Setting (and keeping) records straight.
In an effort to help document the LGBTQIA history in the Philippines, Outrage Magazine launched “Living History”, a section containing (at least) snippets of developments that helped shape the local LGBTQIA community/movement, whether good or bad.
“In these days of #FakeNews, and – for that matter – revisionism, often with the intent hijacking historical narratives to co-opt successes and/or put blame somewhere for failures, keeping proper records is needed,” said Michael David C. Tan, publishing editor of Outrage Magazine.
As it is, the telling of the history of the LGBTQIA community in the Philippines is already frayed, with versions of truth emerging to promote vested interests – e.g. when the Pride march (that eventually became a parade) was started. Mainstream media coverage is also not always on-point – e.g. confusions with “civil unions” with “same-sex marriages”, and erroneously equating “LGBT movement” only with the Pride parade.
“Living History” contains write-ups developed after being culled from various sources – e.g. legal documents, vetted published reports/articles/write-ups, interviews, et cetera. These write-ups may be from the (not so) distant past or are ongoing developments; though all of them affect the movement of the local LGBTQIA community.
“The oft-repeated statement (actually now more of a cliché) that those who do fail to recognize their history/their past are bound to repeat doing the same mistakes remains valid,” Tan said. And so, “hopefully, this small step can help our community be aware, and remain aware of where we came from, so we can use this knowledge as a tool in building our future.”
