Rica Salomon Does Not Wish to Redefine Womanhood

MY WOMANHOOD DOES NOT TAKE ANYTHING AWAY FROM CIS WOMEN'S EXPERIENCES.

- By MICHAEL ROY BROSAS

Defining womanhood has turned into a tool to invalidate queer identities, especially those of trans women, and enable the normalization of violence against them.

Despite the growing understanding of gender as a spectrum, transphobes continue to reduce womanhood to body parts and reproductive functions, erasing lived experiences. Rather than recognizing womanhood as a deeply personal and profound journey, they cling to rigid and outdated frameworks to justify their prejudice.

As Simone de Beauvoir wrote, "One is not born, but rather becomes, a woman." Womanhood is not just biology—it's resilience, self-discovery, and, for many, breaking free from societal expectations. Trans women, in particular, navigate a world that demands both explanation and apology for their existence. Yet, they continue to live boldly and beautifully.

The Philippine STAR sat down with content creator and queer rights advocate Rica Salomon for an online interview on what it means to be a woman.

The Philippine STAR: When did you start forming your own definition of a woman?

RICA SALOMON: Mulan was released when I was in second grade. I used to tell my classmates that, like Mulan, I was a girl pretending to be a boy. Even then, I already knew that, despite it not being reflected externally, I was a girl. I just didn't have the vernacular for it yet.

Early on my transition, I thought that for my womanhood to be valid, I had to look and act a certain way. It was only after high school that I got to express my womanhood. It was me realizing that I get to decide what being a woman is because womanhood is a lived experience. I may be experiencing it differently than cis women, but it doesn't make it less valid.