Study shows Disparity in Jamaican LBT media coverage vs MSM

I just got a chance to read the document created by a new women’s empowerment group for same gender loving persons and the first question that came to mind is where are previous entities/bodies such as lesbians in action (LIA), AJAWO (Jamaica Women’s Wheel), Couture Elements, CE(party element discontinued),

 Womenforwomen (a derivative of LIA), Underlined Response(sister to CE) and other same gender women centric outfits that simply come and die or go dormant after a short run with continuity towards visibility and or change. Could someone also tell me where is PRIDE in Action?

Aphrodite’s P.R.I.D.E Jamaica, APJ with which I will declare interest as its volunteer Outreach Assistant has been quietly working on the ground but with very little help from the more established outfits, this disjointed advocacy overall has been our major downfall in addressing several issues including homelessness and the very overlooking of SGL matters. I hope Women’s Empowerment for Change (WE-Change) is not another limited time wonder as others before and simply go away when the activists get bored or fizzles. Frankly speaking as a gay man with some over twenty years experience in advocacy and working or partnering with women’s groups I am tired of short term advocacy and indeed oversight by the very main LGBTQ advocacy itself namely JFLAG.

Some examples via my previous rants and podcasts:

2 SGL WOMEN LOST, CORRECTIVE RAPE & VIRTUAL SILENCE FROM THE MALE DOMINATED ADVOCACY STRUCTURE

ARE SGL MEN HERE LESBOPHOBES CONTINUED 

LESBIAN OVERVIEW IN JAMAICA 2009

For too long the focus has been on MSM matters, homo-negativity and homophobia with law reform as the major goal as welfare and cohesive community development is secondary in the groundswell so urgently needed. We have seen serious issues hitting the L & B in the LGBTQ population grouping and virtual silence from JFLAG and others; the oversight has to be solved internally first before other needed investigations can occur, be that as it may let us review what was found by WE-Change eh. It is understandable that SGL women do not go through the kinds of incidents and visible outcomes as their MSM counterparts but recent incidents in the last three years; just by observation suggests butch identified women in particular are having a rough ride especially as LGBTadvocacy goes mainstream with a face to boot and not as previous years when it was faceless.

Anyway the group describes itself excerpted below:

Women’s Empowerment for Change (WE-Change) is a rights-based, women-led, community-based advocacy group committed to increasing the participation of lesbians, bisexual and transgender [LBT] women in social justice advocacy in Jamaica and the Caribbean. WE-Change was founded by twenty LBT women out of a need to strengthen the women’s movement within the LGBT community given LGBT advocacy spaces in Jamaica have been largely controlled by, and focused on men, which has inadvertently marginalised and invisiblised women. In May 2015, the organisation was officially launched in Kingston, Jamaica.

Our Vision

WE-Change envisions a society where the rights of every person are recognised, respected, and protected, and where duty bearers and caregivers commit to creating an enabling environment for every person to contribute to the sustainable development of Jamaica.

Our Mission

WE-Change is committed to

 increasing the participation of LBT women in local and regional social justice advocacy;

§ creating alternative and safe spaces for LBT women;

§ reducing homophobia and transphobia among duty bearers and caregivers.

WE believe that empowered women transform communities, and are guided by one of the tenets of the 1995 Beijing Declaration, that:

‘Women’s participation in all spheres of society, including participation in the decision-making process, and access to power, are fundamental for the achievement of equality, development, and peace.’

Executive Members:

§ Associate Director - Latoya Nugent, MSc., PGDip, BA.

§ Research & Advocacy Officer - Paige Andrew, BA.

§ Community Mobilisation & Outreach Officer - Nicolette Bryan, BSc.

§ Monitoring & Evaluation Officer - Rochelle McFee, MSc., BSc.

ABSTRACT

This research investigates whether a disparity exists between media coverage of issues related to gay men and those related to lesbians, bisexual and transgender (LBT) women. Over a four-month period between May 2015 and August 2015 Women’s Empowerment for Change (WE-Change) undertook a media content analysis of the two most trusted and widely read electronic versions of print media in Jamaica. It was found that a considerably wide disparity exists between media coverage of LBT women and gay men. Matters specifically concerning LBT women were rarely discussed over the period, while those related specifically to gay men populated the media in significantly more numbers. WE believe that this research and its findings can be useful for organisations that work with, and for LBT women, and for raising awareness about the unique challenges faced by this invisiblised and vulnerabilised community. More information in traditional and new media can assist with the education of Jamaicans on issues pertaining to LBT women and this has the potential to change the attitudes of many Jamaicans towards the LBT community and the attitudes members of the community have toward self.

INTRODUCTION

The lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) movement in the Caribbean has always been dominated by gay men. Unfortunately, the issues which are brought to the forefront by activists and covered by traditional and new media tend to make lesbians, bisexual and transgender (LBT) women invisible. Issues such as sexual violence, sexual and reproductive health and rights and intimate partner violence (IPV) in LBT relationships are rarely discussed. This lack of information on LBT issues has an impact on both the attitude many have towards LBT women and the attitude LBT women have toward self.

The formation of Caribbean women-led groups for LBT women such as WOMANTRA (Trinidad), United and Strong (St. Lucia), Women’s Way Foundation (Suriname) and Quality of Citizenship (Jamaica) have ensured that issues relating to LBT women have become part of the discourse in the region, and have made information about issues affecting LBT women more easily accessible. However, it is important to note that the LGBT movement is still heavily focused on issues concerning gay men and by doing so, inadvertently silences LBT women. Given the role of media in society, it is plausible that inadequate coverage of LBT women’s issues in media may correlate with the invisibility of LBT women’s issues in the LGBT community and wider society.

Many persons rely on media as the primary source of information in any country, therefore, if the LBT community is rarely topical, it will have an impact on the knowledge level of the general population about the community, and even the knowledge level the community has of self. This is in keeping with the Agenda Setting Theory that

The power of the news media to set a nation’s agenda, to focus public attention on a few key public issues is an immense and well-documented influence. Not only do people acquire factual information about public affairs from the news media, readers and viewers also learn how much importance to attach to a topic on the basis of the emphasis placed on it in the news (McCombs& Shaw, 1972).

We share the view of Agenda Setting theorists that media entities influence what we think about and how we think about it; this, we believe is also true about the media’s role in how Caribbean people perceive the LGBT community. If media do in fact pay more attention to issues relating to gay men when compared to those that affect LBT women, this will have an impact on the discourse surrounding LBT

This study seeks to investigate the extent of media coverage for LBT women’s issues and whether a disparity in fact exists between the media’s coverage of gay men and LBT women. The study also delves into how the media present different groups, the general nature and tone of the articles written, and the stories covered. Over the four-month period May to August 2015 we surveyed the Jamaican electronic version of the print media, and investigated media coverage of issues relating to Jamaican LBT women and gay men. We believe this study can potentially give organisations that work predominantly with, and for LBT women, scientific evidence to support anecdotal claims that there is a lack of adequate coverage for LBT women’s issues in Jamaican media, and where LGBT issues are covered they more often than not focus on gay men. The study will quantify the disparity in coverage of gay men and LBT women, given the media entities were monitored on a daily basis over the four-month period. It is expected that these findings will encourage organisations to increase their media output about issues that (uniquely) affect LBT women, which are largely ignored or addressed in traditional media spaces, and find innovative and effective ways of sharing information about the LBT women’s community.

METHODOLOGY

From May 1, 2015 to August 31, 2015 the electronic versions of the Jamaica Observer and Jamaica Gleaner were monitored daily for articles specifically about LBT women, gay men and issues relating collectively to the LGBT community. These two (online) newspapers were chosen because of the wide reach they have individually and collectively across the island, within the Caribbean region, and among the Jamaican Diaspora. Both the Observer and Gleaner have wide readership. In fact, the Gleaner’s website is the most visited local newspaper website in Jamaica (The Gleaner Company Annual Report, 2010) and the Observer enjoys a high readership of its print newspaper, and is regarded by 43% of the population as not only the primary source of news, but the most credible source (Readership Survey, 2008).

A total of 103 articles were monitored and analysed over the four-month period for their content and tone. Notice was also made of the section of the paper which the majority of the articles were found, as well as the nature of the coverage - whether it dealt with the legislative framework, sociocultural, or psychosocial issues. Articles that spoke about general issues concerning the entire LGBT community such as same-sex marriage, homophobia and human rights were labelled as ‘articles where entire community is mentioned’. Articles that focussed on issues concerning LBT women such as rights for transgender women, or spoke directly about LBT women, were labelled as ‘articles where LBT issues are mentioned’; articles that focussed on issues concerning gay men or spoke directly about gay men such as the rights of gay men or the rate of HIV and AIDS among gay and bisexual men were labelled as ‘articles where gay men’s issues are mentioned’.

In cases where articles did not fall neatly into the thematic frames established, the researcher placed them under the theme that would have some relationship with those variables. Such articles were explored in the discussion of findings as they amplify the ways in which overgeneralizations invisiblised and silenced other issues and voices, particularly the voices and issues of LBT women.

Read/download the rest HERE

Now that the recognition of invisibility has been formalised yet again let us see where this leads to real representation of such matters pertinent to our sisters. A case of a chopping incident as carried in the Jamaica Observer and here and the subsequent follow-up was not mentioned especially after the revelation of other side of the equation leading to the incident. It was also posted on this blog, go HERE.

Peace and tolerance

H

related/previous entries:
Lesbian Longs For More Respect via Letter 2014

Continued oversight or deliberate overlooking of Jamaican SGL Women in HIV Prevention?

A most uneasy discussion on Transgenderism in Jamaica......stigmatizing terms repeatedly used

Is ‘The Most Homophobic Place on Earth’ Turning Around?

So Time magazine has covered the work of Angeline Jackson of Quality Citizenship Jamaica, QCJ given the acknowledgement from President Obama during his visit to Jamaica in April 2015. 

The timing of this article could not have been more opportune as anti gay voices have long used the old 2006 article and still do up to a day ago on a recent radio show from the same magazine which supposed to be a question was made to become a label as us being the most homophobic place on earth, when really while we have our unique version there are places elsewhere that are far worse.

 

Time carried this:

Attitudes toward civil rights in Jamaica are changing — but more needs to be done

not included in the article

In 2006, Time magazine called Jamaica “the most homophobic place on earth.” The country was experiencing excessive violence and hate crimes against gays and lesbians. Three years later, a friend and I were robbed and sexually assaulted in Jamaica. We are both lesbians. When I first reported the incident to the police, an officer told me I should “leave this lifestyle and go back to the church.” But I didn’t. I reported the incident and testified against my assaulter. I became an advocate for other women like me.

In April, at a town hall meeting in Kingston, Jamaica, President Barack Obama included my story when he spoke about a generation that cares “less about the world as it has been, and more about the world as it should be and can be.” These two moments—when an official insulted me and when the U.S. president acknowledged me—show how far Jamaica has come in the last few years.

Although the LBGT community in Jamaica still faces challenges on many fronts, attitudes are changing, as detailed in a recent report from Human Rights First. Given this momentum, international partnerships and pressure on the government have the power to help change the lives of LBGT Jamaicans.

Jamaica’s “anti-sodomy law,” a holdover from British colonial rule, criminalizes “the abominable crime of buggery” and acts of “indecency” between men. Few have been convicted under the law, but many use it as pretext for unfairness and violence. Broadcasting companies have cited it when refusing to air ads promoting tolerance and respect for LGBT people. Dancehall music artists have used it to justify violent homophobic lyrics.

Many LGBT youth are forced to live on the streets after being kicked out of their homes. People can lose their jobs because of their sexual orientation or gender identity. Many avoid healthcare centers, even for HIV treatment, for fear of mistreatment. Mobs have attacked and even killed LGBT people. Few are investigated for these crimes, and even fewer are convicted.

Those with intersecting identities, such as lesbians, bisexual women, and transgender people seem to get a double dose of gendered violence and prejudice.

Overturning the “anti-sodomy law” requires not just a legal case but a transformation of social attitudes. Last year, threats forced activist Javed Jaghai to withdraw his challenge to the law. A 2011 poll found that about 76% of Jamaicans oppose amending the law. Even larger majorities believe that homosexuality is immoral.

But against this grim backdrop, there is hope. Officials including Public Defender Arlene Harrison Henry, Minister of Justice Mark Golding, and chair of the Jamaican National Family Planning Board Dr. Sandra Knight have spoken boldly in favor of the human rights of LGBT people. Reverend Margaret Fowler of United Church ministers to homeless LGBT youth and urges her congregation to do the same. Anglican priest Father Sean Major-Campbell has welcomed LGBT people into his church.

Just last month at a Human Rights First reception for International Day Against Homophobia, I stood next to reggae singer Etana, as she told a room full of people on Capitol Hill that we must work to make Jamaica a place that is safe for all people. Another prominent reggae singer Tanya Stephens has created constructive dialogue around the issue, and her song “Do You Still Care?” humanizes the experience of members of the LGBT community in Jamaica. 

A range of groups—including Quality of Citizenship Jamaica, J-FLAG, the Caribbean Vulnerable Communities Coalition, Pride in Action, Aphrodite’s PRIDE, and the Colour Pink Group—also support the change.

Together, these leaders are changing the narrative around LGBT human rights in Jamaica.

Now is the perfect time for the United States to act. President Obama is very popular in Jamaica and could have a huge influence in promoting the rights of the country’s LGBT people. Newly appointed Special Envoy for the Human Rights of LGBT Persons Randy Berry traveled to Jamaica last month. He should work to partner with Jamaica to combat homophobic violence and unfairness. The tourism industry and other U.S. businesses in Jamaica should also make changes to ensure that their LGBT customers and employees have access to a safe, supportive environment.

There’s a Jamaican phrase, “Every mickle mek a muckle,” which means “Every little bit adds up.” I am looking forward to the day when LGBT Jamaicans can live freely thanks to the combined efforts of civil society and our partners to bring about “the world as it should be.”

ENDS

I know this appearance alone may not be enough to change the label perception but at least the headline indicates the magazine is aware of the trajectory though ever so slowly the change is happening.

also see:

Angeline Jackson on Obama Effect?

Obama Hails Jamaican Lesbian Advocate's Work

LGBT Envoy Wants To Get By With A Little Help

No Buggery Law Removal says Justice Minister

Healthy coalition nonsense! indeed

J-Flag Says It Wants More Done For LGBT People

PM scolds gay-rights protesters in New York ..

Aphrodite’s P.R.I.D.E. Jamaica Seismic Project wraps

Aphrodite's P.R.I.D.E Jamaica is four years old

Another LGBT Group launches with a mature lesbian focus ........................... (my post on QCJ & Angeline from 2013)

Quality Citizenship Jamaica ............ One Year on

Aphrodite's P.R.I.D.E Jamaica's World Conference on Youth 2014 Participant Report

Aphrodite’s P.R.I.D.E. Jamaica Seismic Project Summary 2014

Peace & tolerance

H

Gleaner Editorial: Confront Anti-Gay Bigots

President Obama's LGBT comments at Youth... by glbtqjamaica

When Barack Obama referenced Angeline Jackson in his remarks to young leaders during his visit to Jamaica, it was more than a statement about the bravery of an individual and the right of people, whatever their sexual orientation, to enjoy their fundamental human rights in a free and democratic society.

It was a declaration, too, of the nature of leadership: that, at its best, it is conditioned by neither opportunism nor narrow expedience.

We hope that Prime Minister Portia Simpson Miller heard and was inspired to lead her administration in a frontal legislative defence of this country's gay and lesbian community to love who they wish, without fear of discrimination, official, or otherwise. In other words, it is not enough for the prime minister to designate a member of the Cabinet - as the Americans may have been advised she has done - to trove for complaints about government agencies that discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation and then use moral suasion in an effort to reverse such bigotry. Nor should such an initiative be secret, as it appears to be.

(photos added for this entry, not at source)

Ms Jackson was 19 when she was raped. Her rapists hid behind the chimera of their action being some kind of corrective therapy for her lesbianism. Instead of slinking off in the darkness, Ms Jackson formed an advocacy organisation, Quality Life Jamaica, for women like herself who have faced such trauma and, as President Obama put it, to push back against such stereotypes.

Said Mr Obama: "But more than anything else, she cares about Jamaica and making it a place where everybody - no matter their colour, or their class, or their sexual orientation - can live in quality and opportunity."

It was a sentiment similar to President Obama's and the bravery of Ms Jackson that we perceived in Mrs Simpson Miller when, during the 2011 election campaign, she rejected notions of a sexuality check for prospective members of Cabinet and promised a parliamentary conscience vote on the law against buggery, the major weapon of terror used to intimidate gay men.

Mrs Simpson Miller and her Government have done little publicly to advance this issue, which requires a major public-education campaign and would benefit from her unique skills of communicating with most Jamaicans.

GOVERNMENT CONSTRAINED

It is easy to understand why Mrs Simpson Miller and Government may be tentative. A Bill Johnson poll for this newspaper last year found that 95 per cent of Jamaicans were in favour of retaining the buggery law. And while more than 80 per cent agreed that gays were not treated fairly in the society, two-thirds felt that they that should not enjoy the same rights as straight people. In other words, it is right for the law and other institutions to discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation.

Such attitudes are fanned by fundamentalist Christians, whose unevolved fire-and-brimstone interpretation of scripture helps, in too many circumstances, to reinforce bigotry and constrain governments keen on socially progressive and transformative actions. Put crudely, they influence votes. It would make sense that the fundamentalists undertake a review of their bearings.

At the same time, Mrs Simpson Miller might find that the hold of the fundamentalists and the bigots might be not as powerful as they assume if her leadership advances to the protection of people like Angeline Jackson.

ENDS

Nothing much to add except to reference the Quality Citizenship Tab immediately below to see other posts by date order, new ones appear first including this post so scroll down for more.

As this old Clovis toon implies it's about winning election so explosive matter such as Buggery/Homosexuality may not really get the attention they deserve or be made to become political capital harvesting tools.

In the meantime see:
Health Minister Says Boldness Needed to Change Buggery Laws for HIV Prevention Work to be Effective

Member of Parliament Lloyd B Smith on Of Buggery & Rationality

Justice Minister reiterates his personal position on the Buggery Law, Anal Intercourse, Consent & Privacy,

More gay marriage paranoia & hijacking of the homosexual debate by fanatics

Opposition leader (JLP) reiterates his call for a referendum on Buggery ...

Jamaican Opposition Leader says he would allow homosexuals in his cabinet ..... departing from his predecessor 

Non Governmental Organization Consultant says JLP suggested Referendum on Buggery is not a good idea

Opposition Leader sides with antigay groups on Referendum on The Buggery Law

Promised (I mean suggested) Conscience vote on Buggery law not a priority right now (yet again) says Prime Miniister

Holiness, hypocrisy and homosexuality …Pastors and the buggery law debate

Foreign Affairs Minister says Govt should be cautious on gay rights issues in Jamaica

Promised Conscience Vote on Buggery in Jamaica was a fluke,

PNP’s Bobby Pickersgill differs on Conscience Vote route to decide on Buggery Law

The False Dichotomy of the religious right on the LGBT advocacy Godlessness

MoBay Church Fraternity Says No To Buggery Review

The PNP's first 100 days ............. buggery review looks far away

PNP's Damion Crawford says it's highly unlikely buggery review will happen ........ it's not important now 2012

CVM TV @ Sunrise on the Buggery review & JFLAG's 100 days hope for meeting with PM

Gleaner's associate editor on no to theocracy

Milk River PNP Councillor says no to buggery repeal ..............

Studies suggest children taught about sexual abuse more likely to report it

My first post for Sexual Assault Awareness month and May is child's month but given the disturbing reports of child trafficking, teens and tots turned into sex slaves. Also the recognition by President Obama of a Jamaican lesbian advocate who was also raped (corrective) has raised the issue of assault on the front burner.

The continued conflation by some in the anti gay advocacy arena has become a deceptive tool for riling up the public towards homo-negativity and homophobia suggesting that buggery laws must not be changed as that will open the gate for paedophiles. Paedophilia is not homosexuality simply put. 

 I found this latest news of a study

source

A global review finds children who take part in school-based programs designed to prevent sexual abuse are more likely to report it to an adult than children who have received no such education.

A global review finds children who take part in school programs to prevent sexual abuse are more likely to report it.

For the review, published in the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, researchers examined published studies covering nearly 6,000 elementary and high school children in several countries around the world.

They found that of those children who received education in how to prevent sexual abuse, around 14 in 1,000 disclosed some form of sexual abuse, compared with 4 in 1,000 of children who did not receive it.

However, lead author Kerryann Walsh, an associate professor in the faculty of education at Queensland University of Technology in Brisbane, Australia, and colleagues note their results should be interpreted cautiously because of the "moderate" quality of the evidence.

They also conclude more research is needed before it can be said that school-based programs can actually reduce the incidence of sexual abuse.

Estimates suggest that worldwide at least 1 in 10 girls and 1 in 20 boys experiences sexual abuse. Children who experience sexual abuse are more likely to become victims of sexual assault when they grow up. They are also at higher risk of health and other problems in later life, including depression, suicide, eating disorders, drugs and alcohol.

Several countries - some since the 1980s - run school-based sexual abuse prevention programs that teach children how to recognize, react to and report sexual abuse. The review included data on 24 studies covering a total of 5,802 elementary and high school children in seven countries: the US, Canada, China, Germany, Spain, Taiwan, and Turkey.
Programs used various methods to teach children how to stay safe

The studies examined various types of program designed to prevent sexual abuse. These ranged from a single 45-minute session to eight 20-minute sessions on consecutive days, note the authors.

While the programs varied widely, some of the content was similar. For example, they taught the children about safety rules, body ownership, "private parts," how to differentiate between different types of touch, types of secrets, and who to tell.

The programs used various formats to deliver their messages, including film, video, DVD, theatre plays and multimedia. These were supplemented with other resources such as songs, comics, coloring books, games and use of puppets. Teaching methods also varied from rehearsal and practice to role-play, discussion, and feedback.

Prof. Walsh and colleagues found some evidence that such programs can increase children's knowledge about sexual abuse - four of the trials showed children remembered what they were taught six months later.

The review also showed that children who took part in sexual abuse education programs were more likely to try and protect themselves in a simulated abuse scenario than children without such education. The scenario involved a stranger asking them to accompany them out of the school.

The authors found little evidence that children experienced unnecessary worry or anxiety after taking part in the programs, and there were no reported adverse side effects.
Further research needed to assess whether the programs prevent sexual abuse

In discussing their findings, the researchers explain the difficulties of trying to assess whether children have grasped the skills required to keep themselves safe and report abuse. "Even if a child demonstrates that they know how to behave in a certain scenario, it doesn't mean they will behave the same in a real situation where there is potential for abuse," states Prof. Walsh.

She explains that role plays using actors and research assistants cannot mimic real life situations. For example, we know that most sexual abuse is perpetrated by someone the child already knows.

In conclusion, the researchers say their findings support the need to inform children and protect them against sexual abuse. However, they urge that research needs to continue to evaluate sexual abuse prevention programs in schools and explore whether they actually prevent sexual abuse. Prof. Walsh concludes:

"To really know whether these programs are working, we need to see larger studies with follow-up all the way to adulthood."

In October 2014, Medical News Today learned of a study that found childhood psychological abuse is as harmful as sexual or physical abuse. Researchers suggested that children who experience emotional abuse and neglect face similar and sometimes worse mental health problems as children who suffer physical or sexual abuse.

Written by Catharine Paddock PhD

Angeline Jackson on Obama Effect? Quality of Citizenship for all Jamaicans!

Angeline Jackson wrote via FB

To have been recognised as a young leader by the first black president of the United States at the Town Hall for Youth at the University of the West Indies, on April 9, is an honour and a once in a lifetime opportunity. To be one of two young leaders he called by name to highlight their work and their story is amazing.

also see previous post:
Obama Hails Jamaican Lesbian Advocate's Work

This recognition, beyond being a personal accomplishment for me, is a victory for the entire LGBT community, here in Jamaica, throughout our region and beyond. The President carefully, briefly touched on a subject that many I believe were waiting to hear. For us in the LGBT community, as a way of talking about our issues; for others as a way of proving that the US has this plan to impose a “homosexual agenda” on our small nation.

20,000 people march against "gay agenda"

What President Obama did, was highlight the issue in such a way that made it human; made it more that an LGBT issue, it would take a very cold person (not impossible might I say) to ignore the human aspect of the issue, to not recognise that sexual violence affects many Jamaicans and go straight into the LGBT component.

As former Miss Jamaica World (2007) and Miss Jamaica Universe (2010) Yendi Phillips said, (I’m paraphrasing), this is what we need, these are the personal stories we need. She said she watched my reaction as the President spoke about me and thanked me for my bravery. She by no means said yay for gays. I don’t know her position, but that doesn’t matter, we don’t always need someone jumping for gays to be making progress.

Yendi Phillips

The recognition and encouragement from the President is as much to me as it is to Jalna Broderick and the organisation we co-founded in 2013, Quality of Citizenship Jamaica.

What you don’t know is that we’ve done a lot with very little. For the last two years we’ve operated on a budget of approximately $12,000 USD; we’ve spent that money conducting workshops for lesbian, bisexual women and trans* persons, creating at home posters for the stands in 2013, conducting surveys into the realities of our community, being the only organisation to bring the specific issues of the LBT Jamaican community to the international sphere through a presentation to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, collecting some of the early data on the homeless youth for others. Since our beginning we have never taken a paycheck. We’ve been doing a labour of love, and we have had volunteers who have given in their various capacities.

If I begin to name all the organisations, and individuals who truly believed in our vision and our mission, I may leave out someone accidentally. Please know that we fully remember you, remember your faith and help, your encouragement and your support. We tell you thanks.

Now as we celebrate and enjoy the conversations that President Obama has helped to foster, I have a few requests:

Volunteer with us (http://qcjm.org/donate-and-volunteer/), everyday we think of something new to do. If you’d like to volunteer and we don’t know what we want you to do, tell us what you can do. Immediately, we need someone who can dedicate time to social media.

Help us in our search for an office space. So we can actually have desks and chairs, and meet with persons in a comfortable and safe space. If you have a space or you know someone with a space, or would like to rent a space on our behalf. Thank you.

We need counselors and persons with counselling skills, to volunteer their time.

We need experts in various fields to donate their time through presentations at various workshops we will have in the coming months.

Help us to raise $90,000 USD to do important work with and for lesbian, bisexual women and trans person. This will in turn positively impact the landscape for the entire LGBT community and provide much needed attention and empowerment to the LBT community.

Know that our name Quality of Citizenship Jamaica is very deliberate, very strategic. At the end of the day we are all Jamaicans and we want to enjoy the same quality of citizenship as our fellow heterosexual Jamaicans. We are about lesbian, bisexual women and trans people, we are about women and children. We are about a better Jamaica for all.

also hear the follow up interview locally on RJR's 

Beyond The Headlines

and

Obama Hails Jamaican Lesbian Advocate's Work

The timing of this recognition could not have been more opportune as April is also Sexual Assault Awareness Month in some jurisdictions. 

Congrats to Angeline Jackson firstly but I am a bit disappointed that more mainstream media coverage of this recognition is not forthcoming or evidenced, is it due to the sexual orientation of the lady in question who has been hailed by President Obama?

Then again I should not be surprised the omission or overlooking of LGBT matters has been a feature of our media landscape for decades since organized public advocacy from the days of Gay Freedom Movement in the 70s. 

During a town hall meeting with young professionals and students for the most part in attendance the visiting US president who seemed quite comfortable sleeves rolled up and connected with his captive audience. 

President Obama told young leaders at the town hall meeting at UWI that we should care about the rights of every human being 

"..........regardless of who they love" 

while highlighting the difficulties Angeline Jackson experienced growing up as a lesbian in Jamaica and her work in ensuring that people get a better quality of life

"no matter their colour, class or sexual orientation can live in equality."

See the full clip of the LGBT reference and Angeline's work.

“As a woman and as a lesbian, justice and society weren’t always on her side,” said the president. “But instead of remaining silent she chose to speak out and started her own organization to advocate for women like her, get them treatment and get them justice and push back against stereotypes and give them some sense of their own power. And she became a global activist.”

“More than anything she cares about her Jamaica and making it a place where everybody, no matter their color or their class or their sexual orientation can live in equality and opportunity,”

some of the other reactions that was in the audience when the matter was mentioned to which Miss Angie responded.

The faces of some of the audience members sadly shows we have a long way to go change hearts and minds.

QCJ shared their two cents on the Professor Bain matter

QCJ's survey they had done: 

click for more: 

Quality of Citizenship Jamaica (QCJ) launches LBWSW Needs Survey 2013

Her most recent appearance was at meeting in the US:

The plight of gays in paradise

Church offers venue to discuss LGBT treatment in the Caribbean

Angeline Jackson is co-founder of Quality Citizenship Jamaica QCJ filling the longstanding gap of lesbian invisibility over the decades of formalized gay rights advocacy that focused more on MSM population challenges. Her rape case from 2009 that the president referred to was carried on this blog during my time at JFLAG when she made the report and afterwards with the court case.

Then of course due to the nature of the case and the psychological concerns for such victims the report was a bit subdued as present cases also are treated so as not to have the client relive too much of the horrifying event.

QCJ has also been responsible for enacting a long standing recommendation/suggestion of self defense classes for same gender loving women to mitigate assaults as best as possible.

Jackson told the Washington Blade a few hours after Obama’s speech that his remarks “give me encouragement.”

“It also in some ways provides a validation for what I have been doing because it’s rough and moving forward with LGBT rights in Jamaica is certainly not going at rapid speed,” she said. “This mention, speaking about (my work), mentioning my name, speaking my work and mentioning my orientation brought to light the issues of the LGBT community because it brings a personal story, it brings a human to the conversation, so it’s not just them, it’s not just an abstract person. It becomes a person that they can recognize.”

Jalna Broderick, who co-founded Quality of Citizenship Jamaica alongside Jackson, was attending a meeting in D.C. when Obama spoke at University of the West Indies.

Broderick told the Blade during a reception at the Human Rights First office near McPherson Square where she and advocates from Belize, St. Lucia and the Dominican Republic were highlighting efforts to expand LGBT tourism in the Caribbean that she was crying when she watched Obama’s speech on YouTube.

“It is amazing to be recognized by anybody,” said Broderick. “It is even more amazing to be recognized by a man who is the leader of the free world.”

“In your country that is so homophobic she has been mentioned as a young woman, a woman, an LGBT activist, a lesbian, a survivor of sexual violence,” she added. “These are the things that we fight for, you want recognition of the issues and solutions to the problems.”
also see: 

Sexual Assault Awareness Month ... 2013

Serial rapist gets 29 years in rape ring, Look out my sisters 2009

Lesbians becoming increasingly nervous

"Corrective Rape" in Jamaica? ..... Yes 2009

When is rape a “sexual depravity” and not just “an unfortunate and tragic event” 2009

Accused serial rapist on the run has been cut down 2011 - alleged mastermind behind some of the corrective rape cases and other assaults on women in St Catherine and nearby parishes then.

“Corrective Rape” continues in 2010

"Corrective Rape" continues in 2010 part 2

Ragashanti contributing to growing public lesbophobia?

a podcast I prepared in 2010

Bisexual Teen Killed due to her Sexual Orientation? ......... Father says yes 2015

More same gender loving women being forcibly evicted


Jamaica lesbians suffer from under-reported violence but whose fault is that ??

Woman Labelled “Man Royal” Forced to Relocate from a St Catherine Community

another podcast I had done back in the day (3 years ago) when invisibility or oversight of lesbian issues:

Now that visibility has increased in the last two years and has been given a shot in the arm by this recognition by no less a person than the most powerful man in the world I hope we can capitalize on it to bring to bear credibility on crisis reporting in as far as lesbophobic/homophobic crimes. GLBTQ Jamaica & Aphrodite's PRIDE Jamaica has worked with QCJ as well and recently held a stakeholders meeting with documentary producer (Taboo Yardies) Selena Blake on a recent visit by her.

Again congrats to Miss Angeline who has risen from victim to advocate and effectively so.

UPDATE April 10, 2015

also

her comments on the recent heckling of the PM in new York by overseas based Jamaican activists

Peace and tolerance

H

The priest did nothing wrong washing lesbians feet in church ...

washing of feet of lesbians Jalna Broderick (Quality Citizenship Jamaica) QCJ & Rochelle McPhee (JFLAG) by Rev Sean Major Campbell

I was asked to give my two cents on this so here it is:

Female group defends clergyman who washed lesbians' feet, bearing in mind the moral of the story is Jesus emphasized not to create outcasts as the woman who was a prostitute who washed his feet and when Peter and others scorned her Jesus reminded them to leave her and let her express her feelings and espoused the parable of the money lender.

See: Luke 7:36-50 - Jesus Anointed by a Sinful Woman NIV

There was a heated discussion this week among a group of vendors as they tried to decide whether homosexuals should be allowed to attend church and participate in worship.

They were responding to reports of a priest washing the feet of two lesbians during a church service last week.

They all came to the conclusion that the priest did nothing wrong and committed no crime.

"All those who are passing remarks and criticisms had better be careful, because we are all sinners," one woman said.

She explained why she believed the priest washed their feet.

"I believe the priest was following the example of Jesus. I know Jesus would have washed their feet and told them to go and sin no more," she said.

An older woman said she initially disagreed with what the priest did, but when she reflected on the matter, she came to the view that the priest could not have turned them away.

"If the priest had turned them away or chased them from the church, some of the very same people running up their mouth about it would criticise the priest and the church," she said.

another angle of the feet washing

She said it is not easy to please people and "those without sin must cast the first stone".

One of the women referred to an incident at her church last year where a pastor had sexual intercourse with one of the female members inside the vestry.

"So what happened to that pastor?" a member of the group asked.

"Nothing happened to him, he is still preaching at the church because they covered it up," she said.

The women began to list out various illegal and ungodly activities happening in some of the churches.

She said she knew of a case where a pastor got one member pregnant and is still head of the church, but not supporting the child.

"Murderers, thieves, rapists, homosexuals, fornicators and adulterers are holding top positions in some churches. So what is wrong in washing the feet of two lesbians ?" she queried.

"This is perhaps the only act of kindness the women have ever received in their life, and this could change their lifestyle," she said.

She also said she had nothing against homosexuals, as long as they do not force themselves on innocent children or influence them.

"Some homosexuals are barefaced. The ones who try to seduce young children should be locked up," she said.

The Sexual Offences Act which was passed in 2009 has provisions in place to severely punish adults who sexually offend children. Under the act, a child is a person who is under the age of 16.

Besides homosexuality is not illegal it is Buggery that is illegal between two men or a man and a woman with or without consent. It must be proven via a physical examination of the alleged persons with certain natural substances found on specific parts of the body (anus) and certain conditions of the said place.

one of our homeless trans sisters being evicted from a house she and others occupied illegally

Where I depart from the Reverend however is his stance on homelessness for LGBT and the seeming tokenistic nature he and other powerful religious figures have taken by not really helping them consistently as I elaborated on an old post on my GLBTQJA 2014 blog: 

Rev Campbell and Yvonne McCallah Sobers in 2013 at Shoemaker Gully Xmas treat

Hypocrisy from the pulpit on homeless MSM in Jamaica? 2013

Peace & tolerance

H