Gender and Sexuality to Diwang Pinay

Let me be honest with ya'll and tell you a story about this little boy.

And so the story begins:

This little brown boy was raised by 2nd generation Filipinos who were raised by stron Pinoys and Pinays that worked in the fields and fought in world wars. This little boy was shaped and molded by his parents to be the best he can be. They told him to go to college, get straight A's and never give up. But this little boy also learned social lessons from them as well. DON'T BE GAY. PLAY SPORTS. BE MASCULINE. DONT PLAY WITH DOLLS. BE STRONG. They said. At parties they joked about gay people and ran their mouths about gay jokes an laughed at it. In return he was built with this mindset to never be gay. Gay was negative and bad. Therefore in highschool he hated on gay people, joined various sports, and always held a prejudice toward them.

Not only did he learn these lessons about gender roles from his parents but the media taught him about how to treat women. WOMANIZE THEM. CALL THAT HOE A BITCH. AND CALL THAT BITCH A SLUT. GET AS MANY AS YOU CAN. TAP THAT ASS. everyday as he bumped his stereo to the radio and slapped beats and popped up his television set, he grew up with that mindset that women were inferior. He cheated on his girlfriend and didn't give a fuck about a dumb bitch. 

BUT THIS BOY CHANGED.

HE WENT TO SF STATE.

HE LEARNED ABOUT THE LGBTQQI STRUGGLE

HE LEARNED ABOUT RESPECTING WOMEN

HE CRIED BECAUSE OF WHAT HE HAS DONE IN HIS PAST

HE LET THOSE SOCIAL CONSTRUCTIONS GO

HE STARTED RAPPING ABOUT REAL ISSUES

HE WENT ON TO TRY TO LEARN MORE

HE JOINED PACE

HE JOINED LFS

HE GREW UP

HE MATURED

And he is damn happy that he did.

Things like Diwang Pinay and workshops like Brian's hold great significance for the community. It sparks change in thoughts and gives people a sense of growth. That's what it gave me. The ability to respect, and the ability to grow. I thank you all in LFS and PACE for that. 

What i am hopeful for is that i will continue this growth and forget about my past self, because i have truly changed

My creative thing for this week: Nas' I can helps us see that we can overcome what they tell us and not subdue to social constructions. This is also one of my favorite songs of all time!!!

- Ben Paz