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In recent months, particularly since the death of noted gay activist Brian Williamson, gay activists, led by Outrage, have been falling over themselves to fill international media houses with anti-dancehall propaganda. Dancehall music is labeled 'hate music' and 'murder music' in an international context where the term 'hate speech' has very negative connotations.

Eight dancehall artistes -- Beenie Man, Bounti Killa, Buju Banton, Capleton, Elephant Man, Sizzla, TOK and Vybz Cartel -- have been specifically targeted and have had concerts cancelled or picketed by gay activists. So far, the gay activists have claimed center-stage in the propagandising that has characterised this debate.

Our divisive class structure in Jamaica dictates that 'good' citizens must hastily distance themselves from this 'un-Jamaican' pathology of anti-homosexuality, coming from 'dose peeple dung dere in di dancehall' and this has coloured the major percentage of the reactive debates.

FULLY AWARE

I sincerely hope that the committee set up to deal with this issue is fully aware of the contending and contributing factors. This issue is about the historical imperatives handed down by British colonialists that conditioned black Caribbean people to view themselves as sexual beings; it is about patriarchal tenets that support the domination of heterosexual men; it is about the Christian and Rastafari fundamentalism that guides the greater majority of our religious circles; and it is about the rites of passage that dancehall artistes must undergo to claim their authoritative positions as Jamaican wordsmiths. Even more importantly, however, this impasse is about the marketing of dancehall music and culture to the largest possible global audience.

I do not sanction violence against of any sort against any person and believe that we should provide a legal framework that will encourage higher levels of sexual tolerance. The antiquated, colonial sections in our legislation that criminals homosexuality should be expunged as a matter of urgency.

This should not be as a result of pressure from gay or human rights groups, led by white foreigners who feel that it is time for 'those black people in Jamaica to get with the programme'; but rather as a part of a Jamaican thrust to provide a level playing field for all its citizens, regardless of sexual preference.

THE FACT

At the same time, we must be cognisant of the fact that phobias remain even in the midst of legislative reform. Gay activists are quick to liken homophobia to racial persecution and hasten to remind all 'you black people out there' that 'you too are persecuted'. Most Jamaicans living in Jamaica have no understanding of racial persecution. This understanding comes from living in the more 'tolerant' climes of developed, white societies. I have faced racist interactions during my time here in the USA, even with legislation in place to protect the rights of black people. Similarly in many developed societies, gay men and women still continue to face great persecution that includes beatings and murder, even when there is legislation that guarantees their sexual rights.

There is no statistical data to support spurious claims that Jamaica is one of the most homophobic societies in the world. What is true is that Jamaicans are very passionate and expressive. This is reflected in the creative expressions that colour Jamaican creole and dancehall slang. Dancehall music is now more than twenty years old, and there have been no reported incidents of dancehall fans murdering homosexuals in response to dancehall lyrics. There have been no factual reports of dancehall deejays beating or murdering homosexuals.

QUESTION

It is, therefore, critical for us to question the vociferous and explicit nature of the anti-homosexual dialogue in the society since the late 1990s. My research shows that this rise in anti-homosexual dancehall lyrics is a direct result of the progressive unmasking of (male) homosexuality since the late 1990s. This is reflected in growing numbers of openly homosexual television programmes broadcast during prime-time on cable television stations that are accessible to Jamaicans. These include Will and Grace, Queer as Folk and Queer Eye for the Straight Guy.

Many popular sitcoms also broadcast episodes that feature actors as homosexual men and women. The formation of J-FLAG in December 1998 acted as another catalyst when it raised the visibility of proud, gay Jamaican men and women. Homosexuality in Jamaica has been tolerated for many decades, cloaked under a hypocritical kind of 'respectable' silence as long as gays 'do their thing' in private and the response to the open panorama of homosexuality since the 1990s has generally been cloaked in this same 'respectable' silence. On the other hand dancehall's extreme response has been the very public increase in anti-homosexual lyrics. In its early years dancehall lyrics mentioned gay men (or women) in a line or two of a song. Now entire songs are devoted to condemning male homosexuality as an abomination that threatens to corrupt and overturn Jamaican society, like the Biblical example of Sodom and Gomorrah.