Lesbian profiled as ‘Manroyal’ in tussle with men at Portmore Mall

As I continue to track and document matters arising .........

Corroborated

On October 14th 2015 a woman became the latest in a series of bizarre occurrences regarding what appears to be a trend in intensified heat against butch identified, indeed studs or androgynous looking women; this instance by a group of three men in the Portmore Mall just adjacent to the Kentucky Fried Chicken Store around 6:30pm. According to reports and a somewhat blurred photograph of the ordeal that was on Facebook but has since been deleted the woman was on her way to the mall or the carpark when somehow an argument ensued with men in the car park. The argument got louder and intense to a point where got to a stage of physical pushing shoving between the woman who refused to be manhandled and the men who were intent on supposedly embarrassing her or teaching her a lesson while ridiculing her appearance or aesthetic.

The heated exchange lasted for some ten or so minutes before security guards by the nearby entrances to the NCB ATM and westwards to the Jamaica Public Service, JPS bill payment office intervened to try to calm things down. One of the guards allegedly sided with the men in castigating the young lady upon hearing the gist of the argument and words to the effect including the grossly stigmatizing ‘Manroyal’ were hurled at her from who was supposed to be a peacemaker in the scheme of things; effectively demonizing her as she was dressed in what appeared to be male attire. So aesthetics factors in this latest matter; this ugly business of profiling has been featuring in recent times again especially with our same gender loving sisters with ghastly outcomes from arson to death threats to police pepper spraying (despite a police diversity training effort) to forced evictions.

Also see:
Kicked Out! Lesbian told to leave home by father as he can’t stand the site of her


Lesbian profiled & pepper sprayed by cops

Public Defender pleased with diversity training for police

Disturbingly it seems some NGOs or personalities in them want to keep the truth away from the public square on said issues as they seem to be more interested in suring up their images and portrayal of a middle to affluent out levity while the less privileged classes are relegated to at risk populations and victims. It has been said that those who carry reports such as these are exaggerating them; when sadly the vast majority of so called advocates are so out of touch with the real world and are comfortable in their own bubble complete with security guards in gated communities or apartment/townhouse complexes are do not dare venture into the byways, fields and hedges where the real heat exists. They only come into contact with such persons after the fact via reports or an office visit by the victim; so I do not expect anything else from such persons lacking real world experience as they try to paint a false rosy less homophobic picture of Jamaica when it comes to homophobia or indeed lesbophobia. The tweets are more about being out and proud and their own personal matters more so than that of the organization’s collective imperative.

The young lady according to my two reliable sources who witnessed aspects of the exchange and picked up more from the aftermath and conversations involving the intervening guards and members of the public some laughing defended herself ably despite the three against one unfair advantage. This ‘Manroyal’ stigmatization has been with us for some time and has been legitimized in a sense by dancehall artists; chief among them is Beenieman who voiced an old recording simply titled “Manroyal” where he claimed he is not interested in any intimate relations with a woman who dresses like a man and even via subtle hints suggest violent rebuffs to change her or suggesting that such a woman is to be then treated as a man since he wants to become one. A street dance on the Heroes Day Weekend nearing my house the song was played several times by the DJ among other antigay songs (Buju’s “Boom Bye Bye” included) driving the audience into a frenzy and I felt I was in the 1990s all over again.

the offending track in question:

more on the lyrics and their meaning here: Lesbian construction worker profiled told not to return to worksite 2013

There are other reports similar to this one but the challenge as usual is confirmation or at least corroboration; so they just remain as hearsay or a report unconfirmed which makes the job of tracking our situation difficult. We may never get a true picture as many other persons choose to remain silent and absorb the disruption or instance and try to recover on their own with only their own circle having knowledge of the situation. Asking persons to make reports to established NGOs as the ones I hinted to above is even more challenging as the old feelings of such groups being male dominated or insensitive lesbian advocates within such structures persons do not come forward so the under-reporting continues. The display for example of two present supposed leaders in a certain women’s group via some disturbing if not embarrassing tweets as their relationships battle is made very public has turned off some lesbians and bisexual women to approach said groups for anything.

Trust is so important in this kind of work especially in crisis intervention but where is the interest apart from promoting coming out & proud? When the reality is certain socio-economic groups simply cannot be out and still homo-negative Jamaica; the appearance of tolerance to me seems dormant and only requires a spark of some kind to revive such feelings; case in point the recent antigay rally deceptive labelled as a concern for the family by groups such as Jamaica CAUSE, Lawyers’ Christian Fellowship LCF & Lovemarch. The week immediately following that rally in Half Way Tree, HWT saw a spike in reports of verbal and physical tussles with suspected LGBT persons, so called Manroyals & androgynous or gender non conforming persons as well a trend I observed after the previous rally in 2014. Tastees Patties store for example smack in the middle of HWT was the scene of a short lived verbal spat earlier this year with a tattoo bearing, sleekly dressed woman often seen as ‘studs’ in the labeling ladder where one of the obnoxious male DVD bootleggers who peddle DVDs in the vicinity followed her to the establishment and attempted to verbally embarrass her while she waited in line to place her order. She responded in no uncertain terms that she was not intimidated by him and proceeded to conduct business as the man tried to repeatedly incite support for his stigmatizing cause which fizzled as other men around reportedly told him to leave the woman alone as it made no sense to proceed down that path. One person allegedly said words to the effect that sodomites will always be around.

I guess we need to defend ourselves sensibly where possible but is shows me that we have a long way to go in terms of changing hearts and minds not just buggery law reform; the amendment to the Offences Against the Persons Act regarding incitement for example seems to have gone quietly into history, how many folks are aware of such an amendment so they can use it? If the buggery law is amended or decriminalized tomorrow what happens after that?

Peace and tolerance

H

Bisexual Invisibility: Impacts & Recommendations

So from my last post involving bisexuality invisibility some new developments have occurred in the negative as persons identified as gay throwing all kinds of comments regarding bisexuals as being confused to one suggesting bisexuals need not ask for rights as that is a gay thing. I am distraught in a sense as one wonders now how to address this dissent and disrespect for our bisexual colleagues given that there is B in the conveniently used LGBTQ call letters and it means something and not just a space take in the arrangement.

A Note on Language

The term bisexual is imperfect at best. It implies a duality of genders that many people feel erases transgender and gender-variant people. For others, it connotes a requirement of an exact balance between someone’s attractions for women and men, or attractions only to women and men who identify with the genders they were assigned at birth. While pansexual and omnisexual are finding more acceptance, some people feel the terms reinforce a stereotype of promiscuity. More recently, fluid has appeared as a way to describe those attracted to more than one gender, but it is not yet widely used or understood. There are also people who chafe at any label at all.

More broadly, queer is attractive as an umbrella term for non-heterosexuals, but many people still hear it as a pejorative, while others use it as a way to avoid naming or acknowledging those outside monosexual identities. Some who would otherwise self-identify as queer―to indicate their solidarity with the broader community―instead choose to call themselves bisexual specifically to avoid such erasure, even when they are uneasy with the term’s implications around gender.

The good news is that more and more people are comfortable navigating the complexities of human sexuality and gender as they are actually lived. The bad news is that the English language has not yet caught up in expressing that complexity. At this time, there is no clear “best practice” for terminology that fully honors gender diversity while not reinscribing invisibility for nonmonosexuals.

At this moment in the movement for full equality and dignity for people of all sexual orientations and gender identities, bisexual is the term that is most widely understood as describing those whose attractions fall outside an either/or paradigm. It is also (along with MSMW and WSMW) the term most often used in research.

As people become increasingly fluent in the dynamics of gender and sexuality, the language will evolve as well. For now, and with full awareness of its limitations, bisexual is the word used in this report.

Bisexual Invisibility

Bisexuality is the capacity for emotional, romantic, and/or physical attraction to more than one sex or gender. A bisexual orientation speaks to the potential for, but not requirement of, involvement with more than one sex/gender.

Bisexuals experience high rates of being ignored, discriminated against, demonized, or rendered invisible by both the heterosexual world and the lesbian and gay communities. Often, the entire sexual orientation is branded as invalid, immoral, or irrelevant.

Despite years of activism and the largest population within the LGBT community, the needs of bisexuals still go unaddressed and their very existence is still called into question. This erasure has serious consequences on bisexuals’ health, economic well-being, and funding for bi organizations and programs.

As the authors of one study put it, “Bi-invisibility refers to a lack of acknowledgment and ignoring of the clear evidence that bisexuals exist.”

An Invisible Majority

According to several studies, self-identified bisexuals make up the largest single population within the LGBT community in the United States. In each study, more women identified as bisexual than lesbian, and fewer men identified as bisexual than gay.

An Invisible Majority

According to several studies, self-identified bisexuals make up the largest single population within the LGBT community in the United States. In each study, more women identified as bisexual than lesbian, and fewer men identified as bisexual than gay.

In 2010, a study published in the Journal of Sexual Medicine6, based on a nationally representative probability sample of women and men in the U.S., found that among adults (5,042 respondents), 3.1% self-identified as bisexual, compared to 2.5% as gay/lesbian.

An “Eclipsed and Conflated” Identity

Despite the overwhelming data that bisexuals exist, other people’s assumptions often render bisexuals invisible. Two women holding hands are read as “lesbian,” two men as “gay,” and a man and a woman as “straight.” In reality, any of these people might be bi―perhaps all of them.

The majority of research lumps data on bisexuals under “gay” or “lesbian,” which makes it difficult to draw any conclusions about bisexuals and skews the data about lesbians and gay men. “Thus any particular needs of bisexuals are eclipsed and conflated. Only a handful of studies separate out bisexuals and/or report on their bisexual-specific findings. Fewer compare bisexuals to people who are not bisexual.”

Not Just a Phase

While bisexuality has often been considered merely a “phase” en route to a stable gay or lesbian orientation, it is also a stable sexual orientation in itself. A longitudinal study of sexual minority women (lesbian, bisexual, or unlabeled) found that over 10 years, “more women adopted bisexual/unlabeled identities than relinquished them.” Of those who began the study identifying as bisexual, 92% identified as bisexual or unlabeled 10 years later, and 61% those who began as unlabeled identified as bisexual or unlabeled 10 years later. While no similar long-term study has been done with bisexual men, at least one study suggests that bisexuality can be a stable sexual orientation for men as well.

“The only thing I would change about my sexuality is how others treat me for it.”

My coming out as bi has been both extremely satisfying and saddening. I came out as gay in high school when I was 16. While I thought occasionally about women, I largely discounted these feelings as random daydreams. I had heard that bisexuality was a farce so many times from gay friends, that people who were bisexual were just afraid to come all the way out of the closet, that I never thought of coming out as bisexual when I was younger. I was attracted to men, I didn’t have any shame about this, and I wanted to be recognized.

Despite San Francisco’s reputation as a gay mecca, it is where I first came to recognize my opposite-sex attractions. Being single at college parties, I often found myself in situations where women were hitting on me. I was interested but at the same time befuddled. The idea that my same-sex attractions represented an inflexible and absolute sexuality had become entrenched in my thinking, and I wasn’t prepared to question this. Despite this lack of mental readiness, my desire and curiosity were far greater, and I eventually began sleeping with women. I kept my opposite-sex attractions subordinated, leaving them out of discussions with friends back home and rationalizing them away as mistakes to myself.

After roughly a year, stories began to trickle back to friends and family. As questions and underhanded comments started coming in, I found myself constantly being put on trial. Why was I doing this? Was I closeting myself? Why wasn’t I being “normal,” gay how I should be? In the process of trying to answer these questions for myself and others, I realized how long I had been cheating myself and sublimating my desires to others’ ideas about sexuality.

I came out as bi when I was 19 and have remained so since. Rather than quieting the doubts of others, animosity only intensified. Aggressive queries about when I was going to focus on guys full-time again became a standard part of trips home. On top of this, I noticed a change in how sexual partners treated me. Women I was with, no longer with the safety of presuming me straight, would question my real orientation and complain that my sexuality made them anxious that I would one day vanish into a relationship with a man. Men I was with wouldn’t acknowledge my sexuality, referring to me as gay despite my protest. I found myself in relationships waiting for accusations and dismissive comments, ready from the start to move along to someone new. I am happy with my sexuality, and very grateful that I was finally able to fully realize my desires. The only thing I would change about my sexuality is how others treat me for it. Finding my sexuality has been wonderful. I only wish I didn’t have to sacrifice feeling safe, feeling part of a community, and feeling like I have anyone to confide in but myself.

– Jack M., 21, male

An Invisible Place in History

Bisexuals find themselves erased in history. Many famous people―such as Marlene Dietrich, June Jordan, Freddie Mercury, Eleanor Roosevelt, and Walt Whitman―have been labeled as lesbian or gay for their same-sex relationships, yet their long-term relationships with different-sex partners are ignored or their importance minimized. This disrespects the truth of their lives for the sake of a binary conception of sexual orientation. It also makes it more difficult for bisexuals just coming out to find role models.

This historical erasure also extends to activists. Rather than acknowledging the decades of hard work bisexuals have done in the LGBT movement, many gays and lesbians have accused bisexuals of trying to “ride their coattails.” In fact, bisexuals have often been leaders in the movement. In just one example, it was a bisexual woman, Brenda Howard, who organized the one-month anniversary rally in honor of the Stonewall uprising (which in turn was led by transsexuals and drag queens). Then a year later, she organized a march and celebration that turned into New York’s annual pride parade and inspired countless other pride celebrations around the world. Yet it wasn’t that long ago that bisexuals and transgender people had to fight for inclusion in the name of San Francisco Pride, one of the last major U.S. cities to do so.

Bisexual Exclusion

Often, the word “bisexual” shows up in an organization’s name or mission statement, but the group doesn’t offer programming that addresses the specific needs of bisexuals (see the chapter on organizations and programs serving bisexuals). Even when an organization is inclusive, the press and public officials often fall back on the “safety” of saying just “gay and lesbian.” There is even a growing trend of talking about the “gay, lesbian, and transgender” community or “lesbian, gay, and transgender” movement. But words matter. Invisibility matters. Bisexuals find themselves excluded in other ways as well. Many personal ads have specified “no bis” in their criteria.

Bisexual and Transgender Allies in Invisibility

“From the earliest years of the bi community, significant numbers of [transgender people] have always been involved in it. The bi community served as a kind of refuge for people who felt excluded from the established lesbian and gay communities.”

— Kevin Lano (Alexander, J. & Yescavage, K. (2003). Bisexuality and transgenderism: InterSEXions of the others. Journal of Bisexuality, 3(3/4). p. 8, as quoted in Miller et al. (2007).

That quote reflects the actual similarities to our Jamaican scenario as well as several bisexuals remain quiet on their opposite sex attraction in fear of a backlash or avoiding confrontation with sometimes paranoid reactions when such disclosures are made.

Other Forms of Biphobia

Bisexual invisibility is one of many manifestations of biphobia. Others include:

 Assuming that everyone you meet is either heterosexual or homosexual.

 Supporting and understanding a bisexual identity for young people because you identified “that way” before you came to your “real” lesbian/gay/heterosexual identity.

 Automatically assuming romantic couplings of two women are lesbian, or two men are gay,or a man and a woman are heterosexual.

 Expecting a bisexual to identify as gay or lesbian when coupled with the “same” sex/gender.

 Expecting a bisexual to identify as heterosexual when coupled with the “opposite”sex/gender.

 Believing that bisexual men spread HIV/AIDS to heterosexuals.

 Believing that bisexual women spread HIV/AIDS to lesbians.

 Thinking bisexual people haven’t made up their minds.

 Refusing to accept someone’s self-identification as bisexual if the person hasn’t had sex with both men and women.

 Expecting bisexual people to get services, information, and education from heterosexual service agencies for their “heterosexual side” and then go to gay and/or lesbian service agencies for their “homosexual side.”

 Feeling bisexuals just want to have their cake and eat it too.

 Assuming a bisexual person would want to fulfill your sexual fantasies or curiosities.

 Thinking bisexuals only have committed relationships with “opposite” sex/gender partners.

 Being gay or lesbian and asking your bisexual friends about their lovers or whom they are dating only when that person is the “same” sex/gender.

 Assuming that bisexuals, if given the choice, would prefer to be in an “opposite” gender/sex coupling to reap the social benefits of a so-called “heterosexual” pairing.

 Assuming bisexuals would be willing to “pass” as anything other than bisexual.

 Believing bisexuals are confused about their sexuality.

 Feeling that you can’t trust a bisexual because they aren’t really gay or lesbian, or aren’t really heterosexual.

 Refusing to use the word bisexual in the media when reporting on people attracted to more than one gender, instead substituting made-up terms such as “gay-ish.”

 Using the terms “phase” or “stage” or “confused” or “fence-sitter” or “bisexual” or“AC/DC” or “switch-hitter” as slurs or in an accusatory way. Switch hitter locally has a connotation in lower classes of some acceptance especially if the named persons are gender conforming to onlookers.

 Assuming bisexuals are incapable of monogamy.

 Feeling that bisexual people are too outspoken and pushy about their visibility and rights.

 Looking at a bisexual person and automatically thinking of her/his sexuality rather than seeing her/him as a whole, complete person.

 Not confronting a biphobic remark or joke for fear of being identified as bisexual.

 Assuming bisexual means “available.”

 Thinking that bisexual people will have their rights when lesbian and gay people win theirs.

 Expecting bisexual activists and organizers to minimize bisexual issues (such as HIV/AIDS, violence, basic civil rights, military service, same-sex marriage, child custody, adoption, etc.) and to prioritize the visibility of so-called “lesbian and/or gay” issues.

 Avoiding mentioning to friends that you are involved with a bisexual or working with a bisexual group because you are afraid they will think you are a bisexual.

As an example of the extent and depth of biphobia, a study published in the Journal of Sex Research reported that heterosexuals rate bisexuals as a group less favorably than any of a number of groups (including Catholics, lesbians, people with AIDS, and people who are pro-life), except for the category of people who inject illegal drugs.

Bisexual Health Issues within HIV and STI Prevention

There are health issues that are specific and generalizeable to bisexuals as a group and health issues that are specific and generalizeable to people who have partners of more than one gender as a group. This literature review shines a spotlight on specific challenges related to HIV and STI prevention among bisexuals, WSMW, and MSMW.

Unfortunately, existing research on this topic is scarce. Much of it lumps bisexuals into either “lesbian” or “gay male” categories, making it difficult to draw any conclusions about bisexual health.

Data on bisexual women’s sexual health is less prevalent than men’s, particularly data on WSMW.

Additionally, not all researchers take into consideration whether their study participants identify as bisexual, MSMW, WSMW, or something else.

It is important to recognize that many, if not most, bisexual people do not come out to their health care providers or to researchers due to judgments that silence, stereotypes that shame, and assumptions that erase bisexual identity. When a woman is partnered and says she is using birth control, there may be an automatic assumption that she is monogamous and heterosexual. A man in a same-sex relationship is assumed to be gay and therefore not in need of information about sex with women. When a man says he is married or partnered, there are often no subsequent questions asked about other sexual partners. Health care providers need to become aware of how to serve this often-overlooked community and its unique concerns, looking at a patient’s sexual behavior rather than simply a patient’s sexual identity.

Some have simply chosen to be invisible in one stigmatized category by wearing the mark of another.

Some Recommendations

One of the challenges―and frustrations―for bisexuals and their allies is that so much invisibility persists despite decades of educational efforts. One long-time activist described it as “sweeping sand.” While many people and organizations have certainly become more welcoming and inclusive of bisexuals over the years, others remain inconsistent, oblivious, or occasionally hostile. The question becomes how to create institutional changes that remain even if a bi-supportive leader, staff person, or volunteer moves on.

 Educate the public, advocates and elected officials about inclusive language (for example, “anti-LGBT bias” rather than “homophobia”) and ensure its use whenever possible and accurate. Review the STI brochures offered in Public Health and, if needed, encourage them to adopt models created (one that addresses those who identify as bisexual and one for those who don’t).

 Work with the Public Health systems to ensure that data collection addresses the experiences of bisexuals accurately and consistently.

 Share this blog post and similar ones on what bi-specific programming they have, if any; whether their programs that say they serve bisexuals are welcoming in practice; and how the content of their programming changes to address the needs of bisexuals.

 Include specific, separate information on bisexuality in diversity trainings.

 Ensure that bisexuals are included among the speakers when there are panels, forums, and other official discussions affecting the LGBT community.

Many assumptions lie at the core of bisexual invisibility: assumptions about a person’s sexual orientation based on her/his partner’s gender; about bisexuals people’s reliability, honesty, or commitment to the LGBT movement; about bisexuals’ health concerns and needs; and about the world as an “either/or” place rather than one of infinite variety. Any long-term solutions must dispel these assumptions to make room for those whose lives exist beyond binaries.

Think on these things friends.

Aspects of this blog post garnered from:

Peace and tolerance

H

new news:

Yoko: John Lennon suppressed his bisexual side

3 more brothers displaced teetering on homelessness

So in the aftermath of the homeless MSMs second civil disobedience on August 23 and 24, 2011 at the locations of the two oldest organizations that serve or are supposed to serve this grouping who by the way now are equipped with a canine security team on the property to supposedly stop the "savages" from entering the plantation in an almost apartheid type of elitism right before our eyes news comes of more men who have sex with men who are struggling with finding a stable roof and income after falling on difficult times. Also of interest is the security detail that is on call 24 hours a day as well is still in place. The three new displacement cases are not all homophobic in origin but still makes us question who or why are we seeing so many new cases with the existing homeless populations some of whom are banned still from Jamaica AIDS Support for Life and JFLAG offices as no formal release has come to suggest same has been lifted. 


Permit me to just briefly touch on the circumstances that prevail with each case whilst thanking the persons who responded to taking them into their homes (in the case of those who were fortunate) and that audio post (see top of blog a soundcloud embedded link) where I asked if persons would do same? One brother lost his job and fell on hard times as his home on the other end of the island where he resided was destroyed by fire earlier this year he has been struggling ever since to recoup his losses and find employment. Thankfully he has been given a short stay at a friend's house in Kingston while he actively seeks employment, we only hope he doesn't jeopardize that kindness as we have seen in previous cases with other brothers who land in the same predicament. He had made contact with the J on the issue but has not received any positive word on any interventions yet. A special thanks to the member of the Underlined Response who also provided some temporary shelter as he was limited so to do but the young man was grateful just the same as he was bale to rest and at least temporarily ease his mind.


 Brother number two also has lost his job but has not been so lucky in getting a short stay at best as he has been bouncing here and there in the public domain. He too also has been having some difficulty securing a steady income and a roof since he had to leave the last place he rented among other things, these circumstances also are echoed in the case of the third person from this post. Both men are struggling but some of us who are concerned are limited or restricted and either do not have the accommodation to temporarily assist or are too scared to do so after being bitten with bad experiences before in the name of assistance. The former is my reason as I have moved from my old address in Kingston where I have helped persons before by providing overnight stays and a shower and so on where I could, unfortunately the landlord wanted the place for his family or so he said at the time. 

Many of the other youngings from the older population of homeless persons (some from as far back as 2009) who were involved in that infamous civil disobedience actions against the Jamaica AIDS Support and JFLAG have been getting by but just that and with the position of the Crisis Intervention Officer to be made vacant soon as she is said to be leaving for Amsterdam under what some say is the regular use of the underground railroad system to seek asylum there maybe further ignoring or aloofness by JFLAG towards the men. New kid on the block the Underlined Response has been trying with a short term tin drive for canned items and clothing etc plus some fund raising from their recent Pride Fest event but that is far cry from what is really needed, some of us do contribute money where possible. We need some sort of transitional housing interventions going. Again we have to bring to book the stewardship of the two aforementioned agencies that are the oldest in terms of formal outreach setups for same gender loving people yet as the oldest they have not been setting a proper example in this regard and towards this population when we knew from as early as 2007/8 of the increasing numbers of men who have sex with men tittering from displacement to homelessness and back again, especially from that private party DVD that went public. After 13 years in existence being formed out of  JASL in December 1998 JFLAG was set up to not only deal with the buggery law and other legal matters with a hotline that has been defunct for more than ten years but also the frontline services that its parent could not do as it primary focus was HIV/AIDS in the mainstream but not limited to that. Bear in mind that Jamaica AIDS Support for Life JASL was founded mostly by gay men in the heyday of the AIDS epidemic in 1991, seven years later came JFLAG out of GLABCOM (Gay Lesbian Bisexual Community) which was an interface activity for Jamaica AIDS Support for Life's targeted interventions strategy but with no real advocacy autonomy at the time to act as it was purely centered around HIV issues but the other problems were encroaching hence the other J's formation.


If this is all we have to show from our once highly respected, trusted and vigilant advocacy structures after so many years then we are going nowhere it seems, are they suffering from burn out? but we need to do our own bit in our various quarters and build if ever so slowly, we cannot continue in this modern day and age with no radical front-line support services inclusive of psycho social interventions chief among them a resident social worker and psychologists to guide these men to the road to recovery.


Other suggestions from y standpoint include:

• Help out where you can
• Tell someone who you think that can assist
• Talk to someone who falls in this category, sometimes a kind word does wonders
• Contact new movements such as the Underlined Response theunderlinedresponse@gmail.com
• Make contact here via lgbtevent@gmail.com
• Start a donations drive or donate where possible to reputable persons and the UR
• Donate via the Paypal buttons on this blog or on Gay Jamaica Watch 

We are going to have to start dealing with these issues ourselves as clearly the representatives are not interested in helping lives interrupted.

here are some hard hitting commentary and older posts on the matter from my other blogs and here

Homeless MSMs Saga Timeline 28.08.11 by glbtqja3

From the pen of one of our homeless brothers ……..

Also see other related posts

Hypocrisy, Continued damage control via stands or a genuine call for inclusiveness in western Jamaica?

Settle the Score on CVM TV’s Live @ 7 (26.08.11)…the JFLAG ad campaign

Attempted censorship from the advocates towards views on the JFLAG Ad campaign??

Rowdy gays banned by J-FLAG, JASL ………. (Jamaica Observer)

Blow to gay ad – TVJ rejects J-FLAG’s PSA ……. J-FLAG says rejection of PSA unfortunate

Doing ‘business’ in New Kingston … Jamaica Observer on MSM Homelessness ….. JFLAG should be ashamed

Complaint of “Freaky Gays” Harassing New Kingston Residents ……..

The Quietus (Safe House Project Closes) (from 2010)

Gay Ad angers Clerics 

JFLAG/AIDSFREEWORLD unimpressive show at community meeting 

Peace and tolerance


H

Residents protest, force gays to leave (Star News) .......

From the Star news

PAULA GORDON & SHELDON WILLIAMS, STAR Writers

A group of homosexuals had to pack up and leave a popular community in Portmore, St Catherine, THE STAR has learnt.
It is understood that a protest carried out by some intolerant residents led to the group's disappearance.

When THE STAR visited the community recently, we were prevented from going unto the property because of their strict security procedure. When we inquired about the matter, we were told that the 'gays' already left the community.When we pressed for further information, we were directed to the chairman of the citizens' association. But that person told THE STAR that he could not confirm or deny if an actual protest was staged.

He explained: "From time to time people do congregate and discuss issues in the park." He also said that no resident could be forced to leave the community because of their beliefs or sexual orientation. "These are owned homes, we just ask people to conform to our rules. We never ever force people to leave, we do not discriminate," he said.

Meanwhile, he pointed to issues such as speeding on the property and excessive noise as issues that they would speak to residents about. Nonetheless, the matter had become a popular topic among Portmore residents as THE STAR recently witnessed persons from other communities discussing the matter at a service station in the municipality recently.

"Police go rescue one a dem one night, the one who a the 'woman', but hear the joke, when him go inna the police vehicle him never properly dressed, so him ask him boyfriend if him can pass him blouse fi him from the dresser," a man said, which amused the others. Meanwhile, when our news team attempted to gather further details about the displacement of these 'outcasts' from the St Catherine South police, our queries were initially met with chuckles.

Nonetheless, the police source who commented on terms of anonymity confirmed that the police were aware of the discomfort felt by straight residents who lived among those suspected to be gays.

"Anno there so alone inno ... each time a community or a scheme build up, dem find themselves deh until their cover gets blown," the lawman reasoned. However, he emphasised that there were no arrests made as the actions taken by the straight residents against their non-straight neighbours did not escalate into physical violence.

ENDS

My two cents

Sometimes we too make it bad for ourselves and the amounts of complaints that have come from the residents of the area namely Caribbean Estates/Innswood to be precise have been numerous, from loud music to fights to strange or surprising to some the thug characters coming in on bikes or in high end sports utility vehicles make the other residents suspicious in addition to recent sightings of a particular set of dancehall acts coming from a house known for its occupants being cross dressed and ganja smoking have not gone down well with the mostly upper middle income residents in this gated community. We have to also seriously take into account the energies we give off the persons around us and how we carry ourselves in public, sure one can be a cross dresser and still let people gasp in shock at how good one looks but not for the noise one makes or the type of characters one has around one in full view of a cynical public. 

Fresh in the minds of many in that community also I have since learnt is that Innswood incident that was shown on television Jamaica, TVJ some months ago where the police were called in to calm nerves as residents got tired of complaining of the antics of my "sisters" in a rented house. The clips of which have been online for a while but the furore has since died down on that case.

Here are some scenes from that story which I carried on my sister blog Gay Jamaica Watch entitled:

That Innswood matter ......

So we have to be cognizant of our surroundings guys and remind those of us to just be respectful of others views, at least according to the piece in the Star News the neighborhood persons made it clear they weren't interested in removing them due to their sexual orientation but due to the complaints, if they are to be believed.

but this story also links to the area in St. Catherine:

View more videos at: http://nbcmiami.com.

also see the problems related to the labeling by SSP Bailey on the gay community as scammers

Apology Accepted JCF but some questions on several fronts still linger ..

J-FLAG Responds To Police’s Assertion About Gays & Organised Crime

UPDATE September 27th

The Star also carried this:

Community did nothing to protect them

Months after homosexual residents were displaced from their homes in a popular community in Portmore, St Catherine, one man claiming he was one of those who was chased away, said the community did nothing to protect them, as they were attacked repeatedly.

"The security who were over there pointed us out and called us homosexuals and they wouldn't protect us," the man, who spoke on terms of anonymity, explained.

"I just want them to tell the truth," he said, adding that the homosexuals who lived there experienced physical violence.

The man then took the opportunity to describe in detail the abuse which he and the other estimated 20 homosexuals who lived in the community had to endure.

"My windows were hit out by children, they poisoned my dog. Dem puncture the wheels of my Kia and Levin ... If we a walk go down to the plaza, they would stone us," the man said.

criminals

He also explained that his neighbours told lies on him and others accusing them of being criminals so the police could arrest them.

"One morning police swarmed my house and accused me of doing lottery scam," he claimed.

Additionally, he pointed out, "On every cluster, the residents have problems with homosexuals. People would also run us down with machetes. They used a knife to cut another gay on his head but there were no arrests".

However, the man admitted amid the hatred, some residents were openly apologetic.

"You have good residents over there. Some of them, mainly women, came back to apologise later," he emphasised.

When asked if he was experiencing the same dislike and abuse in the community where he has relocated, he confessed, "I'm comfortable where I'm at now, everything is ok,".

When THE STAR enquired into the matter with the Jamaica Forum for Lesbians All-Sexuals and Gays (J-FLAG), the organisation said it was had been made aware of the displacement of homosexuals from the community in question.

Corbin Gordon, programme & advocacy coordinator at J-FLAG, said, "We were alerted some time ago of the abuse in Portmore ... We are aware that homosexuals are being driven out of their homes and communities because of homophobic violence."

At the same time, he emphasised, "We have a lawyer on retainer who can take up such cases."

ENDS

Peace and tolerance

H

Bisexuality Day is September 23 ....

Celebrate Bisexuality Day is observed on September 23 by members of the bisexual community and their supporters originally in the United States but has been extended worldwide.

This day is a call for bisexual, pansexual, friends and supporters to recognize and celebrate bisexuality, bisexual history, bisexual community and culture, and the bi/pansexual people in their lives.

First observed in 1999, Celebrate Bisexuality Day is the brainchild of three United Statesbisexual rights activists: Wendy Curry of Maine, Michael Page of Florida, and Gigi Raven Wilburof Texas.

Wilbur said,

“

Ever since the Stonewall rebellion, the gay and lesbian community has grown in strength and visibility. The bisexual community also has grown in strength but in many ways we are still invisible. I too have been conditioned by society to automatically label a couple walking hand in hand as either straight or gay, depending upon the perceived gender of each person.

”

This celebration of bisexuality in particular, as opposed to general LGBT events, was conceived as a response to the prejudice and marginalization of the bisexual persons by some in both thestraight and greater LGBT communities.

In its first year, an observance was held during the International Lesbian and Gay Association, which occurred during the week of the 23rd. While at first it only took hold in areas with an extremely strong bisexual presence, it is now celebrated worldwide.

It features event such as discussions, dinner parties and dances in Toronto and a large masquerade ball in Queensland, Australia. At Texas A&M University, the week featured discussion panels and question-and-answer sessions. Princeton University celebrates this day each year by throwing a party at its LGBT Center.

It has also been celebrated in Germany, Japan, New Zealand, Sweden and the United Kingdom.

Unfortunately in Jamaica either our advocates haven't matured to the recognition of bisexuals as a part of our struggle or we can't be bothered as "batty business" and the associated dramas are more important when some of the very issues of homophobia as we call it are not really so but bi-phobia if one were to closely examine the details at times.

JFLAG, Jamaica Forum for Lesbians Allsexuals and Gays has "Allsexuals" included in their acronym I suppose to cover all other orientations and variants outside of the original LGBT population (excuding thoses associated with disorders) but I never heard of any direct meetings, interventions or strategies to engage this section of the population or any inclusion in the umpteen public statements or press releases.

Bi-phobia or bi-erasure by default?

I would hate to think that our advocacy representatives are themselves guilty of bi-phobia in the form of bisexual erasure (the tendency to ignore, omit, remove, falsify, or reexplain evidence of bisexuality in history, advocacy, academia, the news media, and other primary sources.

In its most extreme form, bisexual erasure can include denying that bisexuality exists. Inclusiveness is the name of the game now if we are to get anywhere but with the elitist position taken by the group one wonders when will we begin to move on anything? with recent ugly events further darkening our LGBT history that of aloofness towards the homeless msm population more and more persons in and outside the LGBT community are asking what are the reasons for these organizations, their credibility as well has been shattered further with the unconditional love and tolerance ad campaign rejection by mainstream tv stations, how can they ask for tolerance and unconditional love on our behalf and turn cold to the least amongst us in the form of the homeless MSMs who had to launch a civil disobedience action at the gates of their parent organisation 
Jamaica AIDS Support for Life in Kingston.

It is refreshing to see other individual voices saying their piece and going out on their own, I would love to see an all out Jamaican bisexual website or at the very least a couple of blogs related to bisexual issues exclusively. There has been some discourse regarding bisexuality but the backlash from the MSM and SGL female communities suggests we have a far way to go towards inclusiveness and tolerance, ways that are to be facilitated by a JFLAG that is not engaging the community but six or seven persons deciding what is "right" for the rest of us.

Let us hope in the near future something can be done about that either by them despite the insulation or some other group, organization or individuals. Here is an ironical take on the issue from a UK perspective, the images included here were burrowed from this clip.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t-4w6NqfLAc

Celebrate yourselves anyway my BI-FRIENDS. We won't erase you here.

my audio commentary on the issue:

 Bi-phobia by default from supposed LGBT advocate structures? by glbtqja3 

Also see:

Biphobia in the L & G communities maybe higher than thought

Peace and tolerance

H