Geraldine Roman, the first open transgender politician in the Philippines, has made it to Motto Magazine’s list of Inspiring Women of 2016.
Motto, a subsidiary of TIME Magazine, highlighted Geraldine’s win in the May polls and her subsequent rally for equal rights for the LGBT community in the Philippines.
One of her recent tweets about gender equality was featured in her profile:
Our Constitution states that the government must protect and promote the rights of ALL citizens to quality education. #EducationCantWait
— Geraldine Roman (@geraldinebroman) October 11, 2016
Geraldine also thanked the magazine upon learning that she was in the prestigious list that also included the likes of Beyoncé and US Presidential candidate Hillary Clinton.
It is an honor to be included in @TIME's Inspiring Women in 2016 list, with women like @HillaryClinton and @Beyonce who champion #EQUALITY. https://t.co/MfhzVGtgAh
— Geraldine Roman (@geraldinebroman) October 12, 2016
Other personalities who made it were Star Wars star Daisy Ridley, actress Amber Heard and Olympian Fu Yuanhui.
For her part, Geraldine’s story became an anchor point of inspiration to members of the LGBT after she won as the representative of Bataan’s first district.
This not only catapulted her to Congress where she replaced her mother’s former position, but it also proved that transgender individuals can win public approval despite the country’s culture that favors masculinity.
So far, Geraldine has filed 15 bills including the anti-discriminatory bill based on sexual preference and gender identity.