Pride is canceled… at least for Metro Manila Pride (MMP) this June Pride month.
In an indirect post, MMP announced that it will not be hosting its own festival – including a parade – this June, when much of the world observes LGBTQIA Pride. No reason was provided; Outrage Magazine has sent direct messages to the organization through Messenger and Twitter/X, as well as its published email (hello@mmpride.org), but no response was received as of press time.
The only time MMP failed to hold Pride was during the COVID-19 pandemic, when social gatherings of any type were banned all over the world.
For those unfamiliar, MMP is supposed to be the lead organizer of the annual Pride event in Metro Manila. “Established” in 2016, it actually absorbed its predecessor – the community-led Task Force Pride (TFP) – without consulting the LGBTQIA community.
TFP was community-centric, with its leadership changing every year, revolving around heads of member LGBTQIA organizations. MMP – even if self-identifying as not-for-profit – was registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in 2016, and functioned similar to many “Pride” organizers in Western countries that commercialized the annual gathering.
With the failure of MMP to mark this year’s Pride during the month of June with or without sponsorship, the Pride event sponsored by the local government of Quezon City is now the major LGBTQIA event in Metro Manila for this month. Pride PH, co-organizer of Quezon City’s Pride, announced that for this year, the festival will be held on June 22 at the Quezon Memorial Circle in Quezon City.
MMP’s posts allude to supporting struggles for all forms of discrimination encountered by LGBTQIA Filipinos.
“Tuloy pa rin ang ating pagkilos at pagsulong para sa karapatan at kulayaan!”
But there are no statements from its leadership discussing threats to its very existence, and future plans (if any).
