GoFundMe account launched to help 'gully queens'

Yet again we are told of some fund raising action for the homeless MSM/transgender in New Kingston and they have been used so much it is not funny. But let us give the benefit of the doubt. This summer, South-East London recording artist Ray Blk shot her video "Chill Out" with four of the Gully Queens – Mindy, Shadiamond, Beyanka and Sasha – along with Creative Director Savannah Baker, Director Philippa Price and Vogue.com’s Market Editor Kelly Connor. One hopes they were paid properly and the legal matters in terms of future royalties are set and they become nothing more than actors to make an artist's work look good.

It has to take a foreigner to set up another effort instead of the very group that says it is the foremost LGBT entity, that says a lot even as this problem pre-dates ALL LGBTQ organisations formal or not, registered or not, yet the deception continues but what is new?

According to the page:

In partnership with the Larry Chang centre through J-FLAG, the first human rights organisation in the history of Jamaica, to serve the needs of the LGBT community, the creatives behind this video are aiming to raise US$100,000 initially, so a property can be leased to accommodate these transgender youths, aka the Gully Queens of Kingston, Jamaica. 

The long-term goal is to purchase a safe haven, provide psychological support and assist with their medical expenses and welfare. We will also aim to provide a stable income for the transgender youth by creating the Queen's fashion brand. Mentored by volunteers from our collective creative communities, it will consist of crochet pieces and customised t-shirts from which they will receive 100% of the earnings. It will be sold on " www.pumpumgyals.com" platform. 

Problem is that JFLAG is not the first human rights organization so the error is there already, oh boi!. It was Gay Freedom Movement as operated by then its Gen Sec Larry Chang since 1974.

also Remember this?: Where is that "I am Not a Fish" documentary? I hope this one effort is not just another front, also see this: MP Seeks Solutions For Homeless Gay Youth In New Kingston and it turned out to be a grand media moment farce. We have been duped before so let us watch this one. 

The other GoFundMe effort seems to have stalled as launched by Colour Pink:

Meanwhile:

A GoFundMe account has been set up to raise funds to help create a permanent home for a group of gay Jamaican men who live in the Shoemaker Gully in New Kingston.

"These are beautiful people - the bravest in fact. To live in a country which is against them, where every day they face death, and yet they refuse to be silenced. Join us in our stand with them, and help them change their fate," the plead for cash said.

The men are referred to as 'gully queens', and according to Savannah Baker, who established the account on October 31, they are beaten and raped on a regular basis.

psychological support

Some US$7,762 or approximately J$1 million of a targeted US$100,000 (J$12.9 million) has so far been raised.

The money is to lease a property to accommodate the men, provide psychological support and assist with their medical expenses and welfare.

The GoFundMe post also said the aim is to provide a stable income for the transgender youth by creating the Queen's fashion brand, from which they will receive 100 per cent of the earnings.

Dane Lewis, executive director for The Jamaica Forum of Lesbians, All-Sexuals and Gays (JFLAG) said the entity supports the initiative.

Lewis said that a number of the young gay and transsexual youth who reside in the gully are legitimately homeless and estimates a minimum of 20 are there at any given time.

Where oh where is Dwayne's House where the touts were that that outfit named after murdered transwoman Dwayne was posited yet nothing since or what about Colour Pink? It is so disturbing how the persons in Kingston proper are pigeon-holed when homelessness is an islandwide issue for so long. 

remember these?:

Published on Dec 8, 2015

Flying it Forward is a social initiative where a free JetBlue ticket is passed from one deserving person to the next. Our 21st flier, Moni, traveled from Seattle to Jamaica to aid homeless LGBT youth.

also check out:
And we continue to reap the world-wind for not addressing homelessness when it was manageable 


JFLAG excludes homeless MSM from IDAHO Symposium on guess what? .......... HOMELESSNESS!

The toss up between MSM homelessness & public order makes news again

New Kingston Cop Proposes Shelter for Shoemaker Gully LGBT Homeless Population 

MP Julian Robinson claims he wants help for New Kingston homeless gays

Dwayne's House Shelter Update ..................

Homeless MSM/Trans youth draw attention in New Kingston 

"DVD Reveller" still displaced? part 2

I am taking this one just like the ones before with a grain of salt, we were told of shelters before, JFLAG had to return money before as they could not get a space for lease and here we are again this old familiar place.One other entity tried with a shelter but it died rather quickly, see: So our displaced cannot settle eh? ....... police raid premises with cross dressers! So many proposals, so many attempts and they seem to just fizzle while no real long lasting help and a permanent solution eludes them. 

More anon

Peace & tolerance

H

So our displaced cannot settle eh? ....... police raid premises with cross dressers!

So our homeless are in problems again with the police as an address where they were allegedly staying in Kingston was raided earlier this month by cops who suspect the persons gathered were from the Shoemaker Gully residents who were removed from the area.

There is never a dull moment for our brothers and sisters at that level but the tokenism shown to them and sheer silence from more privileged LGBT advocates still is disturbing while JFLAG still drag their feet in addressing homeless as it ought to be dealt with. The repeated headlines with the population in a powerless position is just way too much these days.

With aspirational PR on social media glossing over the realities such as the opening of the Larry Chang shelter Facebook page and the Colour Pink Group candlelight vigil activities it amounts to very little real improvement in the lives of the population which is still growing islandwide. Just a cursory glance on the road especially at nights and the groups are visible not to mention the repeated 'please call me' requests by phone asking for some sort of help.

I have always been skeptical about the repeated announcements and PR yet no real follow up, case in point in 2013:

The last post I had done on this was: MP Seeks Solutions For Homeless Gay Youth In New Kingston in May and only months later this comes via the Star News:

After residents report suspicious activities

A raid conducted recently by members of a police team who swooped down on premises along Beechwood Avenue in Kingston unearthed a collection of female items from rooms populated by males and cross-dressers.

THE STAR understands that the men informed the police that they were rightful residents, as their rent was being paid for by JFLAG.

Information reaching our news team is that on Saturday, August 15, a property in the area was searched after the police were bombarded with reports of suspicious activities.

A source close to the operation told THE STAR, "We believe that the men and their associates, who once operated in the New Kingston gully, have relocated to this area and have been carrying out illegal activities, abusing residents, among other things."

THE STAR gathered that following the raid of premises, stolen phones, make-up, wigs, and a large quantity of female clothing and accessories were seized.

"It is clear that these are the same group that were operating in New Kingston", the source revealed.

Work as prostitutes

Our news team understands that each member of the group allegedly has a specific role to play in the organisation.

Investigators theorise that among the individuals are persons who work as prostitutes, those who rob and those who resell stolen items.

THE STAR was told that there are people who are victims of these crimes; however, they fail to report them.

The police are also of the belief that the crimes committed by these men have got more serious as they now destroy property and injure their victims.

Our news team was told that when the police sought to have the men removed from the location, they were told that a gay rights activist group, JFLAG, was responsible for their rent, which was being paid.

When THE STAR contacted Dane Lewis, executive director of JFLAG, he sought to shed some light on the issue.

He said, "Not so; if they were found there on a weekend. Last week when they were evicted from a previous premises, we had actually paid for a few nights there ... they just got evicted and there was impending rain..."

Lewis also noted, "JFLAG does not condone any illegal activity ... . Where any member of society falls ill with the law then the full measure of the law should be handed down..."

ENDS

Just days before on August 21 André Williams, STAR Writer also reported:

A man who allegedly went for a stroll in the New Kingston area recently was reportedly lured by a group of men posing as women, who held him against his will, tied him up, robbed, and raped him.
Information reaching THE WEEKEND STAR is that a team of officers attached to the St Andrew Central police division responded to a radio transmission of a robbery along Braemar Avenue on August 17, about 4 a.m.

Our news team gathered, however, that when the police arrived at the location, they discovered a man tied up with what appeared to be a rope at a gate.

Closer observation revealed that the man was nude with his hands and feet bound.

A source close to the investigation told THE WEEKEND STAR that the police assisted in setting the man loose before he was brought to the station to record his statement.

Reports are that the victim was on his way from work and saw a group of women soliciting sex.
It's alleged that he went to them and he was overpowered and tied up, but not before they robbed, stripped him of his clothes and took him to nearby bushes and began to sexually assault him.

The St Andrew Central police say they are investigating this incident, however, there may be other victims who may be embarrassed to come forward.

ENDS

Where will it end?

Peace & tolerance

H

Remembering Brian Williamson (September 4 1945 - June 9, 2004)

Brian Williamson (September 4 1945 - June 9, 2004) was one of our first out Jamaican Gay rights activist besides another co-founder Larry Chang's public advocacy, Brian was a businessman, philanthropist, club owner/promoter and co-founder of the Jamaican Forum for Lesbians and Gays, J-Flag. 

Also see: Larry Chang ........ a Reintroduction a post I had put together from 2008

Brian with cutie Tessa back in the day

Uncle Brian was known for personally housing and looking after gay people in Jamaica, his networking skills became legendary especially with displaced gay and bisexual men at his business property where he often used the drapery/awning factory section adjacent the club danceloor as an overnight shelter for short stays. A pleasant smile was what one would get upon entering his complex but a serious disciplinarian up until his death and he sought to it that homeless persons were assisted in what ever way he could, beneficiaries had to tow the line and abide by the guidelines for stay, which may explain my push in this regard as my early exposure to that side of on the ground advocacy and his own struggle to convince others to include that part of crisis interventions far more into the mix.

He was murdered with a machete, suffering multiple stab wounds to neck and face. Williamson's confessed murderer, Dwight Hayden,was sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole after fifteen years. The case raised several concerns regarding non homophobic killings, credibility in crisis communication, non-romantic same gender sexual liaisons gone bad, community based assistance with trust challenges and Jamaica's entrenched homophobia (the cheering by the public outside the murder scene as the body was taken away).

Other posts and articles on Brian:
Remembering Brian Williamson

Gleaner on Remembering Brian Williamson June 20, 2004
More related posts that named Brian: HERE
More from Gay Jamaica Watch: HERE
More from GLOBALGAYZ: HERE

Sadly missed

One of the founding members of JFLAG, Jamaica Forum for Lesbians Allsexuals & Gays (worth repeating)

Brian outside his home/club in New Kingston where he was taken from us sadly.

former dancehall queen and wife of Beenieman popularly known as Carlene was the one who interviewed Brian on her talkshow back in the 90s

Owner of one of the most successful gay entertainment spots in Jamaica, The Entourage and a dedicated activist. One of the memorable moments in our GLBTQ history is an appearance on Jamaican television then known as (JBC) Jamaica Broadcasting Corporation coming out to the nation and by extension the world and putting a face to the gay community. He gave me my big break on the LGBT party scene at the time when I made my transition from the mainstream sound system sector, my nights were Fridays. Also we should remember Brian's business sidekick Michael Melbourne who also was murdered brutally in his New Kingston apartment,  long time friend, ally to the community, philanthropist, art dealer, club owner/manager and an activist in his own right, was taken from us in October 14 2001 to be precise brutally by assailants in his home. He was known as the bubbly manager of the then Entourage LGBT nightclub in Kingston as owned and operated by late activist Brian Williamson who was also murdered in 2004, a fate that seems to follow open hearted persons in the community and it begs the question were they duped into scenarios and towards persons with ulterior motives that lead to their own demise?

Michael was also known for his contributions financially and otherwise to non governmental organizations and was very active during the early days of the HIV/AIDS epidemic in Jamaica as the photo below shows he was making a donation to a popular NGO at the time.

the legendary Michael Melbourne also see more here:

LGBT HISTORY MONTH: ALLIES – POSTHUMOUS RECOGNITION ’11 PART 1

GAY & BISEXUAL INTIMATE PARTNER VIOLENCE, HOMOPHOBIC INCIDENTS & CRISIS COMMUNICATION

DJ Howie's More Entourage, Heavens & Loft Favs Set 03.05.14 

DJ Howie's Entourage Memories Passed Set 23.04.14 

DJ Howie's Club Entourage Quick Review Pass Set 17.04.14 

Here are some setmixes I had done on some of the dancefloor anthems from the day.

The VHS tapes of the JBC interview should be available at JFLAG's archives in Kingston, we hope they have been stored properly and not left to go the route of the Gay Freedom Movement (GFM) archives that subsequently what was left of those were retrieved by it's founder Larry Chang and archived overseas were not in good condition due to poor handling and storage, sad as Jamaica should have been the repository for such important materials. We must preserve our past a people who do not know or respect their past cannot plan for the future.

A pity as he must be turning in his grave now to see how we still are at odds over what is to be done for the movement in totality of the LGBTQI communities instead we are left with a joke of an advocacy though very slowly changing; with criticisms of dissenting voices described as "bickering" as if the establishment are infallible when the engagement of everyone for or against should be the thrust forward in dealing with not just the repulsion of the buggery law while affixing HIV/AIDS issues which seems to be the main focus while the urgently required social interventions for certain sections of the community to uplift and rebuild their lives.

Sadly it seems more about self-aggrandizement coupled with what appears as an elitist agenda with a general intolerance for views outside the system. The ordinary LGBTQI body politic seems relegated to just followers with selected individuals given a platform. The loss of a former volunteer and contracted individual in 2011 via a gruesome murder with not so much as some formal recognition for however small his contribution was glaring to say the least.

Read more here from the Wordpress edition of GLBTQJA

All this was not the original plan when The Jamaica Forum for Lesbians Allsexuals and Gays when first formed and launched albeit that from the get go if I am to go from memory the signs of the aforementioned opposition to certain types of intervention ideas were knocking at the door but were not as pronounced as today.

Let us however move towards working together for the greater good of those down trodden and or displaced with a sense of hopelessness, rest assured the criticisms will not and cannot be stopped as it is by picking the meat from same and having real forumatic activities that the solutions will come.

Love always

Peace and tolerance

H

Examining Homosexuality - Vincent Tulloch writes back in February 4, 1978

In an old Gleaner piece published on the date indicated above this columnist at the time introduced in essence The Gay Freedom Movement, Jamaica’s first gay organization as then ran by Mr. Lawrence Chang aka Larry Chang who now resides overseas. In a bid to capture past articles and relevant commentary to show how early the Jamaican LGBT experience has been enhanced or bedeviled by robust debate, homophobic remarks and unfair commentary here is another in the series of flashback posts. (see the flashback tag for more)

The piece was entitled “Examining Homosexuality” here are excerpts of the original article as was discovered in the old Gay Freedom Movement’s archives in 2009.
Mr. Tulloch wrote ………

Mr. Lawrence Chang’s public admission of a gay organization The Gay Freedom Movement will certainly send ripples through the society. It has come at a time when the society is trying to see just where morality stands on its agenda. The controversy sparked by the Jamaica Teachers Association’s resolution on unwed mothers is an indication of the battle Mr. Chang will have to face on the grounds of morality, the strength of the gay community in Jamaica is unknown so the political mileage to be gained is uncertain, the Gay Freedom Movement will have to go it alone now that it has shown it’s head…………

If I may return to the Gay Freedom Movement debut I must say it has picked the wrong banner to hoist. I cannot see the impact homosexuals can make on the island’s birth rate which stands at about 61,000 per annum If homosexuality was to be encouraged as the only civilized means of birth control………..

It comes as a surprise to me that the GFM did not take issue with the law that forbids the practice of homosexuality both in private and public places. The act is illegal even if it is done in private.
In my opinion homosexuals would probably get a more sympathetic ear if their organization in its first public comment had challenged some aspects of The Offences against the Persons Act Chapter 268, sections 69, 70 and 72. In section 72 particular reference is made to the male but is silent on the female……

Homosexuality has long been a very emotional and controversial subject and is discussed in a hush hush tone with a certain amount of fear. Even in the developed countries where it is accepted the controversy still rages.

Personally I believe that as long as an individual reaches the age of consent legally set by the state what he or she does in private in regard to sex is his personal business and none of the state. I am strongly against any one procuring children or forcing anyone into an act in which he does not believe, such offences may be treated as a criminal act punishable by a fine or imprisonment as the court sees fit. The Gay Freedom Movement of Jamaica is here and it will be interesting to see what its next move will be. The strong religious influence which at times is used to cloud issues will no doubt be organized now. This will be very strong especially in the rural parts where the Pentecostal have a strong grip on the minds of the people.
The relatively high illiteracy rate in the country will certainly play a role when the subject is being debated. Those who are less intolerant and do not subscribe to the aims of the movement need not panic there is nothing to fear. What we need to do is to take a very rational and realistic approach to the subject and it is hoped that the gays will not attempt to convert the whole nation because they will lose the support of most Jamaicans.

The Jamaican society has treated homosexuals with contempt which reveals our Victorian approach to sensitive issues which affects several hundred persons several of whom have no control of what they are.

We do not need any “Burn a Gay for Christ” slogans. The GFM has thrown a challenge to our much reverted democratic way of life.
This issue could be a test of our ability to tolerate minority opinion.
-END-

My two cents:
So this shows a historical perspective on just where the mindset was as far as public commentary was concerned nothing much has changed in 32 years except for the language and prescriptions of ways to execute LGBT people following on the church’s move to have signs that say “Burn a Gay for Christ” maybe this could be a hint as to where the dancehall community got the “Bun Out” (burn out or strong opposition) concept for the types of murder music over the years.

This was one of the entry points publicly for the Gay Freedom Movement a historical milestone lost to many in our present GLBTQ experience. I wanted to publish this in time for Black History Month but had some difficulty finding the original article as I remembered it from a cursory glance a couple years ago.

Remember these readers.

Peace and tolerance

H

Gay Freedom Movement ..... the early days of activism

The Gaily News Publication (previously The Toilet Paper) - Original documentation draft outlay and typeset (front cover)

(owned by GFM and was held by JFLAG although not stored in proper conditions) this copy was digitized during my tenure as Administrative Assistant at the Jamaica Forum for Lesbians Allsexuals and Gays JFLAG as at that time I was very concerned as to the conditions some of the pieces were in when I came across them, luckily we were able to get them to him thus preventing some important cultural objects being lost forever and thrown away and deemed on no value. 

(Items have since been returned in 2010 to the GFM originator Larry Chang who now resides in the United States)

This was a then handmade and typed set via typewriter gay tabloid circulation that was done by the first gay activist movement in Jamaica in the late seventies to early eighties the Gay Freedom Movement. It was named the "Toilet Paper" before but only two editions were produced before the decision to change the name came about.

Computers weren't so readily available as yet on the Jamaican landscape so drafts were hand made thus adding more value to the early work by these pioneers.

This captioned photo above is actually one of the original drafts design for the outlay of the publication. It was so named to parody the then mainstream Jamaica Daily News newspaper now merged to be known as the Gleaner.

http://dloc.com/icirngfm

The archives since this original post entry have since been retrieved by the former General Secretary of the movement Mr. Larry Chang who now resides overseas after seeking asylum in 2000 and was successful. They are stored on the captioned site above for viewing and purchase from same.

Authors and contributors would literally spend hours researching and coming up with interesting and sometimes patois written pieces for the paper. Based on the old archives of the publication it was circulated for a good two some years before it ended. It contained letters to the editor of the respected newspapers of the day, the Daily News, Gleaner and the Daily Star.

The Jamaica Observer was not birthed as yet.

Events and other intervention activities were also included with rich comedic content as homophobia was not as rife as now so the community was more relaxed and could entertain themselves effortlessly.

Thanks to the Gay Freedom Movement for opening the door to activism in Jamaica.

also see:

LGBT History Month: Gay Freedom Movement archives properly re-posited overseas

Peace and tolerance.

H

Gay jamaica's history lane 1974 - 2004

The struggle for equality for gays and lesbians in Jamaica has been going on longer than most people do realize. Let us take a moment to stroll down Jamaica’s gay history lane.

The first documented gay rights advocacy in Jamaica was in 1977, with the establishing of the Gay Freedom Movement (GFM) in Kingston. Meetings were weekly with an average attendance of 40 gay men and lesbians. The movement published a bi-monthly newsletter (The Jamaica Gaily News), which circulated for about two and half years. The GFM self dissolved a few years later. Over a period of about seven years, however, the GFM made several historical marks. Here is a timeline of some other major highlights in Jamaica’s gay history:

1978 – Jamaica’s first gay and lesbian play “Mix it out” was staged.

1978 – GFM established Jamaica’s first ever gay and lesbian telephone switchboard.

1978 – The dorm room of an allegedly gay student from the social sciences faculty at UWI was blazed with a homemade bomb on February 21.

1978 – Coronation of Miss Jamaica (Gay), during Independence celebrations by the GLBT community on August 6.

1978 – Jamaica’s first gay and lesbian hotel, Lighthouse Park, opened on April 27.

1978 – Gay activist Larry Chang participated in the first public discussion ever in Jamaica about homosexuality on December 23 at the College of Arts, Science and Technology (CAST), now the University of Technology (Utech).

1979 – The Gay Community Health Clinic opened on March 10, offering medical services on Saturdays between 11 Am and 1 Pm.

1980 – A record 7 private gay parties in the Kingston were bombed within one month. The bombs were all homemade and there were no reports of any major injuries.

1984 – The Ministry of Education explored homosexuality in the personal development slot on their Education Broadcasting Service (EBS). The moderator was psychologist Dr Frank Knight of the University Hospital; guests were students of Kingston College and St Hughes High.

1984 - GFM assisted Winston Rowe of UWI with a documentary on the stonewall riot for the advance media programme at the Caribbean Institute of Mass Communication (CARIMAC).

1993 - Rumours of a planned gay march had the “heavy-hats” in frenzy. Scores lined the streets, armed and ready to chop, stab, shot, lynch among others, waiting for any ‘body’ that dared to march for gay rights in Jamaica.

1997 - Sixteen allegedly gay prison inmates were slaughtered and 40 others injured in a riot following an attempt by prison authorities to distribute condoms to warders and inmates to help stem the spread of the HIV/AIDS within the penal system.

1998 - Jamaica Forum for Lesbians, All-sexuals and Gays (JFLAG) was established.

1999 - J-FLAG made a submission to parliament to include sexual orientation in the discrimination clause of the proposed Charter of Rights and Freedoms Bill.

2002 – The United Kingdom offered asylum to three Jamaican gay men on the basis that their lives could be fatally compromised if they returned to Jamaica.

2004 – Amnesty international released an urgent appeal on June 1 to the global community to write to the Prime Minister of Jamaica asking him to take urgent steps to protect gay people from violence, and to repeal legislation that criminalizes same sex relations.

2004 – A dark day in Jamaica’s gay history was upon us all. Gay rights activist Brian Williamson was found murdered at his home in New Kingston on June 9.