A formerly anti-gay reggae star returns to Jamai. This lbian poet lls ‘plited.’ | The World om PRX

Contents:

• JAMAI'S ANTI-GAY 'MURR MIC' CARRI VLENT MSAGE
• BRYKA SAYS ‘NOT AT ALL’ IS NOT ‘ANTI-GAY ANTHEM’
• PRO-GAY REGGAE SGER FI JAMAIN HOMOPHOBIA
• GAYS PROTT HOMOPHOBIC DANCEHALL REGGAE LYRICS
• A FORMERLY ANTI-GAY REGGAE STAR RETURNS TO JAMAI. THIS LBIAN POET LLS ‘PLITED.’
• FANS AND SPONSORS ABANDON REGGAE FTIVAL OVER ANTI-GAY SONG LYRICS
• JAMAI: BEENIE MAN APOLOGIZ TO THE GAY COMMUNY
• GRAMMY AWARD GIVEN TO JAMAIN SGER OF ANTI-GAY ‘MURR MIC’
• ANTI-GAY LYRICS REGGAE TARGETED
• ANTI-GAY MIC
• THE 50 BT GAY SONGS TO CELEBRATE PRI ALL YEAR LONG

JAMAI'S ANTI-GAY 'MURR MIC' CARRI VLENT MSAGE

But fet Bob Marley and Peter Tosh sgg about peace and love; the days some of reggae's biggt acts are jt as likely to be advotg the killg of homosexuals their mic.

Tatchell has recently succeed nvcg some of the most notorly homophobic figur reggae and dancehall mic to stop sgg vlently anti-gay lyrics like Jamai-based artist Capleton's h "More Prophet": "Shoulda. Buju Banton — whose smash h om the 1990s "Boom Bye Bye" also advot the shootg and burng of gay men — last week signed the "reggae passnate act" after a three-year mpaign by Stop Murr Mic. Banton, a Grammy-nomated artist who broke Bob Marley's rerd of most number one sgl a year on the Jamain charts, pledged to "rpect" the rights of gays to live whout fear of vlence.

BRYKA SAYS ‘NOT AT ALL’ IS NOT ‘ANTI-GAY ANTHEM’

He is the latt a seri of high-profile artists, cludg Beenie Man and Sizzla, to sign the claratn after worldwi protts om gay rights groups rulted the ncellatn of hundreds of ncerts and sponsorship als, stg the artists an timated US$5 ln. The news about Banton was weled by gay rights groups Jamai, where attacks on gay people are mon and sodomy laws left over om Bra's lonial-era still prohib gay sex. Sce "Boom Bye Bye" was released the early 1990s there has been a rrpondg rise homophobic vlence the Caribbean, although 's difficult to tell which me first — the mic or the vlence.

Acrdg to Jamain gay rights group J-Flag — which ref to give out s addrs the pal, Kgston, "due to the potential for vlent retributns" — the rise homophobic vlence culmated reports of crowds lynchg spected homosexuals after ncerts. "It's a big posive step forward to get four of the top reggae artist to nmn anti-gay vlence, " says Tatchell, whose group was ially rid as racist when they began picketg reggae ncerts the U. "Blamg micians for homophobia is like blamg gangsta rappers for gang vlence, " says Dorian Lynskey on the London-based Guardian newspaper's popular mic blog.

PRO-GAY REGGAE SGER FI JAMAIN HOMOPHOBIA

For Nap and other reggae purists, most of the homophobia has been generated by dancehall mic — the genre's aggrsive offsprg — and is not nsired to be a te example of the reggae ials of peace and mutual tolerance. "Explicly, you uld say there is a problem [of homophobia] reggae and dancehall, but 's every type of mic to a certa extent, " says Stuart Baker, owner of the Sounds of the Universe reggae rerd shop London and the rerd-label Soul Jazz. Stop Murr Mic have their sights on four other big reggae acts who have a big ternatnal dience and are still nsired to be homophobic: Elephant Man, TOK, Vybz Kartel and Bounty Killa.

GAYS PROTT HOMOPHOBIC DANCEHALL REGGAE LYRICS

Supporters of the micians “say we’re attackg the artists bee they’re homophobic, ” said Brish human rights activist Peter Tatchell, ternatnal ordator of Stop Murr Mic.

Acrdg to the Jamai Fom of Lbians, All-Sexuals and Gays (J-FLAG), Jamai’s only anizatn promotg LGBT rights, mobs asslted at least 98 gay men and lbians between Febary and July 2007 alone.

The source of another oft-repeated statistic, that at least 35 Jamains have been killed sce 1997 solely for beg gay, is unknown; is monly but wrongly attributed to Amnty Internatnal.

A FORMERLY ANTI-GAY REGGAE STAR RETURNS TO JAMAI. THIS LBIAN POET LLS ‘PLITED.’

In any se, powerful taboos agast gays Jamai make pilg accurate statistics on anti-gay hate crim difficult bee victims and their fai are aaid to e forward. As a rult, gay men are sentially viewed as crimals, makg nearly impossible for them to brg plats about vlence to the police. In 2002, the People’s Natnal Party took on the slogan “Log On to Progrs” — a reference to the dancehall song “Log On” by Elephant Man (seen 473, 400 tim on s most popular YouTube vio), which also featur vlent anti-gay lyrics: Log on, and step pon chi chi man / Log on om yu know seh yu nuh ickie man.

Loted Kgston — ground zero for murr mic — J-FLAG provis up-to-date rmatn on songs, artists and anti-gay vlence and acts as a general rource for Jamai’s LGBT muny, assistg wh hog, medil re, legal plats, and other civil and human rights issu.

In June 2004, J-FLAG -founr Brian Williamson, one of the only openly gay public figur Jamai, was stabbed to ath his home. “The Kg of Dancehall stuck a sword of words to gay people, ” enthed Uganda’s Daily Monor after Beenie Man’s December 2009 performance Kampala.

FANS AND SPONSORS ABANDON REGGAE FTIVAL OVER ANTI-GAY SONG LYRICS

Uganda is perhaps the most vilently anti-gay untry on the pla: In 2009, a member of parliament proposed to stiffen already harsh penalti for sodomy by addg the ath penalty for gay “repeat offenrs, ” those who engage same-sex acts wh mors, and people wh HIV/AIDS.

Increasgly aware that overt referenc to vlent acts towards gays uld damage their marketabily abroad, artists walk the le by ventg new slang and makg their lyrics more obscure.

JAMAI: BEENIE MAN APOLOGIZ TO THE GAY COMMUNY

“My song is not an anti gay anthem, do not ce vlence towards gay jt fends our morals and beliefs and addrs a normal everyday topic that is sang about all the time dancehall, ” Bryka explaed. Ground-breakg pro-gay Jamain reggae sger Mista Majah P, aka The Maverick and the Kg of Tolerance, has lnched a two-part stgg vio rebe to the homophobia and murr mic of Bounty Killer, Sizzla and other top Jamain reggae and dancehall sgers. In addn, his latt vio sgle Karma is a warng to the artists that the hate and vlence they sow will rebound on them; cg the personal disasters and disgrace that have befallen many of Jamai’s leadg anti-gay performers.

Featurg rabow strip on the ver, the album clus 13 tchy tracks, varly support of same-sex marriage and adoptn rights for gay upl, as well as attacks on homophobic bullyg and the now funct US anti-gay ary policy, Don’t Ask Don’t Tell. The songs also feature direct swip at the anti-gay prejudic of reggae sger Beenie Man and of the former Jamain Prime Mister Bce Goldg.

They also appeal to parents to not reject their LGBT children and nmn the Jamain tenncy to blame gay victims for their own murrs. Such lyrics are unprecented the hard-man world of Jamain reggae and dancehall mic, where eight of the bt known performers have, for over a , ma homophobic murr mic a staple part of their repertoire – varly cg and glorifyg the shootg, burng, hangg and drowng of LGBT people.

GRAMMY AWARD GIVEN TO JAMAIN SGER OF ANTI-GAY ‘MURR MIC’

Appalled by the rptn and basement of reggae’s “One Love” ethos, Mista Majah P is challengg homophobic sgers a new and different way – wh mic that damns and refut their bigotry.

“My hope is that this will break down the homophobic stance that certa reggae artists and heads of (Jamain) ernment have taken towards the LGBT muny.

ANTI-GAY LYRICS REGGAE TARGETED

Sce releasg his pro-gay mic, Mista Majah P has received numero ath threats and has been warned to not return to Jamai (he currently ris California). He’s unterred and fiant, statg that homophobic murr mic has given reggae a negative image, which is bad for the mic dtry and for all reggae artists:.

“As long as there is homophobic people, hatred, bigotry, ath and no equal rights for the LGBT muny I will ntue to e my talent and speak out about jtice.

ANTI-GAY MIC

Words well spoken by a pneerg performer who is bravely breakg the homophobic mould of much Jamain reggae and dancehall mic. While Buju Banton’s “Boom bye bye” is still the song people thk of where reggae dancehall’s anti-homosexualy msage is ncerned, is far om beg the first dancehall or reggae song of that nature.

THE 50 BT GAY SONGS TO CELEBRATE PRI ALL YEAR LONG

Te dancehall reggae fans know that before Banton’s song, one of his stnch supporters, Shabba Ranks, did a song lled “Mma Man duck” which was jt as anti-gay as the Buju Banton’s anthem. Jamains and other reggae fans often say that Bob Marley did the first anti-homosexual song ‘Who the p f’ when he sgs that “Man to man is so unjt”. While that is jt tongue--cheek, Bob Marley probably did rerd the first anti-homosexual song reggae, unls there was another such song rerd prr to 1973.

So when Bob Marley says that “To their problems seems there is no solutn”; he is thkg that maybe homosexuals are born that way but he is not que sure. Gays Prott Homophobic Dancehall Reggae Lyrics Day to Day producer Christopher Johnson reports that many gay rights activists are prottg agast some dancehall reggae artists who feature homophobic lyrics their mic.

Day to Day producer Christopher Johnson reports that many gay rights activists are prottg agast some dancehall reggae artists who feature homophobic lyrics their mic.