Homosexuality in Africa - (Part 1)

Homosexuality in Africa - (Part 1) 

The common belief among Africans is that homosexuality is primarily a story of seduction by Europeans and/or Americans, in which the Africans acquiesced out of fear or from a desire for money. . . But we know that this is a lie, and this is an attempt to shed some light on our true history, that which our colonial masters had ensured was kept hidden from us. In the black/white relationships that did develop into homosexual unions, the white partner appears to have been the aggressor. No doubt the abuse of African people by European/American people has included sexual abuse. What is untrue, the lie, is that such abuse was the origin of African homosexuality.

There are two false assumptions in anthropology. The first false assumption is that savage or primitive people know nothing about homosexuality; the second false assumption is that Africans were savage or primitive. Where there was clear and indisputable evidence of African homosexuality, anthropologists had to invent excuses in order to save these false assumptions, and that is what they did.

The first excuse was that Africans learned homosexuality from the Arabs. Then the excuse was that Africans learned homosexuality by hustling Europeans. Anthropologists said homosexuality was only a corruption practiced by the overly rich chiefs. Then they said that poor people practiced homosexuality because the overly rich chiefs had monopolised all of the women in harems. They said it was only youthful high spirits: the African was not really homosexual; he was just real drunk last night. Every excuse you are likely to hear from a deep closet case was used by Euro-American academics in the attempt to explain away the facts. The facts were: homosexuality was found in almost every major African ethnic group that we know of, through all of the history we know of. Few of the societies of Africa could be called savage or primitive, but all over the world, those people who might fairly be called savage or primitive are perfectly familiar with homosexuality. Homosexuality is not the white man's way. It is the way of gay people of all colours and nations, of all places and times.

African Homosexuality

One common mistake made, is that of confusing the popularity of homosexual activity with what gay people are doing and how they are treated. In Azandeland, in modern day northern Congo and the Central African Republic, most men, or at least very many men, had homosexual affairs. However, most men were still expected to marry women, father children, and so forth. The Azande knew very well that some men preferred to have sex with other men. Although every man was expected to marry a women, Azande customs provided a man with an excuse to have sex with another man whenever he wanted, throughout life. Marriage between warriors and recruits was only a part of the Azande accommodation to male homosexuality. The Azande were not a liberal people. They were the rare example of a society that punished female homosexuality while imposing no penalty on males. Because it was thought fatal to any man who witnessed it, female homosexuality could, in theory, entail the death penalty. But in fact female homosexuality was common and the public knew about it. In an Azande folktale two women conspire to fool a husband in order to get together. The most common sexual activity between men was intercourse between the thighs. This sort of adaptation is common in cultures where homosexual affairs become fashionable among non-gay men. We do not know what the gay, or preferentially homosexual Azande did. We only know the Azande knew there were such men.

In societies where homosexuality becomes popular across the board, it is usual to find that older men choose unmarried young men and that the older men assume the role of top in these relationships. So it is perhaps instructive to look at two groups in Africa that went counter to that tendency. A good example of an African people with a tradition of male homosexuality between lovers of the same age was the Nyakyusa who lived north of Lake Malawi (aka Lake Nyasa). However important the family was in Africa, you cannot form strong states and vast empires such as Africa had, on the basis of family alone. Intermarriage helps some. But to build a strong state you must have forces that run across family lines, that hold the various families together, and that keep feuds and rivalries from tearing society apart. Various African societies have used various institutions to paste society together. There might be secret societies, like fraternities and sororities, especially in West Africa. There might be trade organisations or craft guilds. There may be dance associations or religious institutions. Very commonly, people are organised in age groups. The Nyakyusa of what is now southwestern Tanzania and northern Zambia carried organisation by age group to the extreme. They organised their villages by age group. One of the first things young Nyakyusa boys did, to show they were becoming responsible, was to herd cattle. Generally a boy and his best friend would herd their families' cattle together. Pasturing the cattle gave the boys plenty of time to play around. And, of course, what they did was to have sex. They danced together, engaged in mutual masturbation, anal sex, and intercourse between the thighs.

Oral sex, whether heterosexual or homosexual, was not very popular in traditional African societies. Most of them thought it was very bad. Oral sex or rape were considered serious crimes which might entail a cattle fine. All of the other things the boys did might get them a tongue lashing or a minor whipping if they were caught by the adults. But everyone knew what was going on and no serious attempt was made to stop the boys. At a fairly young age Nyakyusa boys had to move out of their fathers' homes. At first they were likely to sleep with other boys in abandoned huts or other bachelors' quarters in their fathers' villages. Boys slept together, and naturally had sex with each other at night. So long as force was not used, no crime was reckoned to have occurred when the boys had sex. For the boys, homosexuality was considered a perfectly normal, if not completely desirable, sexual outlet that required no explanation, supernatural or otherwise.

Eventually boys of the same age, perhaps from several parent villages, got together and began to form a village of their own. At first this was a boys' village. The girls remained in the parent villages until the boys reached a marriageable age. In a sense, Nyakyusa villages have a life cycle from boyhood through manhood to old age. A village is child to some other villages, parent to some villages, and brother to yet others.

Now, what do I mean by boys? In Africa you are a child until you become a boy. You remain a boy until you of an age to have a house, a female wife, and children of your own. Nyakyusa began having homosexual relations at 10 to 14 years of age. They seldom married before they were 25. So for ten to fifteen years of the most sexually active part of life, Nyakyusa men practiced homosexuality. Once they got married to women, and virtually all of them did, Nyakyusa men were supposed to stop having homosexual relations. Nonetheless, a few cases of relations between men and boys came to light. This was punishable by a cattle fine. It is said, however, that the men were not afraid of the fine, but of the shame of being caught in activity associated with witchcraft. In any event, Nyakyusa men did not believe it sacrificed their masculinity to perform anal sex in either position. They did not believe they were castrated in the middle of their burning skulls just because they had sex with their friends. Certainly the Nyakyusa public thought it peculiar if a man with a wife at home preferred to have sex with a man or boy, but that only raised questions of witchcraft, not questions of manhood.

BECAUSE Conference 2014 Call for Submissions

BECAUSE 2014 Call for Submissions

www.becauseconference.org

(Please spread widely!)
BECAUSE 2014 is now accepting workshop and presentation proposals through their online form:http://www.becauseconference.org/WORKSHOP-SUBMISSIONS.html

The theme is “A Community Gathering”, and we are ecstatic to have two of our community leaders as keynote speakers, ABilly S. Jones-Hennin and Mary Anne Mohanraj!

ABilly Jones-Henin and his partner Chris Jones-Hennin, Washington Post

We're looking for programming around themes of community & inclusiveness, leadership, family, education & research, and intersectionality, as well as basic and advanced programming about bisexual and transgender issues for folks in and new to our bi/pan/fluid/queer/unlabeled (bi+) and allied communities. If you have ideas for these and other engaging topics, please submit a proposal!

Mary Anne Mohanraj, Locus Magazine

BECAUSE 2014 is June 6-8 on the University of Minnesota's Twin Cities Campus. It is being hosted by the University of Minnesota Office for Equity and Diversity's Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender and Ally Programs Office https://diversity.umn.edu/glbta. 

Keynote presentations, panel discussions, workshops, special guests, community meal times, and entertainment are all on the schedule, so please join us for an amazing weekend!

Registration for the conference can be accessed through the BECAUSE website or via this link:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/because-2014-a-community-gathering-registration-9908526670

If you have questions, please email tara.durney@bisexualorganizingproject.org.

Thanks, and we look forward to seeing you at BECAUSE!

The BECAUSE Conference is the annual conference of the Bisexual Organizing Project, dedicated to building an empowered bisexual, pansexual, fluid, queer, and unlabelled (bi*) community in the United States. Allies are enthusiastically invited to participate in this fantastic experience! BECAUSE, which stands for "Bisexual Empowerment Conference, A Uniting Supportive Experience," is welcoming and inclusive of all people, including but not limited to people of all genders, gender identities, sexual orientations, sexes, relationship orientations, races, ethnicities, national origins, abilities, religions, sizes, political affiliations, and others. We embrace the many intersectionalities in the bi* community, and encourage people of all backgrounds and experiences to join us for this eventful weekend.

BECAUSE attracts a variety of participants, including students, academics, researchers, professionals, and community leaders from throughout the nation to attend educational workshops, network, and enjoy building a more welcoming LGBTQIA community.

Jamaican human rights advocate uses the "H" word in submissions on intersex/lgbt issues at IACHR hearing

I sat frozen for a moment as I heard the recently departed co-founder and Director of Jamaicans for Justice now at her new post at the Caribbean Vulnerable Communities Coalition, CVCC as she made submissions at today's Inter-American Commission for Human Rights, IACHR regular review. She in essence spoke for JFLAG, JCSC, Jamaica Civil Society Coalition and Jamaica AIDS Support, JAS also on the anti gang legislation, children in lockups, the Tivoli commission of enquiry, the public defender and other matters. I was also contacted about the grave error by an Intersex activist in the US who was also tuned in to a radio program aired here in Jamaica where Ms Gomes' segment was played in full. She briefly highlighted LGBT rights, the gender problem in the Charter of Rights and other matters.

The mythological term “hermaphrodite” implies that a person is both fully male and fully female. This is a physiologic impossibility.

also see from sister blog GLBTQJA Wordpress: So You Wanna Know About Hermaphrodite's? and 

OFFENSIVE TERMINOLOGY TO AVOID WHEN PRESENTING PRO-GAY POINTERS ………

The words “hermaphrodite” and “pseudo-hermaphrodite” are stigmatizing and misleading words. Unfortunately, some medical personnel still use them to refer to people with certain intersex conditions, because they still subscribe to an outdated nomenclature that uses gonadal anatomy as the basis of sex classification. In a paper titled Changing the Nomenclature/Taxonomy for Intersex: A Scientific and Clinical Rationale, five ISNA-associated experts recommend that all terms based on the root “hermaphrodite” be abandoned because they are scientifically specious and clinically problematic. The terms fail to reflect modern scientific understandings of intersex conditions, confuse clinicians, harm patients, and panic parents. I think it is much better for everyone involved when specific condition names are used in medical research and practice.

To read more about the Victorian origins of the medical terminology of “true” and “pseudo” hermaphroditism, check out chapter 5 of Alice Dreger’s Hermaphrodites and the Medical Invention of Sex which is available at bookshelf, or go to What’s the history behind the intersex rights movement?.

One more thing: While some intersex people seek to reclaim the word “hermaphrodite” with pride to reference themselves (much like the words “dyke” and “queer” have been reclaimed by LBGT people), we’ve learned over the years it is best generally avoided, since the political subtlety is lost on a lot of people.

Her exact words are as follows ............

"Most people in Jamaica are not in favour of homosexual behaviour but rights are not subject to people's feelings, rights are rights and to clarify for the commission the language of the charter doesn't speak to gender, it is a point that has been made over and over again in submissions to other international bodies as well as this one. The new charter of rights says 'The right to freedom from discrimination on the ground of being male or female,' in fact the UN human rights committee pointed out that this language is incompatible with normal standards and leaves people who are hermaphrodite by nature or intersex completely unprotected and leaves room for real challenges, it does not even speak to gender. She continued on the human rights training of the police."

Clearly someone needs to advise spokespersons specially when they are new to the post that when they do go out there to speak on behalf of groups that they apprise themselves of the lexicon that applies. Outdated language/word use at an important meeting as that of the IACHR today can be embarrassing, the more cynical would say if the respective groups do not know the proper terms then it is no wonder we can't see the proper responses on the ground towards the attendant challenges. The same error was made at a recent workshop for LGBT persons as well where the word was used repeatedly corrective steps have since been taken in that regard.

What is intersex?

“Intersex” is a general term used for a variety of conditions in which a person is born with a reproductive or sexual anatomy that doesn’t seem to fit the typical definitions of female or male. For example, a person might be born appearing to be female on the outside, but having mostly male-typical anatomy on the inside. Or a person may be born with genitals that seem to be in-between the usual male and female types—for example, a girl may be born with a noticeably large clitoris, or lacking a vaginal opening, or a boy may be born with a notably small penis, or with a scrotum that is divided so that it has formed more like labia. Or a person may be born with mosaic genetics, so that some of her cells have XX chromosomes and some of them have XY.

Though the experts speak of intersex as an inborn condition, intersex anatomy doesn’t always show up at birth. Sometimes a person isn’t found to have intersex anatomy until she or he reaches the age of puberty, or finds himself an infertile adult, or dies of old age and is autopsied. Some people live and die with intersex anatomy without anyone (including themselves) ever knowing.

Which variations of sexual anatomy count as intersex? In practice, different people have different answers to that question. That’s not surprising, because intersex isn’t a discreet or natural category.

What does this mean? Intersex is a socially constructed category that reflects real biological variation. To better explain this, we can liken the sex spectrum to the colour spectrum. There’s no question that in nature there are different wavelengths that translate into colours most of us see as red, blue, orange, yellow. But the decision to distinguish, say, between orange and red-orange is made only when we need it—like when we’re asking for a particular paint colour. Sometimes social necessity leads us to make colour distinctions that otherwise would seem incorrect or irrational, as, for instance, when we call certain people “black” or “white” when they’re not especially black or white as we would otherwise use the terms.

In the same way, nature presents us with sex anatomy spectrums. Breasts, penises, clitorises, scrotums, labia, gonads—all of these vary in size and shape and morphology. So-called “sex” chromosomes can vary quite a bit, too. But in human cultures, sex categories get simplified into male, female, and sometimes intersex, in order to simplify social interactions, express what we know and feel, and maintain order.

So nature doesn’t decide where the category of “male” ends and the category of “intersex” begins, or where the category of “intersex” ends and the category of “female” begins. Humans decide. Humans (today, typically doctors) decide how small a penis has to be, or how unusual a combination of parts has to be, before it counts as intersex. Humans decide whether a person with XXY chromosomes or XY chromosomes and androgen insensitivity will count as intersex.

In intersex work, it has been found that doctors’ opinions about what should count as “intersex” vary substantially. Some think you have to have “ambiguous genitalia” to count as intersex, even if your inside is mostly of one sex and your outside is mostly of another. Some think your brain has to be exposed to an unusual mix of hormones prenatally to count as intersex—so that even if you’re born with atypical genitalia, you’re not intersex unless your brain experienced atypical development. And some think you have to have both ovarian and testicular tissue to count as intersex.

Rather than trying to play a semantic game that never ends, the ISNA take a pragmatic approach to the question of who counts as intersex. They work to build a world free of shame, secrecy, and unwanted genital surgeries for anyone born with what someone believes to be non-standard sexual anatomy.

By the way, because some forms of intersex signal underlying metabolic concerns, a person who thinks she or he might be intersex should seek a diagnosis and find out if she or he needs professional healthcare not fully available locally but do some reading online where excellent resources abound such as the Intersex Society of North America.

An article published in the Journal of Pediatric Endocrinology and Metabolism from as far as 2005 makes a compelling case for getting rid of all medical terms based on the root “hermaphrodite.” The authors (including two ISNA staff members and three ISNA Medical Advisory Board members) explain the problems with terms like “pseudo-hermaphroditism” and “true hermaphroditism.”

Why get rid of these terms? Because:
These terms are stigmatizing to patients and their families. We should all be working to reduce stigma, not add to it through medical care.

People with intersex are not hermaphrodites, and they are not helped by being labelled this way.

These terms imply a kind of hierarchy of “real” and “fake” intersex people, which is unhelpful and illogical.

These terms attract people with sexual fetishes and fantasies that, frankly, patient advocacy organizations are not interested in hearing from.

The system of labelling intersex people according to the mere presence or absence of certain gonadal tissues (as the “pseudo/true hermaphroditism” system does) pre-dates the modern sciences of genetics and endocrinology. It causes confusion among doctors and patients because it fails to reflect all that we now know matters.

The authors of the JPEM article suggest that new systems of intersex nomenclature and taxonomy be developed to completely replace the old “five sex” model. Specifically they suggest that the replacement taxonomic system:

should enhance, not complicate, the use of medical informatics in research and clinical practice;

should recognize that diagnosis and taxonomy inform, but do not determine, gender assignment and/or gender identity;

should not include the words ‘hermaphrodite’, ‘hermaphroditism’, ‘sex reversal’, or other easily misunderstood terms;

should label the condition rather than the person;

should not confuse physicians and patients;

should make clear that diagnosis does not simply dictate therapy.

The authors end by suggesting that it would be better to use specific etiology-based diagnoses (like AIS, 5-alpha reductase deficiency, etc.) along with an umbrella term. Which umbrella term? In our travels in the last few months, we notice there seems to be an emerging consensus around using disorders of sex development, abbreviated DSDs. This seems to be a term that doctors and many patient advocates can agree encompasses all of the conditions we at ISNA have traditionally labelled intersex.

For the full article, see:
Dreger AD, Chase C, Sousa A, Gruppuso PA, Frader, J. “Changing the Nomenclature/Taxonomy for Intersex: A Scientific and Clinical Rationale.” J Pediatric Endocrinol Metab. 2005 Aug: 18 (8): 729-33.

I hope not to hear such a slip up again.

Peace and tolerance

H

On Open LGBTQ Relationships

On the strength of a recent radio discussion and a bloggers' lyme (have not been to one in a long time) the matter of relationships came up and as my close associates know I am not a fan of my own one on ones but do celebrate those who find love.

The matter of open relationships took a turn as most persons present seem to have had one or near attempted to do the same, what was instructive was that it was more a mixed union double gender arrangements almost a kind of behavioural or functional bisexuality.

So some tips came through:

Have you ever considered an open relationship? 

For some persons, this concept is out of the question because it's the same as cheating. But is it really? What is cheating? I define cheating as betraying an agreement that you have with your partner. As with all agreements, the terms are variable and can be adjusted to suit the desires of the parties involved. 

Your relationship is no different. So what exactly is an open relationship? Simply put, it's an arrangement where both parties in a committed relationship or marriage agree to have sexual relationships outside of their union. What are some of the rules to consider if you decide to try an open relationship?

1.First, try a light meeting - 

Before you get into an open relationship, do something casual with your partner and another person just to see how you feel about him/her being with someone else. This is a test. If you have any problems, this is the stage where you get to voice them and make adjustments.

2. Communicate - 

Before you even make the first move, you must have a serious discussion with your partner. Make a commitment to be completely open with each other and keep it.

3. Be honest with yourself - 

Inviting another person in your relationship is not something you should do lightly. Think about how it will impact your union and be honest with how you feel about it. This experience is not for everyone and if you don't want to do it, that's fine. You must be sure before you take the first step.

4.Stay away from mutual friends - 

Never invite your friends in your relationship. This will change the way you relate to them and how your partner relates to you being friends with them. Find someone new and learn about him/her with your partner.

5.Set your rules - 

The beauty about this type of relationship is that you get to decide exactly how it plays out. So set your rules. Make it very clear what's ok and what's not. Remember open relationships need the consent and cooperation of your partner in order to work.

6. Respect your home - 

Keep your date out of your home. This is sacred ground and should only be enjoyed by you and your partner. Never violate that space.

7. Set a time limit - 

How long can your partner be with that person? Yes, you get to decide that. Discuss it before you even start and stick to it.

8. Maintain your primary relationship - 

This is the most important of all the rules. For this to work you MUST always put your primary relationship first. If you have to break dates, stop talking to your new lover, or even stop the experience all together, never neglect your primary relationship.

9. Keep it physical - 

The open relationship is supposed to be a physical experience. Don't fall in love with your lover. This is hard to do but that's why we have all the other rules.

10. Set boundaries - 

Your lover should know that there is no future in your relationship. He/she must be aware that you have a primary relationship and the significance of the primary relationship.

If you do decide to try an open relationship, remember that you are inviting an unknown variable to your life. It can be the best thing you ever do or the catalyst to ruining a great relationship with your spouse. You must approach it with an open mind and keep the communication with your spouse constant and honest. Have fun and stay sexy!

Polyamory:

Polyamory (from Greek πολύ [poly], meaning "many" or "several", and Latin amor, "love") is the practice, desire, or acceptance of having more than one intimate relationship at a time with the knowledge and consent of everyone involved. It is distinct from Swinging (which emphasizes sex with others as merely recreational) and may or may not include polysexuality (attraction towards multiple genders and/or sexes).

Polyamory, often abbreviated as poly, is often described as "consensual, ethical, and responsible non-monogamy." The word is sometimes used in a broader sense to refer to sexual or romantic relationships that are not sexually exclusive, though there is disagreement on how broadly it applies; an emphasis on ethics, honesty, and transparency all around is widely regarded as the crucial defining characteristic.

The term "polyamorous" can refer to the nature of a relationship at some point in time or to a philosophy or relationship orientation (much like gender or sexual orientation). It is sometimes used as an umbrella term that covers various forms of multiple relationships; polyamorous arrangements are varied, reflecting the choices and philosophies of the individuals involved. Polyamory is a less specific term than polygamy, the practice or condition of having more than one spouse. (The majority of polygamous cultures are traditionally polygynous, where one husband has multiple wives. Polyandroussocieties, in which one wife has multiple husbands, are less common but do exist.) Marriage is not a requirement in polyamorous relationships. The "knowledge and consent of all partners concerned" is a defining characteristic of polyamorous relationships. Distinguishing polyamory from traditional forms of non-monogamy (e.g., "cheating") is an ideology that openness, goodwill, truthful communication, and ethical behavior should prevail among all the parties involved. As of July 2009, it was estimated that more than 500,000 polyamorous relationships existed in the United States.

People who identify as polyamorous typically reject the view that sexual and relational exclusivity are necessary for deep, committed, long-term loving relationships. Those who are open to, or emotionally suited for, polyamory may embark on a polyamorous relationship when single or already in a monogamous or open relationship. Sex is not necessarily a primary focus in polyamorous relationships, which commonly consist of people seeking to build long-term relationships with more than one person on mutually agreeable grounds, with sex as only one aspect of their relationships. In practice, polyamorous relationships are highly varied and individualized according to those participating. For many, such relationships are ideally built upon values of trust, loyalty, the negotiation of boundaries, and compression, as well as overcoming jealousy, possessiveness, and the rejection of restrictive cultural standards.Powerful intimate bonding among three or more persons may occur. The skills and attitudes needed to manage polyamorous relationships add challenges that are not often found in the traditional "dating-and-marriage" model of long-term relationships. Polyamory may require a more fluid and flexible approach to love relationship, and yet operate on a complex system of boundaries or rules. Additionally, participants in a polyamorous relationship may not have, nor expect their partners to have, preconceptions as to the duration of the relationship, in contrast to monogamous marriages where a lifelong union is generally the goal. However, polyamorous relationships can and do last many years

Man to sue woman for calling him 'gay' & defaming his character

A caretaker who assaulted a woman after she accused him of being a homosexual and a pervert, told the court that he was suing the woman for $500,000 for defaming his character.

The accused, Mark Knott, was arrested and charged for assault occasioning bodily harm after he used a shovel to hit the complainant in her head and face during an argument.

Knott told the court that he went to speak to the complainant about a manhole cover that her child and another child had troubled, when she got upset and started cursing him and accusing him of wanting to have sex with little boys. The typical lumping of same gender sex with abuse comes in here as many persons including intellectuals echo such sentiments sadly which is why we cannot seem to move forward on the discourse on homosexuality.

"Your Honour, you know what that could do to my reputation if people in the street heard?" he said.

Knott said that he was so hurt over what the complainant had said, that he got upset and hit her.

"You should hear the things people say about me, but that doesn't mean I should go and fight them," Pusey told Knott.

She then enquired about the cost of the complainant's medical fee and was told by the complainant that Knott had taken out a lawsuit against her.

"I am suing her for $500,000," Knott revealed.

"For what," asked Pusey.

"Defaming my character," he answered.

The magistrate then turned to the complainant and told her: "Go down and take out a lawsuit for $500,000 for your injuries. The advice is free. You don't have to take it." But my question is does the man have a point in the defaming of his character here? although we know the typical labelling of a male (gay or not) as gay with nasty curse words is a strategy used in arguments to embarrass a party usually very loudly to cause onlookers to form, if he buckles it can and has led to attacks even if the accusations are not true. Can this man return to his community and live in peace?

Knott was then ordered to pay $25,000 or serve six months in prison.

It was January this year another matter came to the court as well where a man was labelled as gay which led to a fight leaving one injured. Anger issues nationally speaking is disturbing as case after case proves with some sort of injury with an instrument or weapon. See the post: Homosexual Label causes a fight where it read in part "Laughter was the response from members of the public when a case in the closing session of the Half Way Tree court continued just before the holiday season. A young man named Jermaine Gray Chambers and an older man Binsford Chambers was mentioned where it was heard that the men got into an altercation with the younger Chambers after he was accused of being a homosexual in Kingston some time earlier in the year.

The older of the two Chambers is in his late fifties is accused of chopping Gray by his knee with a machete while he gray is accused of breaking Chambers jaw. According to Binsford Chambers he was walking home from work with his gardening tools in his bag when he heard Gray saying to his apparent girlfriend “See de battyboi deh” he said he went over to ask who he was referring to but Gray responded by reigning several blows to Chambers breaking his jaw in the process.

Two other most recent cases also show the tense situations out there including a murder with gay panic defense used as justification.

See:

Courtesy Corps officer stabbed to death at home for alleged sexual advance in Western Jamaica

Alleged Gay advance upsets 'loader man' in Half Way Tree

and

Questions on reported murder/buggery case in court

Peace and tolerance

H