If you didn't know that is Darren Young Professional Sports Entertainer in the WWE and one half of the Prime Time Players. Last week he made the bold decision to as they term it come out of the closet and it has been a media frenzy since he has. Dial it back a 3 or 4 months ago and we also see basketball player Jason Collins stepping out of the closet; albeit not as much a well know player as I am led to understand since he was mostly on the bench but a player in the NBA nonetheless. Coupling that with also celebrity child star Raven symone following suit after the overturn of The Defense of Marriage Act and confirming her lesbian orientation one can't help but wonder if this is the year of the gays. I'm sure we all remember her from her days on "The Cosby Show" and in recent years the tv show "That's So Raven". No ill intent meant in my words just honestly didn't know how else to put it.
Sadly however in this life where there is good there is also bad as just recently there were multiple cases in the news here in my little island of Jamaica. Notorious for being one of the most homophobic countries in the world, Jamaica has long been the subject of many criticisms by the Lesbian and Gay community at large. Most prominently for the fact that we actually have a law here that prohibits the act of buggery aka 'anal intercourse'. This has recently been a heated issue as talks are/were taking place to try and get the law revoked on the terms that it breaches rights guaranteed under the Charter of Fundamental Rights and Freedoms which was enacted in 2011. As on would expect the churches don't take too kindly to things of this nature so both the people and religious leaders are up in arms to protest this. In light of the tragic killing of a transgendered youth in the Montego Bay area of the island one can only wonder how much longer people will be able to hide behind religion as there justification for dealing with gays in this manner. To think his choice to go to a 'straight' party got him beaten, stabbed, shot and run over by a car when he showed up at a street party dressed as a woman. I don't think we as a country can justify these things anymore just under the guise of quoting the bible and following through on vigilante justice.
As the days, weeks, months, years roll by more and more countries worldwide are opening their hearts to the plight of the gay community at large and legalizing gay marriage. I feel like as a country we should at the very least by now be able to tolerate the idea of gays and lesbians and not be so violently against them. I know its too much to ask of Jamaica to completely be accepting of the Lesbian and Gay community but the wanton disregard for the law of the land and resorting to vigilante justice is no way to conduct ourselves as a nation. In this age of technology and exposure to all that is taking place in the world we have no excuse as a nation to be letting these type of things happen with no one to be held accountable for the loss of human life. In that same breath the lesbian and gay community needs to be wary of where they are and act accordingly to the laws of the land if you can't its in your best interest to migrate, seek asylum or never be found out of your true sexual nature.
It sucks that you may have to pretend to be something you are not or feel uncomfortable but for now I implore you to think first and realize the location and situation you are in and make conscious choices to put your safety first above all else. Most Jamaicans are tolerant of gays as long as they have a little doubt towards their sexual orientation but once the cat is out the bag all hell breaks loose. God he knows the last thing this country needs is to have international fallout over this issue and get boycotted and blacklisted by other more open and tolerant countries that we do business with. Just remember that you aren't breaking the law if you are not suspected or actually caught in the act of buggery; this also applies to vigilante justice against gays so bear this in mind while visiting/living in Jamaica. Cause this might be the only compromise that we can hope for in this day and age. At least then maybe we can all just get along...
As the days, weeks, months, years roll by more and more countries worldwide are opening their hearts to the plight of the gay community at large and legalizing gay marriage. I feel like as a country we should at the very least by now be able to tolerate the idea of gays and lesbians and not be so violently against them. I know its too much to ask of Jamaica to completely be accepting of the Lesbian and Gay community but the wanton disregard for the law of the land and resorting to vigilante justice is no way to conduct ourselves as a nation. In this age of technology and exposure to all that is taking place in the world we have no excuse as a nation to be letting these type of things happen with no one to be held accountable for the loss of human life. In that same breath the lesbian and gay community needs to be wary of where they are and act accordingly to the laws of the land if you can't its in your best interest to migrate, seek asylum or never be found out of your true sexual nature.
6 comments
Why can't we all just get along....(smirk) yup more pepl feel the need to be out in the open about their sexuality. Quite frankly i don't see why they need to,cause if it doesn't have anything with who it's affecting ur job and it's not harming anybody or affecting them directly i really don't see the need to "come out." at this rate i think one pepl will be coming out and saying " mom ...and mom, i think i'm straight." i think some pepl just come out of the closet in the media because they realize the benefits that come along with it when they're in the public eye. In the media people are praised for it, and to me seems like it almost guarantees them a job or one to be noticed. For example I didn't even know who the heck Frank ocean till pepl were making up noise about him being gay.
On another note, it was sad wat happened to that young MAN in Montego Bay. No doubt the situation could have been handled differently, bbut then again u can't put yourself in the lion's den, pretend to be a lioness and then wen the lion realize that ur fake, expect him to pretend like nothing happened or not expect a reaction after to provoke or try to seduce him. it don't work like that. still wish that that situation was handled waaaaaaay differently. this is the world we live in, we can't control what pepl do, no matter wat measures and laws we put in place. as i stated before what they do behind closed doors is their business,just don't try to shove it in my face and expect me to swallow and accept it cuz " it's a new millennium and times are changing."
Good read, I totally agree with your points. Humans should be respected no matter their sexual orientation. It's not acceptable to punish anyone in such an inhumane manner. At the same time gays and lesbians are definitely not to go full blast in a country like Jamaica. As long as they don't trying to involve me I'm fine. I don't approve of their actions but it's their rational or irrational choice (this can be put for debate).
and just in-case you thought I was making this up and we aren't in danger check out this Article:
http://jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20130821/ent/ent5.html
The times are a changing and a coming.
thanks appreciate the support. just hope that more people start seeing whats going on and thinking for themselves instead of holding on to a train of thought that is obviously not going to get us anywhere but in trouble sooner or later.
people don't come out of the closet for "benefits" there are hardly any even in a liberal country like America...People come out because the denial associated with being in the closet..the lies...the pretending...is just too hard...People come out to be FREEEEE despite the grave fallouts possible