IMMIGRATION
Comparing Life in the United States to the Philippines
Ira Briones, who is non-binary, moved to the US in 2015
BY TAT BELLAMY-WALKER
When marriage equality
became the law
of the land in 2015,
Ira Briones, a nonbinary
Filipino immigrant, rushed
with their partner to the historic
Stonewall Inn to get married. Years
later, it still pains them to know
their marriage is not offi cially recognized
in their home country.
“It just makes us feel sad about
the discrepancy in the duality that
we’re navigating,” Briones said.
“Many of our friends — chosen
family back home — still don’t get
to have that same access of these
benefi ts that we do.”
In 2014, Briones, a 36-year-old
transformational coach and energy
worker, moved to the United States
for school — and their partner,
who is also from the Philippines,
followed along.
Ira Briones, a non-binary LGBTQ immigrant, married their partner at the historic Stonewall Inn in 2015.
Queer rights continue to lag behind
in the Philippines, where marriage
equality is not legal and anti-
LGBTQ policies persist. Briones,
NICKI FIETZER
unfortunately, is unable to escape
those realities when dealing with
their home country abroad: They
are forced to check off “single” instead
of “married” when fi lling out
forms at the Embassy of the Philippines.
Last year, as the pandemic was
unfolding, Briones traveled back
home to the Philippines with their
partner — but their trip was hampered
by the onset of the COVID-19
and a deadly volcano eruption. The
couple noticed people there were
taking the threat of the new pandemic
far more seriously than in
the states.
“Back in the Philippines, only
one person per household was allowed
to go out at a certain point,”
Briones said. “There were so many
more restrictions, and the offi cials
could get quite violent when people
broke the quarantine rules.”
The restrictions were not quite
as strict in the US, but Briones
would have to contend with different
challenges upon their return to
New York. They arrived back in the
US equipped with masks — partly
because of the pandemic but also
because they were dealing with
falling ash from the natural disaster
— and it dawned on them that
simply wearing the masks could
spark backlash. Many Americans
were not wearing masks early on,
and the anti-Asian racism started
brewing across the nation as the
pandemic unfolded.
“As an Asian person, there was
that layer of feeling unsafe and
confl icted,” recalled Briones, who
wondered whether wearing a mask
would be worth the trouble. “We
knew the gravity of the situation, but
would that have made us targets?'”
Anti-Asian racism and violent
attacks continue to fl are up in
the United States at a time when
COVID-19 cases are continuing
to drop with every passing day.
President Joe Biden responded
to the wave of attacks by signing
the COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act —
though there were some concerns
from advocates warning about the
potential drawbacks of bringing
more police into communities of
color.
The climate of intolerance has
left a feeling of uneasiness for
Briones. People would sometimes
stare at them in the Philippines,
Briones said, but that doesn’t compare
to their experience in the
United States.
“I feel more free and more open
here,” Briones said. “But I feel less
physically safe.”
The pandemic has taken a cumulative
toll on the Philippines,
which has had 1,230,301 confi
rmed COVID-19 cases, roughly
21,000 deaths, and 6,684 new cases,
according to the World Health
Organization. So far, two million
vaccines doses have been administered
in the country, but access
remains a problem. Many of Briones’
family members back home
have yet to have an opportunity to
get vaccinated.
“It took my partner a while to
be comfortable sharing that we’re
both vaccinated because of the situation
back home,” Briones said.
“When you walk on the streets of
New York, you see people inviting
you for vaccinations just encouraging
you on the streets. That’s how
much we have.”
Briones added, “Even this little
bit that we’re able to access here
evokes some guilt around realizing
how much friends and family back
home don’t have.”
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