SUMMARY
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Miss Trans Global Philippines crowned Albiean Revalde its 2021 queen on Sunday, June 6.
Albiean, who hails from Iloilo City, bested 24 other hopefuls from different parts of the country. She is also the youngest contestant to join the pageant at 19 years old.
Authentic ally
“I believe that to be an authentic ally and to be an advocate in general, means that you should be integrating yourself to the actual community that you are advocating for,” Albiean said, answering Miss World 2013 Megan Young’s final question.
“They don’t need to be in the limelight for us to shine, they’ll just support us.”
She added: “Just like love, we love without conditions and that is what composes a true ally,”
Albiean, clad in a Dinagyang-Babaylan inspired armor, said that her national costume stands for Pride month, saying “It is indeed a celebration but it is and should also be a reminder to us of our plights, of our roots, of our culture’s beauty.”
Student leader
Even before joining the pageant, Albiean has been a staunch advocate for gender rights and equality, as well as the rights of workers, farmers, and students.
A sophomore industrial engineering student from the Polytechnic University of the Philippines, Albiean is also the vice chairperson of Sandigan ng Mag-aaral para sa Sambayanan PUP.
As a transgender woman artist, Albiean has been creating different forms of artwork, such as watercolor paintings and portraits, to fund her education and support her hormonal replacement therapy.
In a Twitter thread posted hours before the coronation night, Albiean said that beyond winning the competition and claiming the title, they were there to “come together as a community of different orientations so we get to forward our plight more interdisciplinarily.”
“Our belongingness in our community transcends beyond our generations and intersections, and as I join as the youngest candidate, I am bringing the essences taught by our trans pioneers, my mothers, my guardians, my siblings, and my ancestors, for I stand here not just as myself but as a person with an identity that I owe to our community. #ProtectTransKids #DefendTransLives,” Albiean added.
Hosted by Macoy Dubs and Jervi Li (aka KaladKaren), the pageant’s segments consisted of national costume, transcending introduction, evening gown, transcending campaign, and the final question and answer.
Miss International 2016 Kylie Versoza, Naomi Fontanos, Rain Villagonzalo, Vinn Pagtakhan, and Megan Young composed the panel of judges. The pageant was also graced by performances from Regine Velasquez and Addlib Divas.
Albiean succeeds 2020 queen Mela Habijan, who was the first Filipina to win the Miss Trans Global. Albiean will be the country’s representative in the international pageant, which will be held later this year.
According to their website, Miss Trans Global is an international pageant for and by trans and gender non-comforming people. The pageant aims to raise awareness on the lived experiences of the LGBTQIA+ community. – with reports from Paolo Alejandrino/Rappler.com
Paolo Alejandrino is a Rappler intern.
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