Thursday, April 27. 2006Living Dead in Jamaica "I don't know which is worse, to be one of the living dead or to be just dead."--From an anonymous Jamaican lesbian, as quoted in a recent feature by Gary Younge writing for the Guardian online. He provides a complete picture of the stakes of being homosexual in Jamaica, including the ways in which national identity and class affect the perception and reception of homosexuality. And as an addendum I’d suggest reading two comments posted to my entry a while back about the same issues. The entries are by Jamaicans: one taking a defensive posture against my so-called falsehoods about homosexuality in Jamaica; the other a touching expansion of the dangers faced by gays and lesbians on the island. And if you read nothing else, check out this excerpt from Younge’s article: “Earlier this month the Sunday Herald ran a front page headline "No homos!" in which opposition leader Bruce Golding vowed, according to the paper, that "homosexuals would find no solace in any cabinet formed by him". The statement was supported by several clergyman and a trade union leader. During the 2001 elections Golding's party used as its theme song Chi Chi man by T.O.K. Lyrics, which celebrates the burning and killing of gay men.” Trackbacks
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stories like this hurt my heart, one of these days, we might get through the bigotry that has held us back from truly being the "human race."
I wonder if the gentleman who said these vicious and evil comments, and those who perform such actions, realize they have lost their humanity and the spark of G-d of which they speak so highly of.
#1
on
2006-04-27 21:35
I hope that the Faith In America Campaign (http://faithinamerica.net) which targets fundamentalist Chrisitans in the US will be successful in changing the clergy here that have this same perspective.
I'm afraid though that the opression against queers is widespread and will get worse before it gets better in many places.
#2
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2006-04-27 22:50
Thanks to M and Anonymous for your comments. Warning: cliches up ahead...
Change takes time. Just think of the difference felt by gays and lesbians in their 60's versus those in their 20's. Older generations in the US had to deal with a kind of secrecy the younger folk can't even imagine. Not that the struggle is over--far from it. But since both of your comments express a need for hope/faith, I thought I'd just point to the kind of progress we've seen in the US over the last 30 to 40 years. We may not have the ideal life now, which makes it all the more important to fight for our rights so that future gays and lesbians can enjoy equal rights. The queers of the future are our children, and we tend to forget that I think because it's an abstract way of thinking about the future. Straight people think of "future generations" and they imagine grandchildren and greatgrandchildren. Many of us won't have greatgrandchildren who are queer, so it's easy to lose sight of what we're fighting for. But if we look to our past and note that the ripples from Stonewall are still among us, making our country a more tolerable environment for queers, well that's pretty damn uplifting. We owe it to ourselves to keep the struggle alive.
#3
on
2006-04-28 16:31
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