Tabaco City makes strides on the rainbow

The local government of Tabaco City in Albay is marking LGBTIQ+ Pride Month with a bold and colorful display of support and solidarity. This celebration is most visible in the rainbow-themed decorations adorning the city’s public buildings and spaces.

The four pillars of the Tabaco City Hall have been draped in Pride flags, while the steps leading to its entrance have been painted in rainbow colors. The city’s most striking expression of inclusivity, however, is the newly unveiled Rainbow Road.

The crescent-shaped service road leading to the Edcel C. Lagman Legislative Building has been transformed into a sweeping band of rainbow colors. On 30 May, Tabaco City vice mayor Glenda Ong Bongao called on members of the LGBTIQ+ community, allies, advocates, artists, students, organizations, and other volunteers to help bring the project to life.

“More than just painting lanes, we are creating a visible statement that our community embraces respect, acceptance, and equal opportunities for all,” Bongao said in her announcement for the community activity, “Paint with Pride.”

The painting of the road took approximately one week to complete, and Tabaco City’s Rainbow Road emerges as one of the largest Pride installations in the country.

Bongao emphasized that the Rainbow Road is a call to embrace diversity and build a community where everyone belongs, and hoped that it would become a symbol of respect, inclusivity, and unity in her privilege speech during the 47th Regular Session of the 9th Sangguniang Panlungsod of Tabaco on 9 June.

“Ang kapayapaan ay hindi bunga ng pagkakapareho. Ang kapayapaan ay bunga ng pagtanggap. Ang pagkakaisa ay hindi nangangahulugan na lahat tayo ay magkatulad, kundi natututo tayong mamuhay nang may respeto sa kabila ng ating pagkakaiba (Peace is not born of sameness. Peace is born of acceptance. Unity does not mean that we must all be alike; rather, it means learning to live with respect despite our differences),” she added.

On 11 June, the local government officially introduced the Rainbow Road through Walk with Pride: Walk for Inclusivity, a ceremonial walk celebrating diversity and belonging. The colorful thoroughfare also served as the venue for the third staging of Pulse of Pride: Pride March 2026 on 16 June.

Although Tabaco City has yet to enact its own local legislation specifically protecting the LGBTIQ+ community, residents are covered by the Albay Anti-SOGIE Discrimination Ordinance, or Provincial Ordinance No. 0065-2021, which was passed on 20 December 2021. The ordinance was authored by then Albay Vice Governor Edcel Greco A.B. Lagman and sponsored by then provincial board member Baby Glenda O. Bongao — both of whom hail from Tabaco City.

With its public spaces awash in rainbow colors, Tabaco City has turned a familiar road into more than a festive attraction. It has become a visible path toward acceptance, equality, and a community in which everyone is welcome.