Her cropped hair

Her baggy pants

Her lack of lipstick

For you

Screamed incompetence

“She’s applying to be this – and that –

To be this – and that – ”

Therefore, she should dress like this

Look like this

Be like this

Never mind if she was

Industrious and diligent

To the bone

Never mind if she works twice as hard

As anyone else

Never mind.

She has no lipstick, no earrings, she’s not in a dress

She cannot apply here.

She cannot join us.

In Manila, some doors are shut

Some jobs are not given

Because a woman – a lesbian –

Had cropped hair

And had baggy pants

We want weddings, of course

We celebrate them

But let us work first.

In the Philippines, aside from the desire for legal I do’s

Are battles for rights

Far,

Far

Far

More basic than others

Cover image by Linh Nguyen on Unsplash