Uniforms, dusters, patched holes, and sewn sleeves—hiding in between the threads of everyday clothes are the graceful skill and craftsmanship of the mananahi. They are an indispensable facet in local communities with blushing brides-to-be, future prom queens, or really anyone looking for anything from a sharp suit to a costume flocking to their doors. Their…
Author: Alexandra Simone Enriquez
Last June 2020, Miriam College High School came under fire after several cases of sexual harassment were uncovered, starting the #MCHSDoBetter hashtag. Consequently, other educational institutions followed, and the #DoBetter movement trended on social media. These women, notably from prominent schools like St. Paul College Pasig, Marikina Science High School, and Ateneo de Manila Junior…
Ad Astra Abyssosque, adventurers! From the ruins of Khaenri’ah to the caves of an eroded stone dragon and to the misty islands of the Golden Apple Archipelago, ready your teapots as we set sail to the land of eternity. Genshin Impact’s open-world, role-playing action gameplay expanded its horizons with one of the biggest updates the…
“As an activist, encounters with the state’s armed machinery like the police and the military are unfortunately inevitable,” says Trist’n Buenaflor, deputy national spokesperson of the Student Christian Movement of the Philippines. Last year, Buenaflor was arrested along with 63 other peasant, youth, and worker organizers on their way to a rally for the president’s…
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Finding a home in animal shelters
City sidewalks have long been a refuge for strays and abandoned animals alike. Left alone in the cold to fend for their survival, these furry little creatures have had to face harrowing ordeals, come rain or shine. Death is a fate that many have succumbed to—either due to hunger or the injuries and illnesses sustained…
For so long, queerness has been seen as the Other—shameful, aberrant behavior to be talked about in hushed whispers. For this reason, many queer figures’ sexualities have been erased from history—that is, if history remembers them at all. Today, we get to remember them. As more and more queer creators step into the spotlight with…
Taking mythological icons of generations past is a fascination among many. In 2005, writer Budjette Tan and illustrator Kajo Baldisimo took this fantasy and applied it to the colorful world of Filipino folklore. Angst-filled comic book panels heavily featuring mythological icons and strong female lead Alexandra Trese quickly filled shelves in book stores nationwide. As…
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Rant and Rave: Live, werk, ‘Pose’
Ryan Murphy’s Pose shone a spotlight on New York’s shimmering underground ballroom scene, as it reclaimed the once-forgotten queer culture. With transgender women of color front and center, Pose reminded us that when love is lost from the houses we call home, some people get to choose their family in the oddest of places—in the…
In the Judeo-Christian context, God has always been painted as distinctly, explicitly, and exclusively a man. This idea of an omnipotent male has been the bedrock of our beliefs—it is then deemed only natural that men lead, that men control, and that men define. Women, on the other hand, are also labeled many things—wives, mothers,…
Amid the sudsy sachets of shampoo and tubes of toothpaste in a typical Filipino bathroom lies an infamous product—skin whiteners. Ranging from soaps to serums to creams, these products claim to give fairer skin in a matter of days or weeks. As such, they have earned a permanent place in every Filipino woman’s beauty routine.…