LGBTQ+ Pride celebration in Cagayan de Oro City: In pursuit of golden freedom for rainbow love
The march began at the Rotunda Bypass Road, passed through Velez Street, went around Plaza Divisoria and ended at the Community Amphitheatre in Plaza Divisoria where a program was held
By Alessandro Kennz Nioda
The weather was forgiving last Saturday of June. Clouds tinged with a grayish tone almost covered the sky above the streets of Cagayan de Oro City, but streaks of yellow light were able to pierce through. Everyone was worried, what if it will rain today? One could not brush away the question easily in the season of typhoons and monsoon. But the weather turned out to be a blessing for the LGBTQIA+ community. The sky became a benevolent ally.
For two weeks, the city in northern Mindanao, a major island in southern Philippines, celebrated LGBTQ+ Pride Month with Kahilwayan 2023, a series of events and activities that included a series of learning fora and #HowINEQUALITYLooksLike: A Photo Exhibit at the Ayala Malls Centrio. The name is a Hiligaynon word that means "freedom." Though a Western Visayan language, Hiligaynon is spoken in many parts of Mindanao. Bannering the theme, "Amplifying voices, creating safe space," Kahilwayan was a celebration encompassing the whole region of Mindanao and organized several of the regional and national LGBTQ+, human rights and advocacy groups including Out and Proud League of Colors CDO, Initiatives and Movement for Gender Liberation Against Discrimination or IM GLAD, Mindanao Pride, Balaod Mindanaw, Amnesty International Philippines, In Defense of Human Rights and Dignity Movement, Tingug-Cagayan de Oro, Inc., Human Rights Youth Action Network or HRYAN, Akbayan Youth Misamis Oriental, Tagoloan Gender Advocacy Group or TAGAD, The Pride Center of Villanueva, Tabang Sikad and AKMK. It gained support from the city government and its Gender and Development program as well as from several big and small businesses.
Kahilwayan culminated with a Pride march on 24 June, simultaneous with several Pride marches in the country including the Pride PH Festival in Quezon City and the Metro Manila Pride March and Festival in Makati City.
The march began at the Rotunda Bypass Road, passed through Velez Street, went around Plaza Divisoria and ended at the Community Amphitheatre in Plaza Divisoria, where a program was held.
The Pride march this year was definitely not the first. Recent marches occurred before the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, with Mindanao Pride and Northern Mindanao Pride as the leading organizers. Similar to previous marches, Kahilwayan 2023 aimed to promote the same progressive messages of equality and freedom for all.