Reflections on the State of LGBTQ+ Advocacy and Life in Jamaica
Published 08/23/2023 in Scholar Travel Stipend
Written
by Michael Williams |
08/23/2023
The 2020s have brought an intensification of homophobic and transphobic rhetoric, policies, and violence the world over.
Jamaica, a Caribbean island with a population of just under 3 million people is no stranger to such discrimination, being referred to by Time Magazine in 2006 as “the most homophobic place on earth.” Activists and advocates generally find this assertion unfair, as significant strides to improve the conditions of LGBTQ+ people on the island have been made in the last decade. Still, LGBTQ+ people grapple with the realities of intense persecution and discrimination.
On the policy level, the primary law which perpetuates violence and discrimination is known as the “Buggery Law,” a holdover from colonial rule which criminalizes same-sex acts. Its official name is “The Offences Against the Person Act (OAPA),” and Section 76 states: “Whosoever shall be convicted of the abominable crime of buggery, committed either with mankind or with any animal, shall be liable to be imprisoned and kept to hard labour for a term not exceeding ten years.”
The process of a constitutional reform has started in Jamaica in 2023, with hopes of becoming a republic and cutting colonial ties to the countries laws. LGBTQ+ advocates at the Jamaica Forum for Lesbians, All-sexuals, and Gays (J-FLAG or Equality JA), have taken this opportunity to push for the removal of the buggery law and the creation of protections for LGBTQ+ people. However, politicians have responded to these calls with a reaffirmation of their homophobic stance, disinterest because of a lack of political willpower, and/or fear of retaliation. In May of 2023, Justice Minister Delroy Chuck asserted on the issue of same-sex marriage that “We enjoy when [a man and woman] come for their marriage license because it means a family will be created…let it be clear, we do not support same-sex marriage now or ever…this is not permissible.” Most of all is the upholding of their perceived image of Jamaica as a Christian nation. Similar attitudes are reflected by the general public, who in a2019 attitudes survey conducted by J-FLAG found that while many Jamaicans actually believe LGBTQ+ people should be treated fairly, they did not support the removal of the buggery law. Jamaica has the most churches per square mile and has the church as an extremely powerful political actor, receiving international funding.
University of the West Indies Law School, where Professor Tracy Robinson is based.
In spite of these circumstances, J-FLAG has had successes in helping secure protections for LGBTQ+ people. Two such notable protections are the addition of anti-discrimination policies in the workplace on the basis of sexual orientation, and the expansion and operationalization of diversity policies in the police department (Jamaica Constabulary Force) in dealing with people of multiple marginalized identities, including queer. Enforcement of these rules, however, will need more work. The organization will have the opportunity at some point during the constitutional reform process to make a presentation to the reform committee. They also hope to create an LGBT/Human rights caucus comprising various political actors. Transwave, an organization under the J-FLAG umbrella which serves trans people also advocated for inclusion of hormone replacement therapy in the national budget among other measures to support access to healthcare of trans people, showing how these could fit within the confines of current funding allocation.
External funding from LGBTQ+/Human rights organizations in the global north has been a double edged sword for local advocacy efforts. Advocates at J-FLAG shared that it has often been their experience that such organizations, especially those based in the United States, have come in with their own ideas about how interventions should be done as opposed to consulting with those more versed in local context, norms and politics. “In Jamaica we don’t like the idea of US imposition,” said one J-FLAG employee. “Many [US Organizations] have an assumption that we are working without a mission or a vision, often come in and try to dictate what should be done and how it should be done.”1 Still, much of the funding to allow the organizations’ daily work to happen is dependent on grants based in the global north. There may be gaps in understanding amongst even the most well intentioned global north advocates, as differences in the culture and circumstances of queer Jamaicans exist. A 29 year old queer Jamaican from a rural part of the island who migrated to California to attend college shared some of the differences in queer life in the US versus Jamaica. One such piece is the concept of “coming out.” They felt the very idea was a western process and did not feel comprehensive or effective in being seen fully and with complexity. Their self construction had to occur outside of the lens of American queerness; what worked for American queer people did not work for the multiplicity of their marginalized identities - Black, queer, immigrant, low income.
Jamaica, a Caribbean island with a population of just under 3 million people is no stranger to such discrimination, being referred to by Time Magazine in 2006 as “the most homophobic place on earth.” Activists and advocates generally find this assertion unfair, as significant strides to improve the conditions of LGBTQ+ people on the island have been made in the last decade. Still, LGBTQ+ people grapple with the realities of intense persecution and discrimination.
On the policy level, the primary law which perpetuates violence and discrimination is known as the “Buggery Law,” a holdover from colonial rule which criminalizes same-sex acts. Its official name is “The Offences Against the Person Act (OAPA),” and Section 76 states: “Whosoever shall be convicted of the abominable crime of buggery, committed either with mankind or with any animal, shall be liable to be imprisoned and kept to hard labour for a term not exceeding ten years.”
The process of a constitutional reform has started in Jamaica in 2023, with hopes of becoming a republic and cutting colonial ties to the countries laws. LGBTQ+ advocates at the Jamaica Forum for Lesbians, All-sexuals, and Gays (J-FLAG or Equality JA), have taken this opportunity to push for the removal of the buggery law and the creation of protections for LGBTQ+ people. However, politicians have responded to these calls with a reaffirmation of their homophobic stance, disinterest because of a lack of political willpower, and/or fear of retaliation. In May of 2023, Justice Minister Delroy Chuck asserted on the issue of same-sex marriage that “We enjoy when [a man and woman] come for their marriage license because it means a family will be created…let it be clear, we do not support same-sex marriage now or ever…this is not permissible.” Most of all is the upholding of their perceived image of Jamaica as a Christian nation. Similar attitudes are reflected by the general public, who in a2019 attitudes survey conducted by J-FLAG found that while many Jamaicans actually believe LGBTQ+ people should be treated fairly, they did not support the removal of the buggery law. Jamaica has the most churches per square mile and has the church as an extremely powerful political actor, receiving international funding.
University of the West Indies Law School, where Professor Tracy Robinson is based.
In spite of these circumstances, J-FLAG has had successes in helping secure protections for LGBTQ+ people. Two such notable protections are the addition of anti-discrimination policies in the workplace on the basis of sexual orientation, and the expansion and operationalization of diversity policies in the police department (Jamaica Constabulary Force) in dealing with people of multiple marginalized identities, including queer. Enforcement of these rules, however, will need more work. The organization will have the opportunity at some point during the constitutional reform process to make a presentation to the reform committee. They also hope to create an LGBT/Human rights caucus comprising various political actors. Transwave, an organization under the J-FLAG umbrella which serves trans people also advocated for inclusion of hormone replacement therapy in the national budget among other measures to support access to healthcare of trans people, showing how these could fit within the confines of current funding allocation.
External funding from LGBTQ+/Human rights organizations in the global north has been a double edged sword for local advocacy efforts. Advocates at J-FLAG shared that it has often been their experience that such organizations, especially those based in the United States, have come in with their own ideas about how interventions should be done as opposed to consulting with those more versed in local context, norms and politics. “In Jamaica we don’t like the idea of US imposition,” said one J-FLAG employee. “Many [US Organizations] have an assumption that we are working without a mission or a vision, often come in and try to dictate what should be done and how it should be done.”1 Still, much of the funding to allow the organizations’ daily work to happen is dependent on grants based in the global north. There may be gaps in understanding amongst even the most well intentioned global north advocates, as differences in the culture and circumstances of queer Jamaicans exist. A 29 year old queer Jamaican from a rural part of the island who migrated to California to attend college shared some of the differences in queer life in the US versus Jamaica. One such piece is the concept of “coming out.” They felt the very idea was a western process and did not feel comprehensive or effective in being seen fully and with complexity. Their self construction had to occur outside of the lens of American queerness; what worked for American queer people did not work for the multiplicity of their marginalized identities - Black, queer, immigrant, low income.
All foreign intervention is not necessarily bad however, as pointed out by Tracey Robsinon, head of the now disbanded University Rights project (U-RAP), a coalition of law professors and students at the University of the West Indies who worked for several years to fight against discriminatory LGBTQ+ legislation across the Caribbean through litigation. She shared that a collection of members of legal clinics at the University of Pennsylvania, Stanford University, and University of Chicago have brought forth an amicus brief to the Inter American Commission on Human Rights in the case of Dwayne Jones. Jones was a trans person who was brutally mudered in 2013 in at a party, and whose killers were never brought to justice despite countless witnesses. No family members ever came forward to advocate on Jones behalf. The case garnered international media attention and for many was emblematic of the plight of queer Jamaicans. Robinson shared that “That sense of isolation and aloneness is of course real…this is a person who was murdered, and nobody would stand with them.”2 Several of Jones’ friends and chosen family, however, have kept their memory alive and continue to talk about them.
The call to action advocates at J-FLAG left the team with was to be a broker by utilizing connections with universities and other potential sources of grants to connect this and other organizations with funding and exposure. This applies to both people in the Jamaican diaspora, but also those with no connection to the country who have investment in human rights. Thus, the coalition of 2017 Milken Scholars formed will continue to engage with and catalogue the experiences of Queer Jamaicans and advocates, and serve as a link to the various spaces in the US the scholars have access to. In doing so, they hope to take part in accelerating measurable progress on the path to a meaningful life for queer Jamaicans, and to help support the financial health of organizations that advocate on queer Jamaicans’ behalf leveraging their own connections, talents and areas of expertise, in line with the mission of the Milken institute and Milken Family Foundation. They also intend to continue their support of the Jamaica Conversation Project, an initiative started by Jovanté Anderson, a queer, Jamaican, University of Miami PhD candidate, which aims to create a digital archive of the histories and experiences of queer Jamaican elders.
(Left) Jovanté Anderson, PhD Candidate at UMiami and creator of the Jamaican Conversation Project.
1 (N. Wilson, personal communication, May 1, 2023)
2 (T. Robinson, personal communication, April 29, 2023)