Jollibee, nagpalabas ng pahayag ukol sa diumano’y diskriminasyon ng kumpanya sa mga BL na aktor

Thursday, May 20, 2021 at 7:34 PM by Josh Medina

- Jollibee released a statement denying the discrimination claims of the viral post now circulating on social media prohibiting actors who have played roles in BL shows to appear in any of the company’s commercials

- Earlier, a theater actress named Teetin Villanueva posted what she claimed was a message from Jollibee explicitly banning actors that have worked on BL shows

- BL shows are gradually introducing mainstream viewers to LGBTQ+ stories

- Villanueva’s post has since gone viral, and subsequently placed the fast food behemoth under fire

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Jollibee recently released a statement denying the discrimination claims of the viral post that is now making rounds on the Internet.

Jollibee, nagpalabas ng pahayag ukol sa diumano’y diskriminasyon ng kumpanya sa mga BL na aktor — The Jollibee Foods Corp. restaurant in Taguig City, Manila, the Philippines, on Saturday, March 13, 2021. (Photo by Veejay Villafranca/Bloomberg)
Source: Getty Images

According to the post, Jollibee casting call explicitly stated that the actors must not have portrayed any roles in Boy’s Love shows.

The message was shared online by theater actress Teetin Villanueva, where it was immediately picked up by netizens.

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Jollibee, subsequently, came under fire because of the alleged discrimination against BL talents, and the LGBTQ+ community in general.

The fast food giant denied they have such rules against BL actors.

“Consistent with our valies and ethical standards, JFC has not issued any directives or guidelines that is discriminatory in nature. We treat everyone with respect and recognize the value of each individual," Jollibee explained in a statement posted on Twittter on May 18.

The company’s ad agency, Gigil Group, echoed Jollibee’s statement in its reply to the tweet.

“JFC never gave us any directions to exclude talents who have appeared in BL materials. Neither have they given any other discriminatory instructions,” Gigil replied to Jollibee’s tweet.

The ad agency also said they did not issue any such guideline to their production partners.

They assured everyone, however, particularly the LGBTQ+ community, that they only partner with production houses and casters that do not allow, nor tolerate, discrimination.

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The lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) people in the Philippines have a distinctive culture in society and also have limited legal rights. Gays and lesbians are generally tolerated (if not accepted) in Filipino society. Despite recent events that have promoted the rights, general acceptance, and empowerment of the Filipino LGBT community, discrimination remains. Homosexuals in the Philippines are known as "bakla", though there exist other terms to describe them. Similarly, Filipino lesbians are generally known as Alfa. According to the 2002 Young Adult Fertility and Sexuality Survey, 11 percent of sexually active Filipinos between the ages of 15 and 24 have had sex with someone of the same sex. Despite this, legislation supporting same-sex marriage in the Philippines, which has been proposed several times in the Philippine legislature, were not passed by congress.