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.
