|
365Gay.com
 |
Anti-Gay
Reggae Music Owned By
Town That
Banned Homophobic Music
From the
Web, January 9, 2008
|
| |
|
Brighton, England -- Brighton
city council told bars and clubs last year that they risk having their licenses
revoked if they are found to be playing music by reggae and rap artists that
promotes hatred against gays but a check of the city library has found a large
collection of the music.
The so-called Murder Music by a number of Jamaican performers has been linked to
violent attacks on gays in both the UK and Jamaica.
Brighton has been called the San Francisco of Britain for its large gay
community.
Yet, despite the ban on the music the city funded library has a sizable
collection of works by Buju Banton, Beenie Man, Elephant Man and Sizzla -- all
containing homophobic lyrics.
City councilors who backed the ban on murder music in clubs were red-faced when
the library collection was revealed to them.
"There is no ban or censorship on any particular artist or song and this section
of the policy is not there to prevent people being offended -- its sole purpose
is to prevent crime and disorder," a city spokesperson said.
"The library service sets out to maintain a balanced stock of material, offering
a wide range of materials reflecting a broad spectrum of views and opinions."
The LGBT rights group OutRage has been lobbying for several years to get "Murder
Music" banned.
In 2006, a concert by Banton, was cancelled after Brighton police notified the
club that his lyrics could result in violence against gays.
Banton’s number one hit ‘Boom Bye Bye’ urges listeners to shoot gay men in the
head, pour acid over them and burn them alive.
Although the song was first recorded years ago it has recently been re-released.
The lyrics to Beenie Man's song Bad Man Chi Chi Man (Bad Man, Queer Man) say in
Jamaican dialect "If yuh nuh chi chi (queer) man wave yuh right hand and
(NO!!!)/If yuh nuh lesbian wave yuh right hand and (NO!!!) Some bwoy will go a
jail fi kill man tun bad man chi chi man!!!."
|
