Sunday, February 24, 2008

Suppression of Homosexuality in Jamaica

There is a lot of material in this report on the suppression of homesexuality in Jamaica that is extremely distressing, from the use of "homo" in the media to the blaming of homosexuals for shortages in women's underwear; from the blatant physical attacks and the need to be in hiding to the protests at funerals. There is clearly not much good in the way Jamaica treats homosexuality. I hope it isn't as bad as the article suggests, but if the attitudes truly are as pervasive as they seem to be (the closing paragraph is extremely damning, given not just the fact that homosexual men are seeking ministers to be "cured," but that ministers themselves have to stay in hiding because they even associate with homosexuals puts their life at risk), then I'm not sure exactly what can be done - more international pressure? Travel boycotts? Other options? No matter what, things are definitely far more dire in Jamaica than people realize, and this kind of report is really important in shattering (generally racist) notions of the "happy Caribbean".