No to same-sex marriage, yes to same-sex loving tourists; the gay Agenda - Caribbean IRN Update February , March 2018

Image from J-FLAG Gay Agenda

J-Flag publishes the Gay Agenda.  which does not mention anything about marriage or about turning every body gay.

Bermuda becomes "the first jurisdiction in the world to repeal same-sex marriage"  even as the Government seeks to attract LGBTQ tourists to the island saying that they are ahead of the rest of the Caribbean in at least allowing domestic partnerships. However, ECADE says that gay marriage is not a focus for LGBT activists in response to a Human Rights Watch report "“I Have to Leave to Be Me”
Discriminatory Laws against LGBT People in the Eastern Caribbean"  Barbados Minister Blackett also says No to gay marriage  in response to the report as he tries to show love and understanding while talking about being harassed as a straight person.

In the Cayman Islands, the Deputy Governor warns Caymanians that they will have to deal with same-sex civil unions.

Dr Dhanayshar Mohabir, an Independent Senator of Trinidad and Tobago wants to bring debates on gay rights, abortion and marjijuana to the Parliament even as  pastors prayed outside Parliament to keep the buggery laws.  CAISO lovingly responded to the Christians outside the Parliament of Trinidad .. 'let us share the nation'.

Meanwhile in   Guyana   some Christians from Guyana and from the USA invoked the anus and the vagina and verses and quotes from the Scripture  to appeal for morality on a nice Saturday afternoon in Georgetown. There were no responses though, loving or otherwise from LGBT organisations- maybe there are limits to sharing the nation?

President (then elect) of Trinidad and Tobago Paula Mae-Weekes in denying that she was a lesbian, also affirmed her belief that "all  citizens should  face equal treatment no matter their sexual orientation, gender or race. Pundit Satyanand Maharaj said the sexual orientation of the President-elect should not matter. The Roman Catholic Church in Belize has withdrawn the Appeal to the decision Orozco vs AG of Belize. The Roman Catholic Bishop of Guyana attends an event in Guyana and apologises for the hurt and pain caused by Christians to the LGBT community..

The Jamaica Gleaner carries the story of 27 year old transgender citizen Ashley Gordon, while the March/April 2018 issue of Zing, the In-flight magazine of LIAT recognises transgender activist Alexa Hoffman as an inspiring Bajan.

The Barbados Nation also featured Shontonia and Fabien in the Easy Magazine of Sunday 25 February, 2018. On the same day, the Southern Conference of the Seventh Day Adventists carried paid advertisements in Trinidad to protest homosexuality.




The March/April 2018 edition of Caribbean Beat carries the musings of Guyanese Subraj Singh. He  writes about  smelling and hugging a loved one at Phagwah time.."I can smell the scent of him under the musky, holy smell of Phagwah powder. My hands linger on his hips for longer than usual, because the hundreds of people flocking the stadium on this one day only have eyes for their loved ones "

The Trinidad Guardian talks about the Dame Lorraine character - a man playing a woman character.

Canada's Daily Xtra reminds Canadians about the export of homophobia.

Don't forget to check our collection at Caribbean Sexualities – Love | Hope | Community – Sexualities & Social Justice in the Caribbean and share it with others.

The collection includes selected pieces from the Sargasso Print Edition, as well as special online features, including "Write It In Fire - Tributes to Michelle Cliff" (prose, poetry, visual and performance art).