The White Party: More 'wet' than 'wild'

The loudest sound at the 12th annual White Party on Orosa-Nakpil in Malate, Manila last Saturday was the sound of the rain falling.

But as the event's intention was to bring the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) community together to fight for and educate people about gender equality, the crowd stayed to support the party even though they were more "wet" than "wild" that night.

"Like most White Parties celebrated around the world, one of the purposes of White Party Manila is to educate all members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community and its allies about current issues that involve sexual orientation and gender identity and expression," said Raffy Aquino of Ladlad Group and one of the event's organizers.

White Party is held every June in celebration of the Pride Season, which commemorates the Stonewall Riots, a series of demonstrations in New York City in the '60s that ignited the LGBT Rights movement worldwide.

Aquino pointed out that June is also the month Filipinos celebrate Independence Day, "therefore, showing that LGBT people in the Philippines have the freedom to express who they are regardless of gender orientation," he said.

One of the issues raised at the White Party Manila was the recent ruling by the US Supreme Court against the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) and Proposition 8 in the US. Prop 8 is a 2008 California ballot initiative that prohibited same-sex marriage by amending the state’s constitution. DOMA is an anti-gay-marriage law. Both were struck down by Supreme Court as unconstitutional.

"In a country where morality is deeply rooted [in] teachings of the church, it has been a struggle for us to pass any legislation supporting gay rights like the Anti-Discrimination Bill. But we are not losing hope. This inspiring decision is a potent force for us to make noise audible enough to the ears of our policy makers," the White Party organizers said in a statement.

But despite all its efforts, the event was not successful in terms of having a fun experience.

Luckily,  the attendees—a diverse group of people of different ages—decided to celebrate the event on their own as the street was covered in ankle-deep water and the weather got worse every minute.

And even though the event was still in full swing despite the heavy rain at around 11 in the evening—performers and impersonators braved the strong wind dressed in their most daring getups (think angel wings, fish nets, dark makeup, hooker heels, and lingerie) to perform for the public—the rain continued to cause problems for guests who paid the tickets priced at P200 and P1,000.

The supposed street party turned out to be a typical Saturday night where friends and couples go to their favorite night club within the area.

Moreover, GMA 7's soap opera "My Husband's Lover" was recognized at the event for the network's bold efforts in conceptualizing an LGBT-themed primetime series and significantly contributing to gender equality in mainstream media. Pride Photo Award winner Cindy Aquino and YouTube sensation Sebastian Castro were also recognized.

One good thing about White Party, apart from the acceptance and education, was knowing for a fact that the LGBT community, who walked the dirty ankle-deep streets to make it to the event, has a place to spend their Saturday night—a place where being different is normal.— BM, GMA News