This year, the International Examiner will award its Community Voice Award in Leadership in Arts & Culture to two long-time Seattle luminaries Aleksa Manila and Arnaldo Inocentes.
Their work in Seattle’s drag and LGBTQ+ communities has continued to uplift the city. Manila is founder of Pride Asia Fest, and Inocentes is a founding member along with drag performer Gaysha Starr. The Pride Asia Fest is a one-day annual event held at Hing Hay Park that celebrates LGBTQ+ ANHPIA communities through performances and advocacy. This year, Pride Asia Fest celebrated its 12 year anniversary as a staple for Seattle’s LGBTQ+ community.
Pride Asia Fest is held the last weekend before June, symbolizing the merging of AAPI Heritage Month in May and the start of Pride Month in June. Manila and Inocentes wanted to create a space for the queer ANHPIA community, intentionally choosing to hold it in the Chinatown International District (CID).
“It was a way to remind mainstream communities to come down to the CID,” Manila said, “And a way to celebrate and honor small business owners and restaurants.”
Since its beginnings, Pride Asia Fest has expanded in performances and activities. It has hosted keynote speakers, lion dancers, and grassroots organizations like United Territories of Pacific Islanders Alliance Washington (UTOPIA Washington) and PFLAG to participate in their celebration. The festival became a way for local organizations to shine while allowing queer AAPI members to see the communities in Washington for them.
Aside from Pride Asia, Manila and Inocentes have built distinguished careers in performance, social activism and community service.
Inocentes grew up in the Philippines, where life was steeped in Catholicism. When he immigrated to America, he “just wanted to belong, get a job, buy a house, and help my family.” However, his love of performance and music landed him in the Seattle Men’s Chorus (SMC).
Inocentes’s endeavor of belonging was soon tampered with when he was asked to perform drag on the Men’s Chorus stage. At the time, there had been a ten year ban of performing drag on stage. They didn’t want to promote the stereotype of being gay. Inocentes was asked to be the first, challenging his own values of quietly assimilating into American culture.
He decided to perform and went on to become a SMC soloist, performing in major concert halls in the US, Europe, New Zealand, and Australia. In 1995, Inocentes started his own group called the Cabaret Q where his “Drag Chanteuse” personality was born. His tagline states, “Opening hearts and minds through music one cabaret at a time.” Since then, Inocentes has been doing just that through his solo cabaret shows across the nation and the starting of his Pacific Northwest Cabaret Association.
“That’s why I’m doing shows in drag because that’s my social activism,” Inocentes said. “Being in drag is a political statement already…and the power of the performances and music, on top of the power of the appearance, really helps people open up their perspective.”
Today, Inocentes is a pillar within the LGBTQ+ and AAPI community. He is an ambassador for Pride Asia and continues to perform while working at Microsoft and helping with their Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion initiatives.
“Social activist by day, socialite by night,” Manila has taken on similar roles as Inocentes as a community leader and ambassador. Originally also from the Philippines, Manila is a social worker and therapist with her own practice in Seattle’s Chinatown International District where she provides services focused on LGBTQ+ and BIPIOC individuals.
By night, Manila is celebrated for her drag personality and showcases. She is sought out as an emcee, performer, and speaker, and has garnered awards such as Miss Gay Seattle, Seattle Filipino Community Lifetime Achievement, and Empress to Empress.
Like Inocentes, Manila’s drag and professional careers have evolved as she’s discovered how drag can be both activism and a form of identity. She’s used drag in its simplest terms of performance where it’s palatable to society, but has also used it politically as a form of activism.
“For me, drag isn’t just a simple term…it’s become an extension of who I truly am,” Manila said, “It used to be an on and off switch as a way of self-preservation, but now I realize it can co-exist with [my professional career].”
Today, Manila and Inocentes continue their work on Pride Asia while supporting each other’s roles throughout Seattle. Pride Asia continues to host other events for the community such as Dim Sum Dialogues and their annual fundraiser Rice Ball.
“I am so eternally grateful for our friendship,” Manila said, “Because that’s how it really all started…I’m so inspired to do what I do now because of [it].”
Inocentes echoes Manila’s sentiments and adds that he hopes their work continues to provide space for those who haven’t found a home in their queerness or Asian identity. He hopes those who have been disowned in their youth or who feel isolated as an elder will continue to have a space to come and gather.
“Alexa and I will not be here forever,” Inocentes said, “My hope is that what we’ve created will continue to provide space for music, community, art….that it will continue to grow without us.”
This year’s Community Voice Awards benefit dinner will be at Ding Feng Restaurant on Sept. 27, 2024 at 6 p.m. Tickets can be purchased online: givebutter.com/fkO6ZI
