A Comparative Analysis of the Attitudes of the Students of University of Santo Tomas and Far Eastern University on Same Sex Marriage

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Prima facea, we are grateful to the God for the good health and wellbeing that were necessary to complete this paper.

We wish to express our sincere thanks to Mr. Gemeniano Bentor, Professor for thesis I,for guiding us in the completion of our thesis and giving us the idea on how to start this paper.

We are also grateful toMr. Reynold Agnes, Professor for Research II. We are thankful and appreciative to him for sharing expertise, and sincere and valuable guidance and encouragement extended to us.

Our sincere thanks to Atty. Jesus Falcis, Thesis Adviser, for the continuous encouragement.

We take this opportunity to express gratitude to all of the student leaders in Far Eastern University and University of Santo Tomas who participated in this study.

To our parents for their help and support. Thank you for the unceasing encouragement, support and attention.

We also place on record, our sense of gratitude to one and all, who directly or indirectly, have lent their hand in this venture.

CHAPTER 1

Introduction

The rights of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender community is currently a hot topic in the Philippines, where LGBTs fight for gender equality. One of which is advocating marriage equality or same-sex marriage. However, according to Cannon (2014), the Philippines is a predominately Catholic country where same-sex marriage cannot legalize or adopt which became the struggle of LGBT groups to pursue marriage equality or even gay rights. In June 1994, PROGAY or the Progressive Organization of Gays in the Philippines together with a local chapter of the Metropolitan Community Church (MCC) organised a pride march in Quezon City coinciding with the 25th anniversary of the Stonewall Inn riots. The Philippines is the first country in Asia to have a pride march. Their purpose is to deprecate a neo-colonial and neo-feudal state that refuse to accept gay and lesbian Filipinos, where they are deprived to have their dignity as people in society. In the last twenty years, the quantity of people supporting the idea of marriage as an elite right of opposite-gender couples has developed (Fontanos, 2015).

The legalization of same-sex marriage of Supreme Court in the United States motivated Filipinos especially LGBT individuals where in fact a few days after, a petition was filed to the Supreme Court by Atty. Jesus Nicardo M. Falcis. The petition is to abolish the prohibition under the Family Code and allow same-sex marriages in the Philippines (Tupaz, 2015). In this move, it clearly shows a manifestation on how a certain individual can make an action on social issues such as same sex marriage. Considering that one of the goals of the researcher is to determine what are the political actions that the respondents will do depending on their perceptions.

Moreover, the researchers chose a university setting on this study for the reason that, according to Boulton and Lucas, universities operate on a complex set of mutually sustaining fronts—they research into the most theoretical and intractable uncertainties of knowledge and yet also seek the practical application of discovery; they test, reinvigorate and carry forward the inherited knowledge of earlier generations; they seek to establish sound principles of reasoning and action which they teach to generations of students. (Boulton & Lucas, 2008) In that matter, the researchers strongly believe that those who are inside the university are capable of understanding social matters and can evaluate such phenomena well because they are exposed with different ideas and concepts.

Given the situations above, this research seeks to understand whether or not the Catholic and non-Catholic community really influences the actions and attitudes of their actors or their environment. Also, the researchers chose this study primarily because it promotes awareness to the students within their respective universities.

The main objective is to compare the attitudes of the students of Far Eastern University and the University of Santo Tomas so that the researchers could evaluate how students behave in social issues such as same sex marriage. Following that we could provide a strong knowledge on how the school as an institution helps them shape their attitude towards same sex marriage and also to distinguish the norms, beliefs, cultureof the university and how effective it is in their attitudes in terms of approving or rejecting same sex marriage. The researchers are also open for some possible factors that could somehow affect their attitudes on same sex marriage. At the end of the study, the researchers are looking forward to provide cogent data as to what are the differences between the two universities and how effective the school as an institution that affectstheir attitudes towards same sex marriage.

Theoretical Framework

This study will use Neo Institutionalism as a tool in analyzing how the school does as an institution affects the attitudes of the students of University of Santo Tomas and Far Eastern University on Same Sex Marriage. The Neo Institutionalism theory discovers how institutional structures, rules, norms, and cultures constrain the choices and actions of individuals when they are part of a political institution (Breuning & Ishiyama, 2011). Students, as part of a political institution, perform actions in their everyday lives which are in relation to the political sphere. This also includes their views and attitude to a certain issue such as same sex marriage. On performing such decisions, institutions such as school were seen as a contributing factor which might affect their views.

School has always been a major part of the learning process of an individual. It is an institution where people gain knowledge on different strands of academic realm and impart people to build their own perspective on things. It is also the place where people gain new knowledge and skills that they will use in the future for their career. This is also the place where people interact and share thoughts about their views on certain issues.School has been the foundation of man in viewing things and decision making. It is also manifested that the school is the responsible for inculcating different ideals which the people is performing in socializing in their community. This is why school was also considered as an aspect on one’s view on same sex marriage.

The idea of neo institutionalism inculcates that organizational practices and structures are often either reflections