Potest Against Beenie Man, et al

[Senusret I]

Had to remove the pic, sorry! I will relink it once I get more server space.

[Rudey]

This is real? I can't imagine Hot 97 doing this...

-Rudey

[IowaStatePhiPsi]

I think Beenie Man was one of the artists that sang to Olympic athletes in the Olympic village to shoot gay men, pour acid on their bodies and burn them.
ETA: oops- that's Buju Banton that sang to the Olympians to kill gays.
Haha- I see that Beenie has been denied access to the British Music Awards and has had concerts in Miami and Toronto pulled because of his inciting violence.

[Senusret I]

Originally posted by Rudey
This is real? I can't imagine Hot 97 doing this...

-Rudey

The concert is real, as is the protest. It's been all over the list serves and yahoo groups I'm on.

And yes, much/most dancehall and reggae is homophobic, especially the newer stuff.

"Boom bye bye ina batty bwoy head" = Shoot a gay man in the head

[Senusret I]

Originally posted by IowaStatePhiPsi
I think Beenie Man was one of the artists that sang to Olympic athletes in the Olympic village to shoot gay men, pour acid on their bodies and burn them.
ETA: oops- that's Buju Banton that sang to the Olympians to kill gays.
Haha- I see that Beenie has been denied access to the British Music Awards and has had concerts in Miami and Toronto pulled because of his inciting violence.

Good.....the homophobic jerk. Ever notice how unattractive these artists are?

[RACooper]

Originally posted by IowaStatePhiPsi
Haha- I see that Beenie has been denied access to the British Music Awards and has had concerts in Miami and Toronto pulled because of his inciting violence.

The CRTC in Canada is also considering pulling his album and songs from the airwaves, as it promotes violence and hatred... I believed they compared it to being roughly the same as the trash that White Power groups try to put out. I trully hope they succeed, as the filth he spouts deserves comdemnation and possible legal action.,

[Senusret I]

Dancehall's Vicious Side: Antigay Attitudes

By KELEFA SANNEH

Published: September 6, 2004


When the reggae star Beenie Man came to the Hammerstein Ballroom on Friday he received his usual welcome. There was a frenetic introduction. There was an exuberant crowd of thousands waving whatever he told them to wave: hands flags cellphones. And out front there were about a dozen pickets hoisting signs and chanting: "No more murder music! No more murder music!"


Over the past month, Beenie Man has found himself at the center of a growing controversy over antigay lyrics in dancehall reggae, the rapid-fire genre descended from reggae. Beenie Man, one of the genre's best and most popular performers, is known for his witty, lascivious boasts (his new album, "King of the Dancehall," includes a great track called "Grindacologist") and for collaborations with mainstream stars like Janet Jackson and the Neptunes.

But his oeuvre also includes a fistful of tracks that denounce gay men (known pejoratively as "chi-chi men'' or as "batty boys," after a slang term for buttocks) and women. And now the British gay-rights organization Outrage, prompted by a Jamaican group called J-Flag (the Jamaican Forum for Lesbians, All-sexuals and Gays), has begun a campaign against antigay lyrics in dancehall reggae.

Beenie Man concerts have been canceled throughout Europe, Outrage is demanding that Scotland Yard investigate him for, in the organization's words, "inciting murder," and he was dropped from an MTV-sponsored performance in Miami. A contrite statement was put out by Virgin Records, Beenie Man's label, then swiftly disavowed by his manager. (Outrage has also singled out Buju Banton, Vybz Kartel, Elephant Man, T.O.K., Bounty Killer, Capleton and Sizzla.)

Beenie Man has certainly drawn focus because of his popularity, but there's no denying that he has given Outrage a wide range of quotes from which to choose. In "That's Right," the infectious chorus begins, "We burn chi-chi man and then we burn sodomite and everybody bawl out, say, 'Dat right!' ''

And in "Han Up Deh," Beenie Man cracks some jokes ("Man a save yuh from drowning is a lifeguard/ Man a watch a man batty, him a batty-guard"), then delivers an antigay party chant, asking listeners to raise their hands if they agree: "Hang chi-chi gal wid a long piece a rope/ Mek me see di han' a go up, mek me see di han' a go up."

Virgin Records declined to make Beenie Man available for an interview, and a spokeswoman responded to queries with an official statement: "The lyrics in question are from songs released over four years ago, on an independent label not affiliated with Virgin Records. We do not condone violence."

Well, not quite. It's true that these songs were released on independent labels (all reggae stars pump out a steady stream of underground singles alongside their official album releases), but "four years ago"? The most charitable explanation is that executives at Virgin Records simply haven't been following the career of their own recording artist. Right now, Beenie Man has an underground hit with "Weh Yuh No Fi Do," on which he announces "batty man fi dead," and"Han Up Deh" was an underground hit last year.

Lyrics like these are nothing new in dancehall reggae. A decade ago, Buju Banton drew protests for his song "Boom Bye Bye," a blood-curdling (and - if we're being honest - brilliant) song with a low, lurching beat and a murderous chorus: "Boom bye bye in a batty-boy head/ Rude boy no promote no nasty man, dem haffi dead."

This new round of protests was inspired by events in Jamaica, where gay residents say they fear discrimination and assault, as well as prosecution, under the island's 1864 anti-"buggery" law. On June 9, the island's leading gay-rights advocate, Brian Williamson, was stabbed to death in his home. Inspector Victor Henry, a spokesman for the Jamaican police, said the crime was a robbery gone awry, but even if it wasn't a hate crime (J-Flag, the organization Mr. Williamson founded, remains skeptical of the police finding), the killing nevertheless drew attention to the issue of antigay violence.

Then came the claim that on the morning of June 24, six men were pulled out of a house and beaten because they were believed to be gay; the men allege that one of the assailants was Buju Banton himself. Inspector Henry confirmed that "someone made a report" that the singer was "among a group of men" involved in an attack, but he said so far "these are only allegations." He added that he expected the police to "clear up" the issue as soon as the singer returned from his tour.

A spokeswoman for the singer flatly denied the charges: "It didn't happen - it's totally fabricated," she said. J-Flag arranged for one man who said he was attacked (who wished to remain anonymous) to describe the incident by telephone. He said he and five others were dragged out of the house by about a dozen people, adding that once the assault began, "Nearly 100 people come down when they heard, and everybody was saying, 'Yes, beat out the batty boy!' ''

Beenie Man, on the other hand, has been accused only of rhetorical violence, which is a much more slippery charge. Despite reggae's reputation for sweetness, the genre's history is intertwined with a history of ferocious (and sometimes violent) competition between rival sound systems and crews. This competition kept the music fresh and weird (to attract fans, you needed something new, something different, something great), and the conflicts were often echoed in the lyrics - singers routinely promised to "murder" the competition with tunes.

Even as they portray themselves as swaggering "bad men," reggae stars also present themselves as forces for good: folk heroes, social activists, prophets. (Buju Banton, for example, sometimes calls himself, "the voice of Jamaica.") To be really successful, you have to do both at once, which is one reason vocalists find antigay rhetoric so useful. It gives them a way to gesture to religious and cultural injunctions against homosexuality (in interviews, the stars often cite Scripture) while also reminding listeners of their "bad man" bona fides. With antigay lyrics, vocalists manage to seem simultaneously righteous and wicked.

A prominent reggae music executive, speaking anonymously for fear his comments might hurt the artists he works with, said that antigay lyrics were also strategic. "It's not that the artists wake up and say gay people are taking over the country and we need to stamp them out," he said. "They're doing it because they're saying: 'I don't have a hit, what can I do that the public can't deny? Let me do another record, find another way to say, "Burn batty boy, stab batty boy." ' '' He said D.J.'s and listeners responded to songs like this because "they can't afford not to."

"People could say you didn't respond, you could be gay," he continued. "It's really childish."

This isn't only a matter of reggae rhetoric, though; it's also a matter of the globalized music industry. Reggae stars, who have figured out that there's more money to be made abroad than at home, are now vulnerable to pressure from nervous companies around the world. Buju Banton recently played a Puma-sponsored Olympics party in Athens, but only after being briefed on the company's "zero tolerance policy towards homophobia and other forms of prejudice," a Puma spokesman said.

Not surprisingly, this state of affairs has bred no small amount of resentment among stars and listeners alike, who see something neocolonial in the way Britons are criticizing Jamaican music. After Vybz Kartel, arguably reggae's hottest current star, visited BBC Radio to make an apology last week, the Jamaican tabloid X-News tried to humiliate him by running a photo of the vocalist in a white coat and top hat next to the headline, "Vybz Kartel BOWS to Gay Pressure." It's not hard to figure out why others on Outrage's list might prefer to keep quiet.

Mr. Allison, Outrage's spokesman, said the group wanted stars to stop "advocating violence against gay people." The problem is that violent rhetoric is precisely the way many dancehall acts voice their disapproval of all sorts of things: homosexuality, the competition, cunnilingus (a dancehall proscription that probably merits its own essay), women who borrow one another's clothes.

Frustratingly, gay Jamaicans have been largely absent from this discussion. A J-Flag spokeswoman who would identify herself only as Karlene seemed cautiously optimistic about the current wave of protests. "We hope it won't cause a negative backlash," she said. "But we don't want to stop what we're doing, either. We can't allow the fear to drive us to stop."

At the very least, the protests have clearly got the stars' attention. At Friday's concert, antigay lyrics were conspicuously absent, despite sets from the Outrage targets Elephant Man, Vybz Kartel and T.O.K. (although Jabba and Bobby Konders, the hosts of Hot 97's weekly reggae show, did sate the crowd's appetite with a short set of antigay records). Performers often unleash a barrage of antigay invective when they're in danger of losing the audience, so on this night, everyone had to rely more heavily on another standby: sex talk.

Fittingly enough, Beenie Man put on the night's best show, finding ways to let his predicament work to his advantage. "We are not violent people, we just fight for our rights," he said, striding across the stage in a white and pink suit, adding, "They can't stop dancehall." And by the time he ended his set, with a sped-up but sweet sing-along to Bob Marley's "Redemption Song," it was getting easier to see how so many fans and critics could pin their hopes and grudges upon a brilliant performer with a funny name and a voice heard around the world.

[Senusret I]

"Kill Gays" Singer Still Scheduled at House of Blues

by Chicago Anti-Bashing Network




Email: cabnstopthehate aol.com
16 Sep 2004





Chicago blues and world music venue, House of Blues, is violating its own stated principles of promoting "diversity" and ascewing "violence" in refusing to cancel "kill gays" singer.
HOUSE OF BLUES PUTS PROFIT BEFORE PRINCIPLE

House of Blues has an excellent "mission statement." But is it worth the salary of the corporate drone who drafted it? Does Capleton singing "All queers and sodomites should be killed," promote diversity, brotherhood and nonviolence?

Our Mission, says House of Blues is

To create a profitable principled global entertainment company.

To celebrate the diversity and brotherhood of world culture.

To promote racial and spiritual harmony through love, peace, truth, righteousness and nonviolence.
http://www.hob.com/aboutHOB/

At both its Los Angeles corporate headquarters and locally, House of Blues has ignored our protests, and the Chicago performance of Capleton who advocates "burning" and "shooting" gays and lesbians is still on, set for September 23 at 9 PM.

Unlike the RJ Reynolds-sponsored anti-gay Beenie Man tour which was set for House of Blues, then canceled by the tobacco company, perhaps House of Blues itself has pumped cash into the Capleton tour.

Sorry, House of Blues. Nobody said that adherence to principle is always easy. We say that persons advocating death to LGBT people are outside the pale of freedom of expression and ought not be permitted to profit from hate.

Please take Action Now.

If you haven't already contacted the House of Blues, please do so now. If you have done so, thanks, and do it again, but this time with a more forceful message.

1. Firmly ask them firmly to cancel Capleton.
2. Tell them that if this performance occurs as scheduled, you will boycott the establishment.

3. Participate in a press conference and/or an informational picket at HOB.

The press conference is set for Friday, September 17 at House of Blues at 11 AM. The informational picket is set for Thursday, September 23 at House of Blues at 7 PM.

CONTACT INFORMATION FOR HOUSE OF BLUES

Jim Jablonski,
Chicago General Manager
House of Blues
329 N. Dearborn Street, Chicago, IL 60610
312-923-2000
FAX 312-527-3072
hobchicago (at) hob.com

Jack Gannon
House of Blues Publicity
6255 Sunset Blvd. 16th Floor
Hollywood, CA 90028
323.769.4705

media.inquiries (at) hob.com

-----------------------------

Background note on Reggae/regga Dancehall Antigay Murder Music

The release of “kill gays” songs by Capleton, Beenie Man and other Jamaican dancehall singers has been followed by a wave of homophobic violence in Jamaica and Britain (where there is a substantial population of Jamaican descent). Lesbians and gays have been shot, stabbed, macheted and stoned to death, doused with gasoline and set ablaze, and chased into the sea and left to drown.

Victims include Brian Williamson, the foremost gay rights leader on the island nation, whose multiply-stabbed body was found June 9. Gay sex in Jamaica is punishable by 10 years hard labor.

As Americans who oppose violence against LGBT people, we also must be mindful of the nefarious role played by the US government in promoting the conditions of poverty in Jamaica and elsewhere, which help breed this scapegoating and violence.

Attacks on gays and other groups in Third World countries occur against a backdrop of grinding poverty promoted by so-called “free trade” programs imposed by the U.S. Already poor local economies are devastated further because the only “free trade” that occurs is in commodities for which the U.S. has a competitive advantage, while U.S. taxpayers subsidize the dumping of U.S. exports, such as agriculture, where poorer countries might otherwise compete and build their own wealth.

Antigay rhetoric by bishops, preachers and politicians in the US has similarly helped create a climate in which increased antigay violence is occurring. No respectable venue today would showcase an artist who defamed Jews or African-Americans. We demand the same respect for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender people!

-----------

Chicago Anti-Bashing Network (CABN) cabn.org cabnstopthehate (at) aol.com 773-878-3697

[Munchkin03]

[Senusret I]

Thursday, September 30, 2004 - Facing pressure by the Chicago Anti-
Bashing Network (CABN), the Los Angeles Gay & Lesbian Center, and
the City of West Hollywood, the House of Blues nightclub chain
announced late today that it was canceling all of its remaining
concerts by viciously anti-gay reggae performer Capleton.
On Wednesday the club issued a terse statement announcing the
cancellation of an October 4th concert in West Hollywood, CA "out of
respect for the community." Today's announcement nixes the final
concert, scheduled for October 11th at the House of Blues facility
in New Orleans.

Several of Capleton's songs call for killing and mutilating Lesbians
and Gays. For example, one song says "All boogaman and sodemites fi
get killed" (All queers and sodomites should be killed). Another
song exclaims "Bun out ah chi chi, Blood out ah chi chi," which
translates from the Jamaica patois as "Burn out the queer, Blood out
the queer." "Blood out" is a particularly violent expression meaning
to chop, cut, stab, or shoot. Another song is entitled "Hang Dem
Up," and contains the lyrics "Yow....String dem up and hang dem up
alive" (Yow, string them up and hang them up alive), "Bare batty man
come round yah" (All queers who come around here), "Dis mamma earth
sey none cyann survive" (This mama earth says none can survive).

While Chicago's September 23rd concert by Capleton went forward, it
did so only after the House of Blues underwent a withering torrent
of bad publicity for the club. Both the controversy before the
concert and the protest that night were covered in multiple reports
by most Chicago television stations, with both major daily
newspapers picking up the story, and a local tabloid making the
controversy its full front page. In the end, the concert sold only
about 200 tickets for the 2000-seat venue. Now that the House of
Blues has cancelled all of Capleton's remaining appearances at the
club chain, a boycott of the club inaugurated by CABN has been
called off.

"Coming in the context of an election campaign where the sitting
President has decided to launch a war on the legal rights of
Lesbians and Gays, Capleton's `kill gays' lyrics were like pouring
gasoline on the fire," said Bob Schwartz, a member of CABN's
Coordinating Committee. "Already the country has seen a spike in
anti-gay violence, and Capleton's lyrics fueled an already bad
problem." In the past few weeks evangelist Jimmy Swaggert and
Washington Times publisher Rev. Sun Myung Moon both called for death
to gay people (Swaggert later apologized for his remarks).

"Advertisers know that if you repeat a message often enough, some
people will act on it," said CABN co-founder Andy Thayer. "In
Capleton's case, you have a popular entertainer calling for
violence, and it was only a matter of time before someone acted on
it. While the House of Blues management did not act as quickly as we
would have liked, we are gratified that they did finally do the
right thing, and we are happy to rescind the boycott call against
their club."

For initiating the campaign against "kill gays" singers like
Capleton, foremost credit goes to the activism of Jamaican gays
themselves, who in June suffered the brutal murder of their
country's foremost gay rights campaigner, Brian Williamson.
Williamson was stabbed numerous times in a killing which bore all
the hallmarks of an anti-gay hate murder.

Primary credit for internationalizing the struggle against the "kill
gays" singers goes to the British queer protest group Outrage!,
headed by long-time activist Peter Tatchell. Tatchell has received
numerous death threats for his activism against the pro-murder
entertainers and as a result, is under round the clock protection by
British police. Activism by Outrage! successfully spearheaded the
cancellation of several concerts in Britain. The group also played
the leading role in bringing the campaign to the U.S.A. by
successfully persuading groups and individuals in this country to
take up the cause.

In all, there are at least eight reggae performers who have
made "kill gays" lyrics a prominent part of their repertoire.
Besides Capleton, other "kill gays" performers identified by
Outrage! include Beenie Man, Elephant Man, Sizzla, Bounty Killer,
T.O.K, Buju Banton, and Vybz Kartel. Beenie Man's October 25th
appearance at the Chicago House of Blues was cancelled after tobacco
giant RJ Reynolds decided it didn't want its name associated with
performers who call for wholesale death to gays. CABN hopes that
management at the House of Blues will not repeat the mistake it
initially made with Beenie Man and Capleton, and will decline to
book acts by these other performers.