Men demand ‘Equal Rights’ branded caps in pink .......

pics from the Star news

In a follow up of sorts Effemophobia, RompHim, Sagging, Leggings & Men in Pink concerning the Ishawna matter, I had attempted to address pink, the fear of the feminine I said in part, Bearing in mind we are coming from the days of strong opposition to males wearing, pink & earrings at all to some acceptability to one ear having a knob and it must by the left one to both ears now and even to top parts. Wearing earrings in the right ear was seen as the wearer seen being gay.

clip from the internet

Then there is the business of strident opposition to tight pants, jeggings or leggings wearing by men especially from the older generation of dancehall acts to in their minds legitimise their masculinity, now those very same acts such as Bounty Killa, Beenieman and even Ninjaman (the one who rejected his gay son) all have fallen in line to stay current with trends competing in an ever changing space of dancehall as younger artist rewrite the rules. Please do not leave out the powerful influence by Vybz Kartel who almost single handed changed how male artists are presented in dancehall from the cake soap phenomenon to the Michael Jackson look.

Meanwhile

One group of entrepreneurs who have sought to capitalise on the popularity of Ishawna's controversial single; 'Equal Rights,' says even men have demanded the branded caps sporting the song's title above the peak.

At a price of US$20 or J$2,200, a representative who spoke with THE STAR says the hats are in high demand, with a great number of Jamaican females living locally and abroad wanting them.

But they stressed that orders have been coming in from both genders.

Despite offering promotional services and the creation of visuals (including, music videos and video ads), a representative of the group (Lus TV) responsible for advertising the headwear, says that they decided to dabble in the production of the branded caps because of the slang's popularity.

"You know say this a Jamaica and slang kinda run Jamaica and supm weh people a ketch on to so as a yute inna the street weh no have a nine to five and me see say me can grab on pon something fi mek a income, me try it," he said.

The caps are manufactured in the US and shipped to Jamaica with a merchant based in Westmoreland. But customers who order the product can have them delivered islandwide.

Notwithstanding the division of opinion on the songs, the representative is confident they will generate a profit from the sale of the caps.

"It's a gamble; you don't know if you ago mek back yu money or not," the representative said. And for those who are against the message of Equal Rights, they also have 'counteraction caps'.

"We have 'No Eating Rights' hats fi the man dem," the representative said. "Me give a person who work inna a franchise some to sell and fi har own dem finish."

With the success of the caps, the proprietors of Lus TV plan to delve further into the manufacturing apparel.

"Yea, we intend to produce skirts for females and different styles of hats with Equal Rights. We'll also be premiering our Summer 17 skirts in a few weeks along with His Queen, Her King, Yardie and Stressfree shirts and blouse for males and females," he said.

ENDS

Frankly this entire episode is just showing sheer ignorance and a failurse of our education systems over the year, it is a wonder I have seen no backlash on the pink of the hat, that was once vilified.

Peace & tolerance

H

Disgusting, why are so many parents pimping their children? part 2

So here we are again this old familiar space, as Child's Month draws to a close the stories come flying out, in part one from 2015 posted on Gay Jamaica Watch see: HERE, it read in part, 

As Sexual Assault Awareness Month continues I was again deeply disturbed by recent revelations of some serious infractions and abuse of children by of all people their own parents. I have known that the problem exists having worked with other child agencies and nongovernmental organizations in the past but it seems a lot has changed and for the worst.

Trouble is that such paedophile and abuse matters are often used a fodder for anti gay groups to obfuscate the debate around the buggery law’s decriminalization or removal as the suggestion is sexual grooming by adults, more buggery cases with boys as victims and other sexually based crimes involving children. Paedophilia is whole different issue and in fact designated a disorder by the Diagnostic Statistical Manual, DSM the bible for psychologists by the American Psychiatric Association and other related bodies.

The ICD 10 also speaks to the deviance (homosexuality is not seen as such) and frankly it is common sense once one is an adult and is sexually aroused by a prepubescent individual then that cannot be seen as regular behaviour; that is worlds apart however from innate same sex attraction to other adults but groups such as Jamaica Coalition for a Healthy Society, Jamaica CAUSE, Love March Movement, Betty Ann Blaine (of Hear The Children’s Cry), Rev Al Miller (now in court for 2 matters) and the Lawyers’ Christian Fellowship would have Jamaicans believe otherwise to the effect that homosexuals have predatory paedophile intent to catch little boys before their time or when their bodies are ready for sex.

here is one of the latest deliberate conflation of same gender sex, abuse and over simplification of other sexual practices with church imperative(just the title says it all) by Dr Wayne West relying on a call by the PM for kids to go to church: PM rejects moral nihilism and sexual anarchy : No to LGBTTTIQ….PZism ! No to fisting, felching, farming, scat, chariot racing etc ! 

Yesterday's Gleaner had as a headline similar sentiments, I am taking the liberty to share that article which question pimping of children by parents. see also Rent-A-Girl - Worries In Waterhouse As Monster Moms Pimp Out 
Daughters

Supt Arthur Brown: “We are infested with gangs in St Andrew South, and gangs members from time to time take advantage of situations where youngsters are not being parented in a particular way.”

The Corporate Area community of Waterhouse has been red-flagged as a hotspot for child sexual abuse in Jamaica, and it appears that several mothers in the community have been making money by prostituting their daughters to adult men.

"If I was to sit here and say I haven't heard that mothers [are] pimping out their children to get money, I would be lying," president of the Waterhouse Community Development Benevolent Society, Christopher Constantine, told The Sunday Gleaner during a visit to the community last week.

"Those things happen in a concentrated pocket of the community, and as residents of the community, we can say, yes, we are cognisant of that," he added.

According to Constantine, the problem is a long-standing one, with fear and poverty being the driving forces.

He pointed to one section of the community where he claimed that in the past, there was a systematic rape of women and girls, with gangsters using fear and intimidation.

"So even if it seemed like the women went to the men or sent their daughters, it is still rape because it was out of fear and intimidation," said Constantine, as he claimed that the police came in and stemmed the situation in 2014 after a young girl was raped, killed and thrown into a gully, causing uproar.

ROBBED OF CHILDHOOD

In the meantime, Pastor Winston Jackson, who heads the Penwood Church of Christ, thinks many of the children in the area are being robbed of their childhood as they have to be fending for themselves and their families from an early age.

"What happens is that some of the children - even by their own parents - are sold off to these perverts who just want to abuse them sexually," said Jackson.

"There are also those parents who have just abdicated their role and the street is parenting the children for the most part. So these little children learn sexual behaviour early because of what they see on the streets, as the parents are not taking control of them and their sexual habits," added Jackson.

A 60-year-old shopkeeper on White Lane in Waterhouse, who gave her name as 'Manda', described as heart-rending the number of instances that have come to her attention of children being sexually assaulted.

"Some things going on in the lane that I don't like - even fathers doing it to their daughters. It's like the norm," said Manda.

"You will just hear an underage girl a pass and a talk say three men 'sexed' her last night. There was this young girl whose mother wasn't sending her to school and men just came and used her, and when the police intervened, the mother told lies to cover it up, so it just dropped," added Manda.

The St Andrew South Police Division, in which Waterhouse falls, was identified as a potential hotspot for child sexual assault based on data compiled by the Jamaica Crime Observatory Integrated Crime and Violence Information System (JCO-ICVIS) between 2011 and 2015.

CHILD RAPES

The JCO-ICVIS identified the Three Miles Developmental Area as having the highest frequency of child rape during the 2011-2015 period, with 60 reported victims. Waterhouse, Delacree Pen and Seaview Gardens were the communities within the Three Miles area which recorded the most child rapes across 2011-2015.

In 2011 and between 2013 and 2015, Waterhouse consistently had two to three child-rape victims per year. However, in 2012, 10 children were raped, with seven of them reportedly raped at home and the remainder on a major or minor road in the community.

Head of the St Andrew South Police, Superintendent Arthur Brown, said while the cops hear talk of children being sexually assaulted in the division, persons are not coming forward to make official reports and help bring the perpetrators to justice.

"We have been going at the gang members within our space with alacrity. However, we have heard the reports and we have gone in, but the residents have not come to us to say, 'My daughter was sent for by this gang member'," said Brown.

"We are infested with gangs in St Andrew South, and gang members from time to time take advantage of situations where youngsters are not being parented in a particular way."

Brown also pointed to bad parenting as being at the heart of the problems within the division.

"Parents allowing their kids to be on the streets at varying hours, that is one of our biggest concerns. We also have unplanned communities in the division, which lends itself to this kind of situation happening," added Brown.

ENDS

Peace & tolerance

H

Effemophobia, RompHim, Sagging, Leggings & Men in Pink

One of Vybz Kartel's early sojourn in his image change after the 'cake soap' and skin bleaching journey where he literally changed right before our eyes to much backlash. now he is the most worshipped DJ

So here we are again and nonsensically so this old familiar place with effemophobia, the fear of the unknown. There are other more important issues that require outrage but get very little or none. We have come a good way yet still from the days of the strong abhorrence to wearing pink especially in the dancehall space where it was seen as an anathema to men called gays or ‘fish,’ and men who wore earrings now earrings are now the norm, I remember an incident just in front the infamous Pernel Charles arcade in 1989 (an arcade often accused of having down-low men and cougarism), after coming from school I witnessed a man was literally mobbed after wearing a knob in his right ear. His American accent was what saved him in part but he was warned about it by men who play dominoes at the entrance. 

Bearing in mind we are coming from the days of strong opposition to males wearing, pink & earrings at all to some acceptability to one ear having a knob and it must by the left one to both ears now and even to top parts. Wearing earrings in the right ear was seen as the wearer seen being gay.

Then there is the business of strident opposition to tight pants, jeggings or leggings wearing by men especially from the older generation of dancehall acts to in their minds legitimise their masculinity, now those very same acts such as Bounty Killa, Beenieman and even Ninjaman (the one who rejected his gay son) all have fallen in line to stay current with trends competing in an ever changing space of dancehall as younger artist rewrite the rules. Please do not leave out the powerful influence by Vybz Kartel who almost single handed changed how male artists are presented in dancehall from the cake soap phenomenon to the Michael Jackson look.

Vybz Kartel when he finally revealed new look after retreating from the public domain and 'bleaching' see: Gay look for Kartel  the tight clothes says it all.

Kartel in the FAG shirt, here is a comment from one of the more cynical dancehall forums as he was slowly changing his image, he looks when darker than the photo above 

 Jamaica's top Controversial DJ vibes Kartel was seen in the weird piece of attire recently at Sebas birthday bash in the Bahamas held at Club "Luna". The words FAG were clearly seen on the purple shirt he was wearing on stage. This latest piece of episode is having people wondering if the DJ is coming out of the closet, is pulling off another publicity stunt (however subtle), whether it is a mistake in not looking at the shirt before wearing it or was it photo-chopped. Whatever the case maybe it should be interesting to see what unfolds from this one.. but Bwoy... i dont know rasta ..  I dont  know!!.. how come the man guh wear a shirt weh clearly seh something bout battyman knowing the phobia and culture of his homeland... anything for a Visa?.. I just dont know rasta... Gaza gone luu... again. LoL

A CNN story on the Rompers outfits for men has stirred up a major firestorm on the dancehall circuit and wrapped into it as the other ignorance laden nonsense is that the clothes effectively reflect one’s sexuality automatically; when are we going to get over this I don’t know. The CNN article read in part:

"CNN)Male romper. RompHim. Bro romper (bromper?). Public onesie. Jumpsuit, variety: short. Or, perhaps, just a romper that happens to be worn by a man."

Whatever you call it, the one-piece clothing item preferred by babies and women at outdoor concerts has officially hit the male fashion mainstream

Backward reactions

Damion Crawford, former MP, and who was accused himself of being gay and a divisive contrarian writing on Facebook, said

".........if u are a man and own/owned or intend to own a romper unfriend me NOW ... not only on social media unfriend me in real life".

I wonder if he only did that to get more attention to himself especially after the discontinuation of his talk show on Nationwide radio? Although he lectures at the University of the West Indies. I still think it is some closet queens who are the problem people in a form of internalised homophobia This is the same Damian Crawford by the way how shot down the so called promised or suggested conscience vote made by then opposition leader of the PNP Portia Simpson Miller just two months after it was made, which made it clear to me that no such vote would have occurred. If Mr Crawford was so squeaky clean and purely heterosexual why would an accusation thrown at him questioning his sexuality come about? see: Former PNP MP Damion Crawford dismisses gay rumours and  PNP's Damion Crawford on Homosexuality's legality ......................... 2012 and PNP's Damion Crawford says it's highly unlikely buggery review will happen ........ it's not important now

There has been a huge wave of memes about the idea of male rompers, called Romphim, becoming a new fashion trend.

also see: 

when it was in October 2009 that the Elephant was called a "Fish" by another artist. 

Clearly not amused about the fashion, Jesus Alarcon, a Facebook user, said that 

"With every year that passes man get gayer and gayer."

Reginald C Mcgee, another Facebook user, said the wearing of male rompers is a sure telltale sign of homosexuality.

"Ladies if your man wears one of these ... he has a boyfriend," he wrote. The backwardness is disturbing in a sense to watch was one would have thought in this social media age and access to a wealth of information we still have stigmatization as this despite the previous waves as hinted to above.

bear in mind they are not as tight as jeggins and such, it looks more like a sleepwear item.

ACED Design, which has placed the product on crowdfunding website Kickstarter, said the RompHim as "pretty damn comfortable, and it may just be the start of a fashion revolution."

So far so 2,054 backers have pledged US$234,742, far surpassing the US$10,000 that was targeted. Well at least someone sees a major opportunity and has acted but when our education systems over years do not properly teach sexual orientation matters we are bound to have nonsense like this continue.

However, if the strong sentiments being expressed on social media are anything to go by, the Romphim will die of suffocation. "Weh romper a go??? Not here," (Where is romper going, not here) user Jerome West wrote on Facebook. I say let us what happens when the dust settles, there was opposition to pink worn by men but when some realise the world was not going to end pink became OK, let us see. As far as I am concerned the Rompers or influenced by or are an extension of the braces worn short pant often worn on golf courses or by the upper classes at brunches, tea at high noon or picnics.

Women were also indignant at the idea. Millicent Needham posted: "Real man nuh play romper, leave it to the ladies".

Aneisha Smith wrote on her Facebook page that: "If I ever have a man and him wear this kmt".

a comparison with short pants with suspenders and a version of Romphim it is clear to me some influence of the shape

I remember for example Beenieman’s song on fashion designers where he said in part:
............ Versace ah bugga man but yet still it wear by big badman (Versace is a gay man but yet its gansgters who rock the brand) listen the song HERE:

here are the two at a lyrical clash in 2004, Beenieman was ridiculed about his pink hat and dancehall forums had a field day questioning his sexuality

Yet although these artists promote murder music in their repertoire they wear the designs and also have songs about the brands as a form of legitimizing affordability and wealth associated with being a star. Monster Shack Crew had a song called ‘Bad Man Nuh Dress like Girl’ which spoke to some anti gay tight pants but shows clear hypocrisy as the fashion designers praised in the song are foreign gay men, it reads in part ...... (translation attempts)
 the lead singer at the time, pay attention to the look

Verse 1:

Mi look bush and bashy

Inna mi Moschino and mi latest Versace

We nuh bore nose an wi nuh too Jheri

Natural as mi born a so mi gal dem tell mi

Hey yow,

Some bwoy get drawn out

Face guh bleach out, deh pan a wrong route (face bleached out as they seem to go the wrong route)

Look like a gal when him a guh out

Dem mistake him tek him fi gal inna crowd (Looks like a girl & mistaken as a girl in the crowd)

Chorus:

Badman nuh dress like girl

We nuh bore nose an wi nuh bleach face an

We nuh wear drop curl

Some freaky freaky bwoy fi stop dress like girl

Verse 2:

Nuh man nuh look suh

See dem up suh, see dem dung suh

Know say Monster Shack dem naah dress suh

Yes yes, di wrong song him guh sing

Him nose guh bore him a wear belly skin (a man's nose of pierced and wears belly skin)

Fi lef dat to Cicilyn and Jacqueline (leave that to Cicilyn & Jacqueline)

Scare Dem knock him out with a cold Heineken .. (knock him out cold with a Heineken)

his more modern look

Male skin bleaching which was strongly frowned upon and drop curls of long hair for men outside of Rastafarism. Men now are putting in extensions and sitting in hair dressing parlours (which could explain why so many barber shops converge with hairdressers) as men get shaved and the traditional lining up services but simply walk over to the mostly female hairdresser and put in or touch up the rope twists. Male skin bleaching is now the rage alongside near full body tattooing but with stiff competition out there acts some without any serious creativity gifts have to do all kinds of gimmickry to gain a following, going to ever more extremes. But most of those elements are near normative, the aging members of that group all have dyed hair even from in their heyday and at one point wore bubbles, all bleach their skin and as for tight pants and sagging they have to keep up toe to toe with the current crop.

A video had surfaced on Youtube with Ninjaman and Beenieman in a verbal altercation, the same Ninjaman who years ago was in strong opposition on a murder music trajectory offered death threats in song for men who violate, he was wearing a very skin hugging pants that he once abhorred:

The matter of Romp(him) (er) came up discussion on Nationwide radio, the Miss Kitty show and misguidedly so, as nearly all her guests we exuding fear, subtle homophobia of a simple outfit in its original form which is not even as close fitting as the RompHim version of it. According to the gospel of Miss Kitty, she was not into those ‘Aquarium ting deh’ and other similar comments obviously thrown a homophobic barb, for someone pursuing law that is not the kind of behaviour that should be coming from her; for my international readers the concept of an aquarium is homophobic speak for a ‘fish’, one of the ever changing stigmatizing terms used to compartmentalise homosexuals, we have moved from She-Fu man that originated mostly in the rural parts through to ‘number two’ to ‘funny man’ to ‘chi-chi man a term not so used anymore as before to ‘Shim’ but the traditional ‘battyman or batteyman’ still reigns.

Of note Nationwide radio has since apologised only this morning at around 8:20am during the ‘This Morning’ show when co-host Dennis Brooxs (actual spelling) without naming Miss Kitty’s show said that they were sorry of the offensive content broadcast on May 23(Labour Day) during 3:20 pm to 5pm. By the Broadcasting Commission’s guidelines radio stations have to run apologies after questionable content. Apparently some music played on air with rather was not so pleasing to the air. At least some sense has prevailed in reigning in some seemingly wayward DJs who apparently should not be even behind a microphone.

Meanwhile to think it is not even a month since I did a post on 

Gay Jamaica Watch of an incident in Spanish Town that I witnessed just outside the Tastee Patties store on Burke Road, a tight pants sagging character clashed with another man and was for all intents and purposes was humiliated to much laughter by others and labelled as gay (battyman).

Lil Wayne (from the internet)

The African American influences from such as Little Wayne and newer acts where leggings and sagging are markers of a legitimate but fashion forward thug as usual has had an impact on cultures in the Caribbean. Our dancehall acts look up and follow very closely the trends and copy or adjust their image to match as close as possible ‘the look’. Sagging was last thing I expected to in Jamaica especially how low the jeans, leggings hang as the buttocks covered of course in the brand name boxers shorts to show the affordability of the brand; now more and more men despite that fear cycle seem quite proud to show their covered cakes and it also shows some legitimacy of a fashion forward thug as well.

For god’s sake when are we as a nation in greater numbers; just get over some of the nonsense.

Mek we see nuh

Peace & tolerance

H 

also see:
Vybz Kartel lashes back with "Woman Wi Love" song, has he forgotten it is he who blurred the lines of his own sexuality? 

Vybz Kartel from Anti Bleaching advocate to The King of "The Rub" 

Battyman bashing while ‘cakes’ are out .. 

Taiwan High Court rules Gay Marriage Ban Unconstitutional

veteran gay rights advocate Chi Chia-wei (祁家威) in 2015 after his registration of marriage with his male partner was rejected by the household registration office in Wanhua District in Taipei in 2013 and subsequent court appeals failed.

As more good news continue to come in the gay marriage front many world wide are celebrating for our Asian friends in Taiwan. It was only a short time ago Bermudan LGBT persons won the right too same sex marriage after their constitutional challenge. Please see my previous post: VICTORY - SAME SEX MARRIAGE is now legal in Bermuda.

According to the CNN in part 

The panel of judges has given the island's parliament, known as the Legislative Yuan, two years to amend or enact new laws, which could potentially make Taiwan the first place in Asia to allow same-sex marriage.

The island has a large gay community and its annual gay pride parade is the biggest in Asia but the issue of marriage equality has divided Taiwanese society, with thousands turning out in recent months to protest for and against marriage equality.

"This explanation is a step forward in the history of Taiwan's same-sex marriage," said Yu Mei-nu, a Taiwanese legislator.

Yu said the court's explanation means that even if lawmakers do not pass legislation allowing same-sex marriage in the next two years, gay couples will still be able to marry by this time in 2019.

"I hope that the legislators will have the moral courage to pass same-sex marriage into law, however it is hard to predict how long it will take, at this moment," she said. "The opposition toward gay marriage in Taiwan won't just gladly accept it and give up the debate, so the debate will continue."

Draft legislation is already making its way through Taiwan's Parliament but it has stalled.

"We feel that this is a huge success for the LGBT and marriage equality movement in Taiwan," said Wayne Lin, an activist who runs an LGBT hotline on the island.

"We want to amend the Civil Code so same-sex couples can get married... our target is to complete this whole process within this year."

Tsai Ing-wen, Taiwan's first female president, expressed support for gay marriage before her election in 2016.

"In the face of love, everyone is equal," she said in a Facebook video during 2015's gay pride parade.

"I support marriage equality. Every person should be able to look for love freely, and freely seek their own happiness."

The case

The decision came in response to two requests for a Constitutional Court ruling on article 972 of Taiwan's civil code, which states that marriage is between a man and a woman.

One of the requests was filed in 2015 by Chi Chia-wei, a veteran gay rights activist who has spent more than half his life fighting for marriage equality in Taiwan, according to the island's official Central News Agency (CNA).

The other request was filed by the Taipei city government the same year after three same-sex couples lodged an administrative lawsuit against the government when their marriage registrations were rejected, CNA reported.

Elsewhere in Asia, the LGBT community has been facing increased persecution. South Korea has been cracking down on gay armed service members, while in Indonesia gay men have been facing more restrictions, with a recent raid on a gay sauna party and two men being caned for having homosexual sex in the conservative province of Aceh.
Japan does not recognize same-sex marriage, although a handful of cities and wards have legalized same-sex partnerships. However, LGBT people are not protected from discrimination under Japanese law.

Homosexuality is not illegal in China and the Communist government removed it from the official list of mental disorders 16 years ago, but activists and experts say that prejudice and discrimination persist.

Last year, a court in central China ruled against a gay couple in the country's first same-sex marriage lawsuit, dealing a blow to a nascent but increasingly visible campaign for LGBT equality.

No Asian nations are on the 23-strong list of countries that have legalized same-sex marriage, according to Pew Research, although it was permitted in New Zealand in 2013.

Meanwhile antigay activists are up in arms, they cry foul cry foul over Constitutional Court ruling, Pastor Deborah Hsing said the Taipei City government had crossed the line on family values when it filed a request for a constitutional interpretation on the issue without holding any public hearings beforehand.

In similar vein, Andrew Chang (張守一), secretary-general of the Family Guardian Coalition of Taiwan Religions, said Wednesday's ruling was nothing but a farce and a blot on Taiwan's judicial history.

Chang said his group will not rule out the possibility of seeking another constitutional interpretation on same-sex marriage.

Shih Chun-yu (施俊宇), a Fu Jen Catholic University student and head of the Protection of Family Value Students Organization, said the justices had abused their rights by tampering with the definition of marriage.

The ruling is a huge setback for democracy, Shih said, likening it to the 911 terrorist attack on the World Trade Center in New York in 2001. 

Blah Blah Blah, get over it the court has spoken and CONGRATULATIONS to our friends in Taiwan

Peace & tolerance

H

Livin’ in a world they did not make part 2

As child’s month is observed in May I am deeply concerned more so than before as to the numerous reports of children being abused especially egregiously so as the abusers are in a position of trust. In part one originally posted on Gay Jamaica Watch some years ago I used as in this case the lyrics of a Janet Jackson 1989 Rhythm Nation a song called ‘Livin’ in a World They did not make, I hope you’ll see why; it says in part:

 

"Children are called the future of an adult world

They are born with spirits so innocent

Til we teach them how to hate

Add to the world's confusion

We teach our kids rules

That we don't adhere to ourselves

Right or wrong

What example can they take

The people we learn from

Forge the ideas we become

Living in a world they didn't make

Living in a world that's filled with hate

Living in a world where grown-ups break the rules

Living in a world they didn't make

Paying for a lot of adult mistakes

How much of this madness can they take

Our children"

Another previous post on this blog of that pastor and even previous posts of pastors, guardians and so on it is just too easy to go for the point of least resistance, even as the Sexual Offences Bill is being debated in the house the sense of urgency by parliamentarians seems very low. What could drive someone to sexually assault of harm even murder a child is the question of the age. In part one I took a look at LGBT and sexual orientation from a case then and my layman’s’ view of experimentation sex by teens and guidance. 

the latest data is so old but trends are clear, see more HERE, the CDA seems to be behind schedule 

The OCR is just as culpable in up to date data.

a screenshot from their website, I am not supposed to have to write for this not when they have such a nice website

In trying to ascertain the latest figures I could find from the data is dated, as for the Jamaica Information Service, JIS is a joke, meanwhile from the Child Development Agency, CDA or the Office of the Children’s Registry, OCR the numbers appear not so encouraging (Gleaner article OCR encouraging reporting) but what is the pressing matter to me why are so many pastors turning up as perpetrators and some cases so old they suggest that something is rather off. This abuse business has been festering all along; clerical/pastoral abuse reports usually are associated the Catholic Church for centuries and accusations of church authorities covering up the accusations and alleged victims re-victimised when they try to take action.

Non traditional denominations never factored so much anecdotally but since this year alone there have been multiple cases from branched such as the Moravians with three ongoing matters in court, a Pentecostal, a Seventh Day Baptist and a Revivalist all in less than twelve months; these are some of the church groups who are vehemently opposed to any sensible discussion on homosexuality and or the decriminalization of buggery, yet the near silence on this matter is telling to me. It seems some of these governing bodies know of the dark secrets and those evil ones clothed in piety within their midst. Then there are the secular perpetrators as well which can be so awful and are a distraction towards healing. The church groups for example have mastered the art of the homo-paedophile construct to back up their opposition to any buggery law amendment will somehow legitimise the abuse of children, boys in particular yet all this time as the evidence anecdotally and factually show us a totally different state of affairs. Persons such as Betty Ann Blaine of Hear The Children’s Cry and Dr Wayne West have also used the gift of gab to suggest gay men are grooming boys so no change must come in the law even without checking what is actually grooming, check out this previous post I had attempted after a simple two minute Google search and subsequent engagement with a clinical sexologist.

Ananda Dean 

While I concur with Miss Blaine's advocacy predicated on the awful case of Ananda Dean (Gleaner) and the fact that she has not been found after all these years and the subsequent Ananda alerts on television and the Facebook collaboration which are commendable but Miss Blaine needs to stop the conflation of homosexuality and paedophilia. Also see: Ananda Alert Partners With Facebook To Find Missing Jamaican Children (Gleaner)

Little Ananda whose remains were found on September 29, 2008 SCREAMS of anguish bellowed throughout the community of Belvedere in Red Hills, St Andrew yesterday as firefighters removed a heavily decomposed body believed to be that of 11-year-old Ananda Dean from a steep precipice along Cypress Drive - miles away from where she was last seen after she went missing almost two weeks ago.

"A she, a she.. Oh God," Ananda's aunt, Tamika Campbell bawled, after viewing the headless remains and then falling to the ground seconds later. Upon hearing the news, Nordia Campbell, Ananda's mother, also fainted at the thought that her daughter may have been brutally murdered.

Because of the advanced state of decomposition, no one was able to positively identify the body as that of Ananda. However, some family members, including Campbell, are convinced that it is in fact the little girl, mainly because a black size two school shoes and a navy blue uniform, similar to ones owned by the seventh-grade student of Swallowfield All-Age School, were found at the scene.

The day before, Deputy Superintendent Carol McKenzie of the police's St Andrew North Division told the Observer that DNA tests would have to be done to determine the identity of the body.

Ananda, who lived with her family on Whitehall Avenue in Kingston, was last seen on September 17 boarding a bus en route to Half-Way-Tree after school. Several of her school books were found a day after she went missing strewn along a pathway in the community of Pembroke Hall, miles away from where she was last seen.

It is in the unpacking of why a paedophile outside of physical abuse would find a child arousing, there is something we are not seeing. It is personally disturbing to me that I try not to watch too much news these days, as one case shocks the nation sometimes less than twenty four hours after another story slaps us from the news cycle in our faces. 

There are various courses that can be employed to address such issues and challenges such as pharmacological interventions to reduce libido and sexual interest in pre-pubescent individuals which is the challenge here, the orientation of the perpetrator or victim is not important as we get caught up in who is who more so than addressing the deviant interest in kids.

Then there is isolation intervention as is practiced in Florida where a sex offenders residency exists and they are monitored via ankle bracelets linked to the global GPRS systems and restriction via court order does not allow said accused to be or go near schools, parks where children socialize or even the victim’s home within a designated number of feet or yards relative to them.

Parliamentary Committee Requests Clarification From CISOCA On Rape Stats

Published:Tuesday | May 9, 2017 on the Gleaner they carried:

"Members of a parliamentary committee have requested clarification of figures from the Centre for the Investigation of Sexual Offences and Child Abuse (CISOCA) showing that 140 rape cases were sent to the High Court for the first three months of this year.

The figure, given by Justice Minister Delroy Chuck as he convened this morning’s third meeting of a committee of Parliament that's reviewing Jamaica's sexual offence laws, exceeds the numbers recorded for all of 2015 and 2016.

He said for 2015, CISOCA placed 138 cases before the Circuit Courts.

Of that number, 21 cases were disposed of.

That includes 10 convictions and 11 acquittals.

For last year, there were 122 cases of which 21 were disposed of.

Five were convictions and 16 ended in acquittals.

Of the 140 cases up to April 6 this year, CISOCA says there have been five acquittals and one conviction.

However, committee members, including Floyd Green, said a more detailed analysis was needed to, among, other things, determine the number of new cases per year and those being carried over.

Green said the data presented does not show when the reports were made and that limits understanding of how long a case spends in the court system hobbled by a slow pace.

Chuck agreed and said he will ask CISOCA for more details, which he said are needed to influence policy making."

More anon

Peace & tolerance

H

also see:

Pastor on buggery charge stumbles at courthouse door 2017

Is the pope serious about confronting child abuse? .... the question of the age

Disgusting, why are so many parents pimping their children?

Judge warns cop who allegedly molested boy to leave witnesses in case

See more:Disgusting, why are so many parents pimping their children?

Healthy coalition nonsense! indeed

CISOCA Head: buggery cases for boys decreasing, interventions less successful in abused

Betty Ann Blaine Deliberately Conflates Same Gender Attraction & Child Abuse at Christian......

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

Disturbing Paedophile Case & Conflation of Same Gender Sex with Abuse

Another St Thomas Pastor Accused of Rape ........... Where are Anti Gay Religious Group?

On International Family Equality Day #IFED2017

May 1, 2017, marks the fifth celebration of International Family Equality Day, a day to celebrate families all over the world where one or both parents identify as LGBTQ. It usually runs for sixteen days and culminates on IDAHO day. Last year, 67 cities across 32 countries had celebrations to honor their local “Rainbow Families” and this year, hopefully more do so.

Jamaica parents as guardians or as persons with children from a previous relationships anecdotally have been doing pretty well, a couple cases over the year parents coming out to their children sometimes while disucssing the 'birds and the beez' have worked out well as the children seem to understand.

Though each community can throw its own event or party, some LGBTQ families celebrate on a smaller scale with a private family dinner. Regardless of how International Family Equality Day is celebrated across the world, LGBTQ families deserve recognition and a day to be proud of their families and the progress we have made.

Here’s why:

Brings awareness to LGBTQ family rights.

Only 24 countries allow for same-sex marriage with Colombia being the most recent to legalize gay marriage. With 195 countries in the world – 24 is not a significant number. Though LGBTQ couples don’t necessarily have to be married to have children in all countries, marriage allows for certain rights and protections for their family and kids. By celebrating International Family Equality, it’s bringing awareness to the many countries across the world who don’t recognize LGBTQ families or provide them with basic rights, such as marriage, that their straight counterparts receive. Rights include the ability to marry, adopt, equal healthcare access, birth certificate recognition, access to fertility treatments or surrogacy, and many more.

It is often harder for LGBTQ parents to create their families.

As an LGBTQ parent, you understand the time, commitment, and financial struggle it took to create your family. LGBTQ parents have to go through countless fertility treatments, rigorous adoption or surrogacy processes, step parent and second parent adoptions, and much more to have a child. Because of this, LGBTQ parents deserve a day in which they can be reminded how all that time, possible stress, and hard work was totally worth it.

Visibility can bring positive results.

Though the numbers of LGBTQ families are increasing, there are still many communities and aspects of the media in which LGBTQ families are not represented. With International Family Equality Day, there’s a focus on LGBTQ families on social media, in the media, and out in public during public events. Visibility fosters so many positive results such as acceptance and education, as well as making it clear to the world: LGBTQ families are here.

Children deserve a day to celebrate their parents and their family.

The great thing about the events surrounding International Family Equality Day is that these events usually involve fun, interactive activities for children. When children are taken to these events by their LGBTQ parents, they are able to see other families like theirs being celebrated, thus creating a sense of pride for their family.

A chance to meet other LGBTQ families.

In some communities, it may be difficult to connect with other LGBTQ families. International Family Equality Day brings together a number of LGBTQ families at their celebratory events allowing for families to mix and mingle and hopefully, form new friendships.

Enjoy your Family Equality Day

Peace & tolerance

H

#IDAHOT2017 ...............

IDAHOT-IFED 2017: Celebrate Family Diversity

International Day against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia (IDAHOT)

International Family Equality Day (IFED) 2017

“LOVE MAKES A FAMILY”

Families are at the heart of all of our lives. Whether it’s the family we grew up with or the families we have built as adults. Whether they are families of biology or families of choice. We are all part of “families”, and those families; however we define them, influence all aspects of our lives.

In 2017, the focus on “families” will particularly spotlight
- The role of families in the physical and emotional well-being of LGBTIQ people
- The social and legal recognition of Rainbow Families, the families where at least one parent is LGBTQI

Families of LGBTQI people

The situation

The family constitutes the very first environment of any person, including members of the LGBTQI community. This is the place where values are shaped and transmitted, where security and safety is provided, and the place where self-esteem and confidence are constructed. Families, therefore, have great powers … and great responsibilities in the moral and physical well being of their members.

Family is especially critical in environments where members face rejection, stigmatisation and sometimes bullying in the “outside” world, in which cases the family constitutes the only available “safe haven”.

This sense of family happens “naturally” when the cause of stigma is shared by all members, such as in instances of race or other ethnic identity and economic status. Unfortunately, when the sexual orientation and/or the gender identity of a family member differs from the rest of the family and/or their perceived “social norms”, the overall family experiences a conflict between the loyalty to the family member and the compliance of the norm.

When the balance strikes in favour of the norm, the family might become the first perpetrator of rejection and violence where members meet non-conformant gender expression or sexual orientation with rejection. Children are of course the prime victims of this violence. All too often parents become their children’s first bully, allow or even support bullying by siblings, and even expel young people from the family home, exposing them to homelessness and all the dangers a young person is confronted to on the streets.

In Canada for example, the association of Parents and Friends of LGBTQI people P-Flag reveals that 26% of LGBTQI youth were told to leave home. Locally the evidence of forcibly evicted persons especially youths aged as low as 14 is as clear as crystal. Groups such as JFLAG, Colour Pink, Dwayne’s House and others still cannot seem to get their act together or make themselves one to begin to properly address this growing problem.

Families, especially those under the influence of radical religious movements, might chose to impose so called ‘conversion therapies’, which not only constitute a human rights violation in themselves as they constitute forced treatment, but often include degrading and harmful practices, both psychologically (aversion therapies, humiliations, etc.) and physically (deprivation of food and sleep, electroshocks, etc.) Considerations for coming out so to speak to children of bisexual parents as well is crucial geared towards understanding, bearing in mind that many persons had relationships for varying reasons; persons entered in arrangements to normalise themselves in the eyes of other family members and siblings.

While children are of course the main targets of this family violence, exclusion also hits other members, for example when family members who come out are being excluded from family gatherings, denied contacts with other family members like nephews and nieces or grandchildren, expelled from family property, etc.

Elders who are LGBT are also particularly vulnerable to abandonment, mistreatment, isolation and abuse, a phenomenon I used to see oversees but as life expectancy in Jamaica continue to extend in the post HIV epidemic era boosted by sustained ARV/HAART/CHART treatment. Other lifestyle diseases are showing a slowing down of mortality rates such as diabetes, hypertension and heart disease to name a few are a good sign as the choked health systems struggle to meet overwhelming demand based on the supposed ‘free’ healthcare systems and drugs as dispensed by outlets such as Drug-Serv. Families with progressive social values, while they will not display hostile attitudes directly, often lack the necessary tools to discuss sexual and gender diversity. The silence surrounding the issue contributes to creating a climate of exclusion and, in any case, does nothing to alleviate stigma and discrimination endured outside of the family setting.

Like anybody confronted with unknown or unusual circumstances, families who include members with non-conformant sexual orientation and/or gender identity need support, education and resources. Attention to the needs of families must be given by social and educational authorities, by LGBTQI organisations and their supporters, and by mainstream family organisations. Re-integration programs are so essential but seem not to be happening at the speed and urgency that are required. Families must be able to access correct and unbiased information, psychological support and adequate resources to help them deal with the situation in the respect of all their members.

The actions

For May 17 and definitely onwards, possible actions include:

For LGBTQI organisations to ensure that
· Voices of parents, friends and allies are given special attention
· Specific resources for parents, friends and allies are developed
For parents, friends and allies of LGBTQI people to
· Join an existing organisation
· Form an organisation of parents, friends and allies of sexual and gender minorities

For educational authorities to

· Develop a specific educational pamphlet on sexual and gender diversity for parents, or to include sexual and gender diversity in existing resources

· Provide adequate support to families in dealing with sexual and gender diversities.

For legislators, to
· Introduce bills that respond to the specific needs of families, friends, and allies of LGBTQI people.

Rainbow Families
The situation

In many countries, Rainbow Families, that is families where members are LGBTIQ, are faced with unsuitable domestic laws, if not a total legal void.

This lack of proper recognition of Rainbow Families exposes their members and especially their children to all sorts of legal risks. These families live with the thought that if a tragedy touches their life, for instance, the death or accident of the legal parent, the bond of the social parent to the child may not be recognised by the Law and basically their family life can be severely disrupted.

Children being raised in LGBTIQ families are denied legal ties to their parents, putting them at risk. For example, when LGBTIQ parents are prevented by law from creating legal ties to their children, these parents may be unable to pick up their children at day care, may be unable to advocate for their children at school, and can be denied the ability to make critical healthcare decisions for their children.

The lack of legal ties also creates undue financial burdens for LGBTIQ families, and can place children at economic risk when parents’ relationships dissolve, when a parent dies or becomes disabled or when seeking access to government safety net programs during times of economic crisis.

Formal recognition of same-sex relationships gives couples the tools and the security they need to build a life together. For committed same-sex couples with children, relationship recognition provides both legal and economic security for the entire family. Denying this recognition robs children of crucial support and stability, and ultimately leaves families unprotected, which makes creating and raising a family even more difficult.

Adoption is one of the primary ways that parents who are LGBTQI create families, whether through the public foster care system, a private agency, or simply a second-parent adoption of a partner or spouse’s child. However, in many countries LGBTQI individuals and couples still face barriers to adoption, making it difficult or sometimes impossible for these loving, qualified people to create families.

Studies show that alarming numbers of students with parents who are LGBTQI report experiencing bullying, harassment, and discrimination at school because of who their parents are and how their families were formed. As a result, these students are deprived of equal educational opportunities and are too often left with few or no avenues for recourse. Research shows that unchecked bullying and harassment negatively impact student achievement by decreasing interest in school, increasing absenteeism, and decreasing concentration levels for students. Leaders in the fields of education and child welfare agree that positive school climate and culture is a critical condition for promoting students’ academic success.

In addition, lack of recognition of LGBTIQ families leads to second parents often having to conceal their parenthood at work, creating untenable tensions between their careers and their parental life. In case of professional moving of a person in an LGBTIQ family, the needs of their family members will not be taken into account. Uniting LGBTIQ families is even more of a challenge when these families have been formed across borders. The lack of recognition leads to families being unable to unite, or having to leave existing homes, which means uprooting children from their schools, friends, communities, and extended families.

The non-recognition of LGBTIQ families also means that their housing needs cannot be properly addressed, especially in the case of families who are on welfare programmes. In the private sector, LGBTIQ families are prone to discrimination in access to rental or property, with hardly any protective measures effectively in place worldwide

Social stigmatization and legal discrimination of LGBTQ families forces children to stay in a closet that is not even their own. One of the greatest challenges reported by youth with LGBTQ parents is a sense of isolation, loneliness, or feeling that “they are the only one”. Furthermore, for Trans people, the family encompasses also other issues, like forced divorce that Trans people have to undergo to gain legal gender recognition in many countries. Another crucial issue is of course the forced sterilization still imposed by almost all countries in the world for legal gender recognition that takes away opportunity and choice to have biological children and family.

· Ensure that children with a same-sex parent have the same protections as children with married heterosexual parents, including the security of legal ties to both parents. The Child Care & Protection Act however limits what can be said indeed done for LGBT youth in Jamaica and fearmongering fanatics once such work is attempted go screaming claims of ‘grooming’ as if to suggest activists and organizations are trying to ‘homosexualise’ children in the ‘lifestyle’

· To remove existing barriers by defeating legislation, policies, and practices that restrict parenting by those who identify as LGBTQI; promoting and passing new laws that promote LGBTQI parenting such as second parent adoption; and promoting policies and practices that are inclusive of LGBTQI parents.

· To gain recognition of same-sex relationships and to fight off attempts to deny recognition to families who are LGBTQI.

· To ensure that all children have the same opportunity to thrive – which requires that they feel safe, supported and valued in school and are able to attend without fear of bullying, violence, harassment, and discrimination because of who their parents are or how their families were created.

May is also child’s month and the abuse of children is so frightening it boggles the mind while in the same breath children who are not gender conforming continue to find themselves the brunt or stigma, merciless teasing at school, forced evictions and feeling lost as to which way to turn.

Other reports continue to surface such as:

2 cases of forced evictions due to social media (mis)use

• Death threats in one of the inner city spaces of a young gender non-confirming male
• Man booted from church after sustained profiling church officials for not having a woman as a potential wife
• Parents continue to try to change their suspected gender conforming children in a bid to reshape their orientation
• Fallouts from poor or mistakes made from social media usage 
• Sex tapes gone viral which leads to verbal and physical abuse of the suspected parties involved

The struggle continues and it may feel a bit daunting sometimes but not pressing on is not an option.

Peace & tolerance

H