by Lindy Gamolo

We may not be American citizens but our hearts were filled with joy and we celebrated with them as the US Supreme Court ruled to legalize same-sex marriage on June 26, 2015. Yes, this means same-sex couples can marry in all 50 states and no state can ban it.

I don’t know about you guys but I truly feel joyous with them. I personally believe the right to marry is a fundamental right of every human being, regardless of gender. And it was indeed a historic victory for Americans for granting the right to same-sex couples.

As I see it, the same might not be happening in the near future for our country, nonetheless every LGBT rights advocate around the world (including us!) feels triumphant with this development and is ever more hopeful that one day the law that governs our homeland recognizes and upholds such human right.

So while Bookbed is also celebrating its fifth birthday this month, why not have a double celebration?! Cheers for milestones! And as we celebrate with all LGBTs and advocates around the world, we will be looking at libraries, bookshops or publishing houses that specialize on LGBT literature.

I browsed my bookmark collection and found the perfect ones for this topic! These are free bookmarks (bookmarks we find in bookshops, libraries, or any events given away for free) from Spain and the Philippines.

Libreria Berkana

Berkana is a specialized bookshop located in Madrid that sells books, movies, magazines, music and clothing for the gay community. They also host FREE magazines on nightlight and other gay-focused activities in Madrid and around Spain.

So if you happen to be in Madrid now as you read this article or are going to Madrid sooner or later, pay a visit to Libreria Berkana for some LGBT literature.

El Pais Aguilar

El Pais-Aguilar is one of the leading publishers in the field of travel publications in Spain and in the Latin American countries. As the bookmark suggests (yes, we read Spanish… we wish!), they have also published guides on favorite places gays might enjoy visiting. If you want to buy books or do business with them, contact them through their website.

Gay’s the Word Bookshop

Founded in 1979, Gay’s the Word has one of the best collections of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender literature in the world. It is the only specifically lesbian and gay bookstore in the UK. It also hosts regular book events and discussion group.

Yeah, we know these entail having a visa and unlimited cash for us Filipino readers to get to these places, but don’t worry! We have a few of our own here (we wish there were more) so no need to fly on a plane. Here are three that we recommend you check out:

LGBT Studies Collection at University of the Philippines Diliman Center for Women Studies (UP CWS) Library

UP CWS has a section in their library dedicated entirely for LGBT-themed academic resource collection. It’s the first in the university (and maybe even in the country?). It is open to all students (including non-UP students), scholars, advocates and the general public for FREE. And there’s an online public access catalog (OPAC) readily available here!

Location: Magsaysay Street corner Ylanan Street, UP Diliman, Quezon City, Philippines

Contact: +632 9818500 local 4229

Opening hours: 9:00 a.m.-5:00 P.M. (Mondays thru Fridays)

“The mission of a library is to connect people and knowledge. We are pursuing this goal by creating a safe, supportive, and welcoming space full of books and other resources on LGBT studies that is open to the public.”

—Eric Julian Manalastas, Deputy Director for Research of Publication and Resource Collection at the UP CWS Library

Rainbow Connection

Rainbow Connection is an event-based manga and library cafe specializing in LGBT-themed books and manga. You can contact them through their Facebook page for any queries. (The last post was in 2012, however, but you can still try!)

Redbridge

Redbridge is a company dedicated to publishing original books for and by the Filipino gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, and queer (GLBTQ) community. It aims to be the premier GLBTQ book publishing company in the country and in Asia. It also leads seminar-workshops in GLBTQ writing, editing and publishing.

Contact: +632 4144305, +632 5479577, +632 9189644671

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