Aug 27, 2004  |  By: ANDY ZEFFE  | COMMENTS     

Gay rights activists around the country are working to cancel upcoming scheduled appearances by Beenie Man, a Jamaican dancehall singer whose lyrics activists say incite violence against gays and lesbians.

The activists have scored a number of victories, with a slew of Beenie Man appearances already cancelled. Apparently unhappy with the negative publicity over the Beenie Man controversy, the artist’s record label and tour sponsor have also been backing away from him. But the singer shows no signs of moderating his anti-gay views.

Beenie Man, whose given name is Anthony Moses Davis, has riled gay activists with such lyrics as, “I’m dreaming of a new Jamaica, come to execute all the gays.”

Dropped from tour
On Aug. 2, his record label, Virgin, issued a statement apologizing for such lyrics.

But within 24 hours of Virgin’s apology, Davis, back home in Jamaica, backed away from it.

Clyde McKenzie, head of public relations for Beenie Man’s management company, Shocking Vibes, told Radio Jamaica that the statement was “not an apology,” and that it was initiated by Virgin Records, not by Beenie Man. McKenzie added that Beenie Man reserved the right to continue criticizing “the homosexual lifestyle,” of which he disapproves.

MTV announced Wednesday, Aug. 25, that the Jamaican singer has been dropped from a concert this weekend in Miami after local gay groups threatened to protest. The concert was associated with the annual “MTV Video Music Awards.”

“I just smile because I don’t know what they’re fussing about,” Beenie Man told the Miami Herald last Sunday. “I’m not here to cuss people. I make music. But at the same time, I just want to teach people — my sons and my daughters — the right way of life.”

R.J. Reynolds, the company sponsoring a “Stir the Senses” summer tour in which Beenie Man was set to appear, has also dropped him from their lineup.

“R.J. Reynolds Tobacco does not tolerate this or any form of discrimination based on sexual orientation,” RJR spokesperson David Howard told the Chicago Tribune.

Had Beenie Man remained on the “Stir the Senses” tour, he would have appeared in 14 cities across the country.

“It’s clear that sponsors are realizing that they don’t want their brand associated with Beenie Man’s violent and homophobic lyrics,” said Glenda Testone, media director for the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation.

According to Testone, Beenie Man had 30 scheduled appearances posted on his Web site two weeks ago. Now, he only has four.

“I think a lot of the credit goes to grassroots community activists that have said we don’t want this glorification of violence against our community in our community,” she said.

One such activist is Scott Noxon in Pennsylvania, who owns the Pittsburgh Eagle, a gay bar. Noxon mobilized protests by contacting national gay rights organizations, as well as local gay rights groups where Beenie Man was originally scheduled to appear.

He set up an e-mail address, stopbeenie@aol.com, to get the word out. And he even threatened an act of civil disobedience to prevent the appearance from taking place.

“I know two big guys who drive tow trucks,” Noxon said. “We were prepared to tow old cars and drop them off in front of the entrance of the venue, and then leave.”

Other groups that prominent in protesting Beenie Man include the Chicago Anti-Bashing Network, and the British group, Outrage.

Illegal in England?
Across the ocean, Beenie Man’s calls for murdering gays are being taken seriously not just by gay rights groups, but also by legal authorities. According to the British newspaper the Guardian, police in England, along with the Crown Prosecution Service and a leading barrister, started meeting Aug. 16 to discuss whether charges could be brought against him over his lyrics.

“It’s a difficult investigation,” Chief Superintendent Clive Driscoll, the officer leading the police inquiry told the newspaper. “I have no wish to stop someone’s freedom of speech. But by the same token, I would not want offenses to be missed.”

Beenie Man is not the lone Jamaican artist to advocate violence toward gay men and lesbians. A slew of similar artists such as Elephant Man, Bounty Killer, Shaba Ranks, all have similar anti-gay lyrics in their songs. Singer Buju Banton is being sought for taking part in a gay bashing in Jamaica.