‘Pride Is One of the Seven Deadly Sins,’ Says Philippine Senator Against LGBTQ Celebrations

The Philippine’s Pride March this year welcomed around 70,000 people, making it the biggest pride event in Southeast Asia. But it turns out that many Filipinos still don’t understand what the movement is all about, including the country’s very own Senate President Vicente “Tito” Sotto III.

During budget deliberations on Tuesday, Sotto spoke out against a memo from a regional Department of Education (DepEd) office that invited schools to celebrate LGBTQ pride every June. The senator said that this “might cause confusion in young minds” and hoped that the DepEd would “avoid something as controversial as this.”

Now, bigoted remarks like this are not really surprising coming from Sotto, who said that “a man will never be a woman,” in response to calls for LGBTQ rights, but his justification for his latest statement takes the cake.

“As far as I know, pride is still one of the seven deadly sins," he said, referencing the popular Christian teaching, and completely missing the point in the process.

He continues to say: “Pride is the head of Satan, and humility is his headache," quoting a line from his own book.

Someone, please tell him that LGBTQ pride is not about stroking one’s ego, but raising the dignity of people who are often discriminated against?

Other events specified in the DepEd’s memo were Women's Month, Breastfeeding Month, Peace Education Month, Children's Month, Human Rights Month, and a campaign to end violence against women. Sotto said that Pride Month was "lumped together" with these other celebrations he called “very good undertakings."

Senator Pia Cayetano tried to appease Sotto by saying that teachers and students are not compelled to comply with the memo, which is "no longer in effect."

The LGBTQ community still experiences discrimination in the Philippines to this day, and the government has done little to solve this. There is still no law that protects their rights, with the Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity and Expression (SOGIE) Equality Bill still languishing in Congress. One of its biggest opponents? Sotto, of course.

Find Lia on Instagram and Twitter.