Image: Instagram/@mielpangilinan
Miel Pangilinan marked the Pride Month with a reminder to her fellow members and allies of the LGBTQIA+ community that aside from the celebration, this month is also the time to fight for their rights.
“This month, I’m celebrating: queerness, identity, sexuality, love, and people. The first pride was a riot—always remember,” she said on her Instagram page on Thursday, June 22.
“Though Pride is a time for celebration and togetherness and is an occasion for happiness for the community, we must also remember that there is still so much we are fighting for as a community in this country,” Miel continued. “The rights to safety, the rights to marry who we want to marry, are still heavily debated on by people who make real shots that affect real people.”
Miel, who came out as queer in 2022, urged the members of the community to stand for themselves and let everyone know of their existence.
“Now is the month to show who we are, to show that we exist, and that nobody will silence us or make us feel ashamed in ourselves for being who we are,” she wrote. “I am here. I exist. I have been here. I have existed. I am a queer Filipino who is proud to be a member of this beautiful, long-standing community.”
She then wished for a joyous Pride Month celebration to everyone as she emphasized, “Love and identity have no boundaries, and exist in no binary.”
“As long as you are happy and keeping other people around you safe, you are valid and you are loved,” she concluded. “Mabuhay mga bakla!”
Miel received messages of support from fans as well as her sister Frankie via the comments section.
Image: Instagram/@mielpangilinan
Image: Instagram/@mielpangilinan
Image: Instagram/@mielpangilinan
Meanwhile, Miel graduated from high school earlier this month. She will be taking a gap year before she pursues a college degree in New York, where Frankie is also studying. /ra