Rod 2.0 reported yesterday that it's been a month since the brutal murder of a lesbian couple (at left, from Rod 2.0) in Jamaica, and yet the prime suspect, the former boyfriend of one of the women, has yet to be questioned. Rod writes thatHuman Rights Watch has pressed the government on its failure to investigate Lewis. Several weeks ago, Jasmyne Cannick wrote about the horrific killing, and the police's discovery of sheets, pillowcases and a lesbian-themed DVD that were found with the buried bodies of the women, as well as the burnt mattress in their home.
On June 29th, the mutilated bodies of Candice Williams and Phoebe Myrie were found in a sealed septic tank behind the house they shared. According to the Jamaica Star, at that time the police identified a lead suspect. That man is Dwayne Lewis, Williams' former boyfriend and the father of her year-old infant.
Rod goes on to note the persistent downplaying of homophobic violence by some quarters of the Jamaican media, a criticism that others have also lodged. This goes hand in hand with the Jamaican government's failure to aggressively deal with the ongoing problems of homophobic and misogynistic rhetoric (and I am not saying that Jamaica is alone in this), some of it fueled by the very musicians who were targeted in the recent LIFEbeat protests, which creates a climate ripe for violence and murder. In light of this story, the denialist comments of WBAI host Ian Forrest, which Colin Robinson criticized in an email I posted yesterday, assume a particularly grim irony.
Velvet Lounge Concerts Resume
Toni Asante Lightfoot sent an email to say that Fred Anderson's Velvet Lounge, the place to go for distinctive Chicago-sound Jazz, resumed its concerts last night. Its new location is 67 East Cermak Road, between Michigan & Wabash in the Chicago's historic Motor Row District, which is right around the corner and within sight of the old Velvet Lounge site. The phone number is the same: 312-791-9050.
The lineup for this weekend is:
Friday, July 28: Isaiah Spencer & Friends
Saturday, July 29: Karl E. H. Seigfried Trio
Sunday, July 30: Greg Ward & Friends
Monday, July 31: Tim Daisy Group
The grand opening is still a few weeks off, so this is really just a test run, but if you want a preview of the space, now's the time to do, and consider donating to help Anderson keep the new space running.
erm, i am gay but i dont see why other angles cannot be studied for this case aside from homophobia. I hate homophobics, because they are irrational in their fear and they hurt gays who do nothing bad against them. But in this case, another angle is very evident. the fact that the woman whose ex bf committed the crime had a baby with this criminal. the criminal clearly felt cheated and used.
ReplyDeleteI am thinking that, if the girl went off to live with another guy, then maybe this case would be viewed differently although technically they would be the same.
The criminal is wrong for what he did, but he cannot be called a homophobe just because of it. Everything and everyone that treats homosexuals badly these days are called homophobic and that would undermine what the word really means. and would undermine as well what we gays are fighting for, equality and love.
But how can we expect to be treated equally when we don't do the same to others. the girl may be gay, but she got no right to use the guy and even to the point of having his baby if she wasnt interested to be committed to him and to the kid in the first place.
I'm just hoping that the guy gets punished for what he done, and that is MURDER and not being a homophobe.
please, all us homos, as much as possible we must be true to others as we want to be true to ourselves. If we want to show the world that we are indeed gays and we cant help it, why deceive others and lead them into thinking we could be with them (the opposite sex) when we really cant.
i dont want to smear the girl's name or anything. I admire her for being true to herself. just hope she did not hurt the man in the process. May she rest in peace.