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| Anti-gay Jamaican rapper Beenie Man is slated to headline an HIV/AIDS fundraiser in New York on July 18. (Photo by AP) | |
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By DYANA BAGBY
Jul 10 2006, 6:26 PM |
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Anti-gay reggae rappers Beenie Man and TOK are
slated to headline a July 18 concert in New York to raise funds and awareness
about HIV/AIDS among people of Caribbean descent, prompting a coalition of
black gay bloggers to launch an online campaign against the event.
-IMG-The concert is sponsored by LIFEbeat, which was founded in 1992 and calls itself the music industry’s charitable organization dedicated to reaching youth
with the message of HIV/AIDS prevention. The event is part of the
organization’s Reggae Gold Jumpoff as part of its Sixth “Hearts & Voices
Concert Series.”
But author, activist and blogger Keith Boykin, in a
blast e-mail sent July 10, said the concert must be stopped because giving such
anti-gay musicians a platform only furthers homophobia.
“As a black gay man, I've had enough of the excuses
and the hypocrisy and the fear. I will not sit back quietly while a so-called
AIDS organization gives a microphone and a stage to two musical groups that
want to kill me,” he wrote on his website, www.keithboykin.com.
Boykin and other black gay and lesbian bloggers
issued a press release and called for LIFEbeat
to either rescind the invitation to Beenie Man and TOK or demand that the two
artists make a public statement prior to the concert disavowing their
homophobic music and remarks.
Jody Miller, publicist for LIFEbeat, said the
organization realized the potential controversy that would arise from bringing
on such stars as Beenie Man and TOK.
“The whole purpose and importance of this event is
to bring these artists together on this issue (of HIV/AIDS),” she said July 10.
The Caribbean community has long dealt with the stigma of
HIV/AIDS, she added, and bringing these rappers together to raise awareness is
an important first step in breaking down walls of intolerance. Jamaica has the
third-largest population living with HIV/AIDS in the Caribbean, after Haiti and
the Dominican Republic, according to reports from the Centers for Disease
Control & Prevention.
“We know some of the problems of their lyrics, but
our belief is that the dialogue is good. Education and enlightenment can help
the artists see the broader picture,” she said.
But why bring in anti-gay rappers to raise funds for
a disease that heavily impacts gay men?
“There is tremendous sensitivity to that,” she said.
“Our board and staff thought long and hard about it. But we believe the
potential benefits to the community will outweigh the potential negativity.”
Black lesbian blogger and activist Jasmyne Cannick said gays of
Caribbean descent continue to be targets of anti-gay hate crimes, including
murder.
“LIFEbeat needs to understand that Jamaica’s
growing HIV/AIDS epidemic has led to widespread violence and discrimination
against people living with HIV/AIDS and gay men,” Cannick said in the
statement. “Many Jamaicans still believe that HIV/AIDS is a disease of
gays for ‘moral impurity.’ It’s commonplace to see violent acts against
gays in Jamaica. Through these artists’ lyrics, they encourage this
behavior and we here in the United States should not do the same by allowing
them the platform.”
In July 2004, Jamaican dancehall star Beenie Man’s
London concert was canceled after police questioned him about his reportedly
homophobic lyrics.
In
August 2004, when asked about songs such as “Damn” and “Bad Man (Chi Chi Man),"
which advocate killing gays, Beenie Man said he was sorry for any hurt the
songs caused.
“While
my lyrics are very personal, I do not write them with the intent of
purposefully hurting or maligning others, and I offer my sincerest apologies to
those who might have been offended, threatened or hurt by my songs,” he said,
according to the Associated Press.
On Aug. 8, 2004, Beenie Man told the
Philadelphia Inquirer: “If you have sex
with a man, that’s your own business. We don’t fight against lifestyles. We just
don’t want anyone to molest our kids.”
The concert is being supported by BET, Vibe
Magazine, Music Choice and New York’s Power 105.1 FM.
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