Lucan Eugenio

Sa totoo lang, wala naman akong na-experience na major discrimination or challenges in my career just because I’m LGBTQIA+ member. Siguro nakatulong na yung mga naging workplace ko, like UERM and UP, are open-minded and professional environments. Wala naman naging issue when it comes to how I express myself or how I interact with colleagues and library users. Pero syempre, may challenges pa rin, not necessarily because of my identity, pero more on the realities of being in the profession. Like, sa UERM, nung bago pa lang ako, kailangan ko talagang mag-adjust sa medical librarianship kasi iba yung field. Wala akong background sa medical terms and resources, so I had to learn on the job, ask colleagues, and really study the materials. Medyo intimidating at first, pero I took it as a learning experience. Sa UP naman, mas naging demanding yung trabaho in terms of responsibilities. Mas maraming projects, committees, events, and research work, so kailangan ko talagang mag-step up and mag laan ng oras. Dito ko rin na-develop yung multitasking skills ko, especially sa organizing events, while doing archival work and reference services. Kung meron mang challenge related to being LGBTQIA+, siguro yung pressure to always be ‘visible’ or to take on roles that represent the community. Minsan may expectation na kailangan mong maging outspoken or advocate all the time, pero hindi naman laging ganun. Sa hosting, parang automatic na iniisip ng iba na kapag beks ka, kaya mo mag-host. They assume na lahat ng members ng community are extroverts na sanay ma-expose sa maraming tao—which isn’t always the case diba. Well, ang ginagawa ko na lang is to contribute in ways that feel natural to me, whether through my work, projects, or simply by being present and supportive in the workplace, mga best in attendance ang atake natin. Ay, meron pala akong na-experience. Hindi naman siguro discrimination, pero napaisip ako, parang I questioned myself in a way. May isang event na part ako ng working committee, and I think four days iyon. May assigned rooms kami, at hindi naman ako nagulat na pinagsama kami ng isa pang beks, which was okay kasi I got to know him, and we had the best experience since nag-click yung personality namin. That time, hindi ko naman inisip na may something. Pero the year after, same event, same working committee ako, pero yung kasama ko sa room noon ay hindi na part ng working committee. So, ako na lang yung natitirang member ng community, ata kasi di ko sure isa kung out. Ang ginawa nila, pinag-isa nila ako sa (relatively) big room na parang naging storage space na rin ng ibang gamit. So, ano gagawin? Hindi ko alam, pero it just felt off that time. Parang may something lang na nagpa-question sa akin kung bakit ganun yung naging setup. Pero dedma naman, nag work at kumayod naman po ako sa event.

Workplace Challenges