Spiritual work 100 per cent guaranteed - Caribbean IRN update January, February, March 2024

 Spiritual Work 

"Spiritual work, 100% guaranteed .gay lovers togetherness.. lesbians together .." is advertised in the Sunday Chronicle in Guyana in the Spirituality section.  

The healer though probably needs to help the Government of Guyana as the United Nations Human Rights Committee recommends among other things that :

• "Adopt comprehensive anti-discrimination legislation that explicitly addresses all spheres of life and prohibits direct, indirect, and intersectional discrimination on all grounds including race, ethnicity, age, nationality, religion, migration status, disability, sexual orientation, and gender identity, and ensure access to effective and appropriate remedies for victims of discrimination;
• Combat violence and discrimination against persons based on their sexual orientation and gender identity and ensure that offences motivated by the victim’s sexual orientation, or real or perceived gender identity are investigated promptly and establish specific investigation protocols for these cases, that those responsible are brought to justice and appropriately punished and that the victims receive full reparations. " 

as it seems "Guyana holds on tight to its homophobia" 

Spiritual work also needed as church leaders in  Curaçao, Aruba, and Sint Maarten have written to the  Supreme Court to  overturn the December 2022 rulings which allowed same-sex marriage.

 Healing spiritual work also needed in St Vincent and the Grenadines as the High Court throws out the legal challenge brought by Javin Johnson and Sean Macleish against the buggery laws. ERAO-SVG expresses its disappointment

In Haiti, LGBT activists talk about the violence and its impact on them.  

Also in Haiti, Action pour l’Inclusion et l’Émancipation Sociale (AIES) will organise an international voodoo festival in August 2024. Organiser, Steeve Grand-Jean says that "In the end, it was voodoo that saved me, and it was through voodoo spirituality that I came to accept myself as I am... Indeed, in voodoo, there are many people who share the same sexual orientation as me, and very quickly I met a surrogate family who brought me a lot of comfort."

In Cuba, the Metropolitan Community Church embraces all LGBTQ+  persons.

 Equality Jamaica launches its 25th Anniversary mural which celebrates LGBTQ history from 1990

Living and loving

 Kaisha Davis shares her love for her brother Tariq on the Guyana Together platform. Tariq was born female. 

Renae Green from Transwave Jamaica, Dadrina Emmanuel from CEED , Barbados; Destiny Aquino from TEPA, Dominican Republic and Stephanía Hernández from IVED, Dominican Republic speak about transgender visibility.

Xavi K. shares her story as a transgender woman in Suriname.  

Emme Christie , LGBTQ Advocate from Jamaica and Climate justice warrior discusses the Caribbean and the Climate crisis  on The Climate Conscious Podcast.  Emme connects climate justice with gender justice

 Nick Boston writes about "The Plural of He", the exhibition which celebrates the late Colin Robinson of Trinidad & Tobago. The exhibition was curated by Andil Gosine.

“The Plural of He”  is at the Leslie-Lohman Museum of Art in New York until July 21, 2024

 

Despite the discrimination in some places, LGBTQ travel is welcome in the Caribbean. Gay City News invites readers to visit Belize for a 'big gay escape'.  Anguilla, Dominican Republic, Aruba , Curaçao , Puerto Rico and US Virgin Islands are highlighted as LGBTQ wedding destinations. The Gran Mithu Rainbow Hotel is now open in Cuba.

Learning

The LGBT History Suriname  is a history project which builds on the work done in Suriname.

"Fractal Repair : Queer Histories of Modern Jamaica " by Matthew Chin has been published by Duke University Press

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 also 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)