Caribbean IRN Blog

On Left - image from thepolitic.org , Right - image from San Pedro Sun Divergence Recent votes at the United Nations on the role and function of the SOGI expert show the tendency of the Caribbean to keep voting against gay rights at the UN. Global politics might be the reason as countries like Suriname which does not criminalise homosexuality and Guyana where the political parties committed to equality for all in the last elections seemed to succumb to things other than family values and colonial culture . Trinidadian Colin Robinson writes about being   thrown out of a meeting he was invited to by the Office of the Prime Minister.  He and others protested the lack of representation of communities affected by HIV/AIDS on the National AIDS Co-ordinating Committee. Jamaica continued to provide nuances to the story of the homophobic Caribbean. J FLAG celebrated its 18th Anniversary at the US Embassy in Jamaica, while Jamaican refugee Gareth Henry tells his story of ...

(Left - Curaçao  Pride Walk 2016 image from Curaçao Chronicle ; Right -Coming Out Week Suriname by Regilio Derby on  Dagbland Suriname   "We are all God's Children' is the headline given to a letter from Retired Ugandan Anglican Bishop Christopher Senyonjo  appealing for religious people to recognise diversity in human sexuality. He had joined in the celebration of   Montego Bay Pride Curaçao Pride was described as a great succe ss, with a series of events including a huge Pride Walk. Suriname's Coming Out Week was also described as a success. In Dominica, Opposition Senator Isaac Baptiste calls for decriminalization of buggery (while also appearing to oppose the criminalization of marital rape). The Government of Belize decides to appeal the judgement in Orozco vs A.G of Belize   on two grounds while in Guyana , the hearing on the cross dressing appeal has been delayed. Grenadians are reassured that  there will be no same-sex...

Flag of Belize Six years after Caleb Orozco went to court in Belize to challenge s53 of its Criminal Code , the Chief Justice Kenneth Benjamin handed down a decision.  Section 53 makes “carnal intercourse against the order of nature’, which includes anal sex, a crime punishable by up to 10 years imprisonment. The court ruled that s53 is unconstitutional. The Government of Belize and the opposition agree to leave the decision alone. Some of the Christian groups want to appeal. The case had its own Caribbean integration nuance - in addition to the parties from Belize, the Guyana born Judge and the legal advisory team which included lawyers from Trinidad & Tobago, Jamaica and Guyana and other places. The press conference after th e decision is reported by 7 News and available in the video . The Jamaica Gleaner publishes an editorial on the decision and in another editorial, e ndorses Maurice Tomlinson's case against the Jamaican buggery laws. J-FLAG reports tha...

Michelle Cliff (1946-2016) was a remarkable writer who claimed many identities she was taught to despise: Lesbian, Black, Woman, Jamaican. She wrote powerful novels, essays, stories, and poems that make us rethink what it means to love, to hope, and to have community. She also carved space for same-sex loving and diverse sexualities in the Caribbean by representing our desires fiercely and by being deeply rooted in place. She continues to inspire us to write our stories, our sense of self, in fire. “ A theory in the flesh means one where the physical realities of our lives – our skin color, the land or concrete we grew up on, our sexual longings ― all fuse to create a politic born out of necessity. ― Michelle Cliff, “Claiming An Identity They Taught Me To Despise” “ Who can say how many lives have been saved by books?” ― Michelle Cliff, Everything Is Now: New and Collected Stories “ It was Zoe, and Zoe alone, I thought of. She snapped into my mind, and I remem...

Image from Jamaica Gleaner "Love, Hope, Community: Sexualities & Social Justice" is the title of the latest issue of  Sargasso: Journal of Caribbean Literature , Language and Culture This volume is  co-edited by Rosamond S. King, Lawrence La Fountain Stokes, Katherine Miranda and Angelique V. Nixon. The volume is available for purchase ($10 for individuals, $25 for institutions) For more information write to: sargassojournal (at) gmail.com The Table of Contents is shown here (courtesy of Lawrence La Fountain Stokes) JFLAG  host  Pride Ja  'The Pride of People: Celebrating a community of love'  with a week of activities. The Jamaica Gleaner which once refused ads from Larry Chang's Gay Freedom Movement also reports on the Face of Pride  . The mix of Intolerance & Love i s reported by Bryan Washington on his visit home to Jamaica. UWI Mona has issued a conference  Call For Papers :  Beyond Homophobia: Centering LBG...

Picture from the Royal Gazette  "    Pro same sex marriage supporters and preserve marriage demonstrators both make their options know on the grounds of Cabinet building ( Photograph David Skinner)" Laws.. Bermuda held a referendum on marriage equality , with the majority of people who voted saying no to same-sex marriage. Among the people voting yes though was Sir John Swan , former premier and Bermuda's 2016 National Hero. His support seems to be shared by the President of the Bahamian Court of Appeal, Dame Nita Allen . Bahamas had a referendum on gender equality, with "No" votes being cast by those fearing same-sex marriage among other things. LGBT Activist Erin Greene explains the exclusion o f intersex Bahamians from the proposed amendments. The Caribbean Court of Justice delivers its judgement in the challenge of the homophobic immigration laws  brought by Maurice T omlinson against Belize and Trinidad & Tobago. Maurice Tomlinson refl...

In March 2015, the Caribbean IRN Collection on the Digital Library of the Caribbean  was discussed in the webinar series .   This contribution has been acknowledged by the team which organised the series. CHICAGO—The Latin American and Cultural Heritage Archives Roundtable webinar series, “ Desmantelando Fronteras /Breaking Down Borders,” is the 2016 recipient of the Diversity Award given by the Society of American Archivists (SAA). The award will be presented at a ceremony during the Joint Annual Meeting of SAA and the Council of State Archivists in Atlanta,  July 31–August 6 . The award recognizes an individual, group, or institution for outstanding contributions in advancing diversity within the archives profession, SAA, or the archival record. “ Desmantelando Fronteras /Breaking Down Borders” was co-founded by George Apodaca, affiliate assistant librarian and Pauline A. Young resident at the University of Delaware Library; Natalie Baur, most rece...