No delicate matter: ‘Bilat’ trends on Twitter
The term “bilat” went viral on Twitter after Phil Gordon, the National Security Advisor of U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris, used it in a tweet, albeit in an entirely diplomatic context.
On November 222, Gordon tweeted a photo of Harris and President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. at the Malacañang Palace in Manila, taken during a meeting between the two leaders.
Gordon had captioned the photo, “In her bilat w/ President Marcos, @VP reaffirmed the strength of our security Alliance and told Marcos that we want to strengthen our economic and investment ties.”
For while “bilat” in Gordon’s tweet is short for “bilateral,” referring to the bilateral talk between President Marcos and VP Harris, the term actually means something personal and delicate in the Filipino language. With its roots in Cebuano and Visayan, “bilat” refers to the female genitalia and has been adopted into colloquial use in an often lighthearted manner.
Needless to say, Gordon’s tweet inspired jokes and memes that make it worth staying on Twitter.
