The generally lukewarm reaction in the Philippines to the despicable and unconstitutional ruling of the Commission on Elections against Ang Ladlad (loosely translated as “out of the closet”) is an  indication of the current status of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community in the Philippines.

All the presidential candidates and all the major political parties are quiet. For example, Noynoy Aquino, said to be the torch-bearer of reform and change and widely viewed as frontrunner in the presidential race, has been silent too, to the disappointment of LGBTs who have thrown their support behind his candidacy. Both the opposition and the administration have not dared show an independent streak from the churches and other medieval forces that seek to deny LGBTs the rights due to them as citizens of this Republic. The constitutionalists are silent too.

Now, thank heavens, that we have Lilia de Lima as chair of the Commission on Human Rights (CHR). She has spoken strongly and eloquently against the Comelec ruling, and we  can only hope that the CHR intervenes in the appeal that Ang Ladlad is bound to make. Thanks too to the partylist organizations Bayan Muna, Gabriela and Kabataan which saw in the Comelec ruling a total travesty of the very system that is supposed to be a form and process of affirmative action for marginalized and underrepresented sectors. Although they are in fact competitors of Ang Ladlad, these groups considered it their civic duty to support Ang Ladlad’s right to existence and to seek representation.

Obviously, much needs to be done by Ang Ladlad, by all those who value freedom and respect, and by the government sworn to preserve and defend the Constitution. Bit by bit, step by step, we must chip away at the ages-old discriminatory structures and even officials still upholding worn-out medieval thinking. While we’re at it, let us call on candidates and parties to come out with their programs and platforms: Would they usher in a period of freedom and respect for LGBTs or would they carry on the twin evils of demonification and marginalization?

Philippine arts and media, whose lifeblood is regularly replenished by the brightest stars of the LGBT community, owe LGBTs an upgrade in their status, and moves should start with hopefully wholehearted support to the LGBTs’ good cause to be represented in Congress.

The continued maltreatment of LGBTs at the hands of the ultra-rightwing religious groups in churches and other institutions is a product of miseducation. It is no surprise that we continue to harbor conflicting views on freedom because a majority of our schools are owned or administered by churches and religious groups, giving them power to mold our children and youth to be copies of their warped thinking. Even public schools, supposed to provide secular education, are routinely invaded by religious teachers, for so-called “values education”. As long as they hold sway in our education system, we can never progress as a nation.

The online and information technology community — we who ride the waves of change, we who are at the frontlines of technological advances — should likewise upgrade our ways of thinking, our appreciation of fellow men and women well beyond what we have been conditioned to accept because sadly there remain plenty of bigots in our very avant-garde community. We talk endlessly about the speeds of processors and of download speeds, but many of our online friends and our idols profess the most backward and most archaic beliefs that could make Comelec look like the agency possessing talents with most progressive thinking.

I think the LGBTs aren’t asking for an endorsement — they merely want, for now, a place under the partylist sun and hopefully win one, two or even three seats in elections they wish to openly, freely and creatively contest. They can win on their own. The only thing they want now is for them to be allowed to run and win.

We are not even talking yet about the criminalization of hate crimes against LGBTs. It would be good if Ang Ladlad would run and win first in the elections and propose this bill. But, come to think of it, isn’t it a duty of all Filipinos, LGBT or not, to confront and end all forms of discrimination in consonance with our Constitution?

Elsewhere, outside of the reach of this constitutional order that loudly promises but miserably fails to deliver equality, LGBTs can already court each other, get engaged, married, divorced and even adopt children. I’m not talking about other countries or states. I’m talking about the Communist Party of the Philippines which for over a decade now has been attracting a stream of LGBTs  into its fold for implementing a policy of recognizing and respecting LGBT rights. A rainbow now runs across the territory of the CPP-led provisional revolutionary governments in the countryside and the mass organizations in the cities.

It is time for Filipinos to seriously reconsider the cause of LGBT representation and not consign to a cause of the LGBT community. That in itself is a valid view, yes. But we have to realize that this should be a national and democratic endeavor and not just a matter of mercy or pity to a community we know but continue to be relegated to the margins. We owe it to ourselves as a people, we owe it to the future generations who should not wonder why we countenanced medieval thinking in 2009.