choice, whilst we surely know that we never decided for it.
Peoples discriminate LGBT’s, because they find it filthy.
Peoples are judging homosexual being useless. (What about Alan Turing, Tai Solarin and Oscar Wilde?)
Religion is judging and claiming homosexuality is a threat to the entire mankind.
(3% of the population? And thousands of years has proven different)
Religious claim same sex marriage is a threat for opposite sex marriage
(So straight peoples will suddenly marry the same sex? Absurd)
Religion is calling homosexuality a sin, without thinking that sin is a religious invention, ending beyond their walls, and not applicable to non religious or non members.
The great force of Atheism / Humanism and the LGBT community is also a personal liberation and move tolerance and acceptance, resulting in the exception of all theistic thought and logic. The fight of the non religious and homosexual peoples always directs towards religious values and biblical principles. Monotheistic thoughts and logic’s stand far off the humanistic views on moral, due to their dictated morals of their belief.
The great humanistic side of all Atheists, Humanists, Non-Religious and homosexuality, is that it contains a broader purpose in its goals or focus to mankind. Whilst religion limits its purpose to the serving of a divine, and the production of offspring, humanism regards more, like equal rights fighters, inventors, care taking, and creativity.
Theists taking the stand of a liberal view are not liberals in the sense of liberalism, they use liberalism to paint a shining facade. One can compare this with using humanism as a friendly face, or better stated “a mask”, to cover the doctrines that are far from liberal or humanistic.
The Greek word in the New Testament for homosexuality means “a sodomite”.
Jude 7 “Just as Sodom and Gomorrah and the cities around them, since they in the same way as these indulged in gross immorality and went after strange flesh, are exhibited as an example, in undergoing the punishment of eternal fire.” Any sinner should always remember that the God who commands us to love our neighbor is the same God who will cast any and all unrepentant sinners into the “eternal fire”.
Religions, especially in the western world is losing members, and as religion and state are separated, they seem to have to adjust their views to halt more members running away from their faith based organizations.
However, a member of the LGBT community going to church or the mosque, takes part in the moderate religious acting. This is a stance of what I call, neither meat nor fish. He or she may tend from accepting him or herself as a sin or even abomination, seeking for forgiveness. A forgiveness for something that doesn’t need to be forgiven for. The person is feeling guilty for something he or she is not guilty of. He or she may also be someone aware of his or her rights and biological reality, yet just follows the community of a specific religious group, picking the raisins from the religious book and doctrines. This yet, serves the others more than him or her, self persuading doing good, and blending out the bad he or she supports though following. This in fact disregards (I could in some extend use insult too) Humanism and Religion at the same time. Another position may be, still attending masses, criticizing the anti LGBT stance in daily life, but with that ignoring the alleged word of the divine, and with that, uncontentious already admitting that it is all man made anyway.
The catholic church is inconsistent, yet one can only view it on a global level. First of all, it plays their game according to the political influence it is allowed to have. Where in Europe, their influence has dropped to a low or even zero level, here in The Philippines, they on one hand play tolerant towards LGBT’s, yet not with acceptance, as homosexuality is of course against the doctrines of the religion. But in countries where politics oppose LGBT’s, going so far of punishing homosexual acts with prison or execution, they will stand with that law, as they are not tolerant as they play elsewhere. On December 12, 2012, the speaker of the Uganda parliament, a catholic woman, was blessed by the pope, at the time where she was about to push through the “Kill the gays” law, as a Christmas present for all Christians in the country.
Another point is the sign out of church issue. In the west, one can just fill a form, and one is out of church. Here in the Philippines, there is no such procedure. The catholic church only has the so called ex-communication. Now as an LGBT, wanting to leave the church, out of the reason, that it is against homosexuality, it won’t let the person go. So the church is chaining the person, who is not even a catholic by choice, as he or she was labeled that way as a child, to be a forced member of its organization. This does not go conform with Humanism and free will.
The 21st century is here to make a point. Individuals should make their decisions. There is no need to follow the herd, but stand for what one naturally is. Yes one may lose friends and family, but in the end it is our life, my life, your life.
Here in The Philippines gays are accepted and also not. Its ok to be gay when being the entertainer, the clown and the lonely puppet. But please don’t live with a partner like heterosexuals. Don’t ask for same rights. Or go to church, an organization that opposes you. But don’t ask questions. Maybe accept being a sin. Have secret sex. Stay alone. The life of that individual is forced to a more unnatural existence than the claim of his or her unnatural biology.
This is the essence of discrimination. Not considering the persons merit, but the group he or she belongs to.
That needs to stop, and that is why we are here, to help, support and enlighten. BATAS is the LGBT wing of PATAS. We don’t make false claims, we just follow natural facts.
Thank you
Mon Busa of the Home For The Golden Gays spoke of their founder Justo Justo and the humble beginnings of the foundation.
Sunny Garcia was given a special plaque in recognition of his enormous contribution to PATAS-BATAS LGBT advocacy.
But then, of course, it’s a night, not only of serious advocacy talks, but of entertainment and socialization. Walter, our singer who sounds like Tom Jones, and Jay (not in the photo) serenaded our guests.
Gloria Manila, as she’s known in her younger days, graced us with a couple of dance numbers.
Conspiracy Bar became the perfect venue for this event because it coincided with an exhibit by an artist whose theme was that of love and equality:
It was a very tiring but fun night! I love how the Golden Gays enjoyed much the event that they’re all dancing on the stage during the songs. It’s one well-spent night for LGBT advocacy and camaraderie!
By Tess Termulo / Thomas Fleckner
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