Zamboanga City held its very first Pride march to be held in the Pride month of June, since past gatherings used to be held in October. Dubbed “Orgullo Festival de Colores (Pride Festival of Colors)”, this also marked the first time that non-LGBTQIA community-based organizations (CBOs) joined the LGBTQIA gathering, a move that Jaya Jaud of Zamboanga-based Mujer-LGBT Organization Incorporated said is “heartwarming, seeing that the community (now) supports us.”
“Pride is both a celebration and a protest,” Jaud said. This is why, “as we push for inclusivity of our diversity, it is important for us to march as one.”
The event was backed by DSWD, and the Gender and Development office of the City Mayor’s Office.
The very first Pride happened in the city in October 2017.
Zamboanga is one of the more progressive cities in Mindanao. In 2020, the 1st class highly urbanized city joined the growing number of local government units (LGUs) that now has an anti-discrimination ordinance (ADO) to protect the human rights of minorities, including LGBTQIA people.
