Man robbed of smartphone by homeless gays

Another in a series of accusations by not only gay men but members of the public of them being relieved or attempts at robbery by homeless gays downtown has come to light, muggings have been almost commonplace recently if not by only gays but also other characters but the gays get blamed for it. This one hit close to home however as it involved as the victim a member of the GLBTQ Jamaica associated workshop series who was distraught after his Samsung S6 instrument he recently got as a gift was taken from him at knifepoint on the waterfront around 7pm last evening. His wearing of a white Bluetooth headset did not help the situation as it is used as a sign of what type of instrument one has on their person; I have been warning some folks to be very careful where one goes wearing such headsets or ear pieces as it is a marker for how expensive one’s possible device maybe on their person.

7pm by the Office Centre building (the old National Security Ministry office) the victim was waiting for a friend who he had made arrangements; the area is dotted with almond trees and tends to block the overhead security lights and the nearby street lights the young man also thought that since the area is populated given the nearby Digicel headquarters with active nightlife plus the construction work of the nearby old Pegasus hotel building and Pirate’s Cove things such as this may not happen and is also friendly with some of the homeless gays/trans who traverse the area on a regular. He was approached by one of the guys who he knew from a previous party he had seen him at and therefore never assumed he would not be a threat who demanded his phone and headset.

The victim refused at first to accede to the demand thinking it was a joke but soon realised he was not in any comedy as another man who reportedly recently came from jail joined dint he robbery attempt, both drew knives and proceeded to tell the man that more robberies will take place as no one is helping them and that persons take them for fools or softies. He was told not to make any noise as one held the knife at his face while relieving him of the instrument along with the headset and cash amounting to $2000. The other ‘banger’ phone the man had was not taken apparently as the robbers saw no value in that. His bag he had on him was also searched and a backup battery for the device was also taken. The nervous man tried to ask why but was told to shut up according to his report and the robbers proceeded to tell him again that others will be robbed if they make their way downtown or otherwise.

The frightened young man was left alone after the ordeal and he ended up using the banger to make a call to his intended party for the meeting explaining his dilemma; they subsequently met somewhere else where he was assisted with some cash, the matter was not reported to the police as at the time of this entry being prepared but he was encouraged to do so, the safety and tracking features were not activated which only makes any attempts to locate and possibly retrieve the device almost futile as there is not trace to guide such efforts. It also in June of this year that another robbery took place on the waterfront; and the same characters are suspected to be involved, despite the fact that the police station sits right beside the craft market and the Digicel head office.

Challenges continue to abound as homelessness that has been left to languish continues just so with piecemeal interventions, feedings and such with falsified presentations on social media giving the impression that all is well or it is being addressed. New Kingston has been slowly heating up as well with everything from clashes with newer female commercial sex workers to shootings to robberies and clashes with members of the public with one unconfirmed stabbing matter in June. In May also a matter came up for mention in the St Andrew parish court involving another phone robbery matter involving a vendor on Orange street where it turned out that the vendor was no vendor and that others who were in cahoots with the crime were implicated, the court heard that on April 6 the complainant a man was walking on Orange Street when he was approached by the alleged vendor by falsely accusing the victim (the complainant) of all people of stealing his phone, in the deceptive switch-a-roo strategy two others joined in to supposedly quell the matter by taking the victim’s phone and handing it to the accused, experienced judge Judith Pusey is not one to tolerate such matters and is used to gays in her courtroom accused of all kinds of crimes and deception and she would have none of it.

Pusey asked the accused if his phone was stolen they why did not he report the matter to which he answered he did not think about it at the time. The matter was held over on May 2 and subsequently the accused was found guilty. Turned out he was member of the homeless group in downtown not reached by the aforementioned piecemeal initiatives by some. Sad that after near forty years of some kind of organised LGBT advocacy and such with hard evidence of outcomes from stigma and discrimination leading to homelessness no sensible response is yet to come from the agencies so able to do simply refusing to act but find it necessary to just keep the populations just hanging.

Montego Bay and other parishes is also having their fair share of challenges as numbers increase and the age cohort becoming ever so younger. What is next?

Peace & tolerance

H

also see:

Homeless trans & MSM clash with public on waterfront

Sizzla's Publicist says no show was cancelled in the US

So Sizzla recently got his US visa back after years of bashing folks who ae gay like me and while having a month long so called and advertised Sizzla month activities in his August Town community to include a human rights day and an environment day.

... Publicist says no show was cancelled in the US

Reggae artiste Sizzla Kalonji has denied allegations that his current US tour has been severely damaged by protests from the homosexual community.

According his publicist, Olimatta Taal, who spoke on his behalf, the media has been trying to exaggerate the situation for a headline.

She explained that there was one gay protest, which only resulted in a change of venue, but she insisted that no show was cancelled.

"The venue was changed for our September 23 show, but, other than that, every other show has been filled to capacity. We changed one venue to Oakland and the fans will be there because Sizzla has been doing over two-hour sets, and delivering over 50 songs at each show. We have had patrons from all races and they have been reciting the music," she told THE STAR.

BAFFLED

The publicist said she is baffled that some media outlets would seek to hurt Sizzla's reputation given his value to reggae music.

"The vibration has been so phenomenal when you see the love that the people have for Sizzla. It's so hard to understand why he gets such a fight when all he has been doing is promoting love, happiness, and joy through his music. Don't get me wrong, his beliefs are his beliefs, but his fans love him for who he is, and they support him 100 per cent," she said.

Taal also rubbished claims that Sizzla Kalonji's US visa was revoked in 2008.

"His visa was never revoked, his visa expired and was not renewed when he applied. The misinformation that the media put out about Sizzla and other artistes are the things that hurt their careers," Taal told THE STAR.

Sizzla was recently reissued a work permit and is understandably one of the most sought after reggae acts in the United States according to those who support him. On the other hand those who are against his anitgay vitriol laden lyrics see things rather differently.

also see:

Sizzla Rejects J-FLAG Olive Branch .......... oh really? 2012

Sizzla show stopped in Canada 2009

Deejays seek Obama's help for visa ..... there are consequences for actions & words 2015

Sizzla Locked Up After 'Cussing' Cops In Station (yet again) 2015

Let us see where this goes now he has a visa.

Peace & tolerance

H

Man charged for assault of gay prisoner

A matter recently involving an alleged gay inmate at a medium security facility came to light in July as another inmate accused of assault was slapped with a charge after he attacked the victim for being gay. The remand centre a place I am all too familiar with during my own incarceration there in 1996 for of all things alleged buggery was reportedly the scene of a brawl involving a gay man accused of looking too long at other men having their morning shower in the open bathing stalls. I recall another incident during my time there of a man who was kicked in the face by inmates who claimed he was too fixed staring on them owing to the fact that many persons only wore underpants or boxers which displayed penis prints which obviously would attract any gay man’s attention.

During the daily routines where prisoners with minor charges are allowed to take their showers supposedly under supervision to avoid fights and such (do not drop your soap either as you may be accused of being gay) the accused gay man was also waiting in line to have his shower prior to breakfast serving. In what amounted to a cellblock shanking he was accused of watching the other male prisoners for too long taking their showers albeit in their underpants as is customary. Persons do not bathe in the nude as that is considered to be an invitation to gays and one  can be also accused of being gay as well.

The main protagonist said he noticed the attention being placed by the victim on himself as he lathered or soaped himself up before washing off. He wondered out aloud why the gay prisoner was staring at him for so long and proceeded to accuse him of being a battyman. Such charges even if they are not true tend to stick once made especially very loudly and consistently by the accuser. This is not the first time such allegations have been made by other inmates to fellow ones as it is often used to intimidate persons or belittle others in the alpha male struggle for dominance or power in such settings. The man was attacked by the accuser and others who cornered him and eventually pushed him away from the shower line so as to avoid him supposedly having anymore viewing capabilities. He was subsequently slapped up and assaulted by other men who left a mark on his right hand as he tried to block some of the attacks.

The matter was reported to the block supervisor as things got louder when other prisoners with more serious crimes who were still on lock down supposedly wanted a ‘piece’ of him. Shower time usually consists of lesser crime charged inmates bathing first then hardened ones coming after. The cops arrived as the facility does not have warders like other maximum security structures do, the chief protagonist was pointed out alongside the man who inflicted the wound on his hand, it was he who was charged with the assault while the other prisoners were warned not to let this happen again. Some prisoners were upset that the police seemed more concerned about protecting gays (battyman) than bashing them as is expected to be normative. The matter was brought up in parish court on the same day as the ongoing matter that was scheduled to be dealt with. When asked by the judge reportedly as to why he attacked the man the accused said he did not like gays and that the man was looking at him too much as he showered.

There have been other challenges similar to this one at other lockups and maximum security facilities as more and more gays find themselves in trouble with the law. A gay lotto scammer for example in April who was being pressured to pay some sort of extortion fee in exchange for protection was allegedly beaten while in custody by inmates as his bleached looked and tattoos were said to be too feminine looking and that he was ‘mean’

There was a stabbing incident in 2015 of an inmate who was accused of being gay despite he was in the slammer for wounding with intent, a fight had occurred with a cellmate who insisted he should have been put to another cell as he was not prepared to share that space with a ‘fish’ (derogatory colloquial term for gay man), the victim apparently was too masculine for his abuse and both ended up in a fight which led to the stabbing as the outcome on the hand of the victim via a ‘dog’ (cellblock term for a poniard or makeshift pointed device) the man was also charged but the outcome of that case is unknown while the victim was released from the facility as he served his time for the previous charge(s).

There is the business of cell slavery as it were where prospective slaveholders will sometimes use intimidating innuendo, as opposed to overt threats of violence, which the prospective slave unwillingly accepts, thereby disguising the coercive nature of the sexual activity from even the enslaver. Slaves might not even see themselves as being coerced, if the enslavement is negotiated as repayment for a debt o sex for favours or 'gay for the stay' phenomenon. Also, some consider themselves transformed into a homosexual. There have been unofficial accounts in which an inmate is coerced in this way. It is however argued by some experts that in prison, consent is inherently illusory.

It can be a tough ride in jail or prison speaking from experience and one has to be very observant and whistle and ride as it were just for survival sake. A simple allegation can lead to all kinds of problems as one serves time or is in remand. Lest we forget the mass murders in the 1997 prison riots with several persons who were killed not being gay but by mere accusations coupled with the febrile environment linked to the call by some to distribute condoms in prisons. Other smaller riots have had outcomes similar to that of 1997 such as one at the general penitentiary, GP which has a reputation of housing and having more homosexuals than other facilities (the ‘Kid Ralph’ character comes to mind) 1980s riots. Old feuds, rival inmates and gangs used the 1997 furore to label each other as suspected gays and as cell block shankings always become they give justifications for abuse and killings in some instances. Substitutional sex is a subject also that no one seems to want to touch as it does happen in our lockups, either by extended incarceration or bisexuality or other reasons men do get involved sexually with other men but may not go all the way to anal sex as that is still seen in the eyes of some as abhorrent. So oral sex or intercrural sex are the more preferred options.

Intercrural sex is the placing of an erect penis between the legs of the intended passive partner to fake the feeling of vaginal or anal penetration while other sexual play is restricted so as kissing and such as those are seen as too cuddling or effeminate driven. The psychology suggests that the fantasy of the persons involved is for a woman but the situation is only a means to an end very physical contact with very strict rules of engagement.

Peace & tolerance

H

also see:

Buggery Accused Tried to Commit Suicide in Lockup 

Another phone in body cavity story .. the third in succession, what's up Star News? 2011

Should prisoners get conjugal visits? 

Situational Homosexuality or Behavioral Bisexuality 2009


Inmate attacks alleged gay prisoner 2014


Review condom policy for prisoners ........ 2011

Do Prisoners Have a Right to Condoms? ...... 2011

Male Rape .... nobody wants to talk about it

Bolt can sleep with whomever but not a man!

Bolt with another woman as revealed by the UK's mirror

So as the controversy grows on Usain Bolt’s supposed indiscretions with a Brazilian twenty year old woman specifically and other groupies many Jamaicans have been weighing in on the matter. Sadly Mr Bolt ought to have learnt on this and how these things have a way of materializing into something else; especially with the age of social media madness and dart boarding of popular figures he ought to have been more careful. It was only a short time before in Brazil upon his arrival other photos appeared with what appeared to be the typical ‘groupies’ a local commentator warned on radio of him and other male athletes especially as some persons are sent to simply expedite controversies for tabloids and now here we are. Bolt needs to understand he is no ordinary celebrity and that he is seen by many including young ones as a role model whether he likes the titles and or responsibility or not.

In the haze of it all a subtext has emerged that Bolt is justified in having sex with whomever he wants to so long as it is not a man, or enjoying his hetero-normative privilege, in other in misogynistic terms women are objects and the supposed love interest must also accept Bolt’s and the others who engage in groupie loving can do as they please with multiple female partners but as for men that is off limits. People seem to forget just basic boundaries and respect, lest we forget what happened to other sports stars or icons however we may seem them such as Tiger Woods, Kobe Bryant or Mike Tyson and so called groupies. The perceived sexual orientation and or sexual exploits of such public figures should not be the material for public consumption as it is being luridly presented by tabloids that are making a killing at this; it is as if they were waiting for a crack to wade into it to take him down or sell millions via clicks online for advertisers for profit.

A vox pop on RJR’s Beyond the Headlines left me rather disturbed to see the values or lack thereof people place on public figures and what is ‘permitted’ by celebrities versus ordinary souls. Only one man of the twelve persons who commented seemed to have gotten the proper gist of appropriateness and non-judgemental concerns as to the sexual exploits of public persons and more about performance in the case of Bolt, some others while adding the female only caveat in the same breath strangely cautioned Bolt to be careful

So if Bolt was in bed with a man then his achievements would have been lesser than those of a heterosexual? I am not surprised at this with even women making some bizarre comments such as Bolt just by being a celebrity he is to be shared with other women simply because he is a ‘man’ meaning he has full proxy to do as he pleases, but what about the dignity of the women involved? But if it were a man then he is not worthy of any ‘big ups’ or respect. To be a man in Jamaican terms is to be highly sexualised with a woman or women as is evidenced in the heaps of praise the tabloid story is getting from other men locally on social media. The dignity of the Olympic achievement seems now lost and Bolt’s legacy seems muddied by this if he and his team around him do not address this before it gets out of hand. UK tabloids in particular have described his encounters to include threesomes and such, reduced to just another stud that happens to be able to run fast. The public restraint he shows and friendly approachable image may be lost in all of this. His announced intention to leave the sport as well may have triggered this some suspect, so it is a way to get him prior to that when he will be less clickable on websites and enhanced sales of tabloid gossip.

And what if it were a male was the subject of this farce as it were again I ask would Bolt be seen as unworthy or not worthy of praise, accolades, adulation or achievement, let us not forget the stigmatization only a week prior thrown at Omar Mcleod just because he was less than masculine in his celebration after winning the first 110m hurdles gold medal. His supposed thumb ring on his right hand (a marker for some of homosexuality still) and his pose in a certain photograph made him the subject homo-negative comments with a bigoted hashtag ‘goldfish’ despite his groundbreaking achievement, his too proper cadence of speech also has been used to tag him as gay as real Jamaican men are not supposed to or expected to be well spoken, especially in sport. So it is not surprising the caveat regarding Bolt. The blurred nature of our highly sexualised culture is so evident here and evident in this matter, at the time of this post no official response has come from the Bolt camp so we wait to see. I was of the opinion that sports persons are expected to perform despite their sexual orientation and or what they do in their private times, all the more reason for public figures to be guided. This is not the days of an absent social media, as I commented elsewhere today one sneezes it ends up making an appearance somewhere it one is not careful while the other side of the coin some crave attention they are willing to do almost anything to get likes and clicks; media prostitution if you will.

A certain cricketer was also accused of poor performance on the field of play due to overtime as it were spent with groupies and or alleged sexual activity with females literally at one point allegedly throwing their underwear at or on him, he went on to land himself in a public relations mess in 2015 when he made what appeared to be an inappropriate advance/comment to a female Australian reporter live during an interview and like now he was praised for being so brazen as he ‘did not want a man’ but was showing his manhood and his hetero-normative privilege by not only other men but surprisingly women too.

It’s about performance than anything else, in the field of play that is and not sexually.

Peace & tolerance

H

Slippery slope deception & conflation of incest with buggery’s decriminalization

Slippery slope deception & conflation of incest with buggery’s decriminalization

The recent ruling in Belize by the Supreme Court on the striking down adults same gender sex and opposite gender sex as well seems to have sent some persons into frenzy on the issue as the fear mongering is on in earnest. The believes and misnomers that gay marriage is next when marriage between a man and a woman as defined in the charter of rights is as clear as crystal; such a meaning is so deeply entrenched that it would take forever almost to have removed providing some good well thinking members of parliament decide to take it on. Presently no parliamentarians wants to come close to addressing the present thrust for amending the articles 76, 77 & 79 concerning buggery or the abominable crime under the Sexual Offences Bills.

The latest slippery slope that some persons egregiously use to include religious fanatics while giving the church on a whole a bad name and image is that if consenting adults are allowed to engage in private in anal penetration then what is to stop incestuous relations to occur so long there is consent, some have gone even further such as attorneys Bert Samuels and Shirley Richards of Lawyers’ Christian Fellowship fame that persons may even advocate to be married to animals despite the fact the said ‘buggery law’ also speaks to beastiality, when no such calls have been made to amend that section. According to them as has happened in Europe whilst not able to provide any proof simply make absolutes pronouncements albeit they are attorneys and ought to know better. It is not surprising as other colleagues such as Dr Wayne West on his feverish campaign on seeing HIV is a gay disease ploy has also deceptively (in the name of piety) claimed all other anal acts will be free and open for use for said consenting adults. He has grouped for example scatting, fisting and felching in his public advocacy and also in church presentations over and over again. Obviously it is exaggeration for effect, magnify the problem so that it sounds convincing. Now that the doors are closing the aforementioned referendum on buggery by then opposition leader now prime minister is now the obvious target by antigay voices in a bid to play on the national sentiments if not ignorance.

Phillipa Davies a colleague of West also tried it recently on transgenderism and maybe thought it would have gone unnoticed on the radio show she hosts, since my exposure of the unsubstantiated comments she made on Dr Alfred ‘s work she has hardly appeared on the show but recently turned up in a almost flopped protest outside the US embassy on the rainbow lighting motif they had done some days before and the rainbow flag support they showed immediately following the Florida shooting incident of a gay nightclub. Miss Davies has been groomed well it seems not to mention Helen Coley Nicholson president of the Lawyers’ Christian Fellowship who sounds more like someone is pressing her buttons or coaching her on what to say publicly; namely her predecessor Shirley Richards. This is the same woman who some years ago asked that lesbians be also criminalised as gay men in terms of the sexual offences bill although she knows full well (or ought to) as an attorney that that may not be possible as what would the women be so engaged in that would warrant such a call, yet Richards and company are all but silent on other societal atrocities; that was evidenced by a radio interview on BEST 100FM hosted by Rastafarian attorney Miguel Lorne who while haling the aforementioned US Embassy protest mentioned the Mario Deane matter where he effectively said the protests over the two year period saw very little participation of the clergy or churches, he encouraged her to join in on other matters to which Mrs Richards barely gave an affirmative response and quickly went back to the anti gay agenda she was on the radio about.

There seems to be a well orchestrated campaign to target talkshows with this latest strategy to conflate purposely incest with consenting adults sexual activity. Another discussion on LOVE 101FM’s Morning Watch Bert Samuels used the same strategy while claiming gay marriage is next, despite he explained that marriage as defined now is between a man and a woman and is deeply entrenched he claimed if someone wants to marry their dog they can challenge the act while chastising the originators of the ‘buggery law’ of changing morality. He also suggested they were forcing former colonies to accept the ‘new morality’ of which he is greatly opposed. He mentioned the savings law clause briefly in a supposed bid to give the background but persisted that colonies are being pressured or moral imperialism:

“They want to change a law that they imposed on us originally, they gave it to us.” He said among other things.

Even when it is not as if the entire buggery law will go but instead will be very clearly defined as to privacy and consent. Gary Harriot of the Jamaica Umbrella Group of Churches, JUG who also sided with Mr Samuels, the issue of laws and morals came up as well as well as separation of church and state. Samuels also raised the issue of a twenty year old woman who is attracted to her father as an example; he claimed that they are adults and consenting so he asked:

“Where do we draw the line?”

Yet at no point in the near thirty minute discussion no mention was made there and even elsewhere where the matter has been raised incest laws have been brought up. Samuels played on fears that other rights in the charter of rights such as freedom of expression would collide with marriage rights and so on. What is most interesting on all of this is that regarding the savings law clause unlike Belize that amended their ‘buggery law’ some five years after their independence to describe the crime as ‘unnatural acts’ or ‘crime against nature’ Jamaica has left the legislation as we inherited same in 1962. Belize also has a protection of discrimination due to sexual orientation in their constitution but Jamaica does not, if I recall that protection was removed during the charter of rights draft debate in a cleverly orchestrated word meaning linguistic distraction as to the meaning of ‘sex’ as it would have left open a door to something else then.

Incest laws

The attempt to try to marry or suggest a slippery slope for every other conceivable ills and sexual aspersion will come flying through the door if and when the courts rule similarly locally as our UNIBAM success in Belize is simply dishonesty. To think this is being done in the name of God; what misrepresentation. As far as my untrained understanding of incest is concerned even if there is consent with blood relatives engaging in sexual activity the incest legislation which also is included in the sexual offences bill which contain the ‘buggery law’ is clear that it is illegal. To twin such with opposite sex partners is deceptive and clearly shows a kind of desperation by anti gay voices as their cause slowly shrinks before their eyes. Sadly again this is being done in the name of God which makes the hardened positions more tenuous, no wonder why so many LGBT persons claim secularism or aetheism just to strengthen their own hand. Incest is not just about the religious component of it linked to Leviticus but also the biological considerations.

It is well known as common knowledge that the likelihood of a child as a product of an incestuous liaison can lead to birth issues if not a disabled or handicapped offspring as the bloodline is too close causing such outcomes. Probably the only incestuous issue between men is that of cousins or brothers (if so extreme) or Uncle and nephew no children would be the outcome after unprotected sex and ejaculation to create any pregnancy. Even so a buggery charge if provable would stand more so than incest in such a matter. I am not aware of any such case where two adult consenting men have been charged and successfully prosecuted for incest after being charged. Definitely cases involving an older perpetrator and a minor who are related incest are included alongside the other relevant charges so applied.

The 2009 Sexual Offences Act under ‘Incest’ is clear as it states:

Incest

7.--(1) The offence of incest is committed by a male person Incest who willingly has sexual intercourse with another person knowing that the other person is his grandmother, mother, sister, daughter, aunt, niece or granddaughter.

(2) The offence of incest is committed by a female person who willingly has sexual intercourse with another person knowing that the other person is her grandfather, father, brother, son, uncle, nephew or grandson.

(3) For the purposes of subsection (1) or (2), the relationship between the person charged with an offence under any of those subsections and the person against whom the offence is alleged to have been committed includes a relationship determined by the reference to the whole blood or half blood, as the case may be.

(4) A person who commits the offence of incest is liable on conviction in a Circuit Court to imprisonment for life.
Not much change has come to light regarding incest outside of a sex offenders’ registry since despite reviews and amendments over the years.

Touching gay marriage versus civil unions and affording rights to same gender couples Bert Samuels’ resistance was clear:

“Well what is happening is that these groups, these partners want to have the same rights; in other words they want to have the right if their partner is in the hospital and cannot determine, they want to be able to determine whether you turn of life support or they want to be able to inherit property from their partners, that’s another route that has been elsewhere instituted, so that it is a recognition of these unions now being given legal status similar to marriage where people can inherit and pass property from one to the other.

You’re asking my personal view on that, I am old school, I am sorry.”

Reverend Harriot also mentioned the restorative therapy ambit supposedly claiming persons needed to be ‘cared for’ and that of ‘God’s design’ but he did not go down the road of exploring whether said design also include diverse orientation. The misconception of the mention of the word ‘diversity’ as seen by some churches as a bi-word for homosexual activists to invade the church and that it would be resisted strongly or reinterpreted to mean denominations and not a pro-LGBT agenda. Still want more fear mongering well there is the notion of Belize’s supposed destruction post the landmark decision.

We have a good way to go on just sensible discourse from persons who one would have expected better.

Peace & tolerance

H

remember this?:

McLeod's mother not bothered by malicious tweet

meme from LASCO's Facebook Page

The Star News carried this one:

The new 110m hurdles Olympic champion Omar McLeod is still on a high coming after his gold-medal performance in the event at the Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on Tuesday. McLeod won the event clocking a time of 13.03 to stave off a very competitive line-up.

Immediately following his superb history-making performance, social media went into a frenzy sending congratulatory messages and tweets in recognition of Jamaica earning its first gold medal in the event.

However, not too long after all the merry-making, a rather unsavoury tweet spoiled the mood and sparked much backlash in Twitter land.

The tweet, which was later deleted, appeared to have come from corporate giant Lasco's Twitter handle.

In response to the tweet, McLeod's mother, Arnella Knight Morris, said she is unbothered by it.

In a phone conversation, she said her son told her that "If you do good, people will talk and if you do bad, people will still talk. At no point in time everyone say good about you at all times, so expect it. So, it doesn't bother us," she said.

She added that Omar has not seen the tweet and neither is he interested in seeing it because he has come a far way from where he was, and he doesn't intend to focus on the negatives.

"He is a humble child. He doesn't make whatever happen around him trouble him whether negative or positive. He chooses to remain positive," she added.

The family says they will continue to take all that comes with Omar's achievement with a smile.

"We can't stop people from talk. Omar's dream was to get a gold medal at his first Olympics, and our faith in God and his hardwork has helped him to achieve it.

Lascelles Chin Chairman of LASCO Foods

Lasco has since apologised to the athlete and his family for the tweet. In a statement released by the company, it said the person who allegedly wrote the malicious tweet has been fired.

found this one on fellow bloggers KAOS

also see:

LASCO Foods' principled action on unauthorised bigoted tweet& (mis)construed views of masculinity 

Peace & tolerance

H

Belizean Government Will Not Appeal Section 53 Decision on Decriminalizing Buggery

The Government of Belize has announced that it will not appeal the landmark decision of the Supreme Court in respect of Section Fifty-three of the Criminal Code. That statement comes one week after Chief Justice Kenneth Benjamin ruled in favor of gay rights activist Caleb Orozco who successfully challenged the constitutionality of that piece of legislation, which criminalized same sex intercourse between consenting adults. 

During a press conference this afternoon, Attorney General Vanessa Retreage conceded that the Barrow administration will not pursue the matter before the appellate court, much to the chagrin of the churches. Prior to today’s announcement, the National Evangelical Association of Belize, along with the Roman Catholic Church, in separate letters written to Prime Minister Dean Barrow, urged government to appeal the decision for several reasons. Despite those points, Attorney General Retreage says that government is satisfied having consulted further legal advice and will not venture beyond the CJ’s judgment.

Vanessa Retreage, Attorney General

“The decision to amend Section Fifty-three of the Criminal Code to decriminalize consensual sexual acts between adults in private has generated much controversy; however, the government must accept, as the court has stated, that public opinion cannot be allowed to shift the court from performing its solemn duty to interpret the constitution and would add or the government from its duty to respect the decision of the court. 

 In this regard, it is of utmost importance that the public understands the findings of the Honorable Chief Justice in their barest form without the bias of either opposing view. The government, in considering whether it would appeal, embarked on this sober exercise for itself and found the following to be the findings of the Honorable Chief Justice: one, that consensual sexual acts between adults in private is no longer a crime; and two, that the constitution as it now reads, without any amendment, should be interpreted so as to prevent discrimination against any person as a result of that person’s sexual orientation. 

Those are the very narrow and limited findings of the Chief Justice. The government has closely considered the option of appealing and has sought legal advice as to the possible merits and benefits of appealing. In this regard, it is noted that there were seven interested organizations which argued the case apart from the claimant and the government with no less than fifteen attorneys representing them. 

Government is therefore satisfied that the case was properly argued and does not see any aspect of the decision that would benefit from further argument and as such, has taken the decision not to appeal. It is also conscious that the option of appealing is open to one or more of the interested parties and it is not the government’s intent to influence or in any way preclude any legal steps which others may consider that they wish to pursue. 

The government is however satisfied that it must not appeal simply for the sake of appealing but must ensure that its actions best serves the interests of the Belizean people.”

also see from Belize 5:

Caleb Orozco Warns Churches Over Morality 

Peace & tolerance

H

Gay Marriage Coming? ......... Belizean P.M. Says Section 53 Decision Won’t Cause It

Does the reading down of Section Fifty-three open the figurative door to gay marriage? 

It’s a widely held belief among many, including the Roman Catholic Church. In fact, its premise for seeking an appeal of the controversial Supreme Court decision is hinged on that very notion. Government, on the other hand, does not believe that the effect of the judgment will necessarily result in a move toward gay marriage. Here’s how PM Barrow responds to the church’s concern.

Prime Minister Dean Barrow

“They are saying that it is imperative that an appeal be lodged. Why? Because in every part of the world where criminalization has been successfully challenged it has been swiftly followed by the passing of gay marriage laws that seriously violate a child’s right to a mother and father, restrict freedom of conscience and religion and impose a Draconian gender agenda in the school system. Now, I don’t agree that that’s an inevitable or even necessary consequence of the Chief Justice’s ruling. 

In fact, I hold the opposite view and Cabinet is also so convinced that this does not open the door to gay marriage. Nothing can stop the people who believe in that from agitating, from taking legal action, but it is not fair to the Chief Justice’s ruling, in my view, to suggest that that ruling in any way opens the door to that. This was a matter of striking or reading down a section of the Criminal Code that imposed criminal sanctions on what was even if, on actions that were consensual. 

 That’s a far cry, it’s a huge leap to go from there to suggest that somehow the door is open to gay marriage and I will tell you that Cabinet is absolutely clear, based on the advice from the lawyers, that that is not the case. But because the gentlemen of the cloth feel so strongly that that is what the ruling does, please by all means go ahead and appeal and seek to vindicate your position.”

In case you missed the written judgement download it here:

go HERE

also see:
Justice Minister says Belizean buggery law ruling a possible game changer

Jamaica Council of Churches response to the Belize Supreme Court buggery law decision

Suggestions that court victory in Belize could set precedent for decriminalisation in region

Belize Supreme Court overturns sodomy law for consenting adults 

Let's watch this one folks

Peace & tolerance

H

Ellen Degeneres gets a backlash for 'riding' Bolt

I was a fan on Ellen but now I am not so sure if I am gonna be so 100% after this incident; Miss Ellen should have known better than this especially given the race relations challenges with police and such and Trumps hints at divisiveness as well, context and timing is everything, indeed appropriateness.

The timing of this could not be so wrong and then to do it in the height of Jamaica's success certainly it would cause a massive reaction.

Usain Bolt is an athlete that is loved on and off the track, so when American TV host Ellen DeGeneres made a tweet about the ‘sprint legend’ following his 100m victory at the Olympics in Rio, Brazil, she should have known that anything that is seemingly negative as it relates to Bolt would not go down very well.

Perhaps caught up in the euphoria of Bolt’s unprecedented history-making performance, DeGeneres jumped on to the ‘Usain Bolt meme’ bandwagon with one of her own.
In the post, uploaded to her Twitter page on Monday, the TV host photoshopped herself on to the back of the reigning Olympic champion. She may not have expected the backlash that followed her post, and perhaps she would not have drawn any attention to herself if not for the caption accompanying the photo.

the actual tweet

Was racist

Many social media users believe DeGeneres’ photo caption was racist as she declared that riding on Bolt’s back would be how she would run her errands from now on.

A Twitter storm erupted as users pointed out why the post could be interpreted as a racist one.

“So riding on his back like a mule, a horse, as some form of property is fun to you,” one user commented.

The backlash was so severe that Degeneres was forced to respond. In her response to the outrage on Tuesday, the TV host again took to Twitter to make it clear that she wasn’t a racist and never intended for the meme to come off as such.

shot after Bolt's appearance on her show

“I am highly aware of the racism that exists in our country. It is the furthest thing from who I am,” her response read.
Bolt made an appearance on the Ellen Degeneres Show in October last year. He was the surprise guest on the episode which featured Internet sensation Demarjay Smith. Smith, who is of Jamaican heritage, became an instant sensation after his motivational fitness videos went viral on YouTube.

The young trainer named Usain Bolt as one of the persons that inspires him and was surprised with a visit from the legend himself live on the Ellen Degeneres Show.

Hope Miss Ellen learns from this one in terms of appropriateness and timing as a public figure herself. She may not have meant hurt and she says she is not racist but persons need to be mindful of what they put out there.

Peace & tolerance

H

LASCO Foods' principled action on unauthorised bigoted tweet& (mis)construed views of masculinity

Lascelles Chin LASCO's Chairman

It was only Sunday last in one of the major dailies an article came forth about tweets, social media and online profiles and how past posts, comments and such can come back to bite persons, a case in the St Andrew Parish court today involving a police man who arrested two men for marijuana possession claimed he never met the men, yet a photo turned up as evidence of the said policeman at the home of one of the men thus the matter was dismissed by the judge and a probe launched by the police systems as to his dishonesty.

one of the awful pics being circulated

Omar McCleod the gold medal winner for the first time in the 110m hurdles for men was the subject of a bigoted tweet by a one week old employee of LASCO foods who used the word “Goldfish” with reference to #lasco in response to a request by a Gleaner journalist who was soliciting a possible headline for the achievement for the paper, while others were offering suggestions that offensive bigoted tweet was the one that led to the firestorm around 10pm on the 16th and which lasted ‘til the following morning. The ‘fish’ component of the term is what is offensive as it is the word over decades used in place of other terms such as ‘battyman’ ‘number 2’ ‘chi chi man’ and ‘faggot’ used to stigmatize gay men. The conjoining of both ‘gold’ and ‘fish’ therefore was a direct jab a McCleod’s winning the gold and he is gay; an unfortunate assumption to make in the height of feel good moment we are going through. Even crime has been reduced due to the distraction of sorts by the positive results from the Olympics and our athletes.

LASCO who is known for their exceptional corporate social responsibility quickly acted as their brand was about to be mired in a surprise bolt from the blue based on an effemophobic view of the athlete based on his emotional reaction to the win complete with memes, edited photos and homophobic darts thrown at his public persona; this just goes to show how far we have left to go in tackling sheer ignorance even in the face of mainstreaming so called metro-sexuality in the form of tight pants and or body clinging clothing, bleached faces and skin, arched eyebrows all thought as anathema for men but now entrenched; apparently the effeminate posture is the supposedly line men must not cross. Why was a one week old employee allowed to have such proxy and power to tweet on behalf of LASCO is one of the big questions being asked and where was the supervision or vetting systems to catch that tweet before it went out?

I like many sensible persons saw a Jamaican winning the race, his sexual orientation should not be of any consequence let alone whether he was too emotional or not, the moment is surreal and to achieve such as win at the highest level at his age is a major achievement. Speaking on POWER 106FM chairman of LASCAO Lascelles Chin and deputy executive Peter Chin said the acted as soon as they got wind of the infraction, Mr Chin the former is and has been a no nonsense man since his days at Henkel Chemicals to now. The previous statement issued by LASCO on claims of the account being hacked may have been an attempt by the perpetrator to cover their tracks.

Lascelles Chin went on to say among other things:

“I have zero tolerance against any discrimination but what happened, a fellow we employed about a week or two weeks ago opened a twitter account without our knowledge ...... and go ahead and do this tweet and believe you me I was so shocked because I was so happy and elated to know that Mr McCloud won as a Jamaican; and we are trying to get in touch with him to apologise because this is crazy, I mean this is not me this is not LASCO ....... for somebody to have a mind like that, unbelievable!

It’s unfortunate that some of these things do happen but I mean all Jamaicans the best and you know that even now we are fighting to reduce our costs to pass it on straight to our consumers.

We are personally trying to communicate with Omar, probably this tweet might come some good, because we are going to try and see how we can really ... we really apologise to him; the tweet was unnecessary and we are going to communicate and make amends in whatever way we can.

How can a Jamaican say that at this time when we should be all thanking Omar for really giving us this fantastic moment and a gold, unbelievable, we must all learn to appreciate good and don’t come with ‘badmind’

We don’t need a fool to try and create problems.”

This is a big lesson for all social media managers including LGBT ones as some of the crap I am seeing coming across from some outlets is disturbing to say the least where persons seem to forget the account is not for their personal hurrah. Years of work almost destroyed by one idiotic tweet. Then there is the business of sensitivity training or the lack thereof and that when individuals behind the platforms are to operate they are doing so on behalf of the entity, some supervision should have been there to vet the tweet before the send button was hit. The former employee who did this is not alone his/her immediate supervisor(s) must be accountable as well, a one week old employee cannot be free to act on their own.

LASCO’s statement also read in part:

Dear All:

Earlier this evening an unauthorized and offensive tweet was posted via our company account.

We wish to sincerely apologize to our fans, friends, customers, consumers, partners, Jamaicans and everyone for this terrible act. Most importantly, we issue our sincerest apologies to Mr. Omar McLeod.

The LASCO Affiliated Companies are also offended by such utterances which are a clear breach of our own values. Consequently, we have removed the tweet and deactivated the account. Further, we have terminated the employee who posted the tweet as this action was a violation of our code of conduct.

We, at LASCO, have the utmost respect for the remarkable achievement of Omar McLeod. We congratulate him on his gold medal victory in the Men’s 110 M Hurdles Olympic Event. We deeply regret any embarrassment or displeasure caused by the post and again offer our sincerest apologies.

Humbly,

LASCO Distributors Limited

ENDS

Meanwhile some political opportunists have jumped on this one to try to gain mileage, word has come that a tweet by the Portia Simpson Miller account claiming no hate and such while others have been eagerly creating videos claiming it was hate yet these are the same political representatives who cannot find the gumption to do the right thing in starting the process to reduce the very hate they are latching on to.

Anyway congratulations to the athletes who have been representing us and hope that McCloud and his camp can get passed this one.

Peace & tolerance

H

Justice Minister says Belizean buggery law ruling a possible game changer

As reactions continue to come in since the unexpected ruling in Belize by their supreme court, some see the matter as a precedent setting one while others say it is a first instance issue and will be appealed and maybe be taken to the Caribbean Court of Justice, CCJ or the Privy Council if they have that court as their final court. Some local luminaries have said that the judgement may not be binding and like many of us are awaiting the written judgement to see the tenets of the conclusion. We now have the written judgement as at the preparation of this post to help to guide us, to see more details as it is the oral presentation in court that is being reported on and is subject to mixed or different understandings and versions. Chief Justice of Belize Kenneth Benjamin ruled that Belize’s laws discriminates against LGBT persons, violates privacy and dignity.

download the judgement HERE

Justice Minister Delroy Chuck speaking on radio yesterday August 11, 2016 said among other things that the ruling could be a game changer in the Caribbean and if such changes occur in our courts the country should respect such rulings from the courts.

“You will admit this is a sensitive matter that the churches and other levels of civil society, they are in dispute as to whether or not the buggery law should be removed; maybe even the parliament of Jamaica is very sensitive about whether or not it can be removed because of the sentiments and feelings across most of Jamaica but that ruling will have a game changing effect on similar laws across the Caribbean.”

The minister added that if a similar or adverse ruling the nation must respect the court’s ruling until a higher court be it the court of appeal, the Privy Council or the Caribbean Court of Justice, CCJ rules on the matter.

“We promote respect for the rule of law but until the law is changed then we must respect whatever laws exist, as far as I know law is a changing dynamic concept and therefore the buggery law is undoubtedly will be examined and as in Belize there may be changes in the rest of the Caribbean.”

Previous Justice Ministers such as Mark Golding Chuck’s immediate predecessor in his public private flip flop principled conundrum had said as a matter of personal opinion the law should go but he was not prepared to merge those opinions and principles in action or duty in simply doing the right thing in amending the antiquated 483 year old law. He was quite prepared to make known his position but by the time he got to the periodic review on Jamaica at the UN he played the usual refusal card and then turned around and slapped all in the face in parliament by declaring the Buggery Law will not change. Not to be forgotten is the CCJ and buggery law baiting deception he committed at a town hall meeting in 2015.

Mr Chuck’s cadence of speech was very sedated than before in his tenure as Justice Minister especially when it came to the matter of buggery, the stridency seems tempered than that of times before. Other antigay religious fanatics want to now bypass the court systems as they now realise that they may have a major obstacle of principle to contend with in their efforts to have the law unchanged locally by way of either influence by the Belizean ruling and or precedent set (pending review of the written judgement). Defence council Bert Samuels had said on the afternoon of the judgement that among other things that the said British are now trying to impose their adjusted moral position on buggery on Jamaica and that we must dance to it, he was speaking in the context of the foreign observers at the trial who commented that the law should go as the Brits have long recognised the law’s irrelevance and have removed it; clearly Mr Samuels is showing his hand here but it was not surprising to some.

Mr Samuels also said:

“The Belize decision is not binding on Jamaican courts, you’ll have to examine whether the laws of Belize is similarly worded as the laws in Jamaica and whether the constitutional provisions are similarly worded for us to able to say that a court would be deeply persuaded by the decision. That’s my lawyers’ perspective.”

Also commenting in that conversation was Westin James from Trinidad a lawyer who represented Caleb Orozco, he said among other things that the ruling was recognition of human rights, he disagreed with Samuels and anti gay voice and past president of the old Lawyers’ Christian Fellowship, LCF Shirley Richards that the ruling would be adverse to freedom of speech and the usual victimhood cry by churches specific to the overall discourse of homosexuality. He was clear that the law only spoke to consenting adults in private and that the issue is not over as an appeal by some of the church groups involved is coming.

Caleb Orozco won on all points on his case and the decision drew a line when it came to the question minors and animals, the usual fear mongering and slippery slope deceptive arguments were attempted by Bert Samuels to suggest a changing global morality is somehow married to this ruling with references made to places in Europe and so called “globalization of morality.” Westin James however was quick on the draw to stop the nonsense from going any further.

“No I am sorry, can I say something, that was never part of this case, no one has ever even argued that it will be lawful for anyone to have sex with a minor or with animals, the court made it clear that it is not about that and nor did anyone raise that argument.”

It is indeed sad that these moralists would go to great lengths even intellectually deceptive ones just to win over gullible folks who fall for such in support of the retention of the buggery law. Let us see where this goes, how opportune the timing as well of the legal and credibility challenges for one of the oldest antigay voices in as far as men of the cloth that being Reverend Al Miller. His missing from the present issues is advantageous in my view; Miller has been a source of grief with respect to LGBT rights work from as far back as the early days of the charter of rights bill debate where he was toe to toe in support with the Lawyers’ Christian Fellowship and its then president Shirley Richards. His use of his Word power show on television is not to be left out of the mix as he uses that platform to effectively preached homophobia. Yet Reverend Miller seems to now expect the nation to simply forget his involvement in aiding a fugitive to escape the law of the land and has been defiant in doing so when challenged as to the principle of it whilst using the victimhood ploy to say he is a victim of the law.

If he was so concerned about aiding Christopher Dudus Coke then why not take him to the police commissioner’s office if he and Coke were unsure of the actions by the local cops. Instead Miller took Coke or attempted to take Coke to the US embassy but was intercepted. 

meanwhile: 

The Gleaner had much to say via their editorial:

Interesting times lie ahead; let us continue to carefully review what lays before us.

Peace & tolerance

H

On Rev Devon Dick and the Rev Al Miller dick down

Rev Al Miller

Rev Devon Dick

I could not be in more agreement with the Reverend Devon Dick, recently appointed to the head of the local Baptist movement and has had some tolerance posturings on LGBT matters (but needs a lot more), his take on Reverend Al Miller's latest legal woes set against his credibility, truthfulness and more so in the middle of the anti gay deluge by religious voices of which Miller is one of the loudest ones.

The timing of this could not be more opportune.

Previous posts can bring some of my posts to bear.

GUILTY! Anti Gay Rev Al Miller to be sentenced Sept 15 for Perverting course of justice

Grrrrr ........... Al Miller could escape with fine

Reverend Al Miller has no moral authority (yet again) to speak on flags & correctness

Reverend Dick:

On July 22, flamboyant and charismatic preacher Al Miller was found guilty of perverting the course of justice by transporting Christopher 'Dudus' Coke, a fugitive facing drugs and firearms charges in the United States of America (US), and ignoring three attempts of the police to stop. Parish judge Simone Wolfe-Reece gave a most damning comment, claiming that the founding pastor of Fellowship Tabernacle was "less than candid with the court" (Gleaner, July 23).

This is the second time in five years that Miller has been called out by a judge for being less than candid. The first time was when Senior Resident Magistrate Lorna Williams doubted portions of Miller's account under which he lost his firearm. She found the degree of negligence of such a high degree that it was deserving of criminal sanction. (Gleaner, September 24, 2011).

The implications of these judgments are very serious and far-reaching. If Miller is not truthful, then how did he lose his gun, and what was the motive of Miller in transporting Dudus, and where was he taking him? How did he know where Dudus was, and when did he know? Is he being a fall guy, and why? The use of guns in criminality and murder is a serious problem and the power of dons and garrisons is robbing people of freedom and prosperity. The inferences are frightening.

In addition, one's integrity is very important in the vocation of a pastor. Our word is our bond. Our yea is yea and our nay is nay. That two judges have called into question the truthfulness of statements by Miller is cause for grave concern. Even if he were the owner of Fellowship Tabernacle, he needs to step down and do some soul-searching based on these judgments. It cannot be business as usual.

One can recall Miller being strident in calling on both P.J. Patterson, then prime minister, and Edward Seaga, then opposition leader, to resign. Even in the recent spat between our attorney general and the US Embassy, he was forceful about the US respecting Jamaican law. Clergy persons cannot be seen to be above the law.

There is the issue of what happens when pastors run afoul of the law in a serious way and they own the church. Who administers discipline? It cannot be self-discipline only. If an ordinary member is convicted in court for a serious crime, what happens? What would be the hue and cry of the Church if a politician was found guilty of perverting the course of justice and being negligent in the loss of a firearm? This case has the potential to compromise the Church in being a moral voice if it does not speak clearly and unequivocally about the need for Miller to step aside.

Resigning is not the end of Miller. It could be a beautiful story about our forgiving God when a clergyman can acknowledge sin, repent and be restored. Peter denied Jesus, the Christ, three times and was later restored by Jesus and became a mighty evangelist for God. David was perceived as a man after God's own heart partly because he confessed his sin of adultery and murder and did what God said.

Some years ago, when asked by a Gleaner editor-in-chief who was the most likely pastor to have an impact on Jamaica in the new year, I said Al Miller. Also, some years ago, he preached a powerful and practical message at the Men's Breakfast event at the Boulevard Baptist Church.

Nevertheless, it is now Miller's time to show Christian maturity and do the right thing and step down from his pastoral duties and be rehabilitated.

• Rev Devon Dick is pastor of the Boulevard Baptist Church in St Andrew. He is author of 'The Cross and the Machete', and 'Rebellion to Riot'. Send feedback to columns@ gleanerjm.com.

also see:

Rev Devon Dick calls for Dr Carolyn Gomes (CVC/JFJ) to resign re Bain Issue 2014