With the SOGIE (sexual orientation, gender identity and expression) Equality Bill discussions being opened in the Senate once more, it’s become one of the hottest topics in the Philippines. Anyone from showbiz personalities to religious leaders have weighed in on the subject. Now, a handful of beauty queens have decided to state their piece on the matter.
Inquirer was able to interview a number of beauty pageant title holders at the 2019 Miss World Philippines Charity Gala. They were asked for their stance on the controversial SOGIE Bill.
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2018 Miss World Philippines Katarina Rodriguez shared “I was raised … [to treat people, whatever their sexual orientation is,] like our equal, with kindness and genuine interest. For me, anything that would help promote equality, to bring us to that goal, I am for it.”
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Sophia Senoron, the first winner of the Miss Multinational pageant, likewise showed favor for the bill since it “creates a better opportunity for people to express themselves” and affords members of the LGBTQ+ “more power as a minority.”
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Thia Thomalla, 2017 Miss World Philippines queen and 2018 Miss Eco International, was also supportive of the bill. “It is about time we give the LGBTQI community another chance to let other people see who they are,” she stated.
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Laura Lehman, 2017 Miss World Philippines, simply declared “Anything that involves anti-discrimination, I am for.”
“It is hard to convince people who have one way of thinking, who have one point of view. I would like to tell them to keep their minds open, know what it feels like to be on the other side, to be in another person’s shoes,” she continued.
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Mafae Yunon-Belasco, who finished in the Top 5 of the 2003 Miss World pageant, was clear in her belief that the SOGIE Bill should be passed so the LGBTQ+ community could be “happy, accepted, and feel equal.”
For her, “We are all humans. We believe in certain things. But at the end of the day, we just want to be treated equally.”
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Do you support the SOGIE Bill? Let us know why or why not in the comments!
