Thoughts from MY Intersection

If you have known me for a while now or have been reading my blog since its conception, you'd know I am gay. In the pictures I have shared on this blog and my social media platforms, you can find me wearing clothes that are considered "feminine" or "for girls." These stereotypes of what it means to be gay, feminine, or what is considered "only for males," or "only for females" create boxes people are expected to conform to, known as gender roles. These "roles" are expectations of people based on their physical traits/parts.  This picture perfectly captures the roles of men and women in our world and societal expectations. One prominent association to gender is blue and pink, where blue is for boys, and pink is for girls. In the children's department at stores worldwide, this is made evident in clothes made for kids. Moreover, in the same department are the gender stereotype toys provided for them. Boys have trucks and figurines ...

In recent years, more and more people from my generation have raised awareness for mental health to erase the stigma of seeing a counselor. Some people believe and are raised to think that visiting a mental health counselor is for the weak or unnecessary. Thus not wanting to see a counselor because, well, one does not want to be seen as weak, in pain, in need, or the idea of being diagnosed as having depression, anxiety, or a disorder.  I think before we even dive into the meat of this blog, it is crucial to discuss verbiage, wording, and what to call "it." The phrases mental health and mental illness are both self-explanatory. Still, I think it's essential to dive into what it is. It may not seem like a problem at a glance, but when you pause and think about what words mean and how they sound, you will instantly gather the effects of these words. A wise and smart professor, Dr. Stephen Mead, taught me the value of words. I will not break it down as great as he could, but...

Up until my secondary education, being asked where I am from was simple. Depending on the conversation context, I either said Laoag City, Philippines, or Waipahu. I say it depends because sometimes we are in conversation about where we are from in the Philippines while other times, it is banter as to which city on Oahu is the best. However, it wasn't until I left Hawai`i and moved to college that answering where I am from and where is home became difficult to answer. It's not that I forgot about my roots in the Philippines or suddenly did not want to represent the city where I lived in Hawai`i. It is the feeling of not being Filipino enough or not being from Hawai`i because I was not born there. I was unsure what to say whenever people asked where I was from, even more so when I was asked, "where is home?" Home is such a tricky word because I have always been so fortunate to have had a place with people in it that I could call my home, but still, I was left torn. Do I...

      To understand this blog, where I am coming from, and why I am the way I am, or I feel the way I do, you need to understand what intersectionality is.         Merriam-Webster's Dictionary defines intersectionality as "the complex, cumulative way in which the effects of multiple forms of discrimination (such as racism, sexism, and classism) combine, overlap, or intersect, especially in the experiences of marginalized individuals or groups. Professor Kimberle Crenshaw coined this term in 1989 in one of her term papers about African-American women's oppression. It started with the feminist movement, where women of color found it challenging to identify with white feminism, which was the mainstream movement. The now-famous term describes how race, class, gender, sex, religion, culture, disability, etc., describes a person, which allows people to understand/know who they are, and the best way to serve them.     Knowing your int...

Hello! Thank you for dropping by to hear my thoughts.  My name is Mc Erl Dave Andres, and I use he/him/she/her pronouns. My intersectionality includes Ilokano, Filipino, Gay, Male, Catholic, First-Generation College Graduate, Middle-Class, Immigrant, Feminine, Masculine, Gender-Queer, and Homosexual. Though, as I go through the rollercoaster called life, I find myself connecting who I am to my new-found words, adjectives, or identities. I was born in the Philippines, and my family and I immigrated to Hawai'i in 2006. I am the youngest of three siblings and the only male in a single-mother household. This part of my life is complex, and trust me; it will have its own post.  I am a recent college graduate. I received my Bachelor of Arts in English with a minor in Gender and Identity Studies. I am not a perfect English major. My writing will never be perfect, but trust me, I will be re-reading my posts over and over again. I know for a fact that even after I publish a post, I wil...