Leaders play a crucial role in the development of a movement. They are entrusted to manage and raise the voice of their allies. In our plight, a well-capacitated leader contributes greatly to our liberation.
IMGLAD leaders come from various grassroots communities. Some of these communities are located far from the city proper such as Rogongon and SND which as of now, are not accessible by public transport. This makes it difficult for LGBTQIA+ members living in these areas to access trainings, seminars, and other capacity-building activities.
To empower these leaders, IMGLAD implemented face-to-face Training in Public Speaking, Organizational Management, and Leadership participated by IMGLAD leaders from Iligan, Rogongon, Kolambugan, and Sultan Naga Dimaporo to raise their voices on LGBTQIA+ issues and concerns. The training was held at Sea La Vie Resort on July 28-30, 2022.
The topics discussed during the event included Public Speaking and Public Narrative by IMGLAD Project Officer Rey Francis Joseph P. Badoc, Organizational Development Management by IMGLAD Project Manager King Gahum, and Leadership by IMGLAD BOT Chairperson RJ Neyra.
The confidence to speak about LGBTQIA+ advocacy is a skill IMGLAD aims to instill in its members. IMGLAD leaders understand that no one but us will speak for us and that we ourselves are responsible for raising our voices and creating a presence that's difficult to ignore. Mr. Rey’s topic on public speaking discussed during the training encompassed a wide set of relevant topics aimed to help develop this confidence.
The essentials of communication were primarily discussed to provide a background on the various components of communication. In speaking, one has to first be familiar with the various factors that are part of and could affect the delivery of a message. This was followed by a discussion on public narrative as public speaking strategy, the topic stressed the importance of using public speech to unite community values and use that value as a tool to inspire change and start the action.
In giving speeches, confidence in the message you wish to convey is as important as the message itself. To further develop confidence, the essentials of speaking confidently such as thorough preparation, breathing techniques, and practice were presented and demonstrated.
Another important aspect of public speaking is intent. This encompasses what you wish to achieve along with what strategies you use to achieve this. During the discussion, two types of speeches of intent were given, namely persuasive and informative speeches. Persuasive speech is a type of speech useful in convincing your audience of a certain stand while informative speeches aim to provide your audience with a clear and complete description or picture of what you’re trying to convey. These two are potentially powerful tools for igniting change. Convincing through facts is effective and can be achieved through both persuasive and informative speeches. As such, the structure of creating these speeches along with the types and goals of these types of speech were also discussed.
To apply what the participants learned under public speech, they were tasked to pair up, create, and deliver a speech in under 2 hours. Though challenging, participants were able to deliver powerful speeches on various LGBTQIA+-related topics. This proves that the message within us is strong – we just need to learn how to raise our voices louder.
In an organization, everyone has specific responsibilities. To make sure that these responsibilities are fulfilled, there has to be a steady flow of communication between members, and leaders. Additionally, the delegation of tasks should be strategically planned to ensure the organization's smooth operation. These necessary skills are all components of effective management.
To assist in the capacitation of IMGLAD leaders with regard to Organizational Management, Ms. King provided a comprehensive discussion of organizational management. But prior to this, Mx. RJ first provided an intro to Organizational Development management. Under their presentation, he talked about why organizations are necessary and also introduced how IMGLAD's principles and activities contribute towards solving the issues faced on the macro and micro scales. During Ms. King's discussion, she highlighted the importance of organizational management, and how strategic planning plays a huge role in guaranteeing that your organization reaches your perceived goal. Organizational management allows one to plan for emergencies, effectively manage resources, and even create a clear picture of how the activities the group implements contribute towards achieving the final goal. To apply this, two activities were done to showcase the importance of effective communication and strategic planning.
The first activity is Back-to-back drawing, which applied concepts of good communication as one had to illustrate a drawing based on the details being relayed by the other player while they were sitting back-to-back. The goal of the game is for the other person’s drawing to closely resemble the initial prompt. Not only did this emphasize the importance of effective communication, it was also a fun way for the participants to connect, laughing at the vagueness of some of the descriptions.
Another activity was named Sulat Galing sa Hinaharap. For the activity groups came together and brainstormed their goals for the future. Upon having a vision of the future, they then had to list the steps they would take to achieve this future. This was a simple way to demonstrate the planning aspect of organizational management. By doing this, members had to reflect on what achievable actions they can take to achieve their goals.
IMGLAD leaders participated not only during the activities but also throughout the discussion. As most of IMGLAD’s leaders are also members and leaders of organizations within their locale, they had a lot to share about their experiences and struggles with managing their respective organizations. They emphasized that without proper planning of projects and activities it would be most likely that these engagements would not be implemented successfully. As such, we need to take the necessary steps to prepare as not planning is planning to fail.
Last but most certainly not the least for the training was the topic on leadership. Mx. RJ provided discussion points to inform IMGLAD leaders on the various styles of leadership, and what qualities make a good or bad leader. These topics allowed participants to reflect on what type of leadership suits them best, whether this is coach-style, transformational, democratic, etc. They also identified what specific leadership qualities they thought were good (honest, good listening skillls, trustworthy, humble, etc.) and bad ( poor communicator, bad listener, lack of initiative, abusive, etc.). This served as a reminder for the participants to work towards having these good qualities and avoiding the bad ones.
Being IMGLAD Leaders, based on their experiences, they emphasized that a good leader plays an integral role in an organization and that the type of leader selected greatly contributes greatly to the success of the organization. One cannot neglect the impact a good leader has in mobilizing, guiding, and inspiring members toward a certain objective. This is what IMGLAD envisions for its members.
Before and after every topic, pre-tests and post-tests were distributed to assess the learning of the participants. Upon gathering the results, there was a noticeable improvement – the majority of participants did significantly better in the post-tests rather than the pre-tests. What this shows is that during the training, they were able to learn something new about the topics given.
A gathering of queer identities would not be complete without festivities, which is why on the second night of the training, IMGLAD held a solidarity night with its members and leaders. Showcasing their creativity, gowns, stylish kimonos, and faces bright with colors graced the halls of Sea La Vie. The night served as an opportunity to deepen bonds with the other cluster members, relax, and most importantly have fun. Our IMGLAD leaders enjoyed strutting down the venue for the first but most certainly not the last IMGLAD 2022 mini-pageant. Following the pageant, everyone showcased their talents by singing and dancing the night away. The night was truly a night full of festivities. There, new friendships were formed and previous bonds were deepened.
When the training was finally finished IMGLAD Project Manager King Gahum thanked the participants for their active participation and gave the closing remarks. Everyone greeted each other on the way out, sharing contact numbers and Facebook and Instagram accounts, happy to be sharing the advocacy with their queer brothers and sisters.
In the spirit of IMGLAD creating safe spaces, these photos are posted with the consent of the participants.
IMGLAD is currently implementing a project entitled "IMGLAD to Consolidate Pride in Mindanao." This project is hosted by Mindanao Peoples' Peace Movement (MPPM) and supported by Voice. This activity is under the project’s three-pronged strategy, Living the Pride.
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