Rainbow pride returns to Bacolod City.
The City of Smiles is slated to host its first Pride parade in four years on June 22 (starting at 3PM), with the event congregating at the Fountain of Justice of the Old City Hall.
This is a “momentous comeback for Pride and the LGBTQIA presence not only in Bacolod City, but in the entire province of Negros Occidental,” said Girard Mariano Lopez, a Grade 11 student leader and activist from Bacolod City.
The event is helmed by HAPI, and Linghod and Negrosanon Youth Leaders Institute.
Despite not having a Pride-related event for four years, Bacolod City – surprisingly – has an anti-discrimination ordinance (ADO), passed in 2013.Authored by Councilor Em Ang, the ordinance prohibits discrimination of a person because of gender, disability, age, health status, sexual orientation, ethnicity and religion, and carries a penalty for those who violate it P5,000.00 and/or imprisonment of not more than one year upon the discretion of the court.
For more information, head to Tribu Duag.