The sun shone over the mountain city of Baguio as members and allies of the LGBTQIA+ community gathered for the second Northern Luzon Pride March last June 24. While fog and low-lying clouds are the norm for this time of year, no rain would fall on this parade. The wind breezed past plenty of different flags raised high, representing the different sectors of the queer community. This day of the march would wrap up a month-long series of programming, which was able to reach various circles within and outside of the LGBTQIA+ community in the Cordilleras and beyond.

The year’s theme was “Payt Latta,” a rough Ilocano translation of “ Still fighting.” While Baguio’s local Pride marches take place in November or December, the organization Northern Luzon Pride (NLP) set theirs in June to coincide with Pride celebrations elsewhere in the Philippines like the Makati and Quezon City events on the same day.

As the march proceeded down Session Road, people chanted in unison: “Makibeki! ‘Wag mashokot!” There were establishments along the downtown thoroughfare of Baguio City showing their support flags and streamers out their windows, in front of which the procession would cheer and wave. People were holding up placards calling for SOGIE equality, justice for Jennifer Laude, labor rights, and myriad other concerns and advocacies that the LGBTQIA+ face. The spirit of Pride as a protest, which runs deep from the Stonewall riots of 1969 to the sociopolitical commentary of “Drag Den,” was truly felt.

‘ ‘3’: ‘image’: ‘jcr:21ac635c-aacd-4d42-bcbf-bf9025fb1bec’ ‘imageCaption’: ‘The Northern Luzon Pride March was a rousing demonstration of solidarity and support from the LGBTQ community and allies alike, involving not just locals, but also students and workers who migrated to Baguio City.

The last stop of the Pride March was the Igorot Garden, with the grand statues of five indigenous warriors behind the public program featuring artists and queer advocates. Le Sserafim and Lady Gaga played on a mobile speaker system as the march regrouped and people shared stickers and K-pop photocards. Baguio’s homegrown drag queens made a grand entrance, hopping off a jeepney at the nearby terminal in full regalia, ready to slay. Gestures of solidarity in the form of performances and speeches were shared not just to the crowd who gathered for Pride, but even the passing commuters and the park’s regular chess players.

In the weeks preceding the march, NLP held events that activated various public and artist spaces around Baguio City. There was a drag brunch at Canto Bogchi Joint with Baguio’s homegrown queens, followed by an artist talk where the performers shared about their experiences and approach to drag as an art form. Public talks were held about queer mental health and policies like the Anti-Discrimination Ordinance in Baguio in the Balanghai ni Ikeng, a theater constructed by National Artist Kidlat Tahimik.

There were even storytelling sessions at Mt. Cloud Bookshop, a hub for independent and local publications in the Cordilleras, where drag queens read children’s books out loud, like “ Dalawa ang Daddy ni Billy” by Michael P. De Guzman, “Ang Bonggang Bonggang Batang Beki” by Rhandee Garlitos, and “Boy Kendeng” by Dominic Agsaway. This session in particular is an inventive initiative at the intersection of literature and the LGBTQIA+ movement, shaping an environment where queer identities are affirmed even at a young age. Even the march was family-friendly, with the youth comprising a big part of the crowd that gathered.

Remarkably, with all of these programs having taken place, NLP is community-organized and run by volunteers. “We want the NLP community to be by the LGBTQIA+ community and for the LGBTQIA+ community,” said Julia Soriano, who led NLP’s Pride month programming this year. “We have this platform that we want to share [with] the real people. Madali gawin corporations because they will always have that program to support the LGBTQ community, as all companies do. But we can’t say that they really understand. When you tap queer and artist-owned businesses, you know that they feel your struggles. You know that they’re wholeheartedly supporting the cause.”

‘ ‘8’: ‘image’: ‘jcr:77a5c578-e08e-40f1-bd5d-f2cf6d3ef43c’ ‘imageCaption’: ‘Some of the Northern Luzon Pride organizers stand in front of the Cordillera Freedom Monument. From left to right: Herson Arcega, Julia

When it comes to inclusivity, involving different sectors and groups entails creative actions in itself. Baguio City itself has a strong lineage of grassroots-organized movements, adamant about being fiercely independent and supporting local economies of resources and efforts. The city itself has its own local conditions concerning the queer community. It’s one of the few cities in the Philippines that has its own Anti-Discrimination Ordinance, yet the effectiveness of its implementation is still being lobbied by queer advocates.

The scale of this year’s Pride March, which had an estimated attendance of 500 people, is a rousing demonstration of solidarity and support from the LGBTQIA+ community and allies alike, involving not just locals but the students and workers who migrated to Baguio City, too. In the larger scale of being queer in the Philippines, movements that revolve around locales that directly tackle immediate concerns, rooted in culture and context, are all part of striding towards our future where all sexualities, orientations, gender, and identities are affirmed and visible.

Below are photos from the march.

’14’: ‘image’: ‘jcr:a984cb45-f800-4309-880a-a3346f723aac’ ‘imageCaption’: ‘A participant at the Pride March waves the lesbian flag. Photo