Growing up in Pampanga, Bismark Angeles remembered taking a liking with Dingdong Dantes and Lady Gaga; and when he was in Grade 2, “meinlove ku girly stuffs and divas makanta (I fell in love with girly stuffs and divas in pop culture).”
Fortunately, he was accepted by his family even at a very young age. He recalled being told that it’s okay for him to be gay as long as he knows his limitations.
But this acceptance did not translate outside his home.
“Ketang first job ku karin atin discrimination kasi fastfood ita eh. I think twice ku me reject karin (My first job was in a fastfood chain and I faced discrimination. I was rejected twice),” Bismark recalled.
This discrimination manifested in his difficulty with working with his co-workers. “Inyang meg 18 karin ku meg break free and found a better job (And then when I turned 18, that was the time I brkoke free and found a better job).”
Now 19, Bismark is a call center agent, working from 3:00PM to 12:00AM. While he wants to be a successful businessman one day and maybe have his own fashion brand; or perhaps become a philanthropist to help those people who are less fortunate, he is somewhat happy at his work since “okay naman; (this is) way better than the other jobs kasi I can sustain my needs and wants at the same time.”
Looking back in his short life, Bismark considers as his biggest accomplishment finding employment to “stand on my own.”
For Bismark, “I think the criticism isa sa problemang pinagdadaanan ng mga LGBT at lagi naman tayo na-underestimate eh, (I think the criticism is one of the problems faced by LGBT people and we are always underestimated).” But he doesn’t see that as a barrier but as a motivation because “this is the real world.”
“My only advise to them is to never pay attention to negativity. Always believe yourself. Dapat be proud as long as wala kang ginagawang masama (You should be proud as long as you don’t do anything bad/evil),” Bismark ended.
