British government reportedly set to introduce full gay marriage equality

The government is expected to announce full marriage equality for gays and lesbians under reforms to marriage laws to be announced later this week. The reported move will end the final major legal discrimination against gays and lesbians in Britain.

Rev Sharon Ferguson and Franka Strietzel are among the couples challenging the ban on gay marriage (Photo: Chris Houston)

According to the Sunday Times, a proposal to end the ban on same sex marriage will be announced by the Liberal Democrat equality minister Lynne Featherstone at the same time as the government announces the time table for civil partnerships to be held in religious buildings.

Civil partnerships were introduced in 2005 and offer gays and lesbian couples similar legal rights to straight married couples. Differences include the grounds for dissolution, some insurance and pension rights and they are not recognised as having the same status as marriage abroad. A consequence of the ban on gay marriage means that a married transgendered person must divorce their partner before being recognised in their new gender. In addition, couples are barred from having any religious elements in the civil partnership ceremony. An amendment the Equality Act by Labour peer Lord Waheed Alli was passed just prior to the election, but the new government delayed the implementation of the changes. Religious insitituions are not forced to host ceremonies if they do not wish to.

Prior to the general election, deputy prime minister and Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg wrote on PinkNews.co.uk: “I support gay marriage. Love is the same, straight or gay, so the civil institution should be the same, too. All couples should be able to make that commitment to one another.” In October, the party adopted full marriage equality including allowing straight couples to have civil partnerships as official party policy. The move was controversially not supported by the gay lobbying organisation Stonewall.

In April, the chancellor George Osborne told gay rights campaigner Peter Tatchell that the Conservative party would “consider” full gay marriage.

Labour party leader Ed Miliband announced his support of full gay marriage in a column for PinkNews.co.uk during the leadership election. He wrote: “‘Separate but equal’ is not good enough and PinkNews.co.uk’s own recent poll demonstrated the huge support in the LGBT community for a right to marry. The cruel consequence of the current compromise is trans people forced to divorce their partners before they could be legally recognised in their new gender. I want to see heterosexual and same-sex partnerships put on an equal basis and a Labour Party that I lead will campaign to make gay marriage happen.”

The proposals which will then be put out to consultation by the equality minister will give religious faith groups the option of conducting and officiating at gay marriages. The Quakers and Liberal Judaism have already stated that they wish to conduct same sex marriages.

Although the Archbishop of York, Dr John Sentamu, gave the reports a guarded welcome telling the BBC that he “believes in a liberal democracy, and actually wants equality with everybody,” the Church of England does not support the introduction of gay marriages or civil partnerships being held in churches. A spokesman said: “Given the Church’s view on the nature of marriage, the House of Bishops has consistently been clear that the Church of England should not provide services of blessing for those who register civil partnerships.”

The spokesman said the change will “lead to inconsistencies with civil marriage, have unexplored impacts, and lead to confusion, with a number of difficult and unintended consequences for churches and faiths”.

“Any change could therefore only be brought after proper and careful consideration of all the issues involved, to ensure that the intended freedom for all denominations over these matters is genuinely secured.”

The Catholic Church and those representing the Muslim faith are also opposed to gay marriage and holding religious civil partnerships.

The Equal Love Campaign, led by Mr Tatchell lodged a case at the European Court of Human Rights challenging the twin ban on gay marriage and straight couples having civil partnerships. Four gay couples applied to hold marriages and were rejected, as were four straight couples who applied to hold a civil partnership. It is understood that the Liberal Democrats were uneasy at the prospect of the coalition government fighting against gay marriage in such a public way given that introducing gay marriage is official party policy.

A Whitehall source told the Sunday Times: “This is not just about gay rights but about religious freedom. Quakers and liberal Judaism want to do this. Attitudes have changed to gay marriage. We are going to look at what legislative steps we could begin to make gay marriage possible.”

Last year, a poll for PinkNews.co.uk found that 98% of the LGBT population support full gay equality and that civil partnerships are not good enough. It is one of the few official standpoints ofPinkNews.co.uk that it believes in marriage equality.

It took a high profile campaign last autumn for the gay lobbying organisation Stonewall to say that it would campaign for gay marriage. The charity was criticised for by its founders Michael Cashman and Sir Ian McKellen on PinkNews.co.uk for not at that point campaigning for gay marriage. Despite the change in policy, the organisation does not support marriage equality because it will lead to the introduction of straight civil partnerships, something it believes could cost £5bn in lost tax revenue.

Should full gay marriage be introduced, the only other significant legal discrimination against gay men will be the ban on donating blood, although the government have signaled in the past that they will look to end this practice.

ENDS

meanwhile ......

Under current rules, ceremonies must be secular and cannot contain religious elements, such as hymn singing and Bible readings.

The Sunday Telegraph said equalities minister Lynne Featherstone was expected to outline shortly plans to lift the ban.

The weekly broadsheet warned that the new move could open a "legal minefield", with gay couples possibly taking action against faith groups if they were barred from tying the knot in their chosen place of worship.

The Office of National Statistics said that at May 2010 more than 26,000 civil partnerships had been formed in Britain.

Blakka Ellis on "I love you man" - J'can men afraid of saying it openly

internet image not included in original article

with Blakka Ellis

I love you! Those are three powerful, provocative, delight and disruptive words; words a yard man loves to tell to his woman or his mother or his children; when they are children. But if I as a man say those words publicly to another man in Jamaica, some people get very uncomfortable. Why?

I told a brethren I loved him recently and overheard a man standing some distance away declare not too softly 'a wha kinda man dat a tell man say him love man? mi nuh trust dem man deh yu know? Mi a bad man and mi nuh love man, and mi nuh love nuh man who love man'.

How come women can verbally and physically love each other and men somehow aren't allowed to?
Women can call their girlfriends 'girlfriends' and tell them that they love them without their femininity or sexual orientation being brought into question, but for men it's a different situation.

As a man, you can say you rate a man or you respect a man, but somehow the rules of street talk and dancehall-speak don't allow a man express love for another man. Nuh care how yu waan fi qualify it, some not too bright people who're probably living in a knowledge vacuum tend to get 'dark and ignorant' when a man say him love another man. Even when it's clear that when you say you love this man you're talking about the attachment and affection you feel for the person who's your son or brother or father or friend, some of our Jamaican people just don't want to hear a man verbalising love for another man.

upfront talking

Well mi nuh care who want misconstrue my words. This is upfront talking so I sorry fi anybody who take it the wrong way. There are some men who I love, yeah man, and mi nuh fraid fi speak it to them and to the universe. I love my women; mother, spouse, sisters, sister-friends, etc. But I also have many men who have and continue to play important roles in my life. And mi love dem; so a wha? Mi love my bredda dem and me love my old man (who's really a younger hotter man than me) and I love my sons. I also love my man-friend dem.

I'm spending the next few days with two of the men that I love most in the world, my brothers Aston and Ian, and I'm having the time of my life. We enjoy each other's company so much, that it's not uncommon for anyone of us to hug another and say 'I love you, man!' we usually laugh and remind ourselves that if certain bad man pon certain ends witness such expressions of affection, they may chant lyrical fire pon dat and even threaten gunshot.

The sad irony is that plenty of the bad man dem, like the one to whom I referred earlier are hypocrites who publicly parade machismo, declare intolerance for the expression brotherly love between men, while they privately practise 'otherly' love to each other, like the three of them who we read 'bout in the Monday edition of the STAR!

box-mi-back@hotmail.com

I'm spending the next few days with two of the men that I love most in the world, my brothers Aston and Ian, and I'm having the time of my life.

ENDS

Some notes:

The article Mr. Ellis refers to is the recent incident in Denham Town where alleged shottas were caught naked in a house they eventually pulled guns on the invaders and warned them peeping toms to keep quiet however they eventually had to leave the community.

Read the story here as published in the Star as well where this entry from Mr. Ellis was excerpted and linked.

Of course it goes without saying I have to link the original piece that grabbed me from Blakka's boxmiback columns in the Star from way back in 2008 which is still fresh in my mind and worth reading repeatedly, it's probably the only one of the features that brings some sense to the publication apart from the legal ranglings and health/AIDS Affairs sections as well.

read: Jamaica Homophobic yet Homosocial

also see: Who is in your closet?? as published February 2, 2011 also by Blakka Ellis in the boxmiback series.

Peace and tolerance.

Hug someone today it will do you and the recipient some good.

H

Washington Post on J'can gays seeking asylum

The Washington Post carried an interesting story on February 11th on the ordeal of a Jamaican man who has won asylum in the United States which is by no means an easy feat, here is an excerpt below from the extensive article.

However I was particularly offended by the quote from the Deputy Chief of the Jamaican Consulate in Washington who said to the Post "I don't believe we are more homophobic than anywhere else, I believe we are more tolerant than anywhere else." from Cheryl Gordon. I wonder what planet does this official resides or is she too showing her homophobic side by pretending the persecutions faced by some same gender loving persons in Jamaica is somehow a fib or figment of our imagination in order to get asylum overseas ???

She continued her obvious face saving rhetoric as our officials are known for to hide the truth and real shame by saying "We go after crimes committed against people irrespective of their race, ethnicity, sexual orientation and political leaning, as long as people report there has been some crime against them,"

It would be funny if it weren't so tragic.

Here is an section of the three paged piece:

Jamaica's gays finding refuge by applying for U.S. asylum

By Shankar Vedantam

Washington Post Staff Writer

From the time he was in grade school in his native Jamaica, Andrae Bent was the target of taunts and attacks.

A classmate once stabbed him near his eye with a pencil for being effeminate. Another time, a man pulled a knife on him and asked if he was "one of them," Bent said, meaning homosexual. Fearing for his life, Bent denied his homosexuality.

"I was called faggot, gay, batty man, chichi man," he said. "This would be from classmates, from people on the streets when I was walking home. Wherever I went in Jamaica, it was a nightmare."

Five months ago, Bent, now 24, won asylum in the United States on the grounds that he had credible fear of persecution as a gay man if he were to go back to Jamaica. He joined what has become a small wave of gay Jamaicans fleeing homophobia in the Caribbean nation.

Despite its image as a laid-back island paradise for American tourists, Jamaica still criminalizes sodomy and has long been regarded by human rights activists as virulently anti-gay.

The federal government doesn't track how many people are granted asylum on the basis of homophobia or what countries they are from. But of the 92 gays and lesbians who won asylum in 2010 with the help of Immigration Equality, an immigrant gay-rights group,

28 were from Jamaica - meaning that nearly a third were from a single country ranked 138th in world population.

Advocacy groups say they also regularly see asylum seekers from other English-speaking Caribbean countries, such as Barbados and St. Lucia.

"The Caribbean is the part of the world where we see the highest number of cases," said Victoria Neilson, legal director at Immigration Equality, which estimates that it handles about half of all successful asylum cases brought on behalf of gay and lesbian foreigners.

Part of the reason, she said, is that those seeking asylum have to be in the United States when they apply, a formidable hurdle for people from more distant countries such as Uganda. Homophobia in Uganda is so virulent that the parliament is considering a bill to execute gays and a prominent gay activist was slain two weeks ago.

But while many Americans are aware of homophobia in Africa, fewer are aware of the issue in the Caribbean, Neilsen said. "There is a great deal of violence, and in many Caribbean countries there are laws on the books that criminalize consensual sodomy, which makes it difficult for people to report violence to the police."

Human Rights Watch Report

'Hated to death'

additional photo (not in the article) of the man from the Hated To Death HRW report - One of the darkest moments on our nation as a people in general and as lgbt people specifically was in November 2002 where the photographed male was brutally attacked by a machete wielding, stick bearing, cursing mob outside of Falmouth in Trelawny.

(not to be confused with the cross dresser mob attack in 2007 as shown above)

He was chopped several places on his body but survived his ordeal, thankfully to tell the tale. Out of that came the most pronounced collection of data at that time regarding homophobic attacks in Jamaica and related stigma and acts of discrimination as compiled by Human Rights Watch. He has since been promoted to glory after a brief illness but is not forgotten for allowing this report to come to life by contributing his story.

It caused the gay community to pause and look at itself.

Jamaica in particular, she said, "is one of the most violently homophobic countries that exist in the western hemisphere."

That Jamaican government sharply disputes that characterization.

ENDS

Peace and tolerance

H

(photo included in the post only for reference)

14 things you didn’t know about his penis

 a famous Robert Mapplethorpe image

Snapping, smoking and circumcision

IT'S one of his most treasured assets, responsible, many times for that sense of security he has in his manhood. But there are myths, doubts and uncertainties that surround the penis, many promulgated by the men themselves. Here are 14 things you may not have known about it, but should.

1. Imitating Kartel can break it.

The penis has a tough tissue running around it which gets sturdy when erect. "Any sudden bend can cause it to rupture," urologist at the Winchester Surgical Centre, Dr Leroy Harrison, said. "Erection and aggression can cause it to rupture, which is really a tear," he explained. This penile rupture can occur during vigorous sex or a quick action like someone jumping onto a man's lap. When this occurs, there is a popping noise, followed by excruciating pain. And though it may be humiliating for a man, the condition can only be remedied with treatment from a doctor. If not treated, it can lead to permanent erectile dysfunction (ED).

2. Failure to launch can signal heart disease, diabetes or hypertension.

Like with women, stress and a bad day at work can kill a man's sexual desire, however, if he is always not in the mood and there is no other woman getting his game on then maybe he has a condition that needs medical attention. Not being able to get an erection can be either psyco-genic or non-psycogenic, Dr Harrison explained. Psycogenic reasons are mind-based such as performance anxiety, conscience and guilt, while non-psychogenic is anything that causes a lack of blood flow to the penis. This can include heart disease, diabetes, hypertension and spinal injuries.

3. It can shrink like a wool sweater in a hot water wash.

It is believed that cold weather and cold water cause the penis to shrink while also easing an erection. "A cold shower causes the blood vessels to constrict, which decreases the blood flow to the penis," Dr Harrison explained. Thus the concept that he can take a cold shower in the mornings to get rid of his erection is actually true.

4. Smokers have a harder time rising to the occasion. 
For decades doctors have been warning against smoking as it clogs the arteries. These include arteries taking blood to the penis, when these arteries become clogged it is harder to get a rush of blood that causes an erection. This means smokers may have a harder time rising to the occasion. Dr Harrison said after a while, a smoker may not be able to perform sexually at all.

5. He gets an erection even while sleeping.

Believe it or not, your man's penis does have a mind of its own, and as some persons like to say, it is the lightest organ on the body — it rises with just a thought! Dr Harrison said there are three ways in which a man can get an erection (1) reflexogenic — handling of the penis, (2) Nocturnal Penile Tumescence — erection while sleeping and (3) psychogenic — through viewing or thinking about something sexual. "A man has two to three erections each night but he is only aware of the one he wakes up with," Dr Harrison said. Erections are sometimes the result of impulses firing from the brain during REM (Rapid Eye Movement) sleep.

6. Circumcision is good for any penis.

While many men do not believe in it, research has shown that there are health benefits to circumcision, such as less urinary tract infections and a decreased risk of contracting HIV.

7. Most men share same-sized penises.

According to studies done, penises typically measure between three and four inches when flaccid and five to six inches when erect. In fact, when aroused, a man who started out on the small side can end up expanding proportionally more than larger males.

8. Most penises curve.

The majority of penises lean slightly to the left or right when rigid. However, there are others that tend to bend up or down drastically, so much so that having sex is almost impossible. This is known as Peyronie's Disease and happens when the penis doesn't expand evenly during a hard-on.

9. Penis size and shape is not hereditary.

While he may have many traits from his dad, penis size, thickness and shape are not a part of it. Penises are actually formed in the utero by natural causes.

10. Average erection is two hours, average discharge time seven minutes.

Men can have an erection lasting up to two hours before it starts fading away on its own, the urologist explained. However, the average time from penetration to the time he ejaculates is seven minutes +/- three. Dr Harrison explained, too, that some men can have an erection lasting up to four hours or more but this is very unsafe. "What you find is that the blood flows in the penis but not out," he said. "So the tissues are not getting enough oxygen, so after awhile it gets very painful." This, he said, means a visit to the doctor who will apply an injection or pull out the excess blood. This can sometimes have serious complications such as no more erections.

11. Orgasm is all in his spine not his brain.

The signal for a man to ejaculate is the result of muscles contractions in the spinal cord and pelvis.

12. 'Tan pon it long' isn't always a good thing.

Though deejays promote it and men boast about it, an erection that simply won't go away isn't a miracle, but a medical emergency. If the blood flow that causes an erection doesn't eventually leave the penis serious complications can result, like blood clots.

13. Men really do get 'blue balls'.

Jamaican men like to talk about getting 'blue-balls' if they do not get the chance to have sex. While they use this as a common excuse, technically it's true. The condition is called prostatic congestion and the achiness in the testicles is caused by 'trapped' blood. This can in fact be relieved by an orgasm, or by massaging the prostate.

14. Drinking alcohol affects his penis.

It has been found that a man's penis will go limp if he drinks too much. Dr Harris said a number of men will in fact feel that they perform better after drinking but this is all due to the mind being manipulated by the alcohol and is in no way true. Men who drink do not perform as well, neither do they stay as long.

— Donna Hussey-Whyte

Who's In Your Closet ???

The same brother who gave us that excellent piece some time ago entitled Jamaica Homophobic Yet Homosocial is back with another great article looking at our problems of homo-negativity, hypocrisy and downlow/closeted issues some of which appeared in the Star News over time here is an excerpt from the previous article by playright, actor and comedian Blakka Ellis:

"Some Jamaican brethren love to run off mouth about how dem love woman and brag 'bout dem nuh pet man. Yes, big man, start counting the number of activities that you participate in, exclusively with other 'man friends'. Calculate the amount of time you spend with members of your own sex.

Now, compare that with your quality engagement and time spent with the opposite sex. I'll bet all the money I lost in Cash Plus that when the situations are objectively compared, many men will find that they spend more time and energy dedicated to activities with other men than with women. Isn't that funny? But, as I'm never tired of saying, we are a case study in contradiction. Is true, man! Many Jamaican men seem to be violently homophobic, yet passionately 'homosocial' at the same time. Check it, dem burn fire on men who sleep with men but di only company dat dem keep is men.


Some roughneck, macho men seem totally happy to spend 20 hours of one day socialising with a bag a man and then share the remaining four hours with a woman. And, those four hours are likely to involve maybe 15 minutes of talk, 45 minutes of sex and three hours of sleep. In fact, one man made it clear to me that, as far as he's concerned, the main thing to do with the opposite sex was sex."

added image from the Gleaner in 2007 of the then Attorney General AJ Nicholson on the Buggery Law.

here is a flashback to a statement he made while he was Attorney General on Same Sex Unions:

Here is the entry related to this post as published in the Jamaica Star February 9th 2011

with Blakka Ellis
Tell me that Jamaica's not a case study in contradiction and home of hypocrisy, and I'd probably punch you. But, I'm not a violent man, just a passionate Jamaican.
Hey, I read a letter to the editor printed inthe Gleaner on Saturday, February 5, that I found very interesting. The writer, identified only as 'Gay and afraid' from a Tivoli address, bemoaned the departure of Christopher 'Dudus' Coke, and suggested that with Coke's protection (or approval), a gay person could walk in the community without fear of being called names or being beaten to death.

According to the letter writer 'I simply went to Dudus and told him that I am gay and just wanted to live in peace." Interesting eh? They can live without danger or discrimination in the 'President's' community, while the world is arrogantly told that gays wouldn't be allowed in the prime minister's Cabinet. Of course, the PM must have made his statements with the assurance that the kitchen where he keeps his cabinet has no hidden closets!
And talking about closets, I've been noticing a series of news items in the past weeks that seem to point to an interesting trend. The tides, it seems, are turning and the doors of many closets are falling. Yeah man, some of the stories are sad and some mek yu haffi laugh, but more and more, certain man closet door a pap aff!

naughty gush of breeze

Yu ever notice how sometimes a naughty gush of breeze can just suddenly lift up the skirt of a passing lady, causing her brief embarrassment and creating momentary pleasure for every idle male on the corner except the blind man? Well a wickeder wind seems to be blowing away some veils and curtains these past days, and further exposing some of the hypocrisy inherent in the attitude of some Jamaicans to homosexuality.

The most interesting story in this series that I call 'closet door pap aff', is the one I read in last week Monday's paper about the three thugs allegedly caught in bed in the Denham Town area. The entertaining part for me is the report that residents were alerted, but when the mob assembled and called for a beating of the men, they had to make a hasty retreat because the 'gay' thugs allegedly drew guns at the crowd. Is like how dem so bright? Dem neva hear say might beat right?

And there was another 'closet door pap aff' report in the STAR on Monday, this time about a Portmore pastor who had to flee both the church and community after words started spreading that he was seen in explicit photos with a church brother, and was also reportedly discovered in the church's office engaging in an alleged sex act with another brother. Yeah, that pastor read the words about brotherly love but decided to 'tek it another way'.

a compromising position

Then, according to another story in yesterday's STAR, 'the police on Friday had to prevent persons in the Half-Way Tree area of St Andrew from beating two men they are said to have discovered in a compromising position. Unlike the alleged thugs in last week's story, these men had no gun and bad-man status to protect them from mob justice, so, luckily, the police who discovered them were a professional set who chose not to be discriminatory with how and who they serve and protect.

The STAR said a team of officers had to shield the men from an angry crowd for about five hours. But who's in that crowd? Nuff hypocrites; many self-righteous liars with violent looks and homophobic cries, but look inside their closet is enough contradiction and lies, to mek you say in your Bounty Killa voice 'mi cyaan believe mi eyes!'
box-mi-back@hotmail.com

Zimbabweans love dancehall but not many there agree

So as we continue to see the trends where homophobes or those on an anti gay quest either relocate, support homophobic activity in specific anti gay states, financially give support to openly homophobic regimes and advocacy the Jamaican dancehall arena is no different. In case you missed the whole religious movement connections to certain religious anti gay pronouncements you may want to see this video documentary from IN THE LIFE where the connections are made.

Intersections of Church and State

Here is an article from Zimbabwe about the influx of dancehall acts there and the concerns raised:

Love live reggae – but fans disagree

Written by TERRY MUTSVANGA

HARARE - The arrival of Sizzla Kalonji in February 2010 signaled a new era for music in Zimbabwe as artist after artist jetted into the country for some remarkable shows. (Pictured: Beenie Man surrounded by his fans) These included the ladies duo of Brick and Lace, Sean Paul, Beenie Man, T.O.K and the Fireman, Capleton. Misheck Moyo from Arts Alive said: “Jamaica rules the music world. We have a strong bond with Jamaican music since reggae and Dancehall speak about social ills of society and as black people we share common problems. Dancehall is here to stay and long live Reggae.”

His sentiments were echoed by Blessed Gumbo, a club DJ in Chitungwiza, who said : “We were very blessed to have Beenie, Sizzla and Capleton. These are top artists and that is why politicians hate reggae and Dancehall since the music is about righteousness and speaks out on corruption, police brutality and oppression.”

“I have lost count of some of my awards and I have been in this business since I was 9 years old. I am here to stay and I set the pace and others follow,” said Beenie in an interview. Divine Chekenyu from Black Nature disagreed with the claim and accused Beenieman of being a fake Rasta man. Instead he opted for Sizzla Kalonji and said his performance in Bulawayo was magnificent.

“Kalonji rules the Dancehall. His message is pure and clear. Beenieman sings too much about ladies and guns. People like him are a bad influence to the youths.” Other fans accused Kalonji of being an apologist of President Robert Mugabe since he was invited as a guest artist at his 87th birthday. Kalonji also appeared on stage with the President and some senior Zanu (PF) officials. There also unconfirmed reports that he was offered a farm in Chegutu.

One youth from Chitungwiza, Swithun Boora, accused Kalonji of betraying the youths in the country. “Kalonji came here to bless and glorify a dictator. As a true rastafarian he should have rejected the offer since Zanu (PF) continues to deny us of all basic human rights, “he said.

The coming of Jamaicans to Zimbabwe can be attributed to the search by the artists to greener pastures since they are being banned in their former hunting grounds, notably the USA, UK, Canada, the Netherlands and Australia. Artists like Beenieman, Capleton and Sizzla Kalonji had their visas revoked by the American embassy in Jamaica due to their anti- gay stance. Gay rights activists argued that the artists sang lyrical tunes that encouraged the murder of gay people.

They cited songs from Capleton like “Burn Down the Chi Chi”, (Chi chi is Jamaican slang for gay) Buju Banton’s 1992 hit “Boom Bye bye in a butty bwoy head”(Buty bwoy is another term for gay in Jamaica) and Beenieman s “Bad man nuh sex man”(a man cannot sleep with another man).

Ever since the visa revocation, many artists continue to tour different places around the world, but that has seen their purses dwindling since there is more money in America and the UK. Dancehall music, a genre of reggae from Jamaica has been around the music circles since the early 1980s and the majority of Zimbabwean youths have been accustomed to this fast-paced, hardcore genre since the arrival of the then Dancehall great Rexton Gordon, popularly known as Shabba Ranks, who rocked fans at the National Sports Stadium in 1993.

Peter King's Murderer Seeks Help To Pursue Appeal

Barbara Gayle, Staff Reporter

THE MAN who was convicted in 2009 of manslaughter arising from the fatal stabbing and chopping of 64-year-old Ambassador Peter King is pursuing his appeal against his conviction and sentence.

Sheldon Pusey, 25, waiter and carpenter of Hopewell district near Gordon Town, St Andrew, was convicted by a Home Circuit Court jury on March 16, 2009.

When Pusey's appeal came up for hearing on Monday, the court was told that his appeal could not proceed because he was seeking the services of a senior lawyer to assist with the appeal.

The case was taken off the court list for another date to be set.

King was fatally stabbed at his home at Waterloo Road, St Andrew, between March 19 and 20, 2006. The body had 30 stab wounds.

Evidence was given at the trial that King led a homosexual lifestyle, but the prosecutors asked the jury not to have any sympathy or bias in the case. Pusey had admitted in a question-and-answer interview, conducted by Superintendent McArthur Sutherland, that he killed King because he was trying to "rape" him.

Pusey is contending in the grounds of appeal which were filed by attorney-at-law Berriston Bryan (now deceased) that none of the 460 videotapes showing King's homosexual activities had been tendered in court.

Potential trauma

He is contending that the defence had formally requested that "the jury be shown at least two or three of the videos that were recorded by the said Peter King in his homosexual activities, from the more than 460 videos that were in the possession of the prosecution or the police, which could have explained the gravity and graphic extent of the danger and traumatic condition that the appellant (Pusey) would have been subjected to in such an encounter," but the request was denied.

Pusey is also appealing against his conviction on the grounds that two knives taken from the home of the deceased had not been tendered in evidence.

After Pusey was convicted, Justice Marva McIntosh (now retired) sentenced him to 15 years' imprisonment.

Bryan, 72, was badly beaten and fatally stabbed at his home in July 2009.

barbara.gayle@gleanerjm.com

ENDS

My notes:

this looks like another attempt at a fishing expedition again to see who's on those alleged tapes that were said to be found at Peter's house under the guise of an appeal, a who unu a try fool ? gay panic defense and we all know everyone even after so many years is itching to hear or see who was or are on those tapes that were supposedly seized from Ambassador King's home after the gruesome find.

I strongly suspect Sheldon Pusey the accused as gay or bisexual and maybe was in the Ambassador's company as gay for pay which is not surprising. When some of these characters are caught they deny down to the ground that they were ever involved in any homosexual activity whatsoever to save face.

What you think?

Peace and tolerance

H

Ugandan Newspaper Discovers Gay Man Not Acting Effeminate In Public

Closet homosexuals sink further under the radar after Kato’s death

By JOHN K. ABIMANYI

He sits at a table with his fingers encircled around the tail of a glass filled with Smirnoff. He is at a Kampala nightspot and has dissolved into the crowd, looking just like any other reveller. What most people at the bar would not know however, is that he, plus a couple of his colleagues at the venue, is homosexual. He demands that his identity is hidden if he is to be quoted in the papers instead; he proposes a pseudonym, Alan Mukasa.

He gives off no signs that he is gay. He’s not dressed in a tight fitting pair of jeans, commonly known as skinnies, his hair is a natural un-treated neatly trimmed black, he has no studs or earrings, wears no make-up or anything that may attract undue attention to him. “It’s a security precaution one has to take,” he says. “The best way to hide is to fit in.

Be as ordinary as everyone else and there will not be many questions to ask, and answers to give,” he adds. There is an ever-present sense of consciousness that runs on autopilot in the Ugandan gay man’s mind, Mukasa says. But that was before the murder of gay rights activist, David Kisule Kato last month, which, as Mukasa says, “Forces you to ask yourself whether you have watched your back well.”

Mukasa and Sam Musiime (also not real name), say the gay Ugandan living in the closet now has to add even more latches and keep the world away from the skeletons. “The aftermath of David Kato Kisule’s death is a strange atmosphere of confusion, fear, sadness, shock, and terror,” Musiime says, adding, “After watching a pastor deliver a less than savoury hate speech at his funeral, all I could think is, ‘they must think we are all mad’.”

Musiime and Mukasa are both in their late 20s and have kept their orientation a secret from many for nearly a decade now. “You tell no one. Only gay people like you ever get to know, and even then, you watch which gay person gets to find out because they too could sell you out, accidentally or not,” Musiime says. “The key is to ease into society as much as possible, behave like everyone else, even flirt with girls to portray the usual boy look,” Musiime says.

Musiime then expounds on how he now has to rethink his security. “After Kato’s death, something is triggered in you and even makes you think somebody you do not want to know already knows. Now I have to recheck my passwords – on my computer and phones so that no one accidentally runs into photos or any material that would raise suspicion. You fear that even if people would not kill you, you would lose the respect that those who don’t know still have for you,” he adds.

For Mukasa, Kato’s death also leads him to cover his tracks, but not through fear. “I’ve always been in fear, not for my life, but of being found out. I realised that living in fear only gives you away, so I live in confidence instead, knowing nothing is wrong with me,” he says. “Society may not be very accommodative of me, so I still have to be careful, maybe even more careful now that matters are rising to the surface. But I live on. I walk on. I go to work in the morning. I go to the bar in the evening. My life in general has not changed.”

When asked what he will do to keep his orientation a secret, Mukasa says, “I am very conscious of who is watching me and what I do. That doesn’t mean I’m always looking over my back. I don’t feel the need to. However, I am always careful. Things like phone calls, emails, communication, and even friends can be clues to a person’s behaviour. I take appropriate measures,” he says, making an effort not to divulge much. Later, he adds, “Answering this one truthfully is tricky, feels like I’d be giving myself away.”

Musiime and Mukasa say they are reaping the fruits of a ripened swelling of homophobia in a society that finds their actions terribly archaic. However, to many Ugandans, the attitude towards homosexuality is not an irrational fear like the word homophobia seems to suggest. It’s seen as a cry to save deeply treasured social norms.

At an anti-gay protest in support of the anti-homosexuality bill, hundreds of shouting protestors carried placards with among other messages, writings like, “Think about our children,”, “Together we kick homosexuality out of Uganda,” and “Homosexuals beware of God’s wrath.” Pastor Martin Ssempa then stepped in with a charge that homosexuals target and indeed rape boys in school, and that some teachers condone it.

Uganda, which has been under international spotlight over an anti-gay bill that ruling party MP, Hon David Bahati had tabled in parliament in 2009, returned into the headlines with even stronger criticism over the Police’s handling of Kato’s murder.

Cases of attacks on or perceived attacks on homosexuals feature highly on the news agenda of international media. Even with the crisis that was erupting in Egypt, Kato’s death got extensive coverage on the BBC World Service for instance. In fact, the news of Kato’s murder was broken to many Ugandans not by local media, but through tweets from online news wires.

On the BBC’s From Our Own Correspondent show that offers analysis and insight into news events, Ana Cavell, the reporter, said, “Homophobia in Uganda is different to homophobia in Europe. It is not just that people do not like homosexuality or that they do not like to consider what homosexuals might do together. Here it is seen as an abomination. Gay people are reviled - a bit like how rapists are in other countries.” The show described Kato as a brave man who carried the air of an intellectual.
With such attention, Uganda seems to be coming under increasing international pressure as regards what happens to homosexuals here.

President Barack Obama had a personal message read at Kato’s funeral. A senior researcher for Human Rights Watch in the Africa Division, Ms Maria Burnett, says, “In the case of this killing, the world happens to be watching. Uganda’s reputation as a country that respects the rule of law and human rights is at stake if the case is not rigorously and impartially investigated”.

Back at the nightspot where Mukasa wined his evening away, he and his gay friends chatted about sports, money, cars and yes, girls too. And when a female friend passed by the table, Mukasa reached out with arms wide open and hugged her tightly, the way a boy longing to feel a girl’s chest would. As Mukasa would say, “the best way for to hide is to fit in. Be as ordinary as everyone else.”

ends

case in point as seen in photo Dennis Rodman in his feminization days

you may also want to see a post from Afrogay's blog on this article:

"John K. Abimanyi's article in Uganda's Daily Monitor is remarkable for a number of reasons.

The first and most obvious one for anyone who is Ugandan or knows about Uganda is the author's name: Abimanyi.

In Luganda, Abimanyi literally translates as "he knows" or 'someone who knows." As soon as I saw the name, I immediately made myself a vodka tonic cocktail and sat down to read about what John "Who Knows" knows about closet homosexuals."

read the rest HERE

Downlow at the pulpit: Pastor Flees after same sex scandal .... says Star News

Sensationalist at the Star News is known to have become over these many years especially when it comes to same sex allegations here is another entry from them that appeared in the February 7th edition entitled Pastor Flees after Sex Scandal, these days however the language from the previously well respected evening version of the Gleaner turned tabloid trash is improving it seems as the story as excerpted below will bring to bear. 

This also is another in the series of stories from the press and elsewhere that forces us to look at clandestine homosexuality, downlow or secret bisexual love amongst our Jamaican brothers, it was only a week before the Star News also carried a more hyper masculine or thug involved episode of naked "heaviot" also known as "trade" in the United States thugs allegedly caught in the act who pulled guns at their possible homophobic attackers who demanded they leave the community, they have since done so but vowed if anyone tried anything funny to harm them they would suffer the consequences.

See the post below for further readings on the entry.

have a look at the article in question in relation to this post:

PASTOR FLEES AFTER SEX SCANDAL

A Portmore, St Catherine pastor is the subject of controversy after rumours began circulating that he was seen in explicit photos with another church brother.
This was added to claims that earlier this year he was heard in the church's office engaging in an alleged sex act with another brother.

These accusations are said to have caused the pastor and his wife to flee the church leaving the remaining flock to search for a new leader.

When THE STAR visited the community yesterday, we were informed that the pastor, who has several children, is probably overseas. We were also told that since the incidents the wife no longer attends the church and they are looking a new pastor.

"Mi hear seh him gone a foreign, but mi nuh know what happen to the wife," a source said.

In the case of the incident which allegedly happened in the office, it is said that when the pastor's wife was given a description of the sounds that were being made during the alleged sex act she confirmed it was her husband.

groan and moan

"Mi hear seh dat di pastor did a groan and moan and a mek some noise wid one next man inna di church one early morning and dem call di wife and tell her and she seh a so him gwaan when him make love," the source said.

THE STAR understands that despite some persons being shocked, most of the congregation was not surprised when they heard the allegations.

A community member, when asked about the incident, told THE STAR that "Mi hear seh a not too long ago the pastor who always a gwaan like him holy did have a big repentance service dat him tell everybody to repent and confess dem sins."

The source further stated that he has heard several theories about what has happened to the pastor since the incident. "Dis minute you hear seh dem suspend him for two years and dat him leave the island and the next minute you hear seh that him gone a one secret island with a Nigerian lover."

Meanwhile, efforts to make contact with the church has proven futile. One church member, Brother Paco, when contacted, told THE STAR that he has changed his mind about disclosing any details on the matter as the church wants to move on from the incident.

*Name changed to protect identity

ENDS

So as we continue to wrap our heads around this whole change in the Jamaican landscape or can we call it change? but more so exposure to the real deal going on more men in general and men of the cloth in particular seem to be hitting the sack. Of course the homo negativity is still driving same sex acts and relationships underground which could justify the advocates complaints of unsafe sexual behaviours when persons have to hide and lick so to speak. In this instance it seems the congregants were already aware or suspicious of the pastor's sexual tastes which also brings into focus how "fass" or inquisitive persons can be in a church setting and makes one wonder what are we to go to church for? are we there to win souls for the kingdom no matter the condition or "sin" of said soul? or are we there to pry into people's affairs and make it the hot topic before Sunday service?

see older entries such as:

What is the church really about ??

Christianity and Homosexuality from 2009

Is There a Greater Sin (Newspaper Letter) from 2008 following the BBC hardtalk debacle and Bruce Golding's "Not in my cabinet" rant

I think by now we all now that there are gays everywhere question is are the ones behind the pulpit really going to face up to reality and stop living double lives until they are found out or outed the hard way?

Will we ever forget the Eddie Long mess from last year and what that caused internationally? fortunately it finally brought the issue into the African American community or downlow lives amongst men of the cloth and by extension caused many to question their own faith and pastoral leadership in the outside world apart from the paedophilia problems of the Catholic Church.

Peace and tolerance

H

for further examination here is a Pastor in Atlanta who years ago came out of the closet and now runs a church opens to all as he hosts a discussion on other pastors hiding in the closet.