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Bb. Pilipinas winner sparks online discussion: Should transwomen be allowed in pageants?

by Gaby Agbulos

LAST July 7th, the 60th edition of Binibining Pilipinas was held at the Smart Araneta Coliseum. After a night filled with anticipation, it was finally announced that the winners for the year were contestants Myrna Esguerra and Jasmine Bungay.

One particular question asked of Bungay was that if she were given 30 minutes to talk to the public, what would she talk about? 

“I would like to talk about the passing of the SOGIESC Bill because, in celebrations such as pageants, this community has contributed so much,” Bungay responded.

“And in this regard, we can give back to them by supporting this cause, because as an individual, it is our responsibility that we ensure that everyone is treated equally despite their SOGIE.”

Many were quick to praise Bungay for her answer, with one user on X, 19-year-old Uno Garcia, posting: “The fact that she answered the question in front of the transphobe is sending me. Queen! Crown her.”

In just a day, the clip posted by Garcia quickly garnered over 1.4 million views, 167 replies, 3, 100 reposts, and 23, 000 likes. 

While many agreed with Garcia and found his comment funny, the online backlash suddenly started up, asking him why he’d referred to one of the judges – Gloria Diaz – as transphobic. 

Gloria Diaz’s past comments

Aside from being a renowned actress, model, and beauty queen, Gloria Diaz is best known for being the first-ever Filipino to hold the title of Miss Universe when she won the crown in 1969. 

Many, however, were disappointed when Diaz commented after the Miss Universe Organization announced that they would be allowing single mothers, as well as pregnant, married, divorced, and transgender women, to compete in the pageant.

During her appearance on the show “Fast Talk with Boy Abunda,” she’d said: “Kailangan transvestite, kailangan may Miss Transvestite Universe. Tomboy, Miss Tomboy Universe. Bakla, transgender, whatever, lahat ng politically correct, kanya-kanya.”

Isabelle Diaz, the daughter of Gloria Diaz, also expressed that Miss Universe should only be for “real” women, though also saying that she is all for inclusivity and equality. 

Gloria Diaz also quoted transgender woman, Caitlyn Jenner, saying: “I like what Caitlyn Jenner said before: people mistake fighting for equality and fighting for fairness to be the same thing. If you have transgenders in sports, it’s not fair.”

Netizen reactions

Some asked Garcia how he dared to call Diaz transphobic just because she was not in favor of allowing transgender women to compete in Miss Universe.

Garcia explained that while he didn’t specifically reference or name anyone in the original tweet, it was obvious that he was referring to Diaz. 

“She’s just protecting the platform [designed] for natural-born women, and you all demand to take [that] away from them?” one comment wrote.

“Shame on you.”

To this, Garcia reminded everyone that transgender are women and have fought hard for recognition.

He wrote: “It’s called Miss Universe, not Miss Natural-Born-Women Universe. Besides, one’s SOGIESC should not determine eligibility for Miss Universe. A Miss Universe should inspire all, be a voice for the voiceless, and a beacon – whether natural-born or transgender. Shame on YOU and Gloria Diaz for not recognizing that.”

Many other negative comments soon followed. As a fellow member of the LGBTQIA+ community, Garcia felt heartbroken while reading them.

“It is my duty to protest for our rights and to protect the lives of my community,” he shared in an interview with republicasia. 

“I always say this to myself: The toughest kind of people are the close-minded ones. It may take a lot of time and courage to educate people, but a small step is already a great start.”

Despite the backlash, many have come to Garcia’s defense, showing disappointment in the amount of transphobia that could be seen in his comments. 

One user in the comments also reminded people that even past winners like Catriona Gray, Pia Wurtzbach, many other beauty queens, and even the Miss Universe organization itself have shown support for transgender women joining the competition. 

Why, then, couldn’t they do the same?

Embedded in our culture

As much as transphobes will try to deny it, transgender people have long been contributing to Philippine culture and history.

Geena Rocero, a Filipino transgender woman and the author of “Horse Barbie,” talks in an interview with The Washington Post about how gender fluidity was always a part of Philippine culture, particularly during the country’s pre-colonial era.

“Trans people had a very powerful role in society before we were colonized,” she explained.

She explained that there were several kingdoms in the country and that in each of those kingdoms, rulers had spiritual advisers, who were often either transgender or gender-nonconforming. These are who we know to be the babaylan.

Furthermore, the trans beauty pageant culture has been around for years. Geena Rocero describes it as an amalgamation of survival, resilience, and expression of beauty – a culture that hasn’t yet processed its trauma of colonization.

We, of course, also can’t forget about the Miss Gay Philippines, which is seen as one of the longest-running national gay beauty pageants in the Philippines. 

Transgender and queer people are not, thus, arguing to take up the entire space. Never has that been their demand. 

This much can be seen in how they have made spaces for themselves despite the hateful environment they live in – one that shuns them or makes them out to be the butt of the joke when all they are trying to do is exist. 

In the creation of these pageants for queer and transgender people, they did not complain. They did not take offense. Now, they are merely asking for a seat at the table – one which has been occupied by nothing but heterosexual men and women for the past hundred years. 

Let’s talk about it

The decision to allow transgender women to join Miss Universe came about in 2012 and was then made into reality in 2013. 

Since then, there have been quite a few transgender women who have competed in Miss Universe, as well as pageants similar to it. Angela Ponce, for example, was the first transgender woman to compete in Miss Universe, following her coronation as Miss Spain in 2018.

In 2023, two transgender women – Miss Portugal Marina Machete and Miss Netherlands Rikkie Koll – participated in the competition, as well. 

In 2021, Beatrice Luigi was also crowned Miss Universe-Philippines. This marked the first time the crown was being taken home by an openly queer candidate.

The reality of the situation? Times are changing, and that isn’t a bad thing. 

Transgender people have always been around. Queer people have always been around. 

The only difference is that now, they’re slowly starting to become more open in expressing themselves and who they are because we now live in a more accepting world than we used to – or at least, that’s what I’d like to believe.

“As far as I know, Miss Universe advocates for diversity and empowerment, [and] allowing a transgender woman to walk on the stage is one way to do so,” Garcia stated.

“Everyone is entitled to their own opinions, but not their facts. I firmly believe that trans women are women, and if we allow them to join Miss Universe, then we would be able to foster a more diverse, inclusive society.”

Garcia explains that transgender women have had to fight for their place in society, as well as for representation in areas like education, politics, media, and in this case, walking the Miss Universe stage.

He added: “Being a woman should not be confined to traditional definitions. Being a woman is not defined by what’s between her legs, or whether she can bear a child. Being a woman is about how individuals perceive themselves, express their gender, embrace their gender, or dream of having the Miss Universe crown on their head.”

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