Do you think the Buggery Law should be?

The Safe House Homeless LGBTQ Project 2009 a detailed look & more


In response to numerous requests for more information on the defunct Safe House Pilot Project that was to address the growing numbers of displaced and homeless LGBTQ youth in Kingston in 2007/8/9, a review of the relevance of the project as a solution, the possible avoidance of present issues with some of its previous residents if it were kept open.
Recorded June 12, 2013; also see from the former Executive Director named in the podcast more background on the project: HERE also see the beginning of the issues from the closure of the project: The Quietus ……… The Safe House Project Closes and The Ultimatum on December 30, 2009

Wednesday, October 31, 2012

Trans Depathologization: the spark of change.

0 comments

By Mercedes Allen
October 30, 2012
I watch a lot of news stories unfold, reading left-wing, centrist and right-wing media alike.  In the course of a news story, issues ignite, blaze hotly and then smoulder into memory.  After awhile, one develops some sense of when a campaign will spread like a prairie fire or when it will extinguish itself.  The quest to depathologize transsexual and transgender people (or more likely just transsexed individuals) has smouldered for several years, but recently, something is happening.  It reminds me of looking at a match at the moment of ignition.  Flame shoots out in every direction, then chaos, and then it wraps itself up in whatever movement of air there is… or is blown out by it.  This effort, this time, I think will ignite into a blaze — with the only unknown being whether or not the World Health Organization will listen and respond.
There is a rejuvenated movement to have trans diagnoses removed from mental health classification, under the common belief that if transsexuality were no longer considered a mental illness (in the way that happened with homosexuality was in 1973), that it will lead to the level of acceptance that gay men and lesbians have attained.
This as something that has to happen.  But if not done with care and consideration, it could become more chaotic than it needed to be, and burn more people than necessary in the process.  Here’s why, and what can minimize this.
First, the Background.
Jenna Talackova, the beauty queen who fought for the right to compete in the Miss Universe Canada pageant regardless of her trans history, wants you to know that she’s not sick.  In a petition at change.org, she writes: “… the World Health Organization (WHO) insists that I, and millions of other trans people are sick. The WHO actually considers transsexualism to be a mental disorder.”
To that end, she is petitioning the World Health Organization to stop considering transsexual people to be mentally ill, as the WHO revises the International Classification of Diseases (ICD 11).  The ICD includes transsexuality as “Gender Identity Disorder” (GID).  The American Psychiatric Association does the same in their similar volume, the Diagnostic & Statistical Manual, although the petition is addressed to the WHO only.  The DSM is the volume used in the US, while the ICD is the reference used in most nations outside North America.  The APA has proposed to change the name to “Gender Dysphoria” for the upcoming DSM-V, which some have trumpeted as being a change from mental health classification… but it really isn’t.  In fact, the proposed revision to the DSM has gone backwards, by annexing intersexed conditions into the definition of GID.
Jenna’s petition is part of a larger project through Change.org, with a single petition split into six campaigns.  The U.S. version of the letter is written by blogger Maxwell Zachs, a cast member of  the UK reality TV show, “My Transsexual Summer.”  There are others for Spain (with Carla Antonelli), Italy (with Vladimir Luxuria), Germany (Kim Schicklang), andFrance (Rochelle Gregorie).  49,000 people have signed on since the petition launched in early October.
The genesis for this project appears to come from Stop Trans Pathologization 2012, even though petition links don’t appear on that group’s website, and it may be only loosely affiliated. STP2012 recently marked its International Day of Action on October 20th, for which this campaign was apparently conceived.
The Need.
There is no doubt that there is a need for change, and that sooner would be better than later.  Some of this is optics: as long as the public thinks of transsexuality as mental illness, it provides seeming justification for creating roadblocks, denying employment, denying housing, blocking access to services, blocking access to health care funding, and more.  Throw a rock in the air, and you’re sure to hit any of thousands of right-wing commentaries that use mental health classification as reason to oppose even basic human rights inclusion for trans people.
Depathologization is the benchmark “marriage” issue of trans people.  Medical classification actually affects more than just transsexed people, although nobody seems to be questioning the categorizations that affect non-transsexed trans people.  Which is why there is some temptation to see this as an effort that benefits mostly those in trans communities who are privileged and not affected by some of the more urgent forms of disenfranchisement.  Especially when over 40 years later, gay men and lesbians are still routinely accused of mental illness (although that argument has no value, other than to challenge peoples’ expectations), and even still off-and-on classified that way in some areas.
But it’s not just optics.  Pathologizing diagnoses are sometimes used to adversely affect custody of children, employment, access to support services, participation in the military (most notably in the U.S., where the end of Don’t Ask Don’t Tell didn’t help trans servicemembers) and more.  There are many tangible instances where this classification becomes a roadblock.
The current diagnosis also sets itself up to be a pre-existing condition, thus allowing it to be exempted from coverage.  In this case, any trans-specific diagnosis would be a problem, and the problem lies with the overall concept of “pre-existing condition” exemptions.
Diagnosis is not treamtent.
The current diagnosis also directs people to a horribly gatekeepered medical system, although it should be remembered that the standards of care are not directed by the DSM or ICD, and removing the classification may not necessarily change this aspect… other than perhaps changing who the individual gatekeepers are.  Gatekeeperism has always been a double-edged sword.  When the person in question is a genuine ally, this has proven to be a reliable route through transition.  But unfortunately, that has often not been the case.  And even when the gatekeeper is an ally, the waiting list to see them is itself an unusual barrier, and the pathway often comes with an expectation of a person fitting a narrow cookie-cutter template.
As it is, though, there are significant challenges to finding medical professionals who are: willing to take on trans patients; not doing so for an opportunity to dispense aversion or reparative therapies; willing to treat according to current WPATH or harm-reductive standards of care; and preferably also experienced in trans health issues.  What we have isn’t working.  But without something to point to the medical process and to demonstrate medical necessity (which a diagnosis does), the net result for trans people could be significantly worse.
But it needs to be remembered that diagnosis is not treatment.  While the two are connected, and affect each other, addressing a diagnosis does not necessarily change the existing treatment processes, other than to sometimes throw them into chaos or abandon them.
Be Careful What You Ask For…
Unlike when homosexuality was declassified from mental health arenas, transsexed people do have very specific medical needs (such as genital reassignment surgery, mastectomies and hysterectomies for trans men, tracheal shave, facial hair removal and breast augmentation for trans women).  And if depathologization isn’t addressed with the greatest of care, the result on access to trans health care could be disastrous.
In April 2008, I wrote an article entitled Destigmatization versus Coverage and Access: The Medical Model of Transsexuality.  That article has been picked up by a number of sources and even a couple academic texts, and cited often — usually as a “No” vote on the issue of depathologization (which frustratingly mischaracterizes what I wrote).  In it, I wrote about the quandary presented by the current diagnosis, and argued that declassifying the diagnosis of GID is inevitable — but before it can be done, an alternate medical model that does not depend on a mental health diagnosis needs to be developed and established, so that existing medical access for people in transition would not be compromised or lost.  A bit of that article is out of date, other aspects reflect some misconceptions of my own when writing, which saw the diagnosis and treatment as more interwoven than they actually are.  The ICD and DSM classifications merely classify, they do not recommend treatment, and that does provide more optimism than reflected in that article.  A diagnosis justifies seeking medical care, though, so they’re not completely decoupled.
When I wrote that article, it was in hopes that someday soon, I’d need to follow it up with happy news of some new development, a brilliant new direction being explored, and a new diagnosis and medical model being imagined and refined.   Instead, nothing has really changed.
The Risk.
Here are some things that are risked in removing classification:
  1. Funding.  In most public and private health insurance structures, a medical code is required to justify the paying out of money for surgical and non-surgical health procedures and services.  So public and private health funding of sex reassignment surgery (GRS/SRS) are vulnerable.  Insurers see them as “cosmetic” procedures, and switching to an elective medical model will only reinforce that perception.  Mastectomies and hysterectomies for trans men might also be affected in this way (unless an alternate justification is given), and conceivably also counseling, or visits to a family doctor for HRT prescriptions and monitoring (depending on billing requirements and local regulations).  And then there’s the HRT itself.  Not all of these are funded in all areas, and in fact, some regions go to great lengths to deny funding for any or all of these things.  But some do, and they could be compromised if GID / GD is simply declassified, with no contingency plan.  Moreover, delisting would significantly hamper the potential to gain funding from insurers that don’t currently cover trans health.
  2. Access.  Simply put, if there’s no diagnosis, a doctor doesn’t have any obligation to care.  If there is a medical classification in some form, there is an obligation to provide care, or at least not stand in the way of it.  This doesn’t always work this way, but the existing situation provides us some recourse when access issues occur.  Further, many surgeons and doctors may not be willing to take on trans patients under a personal elective system, because of fears that we’d change our minds and sue.  The existing 1-to-indefinite year of therapy process has provided a comfortable barrier against legal liability.  How many medical professionals would simply walk away rather than accept that new risk to help trans people — especially with any obligation to treat removed from the equation?
  3. Identification correction and citizenship.  Given that many regions also require a change of physical sex in order to change major identity documents, financial and access barriers to trans-related procedures also extends the time before legal and social enfranchisement is attained.  It shouldn’t be that way (and has been fixed in a couple fortunate jurisdictions), but it is.
  4. Counseling.  While it’s a problem that transition is dependent on therapists, there’s also some need for caution about taking psychiatry entirely out of the equation, at least for those who want it.  Transition does bring with it some emotional upheavals, particularly related to associated stigmas (which won’t simply be gone when transsexuality is no longer considered mental illness) and challenges (unaccepting families, depression from things like job loss, etc).
  5. As twisted as it has been, the existence of a medical classification has provided a form of validation, even if the specific application also invalidates.  It has forced people to acknowledge that we exist.  The problem is that validation has focused on what’s in our heads rather than on what we’re actually bringing into alignment, which is our body.  But regardless of the mistaken focus, this validation has helped to push for legal support.  Just as easy as it is to find right-wingers pointing to the mental health classification as a reason to disparage, you can also throw a rock and randomly hit a reference used to justify and defend.  From a statement made by 20 local and regional NGOs operating in Malaysia, responding to a ruling upholding a law making the wearing of clothes which are considered incongruent with one’s birth sex punishable with a fine of up to RM1,000 and / or up to a year in jail:
In the latest edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) the American Psychiatric Association (APA) replaced the diagnostic term “Gender Identity Disorder” with the term “Gender Dysphoria”, “a marked incongruence between one’s experienced/expressed gender and assigned gender”.
The APA too, in a statement urged the repeal of laws and policies that discriminate against transgender and gender variant people.
This is probably a bad example, because the four women who challenged this law lost their case.  They were met with a court ruling that cited Islamic texts and ordered that “religious authorities give counseling to the four and that they act prudently during enforcement.”  Having a diagnosis to cite does not always help.  But sometimes it does.  And when it does, it can mean everything — even a person’s freedom, or their life.
Having the standards of care carry over into physical health treatment in a way that would avert these risks is a greater challenge than many believe.  In the case of the DSM, that volume only has province over mental health issues, so its editors can only declassify.  But the ICD, which is the subject of the petition, does govern both physical and mental health classifications.  Its editors at the WHO can bring about a reclassification, and in fact are best positioned to do so.  But…
Is it congenital?  The challenges to reclassification.
Before a reclassification outside mental health can occur though, a cause needs to be ascertained, and diagnosable criteria defined. Is transsexuality congenital?  Would classification as “Congenital malformations, deformations and chromosomal abnormalities” (Q50-Q56) be just as stigmatizing and warrant yet another future change?  Some intersex groups are fighting against just such a classification, or at least the language used.
Recategorization is not yet feasible, although there have been many intriguing research avenues found in biological sciences which call for more study.  Convincing the medical profession to move a diagnosis when they believe that the current model is workable in their eyes (even if not perfect) is difficult, especially if the alternatives are not yet conclusively proven or causes defined tangibly.
The Informed Consent Model of Care.
The only new development in adult trans health since 2008 is that more people are using what they prefer to call an “informed consent” model of care.  Campus Progress discussed this earlier this year:
Clients at many of these clinics [PDF] can acquire a prescription for hormones after basic laboratory tests, a consultation about hormonal effects, and signing a waiver stating that they know the risks of treatment.
“When we’re working with clients as therapists, the goal is to help people self-realize. We want to allow space for that when it comes to people realizing themselves in the context of their gender,” Talcott Broadhead, a licensed social worker in Olympia, Wash., told Campus Progress.
The informed consent pathway is not yet available in most areas — mostly just a few major population centres in the U.S. — and it’s accepted as a given that funding is entirely the individual’s responsibility.  It also doesn’t state here whether this process facilitates surgical access, and if that means the provision of doctors’ letters to surgeons (in which case, informed consent becomes not much different from a harm reduction model).
If you live in an area where funding isn’t available anyway and is heavily gatekeepered, the informed consent path is 100% better. But it’s also a model that favours the privileged and lucky.  Informed consent remains an elective process, without the use of a medical classification at all, and treats transition as entirely cosmetic, not as medically necessary, even if individual doctors involved realize otherwise.  And since billing is often tied to categorization, I’m not sure how that would work.  In any event, though, the voluntary nature has a tendency to undermine the necessity and validation needed for funding and widely-available access.
WPATH has revised its standards of care to be compatible with both informed consent and harm reduction models.
The harm reduction model.
What many in the medical field have been turning to is a harm reduction model, reducing the stigma as much as possible, while utilizing its strengths to make it available everywhere.  The results vary considerably by region.
The change made from “Gender Identity Disorder” to “Gender Dysphoria,” for example, is made to try to reduce the harm of the mental health stigma.
And then there’s “Transvestic Fetish”
If GID were listed tomorrow, there would still be people who seek counseling to deal with their sense of feeling out of place, and believing that changing their mind is easier than changing the body.  There would also still be people coerced or forced into treatment, especially youth, who are often not given any personal agency of their own.  And it would take time for medical professionals to become aware of this change, let alone warm to it.
One of the issues mentioned in Destigmatization… regarding the DSM volume, was that if GID is dropped from medical classification while Transvestic Fetish (TF) remains, this opens up the possibility that for anyone who crosses paths with the mental health system (and possibly the health system overall), TF could become a diagnosis of choice.  TF is also found in the ICD, as Fetishistic Transvestitism, F65.1.  This classification puts an emphasis on the clothes one wears, and implies a sexual motivation (which are besides the point and inaccurate, respectively), but it doesn’t take a lot of imagination to see how those who are adverse to transitioning people would take advantage of the existence of a TF-style classification and its exclusive status… and weaponize it.
The intent of the latest petitions may be to depathologize, but the result could very easily be a far more damaging pathology.
The way we think about mental health.
The discussion actually says a lot about the way we think about mental health, and the idea that “mental illness” is anathema. The movement to depathologize is based on a shallow understanding of what a diagnosis means, let alone a mental health one.  The assumption, of course, is that a mental health condition either automatically means insanity or else is a figment of a person’s imagination.  The stigma trans people face is more rooted in the public belief about what constitutes “normal” than anything that’s actually in the diagnosis itself, and that societal obsession with normativity won’t change just by reclassifying or declassifying anything.
In a way, the underlying motive is an injustice to the many people who are diagnosed with depression, autism, bipolar or social anxiety conditions, addictions, ADD / ADHD and more, some of whom travel in trans communities as well.  And it can easily translate to horizontal violence, if people choose to ignore this fact.
The spark of change.
There’s probably a reason that this latest movement reminds me of a match catching fire.  There is incredible potential there, but without the certainty yet of whether that power will warm or consume.  It’s all in how we use it.
The problem is that change essentially never comes easy.  There appears to always be some turmoil, at which point, society has to adjust, and figure out how to deal with it.  The question, then, is this: is society at a place where it’s ready to do so?  Are we at a place yet where the benefits outweigh the price that will be paid?  And have we adequately thought about ways to minimize the harm between points A and B?
I’m not satisfied that this is the case, especially when one looks at the question globally.  In some parts of the world, even what we have now is a hard sell.
And yet, it’s igniting now.  Now is the time for change, for many of us — perhaps it’s even long overdue.  Given that cautions in 2008 have gone unheeded, blowing out the flame is not the right thing to do, either.  So instead, I ask that people be aware.  Handle that flame with care.
A Solution.
Problems are easy to point out.  Solutions, usually not so much.  There is a possible solution, here, albeit one that doesn’t neatly solve everything.
Most of the risks outlined above hinge upon the existence of a medical diagnosis.  There is an apparent need for one, but that diagnosis does not have to be a mental health diagnosis.
If the petition were to focus on asking the World Health Organization to actively and urgently investigate the development of an alternate diagnosis in a way that would make transition not dependent on a mental health diagnosis — and which would involve some level of community consultation (probably the harder-sell request of the two) — well, this would be absolutely worth doing.
This solution doesn’t address the point about the way we think about mental health.  That would take a changing of hearts and minds, starting with our own.  But I’m not optimistic that that will happen in any near future.  Even just getting people to think about the political, medical, financial and social realities outside of Theirtown, USA (or Canada) is a bit of a stretch, at times.
But it is a solution.  And it could be do-able, in a way that maintains the spirit of the original petition, which says:
“This doesn’t mean that trans people should be excluded from the health system: pregnant women are not sick, but they have medical protocols and assistance. The same should happen with trans people.”
Pregnancy is covered at length in Chapter XV of the ICD, in classifications O00–O99: “Pregnancy, childbirth and the puerperium.”  Just in case anyone was wondering.

Jamaicans Need To Be Tolerant Of Homosexuals (Gleaner)

0 comments


THE EDITOR, Sir:

Gordon Robinson's column 'Why gay rights?', published on October 23, 2012, was a most incisive and informative piece that reflects progressive values and attitudes that are relevant not only to Jamaica alone, but the world over. Kudos to him!

The issue of gay rights is a particularly thorny issue in conservative and strongly religious societies like Jamaica and also my own South Africa; to such an extent that even our president, Jacob Zuma, is not too comfortable with it.

Opinions like Mr Robinson's are useful in helping those like President Zuma to accept that people in same-sex relationships are not as different as other people assume them to be, and that they, like everyone else, are multifaceted individuals who are not defined by their sexuality alone.

I commend Mr Robinson on his progressive views and encourage him to speak out louder. Voices like his help change people's views, and that is how we transform societies. Furthermore, let his progressive attitude not end only on social issues, but also go into his legal practice. South Africa's laws have helped transform our society's view on gay rights, and our people have acknowledged that gay rights are also human rights, notwithstanding their religious or cultural views.

EXAGGERATING ISSUES

Many people in South Africa believed that, if homosexuality were allowed, it would open the floodgates for all kinds of deviant behaviour such as bestiality and incest, or marriage to animals.

Fortunately, we have legalised gay marriage and no one has come forth to claim the right to marry a goat or a sister, so clearly people were just exaggerating issues to support their intolerance.

However, the important point is that the law can help transform society's views on gay rights for the better, inspiring tolerance and the understanding.

As an example today, a gay man is a member of our highest court and many others are proud members of our Parliament, government and other spheres of society.

I hope Jamaica becomes a society of tolerance and freedom for the next 50 years and beyond!

MBEKEZELI M. BENJAMIN

mbekezelimb@gmail.com

Johannesburg, South Africa

ENDS

here is Gordon Robinson's piece excerpted:

Gordon Robinson
We’re all products of our experiences. One of my best friends at secondary school was homosexual. Naïve as I was then, it was two years before I even suspected his sexuality. He was always, shall we say, ‘different’. For example, he seemed obsessed with his penis, which he said he measured every night and reported any lengthening at school next morning. He enjoyed teaching us penis trivia. His favourite factoid was that the penis has no muscles. That last bit earned him his nickname of ‘Musclecock’ (‘Muscle C’, or just plain ‘Muscle’ for short).

Muscle C, though average in traditional academics, was brilliant. He was extremely creative and an excellent young actor. He became president of the Drama Society. I was vice-president. We adapted an Alfred Hitchcock (no relation) short story into a play in which he played the lead (a professor who’d murdered his wife) and I played a largely inaudible police detective. He was a huge success. I was eminently forgettable. He became editor of the school magazine and produced the bestCampionite to that point, which can still stand against anything currently published. Again, I was his deputy. When he left after fifth form, I succeeded him in both posts.

SHOCKER

One Sunday, while in fifth form, he invited me to spend the day at his home. This was standard among school friends. My mother dropped me off that morning. That his parents, successful members of Jamaica’s upper crust, weren’t at home didn’t ring any immediate bells. He was a very dramatic chap who liked to feign sophistication, so when he made strawberry daiquiris as aperitifs, still nary a ding-dong entered my head.

Then he served lunch, including a pte de foie gras appetiser. Still, nothing dropped. Finally, when he invited me into his bedroom to see hisPlayboy collection, bright lights went on. Chuck Berry would have seen them earlier:

My ding-a-ling, my ding-a-ling,

Won’t you play with my ding-a-ling.

Related Posts with Thumbnails

AddThis

Podcasts You may have missed or want to re-listen




A look at the fear of the feminine (Effemophobia) by Jamaican standards & how it drives the homo-negative perceptions/homophobia in Jamaican culture/national psyche.



and



After catching midway a radio discussion on the subject of Jamaica being labelled as homophobic I did a quick look at the long held belief in Jamaica by anti gay advocates, sections of media and homophobes that several murders of alleged gay victims are in fact 'crimes of passion' or have jealousy as their motives but it is not as simple or generalized as that.

Listen without prejudice to this and other podcasts on one of my Soundcloud channels

More uploads




Aphrodite’s PRIDE JA tackles gender identity, transgender misconceptions .....



Nationwide New Network, NNN devoted some forty five minutes of prime time yesterday evening to discuss the issue and help listeners to at least begin to process some of the information coming from the most public declaration exercise as done by Jenner. Guests on the show were Dr Karen Carpenter Board Certified Clinical Sexologist and Psychologist, ‘Satiba’ from Aphrodite’s P.R.I.D.E Jamaica of which I am affiliated and Lecturer (Sociologist) and host of Every Woman on the station Georgette Crawford Williams (sister of PNP member of parliament Damian Crawford); one of the first questions thrown at Satiba by host Cliff Hughes was why has Jenna waited so long at 65 years old to make such a life changing decision?

Satiba responded that many transwomen have to hide their true identity in life .... given her life when she was younger she was a star athlete she would have been under tremendous precious to stay in from the expectations by the public and her team etc, also owing to the fact that she had a family as a man with children one may not want to upset the flow at that time until the kids are old enough. There is a lot of burden of guilt that some persons carry in weighing the decisions of coming out or transitioning so suppression of one’s true self is the modus operandi.

Dr Carpenter cautioned after a heated exchange:

“We really must remember as professionals we must stay in our lane I will never pronounce as a Sociologist cause I am not a Sociologist ............When we have an opportunity to speak publicly we must be careful of what we say unless it is extremely well informed......”


Aphrodite's P.R.I.D.E Jamaica, APJ launched their website


Aphrodite's P.R.I.D.E Jamaica, APJ launched their website on December 1 2015 on World AIDS Day where they hosted a docu-film and after discussions on the film Human Vol 1






audience members interacting during a break in the event


film in progress

visit the new APJ website HERE

See posts on APJ's work: HERE (newer entries will appear first so scroll to see older ones)

Dr Shelly Ann Weeks on Homophobia - What are we afraid of?


Former host of Dr Sexy Live on Nationwide radio and Sexologist tackles in a simplistic but to the point style homophobia and asks the poignant question of the age, What really are we as a nation afraid of?


It seems like homosexuality is on everyone's tongue. From articles in the newspapers to countless news stories and commentaries, it seems like everyone is talking about the gays. Since Jamaica identifies as a Christian nation, the obvious thought about homosexuality is that it is wrong but only male homosexuality seems to influence the more passionate responses. It seems we are more open to accepting lesbianism but gay men are greeted with much disapproval.

Dancehall has certainly been very clear where it stands when it comes to this issue with various songs voicing clear condemnation of this lifestyle. Currently, quite a few artistes are facing continuous protests because of their anti-gay lyrics. Even the law makers are involved in the gayness as there have been several calls for the repeal of the buggery law. Recently Parliament announced plans to review the Sexual Offences Act which, I am sure, will no doubt address homosexuality.

Jamaica has been described as a homophobic nation. The question I want to ask is: What are we afraid of? There are usually many reasons why homosexuality is such a pain in the a@. Here are some of the more popular arguments MORE HERE

also see:
Dr Shelly Ann Weeks on Gender Identity & Sexual Orientation


Sexuality - What is yours?

Promised conscience vote was a fluke from the PNP ........



SO WE WERE DUPED EH? - the suggestion of a conscience vote on the buggery law as espoused by Prime Minister (then opposition leader) in the 2011 leadership debate preceding the last national elections was a dangling carrot for a dumb donkey to follow.

Many advocates and individuals interpreted Mrs Simpson Miller's pronouncements as a promise or a commitment to repeal or at least look at the archaic buggery law but I and a few others who spoke openly dismissed it all from day one as nothing more than hot air especially soon after in February member of parliament Damian Crawford poured cold water on the suggestion/promise and said it was not a priority as that time. and who seems to always open his mouth these days and revealing his thoughts that sometimes go against the administration's path.

I knew from then that as existed before even under the previous PM P. J. Patterson (often thought to be gay by the public) also danced around the issue as this could mean votes and loss of political power. Mrs Simpson Miller in the meantime was awarded a political consultants' democracy medal as their conference concludes in Antigua.


War of words between pro & anti gay activists on HIV matters .......... what hypocrisy is this?



War of words between pro & anti gay activists on HIV matters .......... what hypocrisy is this?

A war of words has ensued between gay lawyer (AIDSFREEWORLD) Maurice Tomlinson and anti gay activist Dr Wayne West (supposed in-laws of sorts) as both accuse each other of lying or being dishonest, when deception has been neatly employed every now and again by all concerned, here is the post from Dr West's blog

This is laughable to me in a sense as both gentleman have broken the ethical lines of advocacy respectively repeatedly especially on HIV/AIDS and on legal matters concerning LGBTQ issues

The evidence is overwhelming readers/listeners, you decide.


Fast forward 2015 and the exchanges continue in a post from Dr Wayne West: Maurice Tomlinson misrepresents my position on his face book page and Blog 76Crimes

Tomlinson's post originally was:






Urgent Need to discuss sex & sexuality II






Following a cowardly decision by the Minister(try) of Education to withdraw an all important Health Family Life, HFLE Manual on sex and sexuality

I examine the possible reasons why we have the homo-negative challenges on the backdrop of a missing multi-generational understanding of sexuality and the focus on sexual reproductive activity in the curriculum.

also see:

and





Calls for Tourism Boycotts are Nonsensical at This Time





(2014 protests New York)

Calling for boycotts by overseas based Jamaican advocates who for the most part are not in touch with our present realities in a real way and do not understand the implications of such calls can only seek to make matters worse than assisting in the struggle, we must learn from, the present economic climate of austerity & tense calm makes it even more sensible that persons be cautious, will these groups assist when there is fallout?, previous experiences from such calls made in 2008 and 2009 and the near diplomatic nightmare that missed us; especially owing to the fact that many of the victims used in the public advocacy of violence were not actual homophobic cases which just makes the ethics of advocacy far less credible than it ought to be.

See more explained HERE from a previous post following the Queen Ifrica matter and how it was mishandled

Newstalk 93FM's Issues On Fire: Polygamy Should Be Legalized In Jamaica 08.04.14



debate by hosts and UWI students on the weekly program Issues on Fire on legalizing polygamy with Jamaica's multiple partner cultural norms this debate is timely.

Also with recent public discourse on polyamorous relationships, threesomes (FAME FM Uncensored) and on social.

Some Popular Posts

Are you ready to fight for gay rights and freedoms?? (multiple answers are allowed)

Did U Find This Blog Informative???

Blog Roll

What do you think is the most important area of HIV treatment research today?

Do you think Lesbians could use their tolerance advantage to help push for gay rights in Jamaica??

Violence & venom force gay Jamaicans to hide



a 2009 Word focus report where the history of the major explosion of homeless MSM occurred and references to the party DVD that was leaked to the bootleg market which exposed many unsuspecting patrons to the public (3:59), also the caustic remarks made by former member of Parliament in the then JLP administration.

The agencies at the time were also highlighted and the homo negative and homophobic violence met by ordinary Jamaican same gender loving men.

The late founder of the CVC, former ED of JASL and JFLAG Dr. Robert Carr was also interviewed.

At 4:42 that MSM was still homeless to 2012 but has managed to eek out a living but being ever so cautious as his face is recognizable from the exposed party DVD, he has been slowly making his way to recovery despite the very slow pace.

Thanks for your Donations

Hello readers,

Thank you for your donations via Paypal in helping to keep this blog going, my limited frontline community work, temporary shelter assistance at my home and related costs. Please continue to support me and my allies in this venture that has now become a full time activity. When I first started blogging in late 2007 it was just as a pass time to highlight GLBTQ issues in Jamaica under then JFLAG's blogspot page but now clearly there is a need for more forumatic activity which I want to continue to play my part while raising more real life issues pertinent to us.

Donations presently are accepted via Paypal where buttons are placed at points on this blog(immediately below, GLBTQJA (Blogspot), GLBTQJA (Wordpress) and the Gay Jamaica Watch's blog as well. If you wish to send donations otherwise please contact: glbtqjamaica@live.com or lgbtevent@gmail.com



Activities & Plans: ongoing and future
  • Work with other Non Governmental organizations old and new towards similar focus and objectives

  • To find common ground on issues affecting GLBTQ and straight friendly persons in Jamaica towards tolerance and harmony

  • Exposing homophobic activities and suggesting corrective solutions

  • Continuing discussion on issues affecting GLBTQ people in Jamaica and elsewhere

  • Welcoming, examining and implementing suggestions and ideas from you the viewing public

  • Present issues on HIV/AIDS related matters in a timely and accurate manner

  • Assist where possible victims of homophobic violence and abuse financially, temporary shelter(my home) and otherwise

  • Track human rights issues in general with a view to support for ALL
Thanks again for your support.

Tel: 1-876-841-2923




Peace

Information & Disclaimer


Individuals who are mentioned or whose photographs appear on this site are not necessarily Homosexual, HIV positive or have AIDS.

This blog contains pictures that may be disturbing. We have taken the liberty to present these images as evidence of the numerous accounts of homophobic violence meted out to alleged gays in Jamaica.

Faces and names withheld for the victims' protection.

This blog not only watches and covers LGBTQ issues in Jamaica and elsewhere but also general human rights and current affairs where applicable.

This blog contains HIV prevention messages that may not be appropriate for all audiences.

If you are not seeking such information or may be offended by such materials, please view labels, post list or exit.

Since HIV infection is spread primarily through sexual practices or by sharing needles, prevention messages and programs may address these topics.

This blog is not designed to provide medical care, if you are ill, please seek medical advice from a licensed practitioner

Thanks so much for your kind donations and thoughts.

As for some posts, they contain enclosure links to articles, blogs and or sites for your perusal, use the snapshot feature to preview by pointing the cursor at the item(s) of interest. Such item(s) have a small white dialogue box icon appearing to their top right hand side.

Recent Homophobic Cases

CLICK HERE for related posts/labels and HERE from the gayjamaicawatch's BLOG containing information I am aware of. If you know of any such reports or incidents please contact lgbtevent@gmail.com or call 1-876-841-2923

Peace to you and be safe out there.

Love.


What to do if you are attacked (News You Can Use)


First, be calm: Do not panic; it may be very difficult to maintain composure if attacked but this is important.

Try to reason with the attacker: Establish communication with the person. This takes a lot of courage. However, a conversation may change the intention of an attacker.

Do not try anything foolish: If you know outmaneuvering the attacker is impossible, do not try it.

Do not appear to be afraid: Look the attacker in the eye and demonstrate that you are not fearful.

This may have a psychological effect on the individual.

Emergency numbers

The police 119

Kingfish 811

Crime Stop 311

Steps to Take When Contronted or Arrested by Police


a) Ask to see a lawyer or Duty Council

b) Only give name and address and no other information until a lawyer is present to assist

c) Try to be polite even if the scenario is tensed) Don’t do anything to aggravate the situation

e) Every complaint lodged at a police station should be filed and a receipt produced, this is not a legal requirement but an administrative one for the police to track reports

f) Never sign to a statement other than the one produced by you in the presence of the officer(s)

g) Try to capture a recording of the exchange or incident or call someone so they can hear what occurs, place on speed dial important numbers or text someone as soon as possible

h) File a civil suit if you feel your rights have been violated. When making a statement to the police have all or most of the facts and details together for e.g. "a car" vs. "the car" represents two different descriptions

j) Avoid having the police writing the statement on your behalf except incases of injuries, make sure what you want to say is recorded carefully, ask for a copy if it means that you have to return for it

What to do


a. Make a phone call: to a lawyer or relative or anyone

b. Ask to see a lawyer immediately: if you don’t have the money ask for a Duty Council

c. A Duty Council is a lawyer provided by the state

d. Talk to a lawyer before you talk to the police

e. Tell your lawyer if anyone hits you and identify who did so by name and number

f. Give no explanations excuses or stories: you can make your defense later in court based on what you and your lawyer decided

g. Ask the sub officer in charge of the station to grant bail once you are charged with an offence

h. Ask to be taken before a justice of The Peace immediately if the sub officer refuses you bail

i. Demand to be brought before a Resident Magistrate and have your lawyer ask the judge for bail

j. Ask that any property taken from you be listed and sealed in your presence

Cases of Assault:An assault is an apprehension that someone is about to hit you

The following may apply:

1) Call 119 or go to the station or the police arrives depending on the severity of the injuries

2) The report must be about the incident as it happened, once the report is admitted as evidence it becomes the basis for the trial

3) Critical evidence must be gathered as to the injuries received which may include a Doctor’s report of the injuries.

4) The description must be clearly stated; describing injuries directly and identifying them clearly, show the doctor the injuries clearly upon the visit it must be able to stand up under cross examination in court.

5) Misguided evidence threatens the credibility of the witness during a trial; avoid the questioning of the witnesses credibility, the tribunal of fact must be able to rely on the witness’s word in presenting evidence

6) The court is guided by credible evidence on which it will make it’s finding of facts

7) Bolster the credibility of a case by a report from an independent disinterested party.

Sexual Health / STDs News From Medical News Today

VACANT AT LAST! SHOEMAKERGULLY: DISPLACED MSM/TRANS PERSONS WERE IS CLEARED DECEMBER 2014





CVM TV carried a raid and subsequent temporary blockade exercise of the Shoemaker Gully in the New Kingston district as the authorities respond to the bad eggs in the group of homeless/displaced or idling MSM/Trans persons who loiter there for years.

Question is what will happen to the population now as they struggle for a roof over their heads and food etc. The Superintendent who proposed a shelter idea (that seemingly has been ignored by JFLAG et al) was the one who led the raid/eviction.

Also see:
the CVM NEWS Story HERE on the eviction/raid taken by the police

also see a flashback to some of the troubling issues with the populations and the descending relationships between JASL, JFLAG and the displaced/homeless GBT youth in New Kingston: Rowdy Gays Strike - J-FLAG Abandons Raucous Homosexuals Misbehaving In New Kingston

also see all the posts in chronological order by date from Gay Jamaica Watch HERE and GLBTQ Jamaica HERE

GLBTQJA (Blogger): HERE

see previous entries on LGBT Homelessness from the Wordpress Blog HERE

May 22, 2015 update, see: MP Seeks Solutions For Homeless Gay Youth In New Kingston



THE BEST OF & Recommended Audioposts/Podcasts


THE BEST OF & Recommended Audioposts/Podcasts 




The Prime Minister (Golding) on Same Sex Marriages and the Charter of Rights Debate (2009)


Other sides to the msm homeless saga (2012)


Rowdy Gays Matter 21.08.11 more HERE



Ethical Professionlism & LGBT Advocates 01.02.12 more HERE


Portia Simpson Miller - SIMPSON MILLER DEFENDS GAY COMMENT 23.12.11


2 SGL Women lost, corrective rape and virtual silence from the male dominated advocacy structure


Al Miller on UK Aid & The Abnormality of Homosexuality 19.11.11


Homosexuality is Not Illegal in Jamaica .... Buggery is despite the persons gender 12.11.11 MORE HERE 


MSM Homelessness 2011 ...my two cents


Black Friday for Gays in Jamaica More HERE


Bi-phobia by default from supposed LGBT advocate structures?


Homeless MSMs Saga Timeline 28.08.11 (HOT!!!) see more HERE


A Response to Al Miller's Abnormality of Homosexuality statement 19.11.11


UK/commonwealth Aid Matter & The New Developments, no aid cuts but redirecting, ethical problems on our part - 22.11.11


Homophobic Killings versus Non Homophobic Killings 12.07.12


Big Lies, Crisis Archiving & More MSM Homlessness Issues 12.07.12


More MSM Challenges July 2012 more sounds HERE


GLBTQ Jamaica 2011 Summary 02.01.12 more HERE


Homosexuality Destroying the Family? .............. I Think Not!


Lesbian issues left out of the Jamaican advocacy thrust until now?


Club Heavens The Rebirth 12.02.12 and more HERE


Should gov't provide shelter for homeless msm?


National attitudes to gays survey shows 78% of J'cans say NO to buggery repeal


1st Anniversary of Homeless MSM civil disobedience (Aug 23/4) 2012 more HERE


JFLAG's rejection of rowdy homeless msms & the Sept 21st standoff .........


Atheism & Secularism may cloud the struggle for lgbt rights in Jamaica more HERE


Urgent Need to discuss sex & sexuality II and more HERE


MSM Community Displacement Concerns October 2012


The UTECH abuse & related issues


Beenieman's hypocrisy & his fake apology in his own words and more HERE


Guarded about JFLAG's Homeless shelter


Homophobia & homelessness matters for November 2012 ................


Cabinet delays buggery review, says it's not a priority & more ...........................(November 2012) prior to the announcement of the review in parliament in June 2013 More sounds HERE


"Dutty Mind" used in Patois Bible to describe homosexuals


Homeless impatient with agencies over slow progress for promised shelter 2012 More HERE


George Davis Live - Dr Wayne West & Carole Narcisse on JCHS' illogical fear


Homeless MSM Issues in New Kgn Jan 2013 .......


Homeless MSM challenges in Jamaica February 2013 more HERE


JFLAG Excludes Homeless MSM from IDAHOT Symposium on Homelessness 2013


Poor leadership & dithering are reasons for JFLAG & Jamaica AIDS Support’s temporary homelessness May 2013 more HERE


Response To Flagging a Dead Horse Free Speech & Gay Rights 10.06.13