Black Gays Hold Press Conference; LIFEbeat Issues New Statement

Caramel
July 13 2006, 1:36PM

Its good that the press conference did still take place. I didnt think it would have happened since the cancellation took place but it was needed as stated in the previous post because lifebeat didnt get the point.

Stuffed Animal
July 13 2006, 1:47PM

I hope Black Gay activists will not waste much more of their time dealing with LIFEbeat. That organization has clearly demonstrated how little regard it has for us. Everybody seems to agree that a Gay-positive concert benefiting J-FLAG would be a good idea . . . okay. Somebody should try to put that together independent of LIFEbeat. You shouldn't trust the helping hand being offered you once you learn that the other hand is poised to stab you in the back. That's what John Canelli and his music industry colleagues were doing to Gay people, and that's what they'll continue to do.

mn skeptic
July 13 2006, 2:10PM

Is there any audio for the press conference?

toph
July 13 2006, 2:35PM

Breaking News: Looks like things are moving in the right direction!
LIFEbeat plans forum for Caribbean American Community.

"We want to extend a heartfelt apology to those we offended and thank the individuals who raised their voices and helped us to see a more effective way to realize our mission. We also want to clarify the concerns of violence we felt. Those concerns didn’t stem from any threats from activists or members of the Caribbean American community. They stemmed from threatening phone calls our office received from random individuals that led to concerns for the safety of our staff and others."

Claude Wynne
July 13 2006, 3:31PM

That was a much better statement but I'm worried about the disclaimer at the end "*LIFEbeat will have no involvement in nor benefit from any attempted resurrection of the Reggae Gold Live concert by any parties". Could the radio stations or other sponsors be trying to revive this concert? Keith, you need to stay on this.

Gary Paul
July 13 2006, 3:33PM

I just want y'all to know that this "controversey" has really fired up a lot of folks here in New Jersey. The e-mails have been flying, and the normally silent LGBT community here has been sharing updates back and forth on this issue for the last three days. As an old-school activist, its great to see so many people accessing this new form of techno-protest.

Congratulations to our national BB's (Black Bloggers) for a job well done! I don't know if y'all realized how many people actually read your stuff, but judging from the responses and the outcome of this particular issue, you must be proud.

Travis Montez
July 13 2006, 4:30PM

Amazing result. I wish I was I could have been able to witness the press conference.

Nyah Molineaux
July 13 2006, 4:44PM

I must say that you and all the others look good at the Press Conference. Like mn skeptic, I would want to hear audio from the lifebeat press conference. However, do anyone notice the silence from Beenie Man and TOK?
These bombaclaut artists are so brazen in preaching about killing GLBT people, why were'nt they speaking about their concert being counseled.

Like I said before and I will say again, I am glad this whole event has taken place. It not only show the strength of our community, but it shows how cowardly these homophobic artists are when confronted.

jimi izrael
July 13 2006, 5:26PM

Hey Keith.

I link to your blog from mines. I caught wind of the whole LifeBeat thing and had to comment.

I don't make any secret of the fact that I Djed in the gay community for a number of years (4) and even volunteered when PFLAG and AIDS Taskforce was real active in Cleveland. All this to say, I learned alot, as a straight male, working in the gay community. I didn't learn tolerance, which I think is an ugly word. I learned acceptance: that I was working among men and women who loved differently than me, and that was cool and I could accept it as just another element of thier already complex personalities--until which time that thier choice/lifestyle/sexuality (whichever it is more PC to call it) interfered with my rights not to be complicit, free of any of the guilt and name-calling that can come along with that refusal (ie homo-phobe). I have kind of a "it's your life" mentality. I can love you and your life, but I don't have to live it with you. That's between you and your creator. So let me live mine. If I have to accept you, then you have to accept me, accepting you on my terms, not yours. Isn't that the deal we make with everyone in our lives?

Onward.

(This comment has been edited for brevity. Click here to read Jimi's entire essay.)

Mel Smith
July 13 2006, 5:53PM

Jimi, people hate us so much that they are going after little children. A black man killed his 3-year-old son because he thought the boy was gay. Ronnie Paris had swelling on both sides of his brain because his father would hit him in the back of the head. Now, if people can hate gays so much that they will kill there own baby, imagine what they would try to do to me.

According to the gender public advocacy coalition, "Paris didn’t want Ronnie to grow up to be a ‘sissy,’ according to the local newspaper, The Tampa Tribune. He instructed his wife not to hug their son, slammed the three-year-old against a wall when he showed any signs of weakness or illness, and was teaching the boy how to fight in brutal boxing bouts, which ultimately caused him to fall into a deadly coma, with microscopic brain tears and subsurface bruising."

Again, if someone can do this to their own child, what will they do to me and others? Beenie Man and so called Christian bigots played a role in killing that child.

Kenneth Winfrey
July 13 2006, 6:09PM

Much better LIFEbeat!

Thanks everybody!

rain
July 13 2006, 6:21PM

jimi: you didn't learn as much as you could have working with the gay community--complacency in the face of hate and violence does not lead to furthering educations

Doug Cooper-Spencer
July 13 2006, 7:37PM

I agree with Claude, and more. I was bothered by the statement issued by LifeBeat declaring their 'declined involvement'in any future attempt at the concert. It sounded a little sinister, especially the way the organization intoned the title of the concert, as if to suggest to others to carry through with the concert. Also, the way they kept mentioning "the Carribean Community". While I understand the concert was trying to reach out to the Carribean Community in particular (right?), still I wonder if there is some unstated msg meant to raise the ire of the Carribean Community against those of us who were active in the letter writing campaign and to further drive the wedge between that community and the LGBT community. Claude, WE need to keep on this. In any case, as another old schooler, I am proud to see what my community has done. And let this not be the last fighting breath we breathe.

Anonymous
July 13 2006, 9:55PM

Maybe they were concerned that the club and certain sponsors wanted to go ahead with the event and lineup, and they wanted to distance themselves from that possibility.

Michael-Vincent Crea
July 13 2006, 11:27PM

Kudos to Keith, a 'Paul Revere' against LIFEbeat! Still in the Spirit of 'Crispus Attucks,' many lives are being taken as the late Joe Beam called the most revolutionary of act of our generation: Black men loving Black men [Black women loving Black women; ALL same-gender BEloving]
Moving forward with Peace, Passion and Power, a few points
for protest & perspective: 1. LIFEbeat [Lb] is NOT an AIDS
org. Like Phillip Morris, killing us w/cigs in btwn tax free promos, Lb is out for corporate gain NOT our Common Good: ALL Beings OUT equally! 2. Lb IS a front, fraud and financial-human rights rip-off pimping PWAs; 'pogromming' Bigot Man/TOK & words show. 3.Lb gave us ZERO: Thurgood Marshall said after Brown v.Topeka:What we have is simple Justice!4.The REAL Revolution IS Rainbow! Lb stay away! Give $$$ to Caribe LGBTs & PWAs5.Let KB get his grappling-on going for the Gold at Gay Games! GO KB!!!

john b
July 14 2006, 2:28AM

bun out di chi chi!!

Rachel
July 14 2006, 2:50AM

I highly resent the comment made about LIFEbeat by Michael-Vincent. I work for LIFEbeat. I work tirelessly day after day to fight AIDS for a minimal paycheck. How on earth can you accuse LIFEbeat of being "greedy" and "against gay people" when you look at the events that we have organized and sponsored in the past? DO YOUR RESEARCH! I would be happy to list the GLBT-related and black-related events that we have covered and sponsored in the past year.

LIFEbeat's staff's hearts were in the right place for this event. There is no possible reason that we would have done so otherwise. LIFEbeat never makes any profit off the Hearts & Voices concer series. We made a misjudgement, and we have learned from our mistakes. Casting us as villains is doing nothing in the fight against homophobia and HIV in this country.

DDC
July 14 2006, 6:08AM

Unfortunately, some people need to discredit and resort to cheap insults because they're miserable people who need something, ANYTHING to hate to fill their pathetic voids- hence the conitnued ranting towards Lifebeat. Some people have such low self-worth that they readily lap up any grass-roots protest to feel important and needed, even to the point of simplifying an issue when there's clearly gray present. Many people join a side of an issue because they're such physically unattractive, self-loathing non-entities that they hope to take on the traits of/have for themselves/become one of the individuals spearheading the particular issue. Some people are never satisfied with ANY result and continue to complain and find fault even if the outcome is exactly what they've called for. I'm glad to see that protest still works in this country, though. I only hope that this incident doesn't lead to more repercussions for gay/bi Jamaicans.

Jeff
July 14 2006, 9:42AM

I believe it was you DDC, that started with the insults calling people unattractive and insinuating that people are only here because Keith is attractive. That's too oversimplistic but people are going to see what they want to regardless if there is any truth to it. What are you doing to make things better? It seems all you say here are negative things about people you don't even know. If there is such a problem here, why do you come back? Perhaps you think Keith is cute to you as well and maybe you also feel unattractive.

Geoff
July 14 2006, 11:06AM

Here is a really thoughtful post from someone who sees BOTH sides of the issue: http://thepseudoartisticpunk.blogspot.com/

Ben G
July 14 2006, 11:17AM

I'm a LIFEbeat employee and I came down and listened to the whole press conference. It was good to hear everyone's POV and I left convinced that we were right to pull the show, and that we need to work together. Look at how much energy was expended on this issue. Look at what was achieved. Look at how far the dialogue moved on. What could we achieve if we were all on the same page and pulling together? Let's have that forum and let's have it be an incredible breakthrough in the fight for our causes.

Keith, you said at the press conference that this was the start of a fight back against homophobia in music. I applaud that and look forward to your call to action next time Beenie Man or TOK play. Let's prove that they =can't= have successful careers in the USA if they don't disavow their homophobia.

Dana
July 14 2006, 12:36PM

Why should Beenie Man, TOK or anyone else change their message b/c it is not fitting to those who are gay? No one has to accept gays, lesbians, transgender's etc., this is the US and everyone is entitled to their own opinions. If you don't like thier message or music don't support them, but do not ruin it for those who enjoy it!

nahtan serious
July 14 2006, 1:15PM

Dana

i know a group called the KKK, maybe the NCAAP can invite them to perform at their next meeting. I am sure they are some who would welcome them!

that you would think only about your needs and wants speak volumes. You are free to go back to jamaica and anywhere where they are allowed to perform!

Riko
July 14 2006, 2:27PM

For those of you who have been following the LIFE Beat mess...

Beenie Man will be appearing at the Golden Krust at 91 Worth Street between Church & Broadway in Manhattan, from 12:00 - 4:00pm TODAY. Perhaps he should be confronted about his canceled performance and asked why he has reneged on his promise to stop performing songs that call for the murder and toture of gay folk.

Mel Smith
July 14 2006, 2:43PM

Dana, those guys advocate the death of gay people and you are ok with that? You're ok with that because it is not YOUR GROUP that is being disrespect, right? Don't tell us that stuff about do not listen to their music. Gay people are being murdered in Jamaica everyday and it is our job to condemn anyone who advocates death on us. Do you remember the Tutsis and Hutus ethnic tension in Africa? Do you remember how the Hutu radio announcers advocated the death of the Tutsi people? Well, those guys have advocated that we should be killed because of our sexual orientation and people really are killing us. Therefore maybe you ought to get your priorities straight and make this world a better place. Have a nice day!

ronnie brown
July 14 2006, 5:35PM

for the sake of principled debate on this issue, the COMPLETE response of jimi izrael should be printed. "comments edited for brevity" sounds like censorship to me.

Steve
July 14 2006, 7:46PM

Keith and all:

This second statement from LIFEbeat is much better than the first. I wasn't so sure the first was a win, but this second seems pretty clearly a win. It seems too bad to me that they won't do another concert, but that's their call.

I had a back and forth with Ben Godwin there, and expressed that opinion. He said we should expect to hear something good soon. I believe more than just the statement today. Let's hope for better things yet to come.

Jay
July 14 2006, 8:00PM

This is really interesting. With all this who really won? LifeBeat will not get any money from the concert BUT THE CONCERT IS STILL BEING HELD. So what exactly was accomplished here?

Jay
July 14 2006, 9:58PM

I also wonder where the support was or galvanization when Patti LaBelle was going to do a benefit, YES BENEFIT concert for Gay Men of African Descent IN HARLEM during PRIDE? The thing was cancelled. Now, if the queen of queens can't get a packed house in New York then I ain't sure about New York.

Flo-jo
July 14 2006, 11:10PM

I am sad at the demise of what could have been a great event. I appreciate the work LIFEBEAT does. I really do, but there's no way this concert should have gone down without at least the recommendations Keith, Staceyann Chin and all the other bloggers, activists and concerned folk made. Reggae and all the positive and life affirming aspects of the music is a very important part of my life. I hope there is a concert in the near future that will bring out the best of LIFEBEAT's original intentions. One suggestion is to ask the promoters of the upcoming Reggae Sunsplash USA tour, featuring Maxi Prest, UB40, Third World and Toots and the Maytals, (all acts that do not write and perform anti-lgbt, anti-AIDS lyrics). Can there be some sort of benefit there? Or why not the upcoming Marley Family concert tour? In any case real dialogue and action has got to continue to combat the homophobia in our communities.

One Love

ronnie brown
July 15 2006, 2:00AM

..."its as if the gay community doesn't grasp the idea that they are asking for mass affirmation of something no one seems sure is natural or not"

-Jimi Izrael, part of his July 13, 2006 post that was edited for "brevity"

while i would condemn violence against gays in the strongest possible terms, i would like to see a more sober, less reactionary discussion about how people feel about homosexuality. As it stands now, anyone who expresses the slightest reservation about homosexuality is branded a homophobe...and it seems that no distinction is being made between those who have qualms about same sex attraction and those who advocate and participate in gay bashing.

Donald
July 15 2006, 7:27AM

Ronnie, I'm not going to be sober about my existence, particularly when responding to people who question my right to exist and particularly in the face of people who would exterminate me simply because I exist. I care about my own comfort first just like anybody else. I'm not going to rationalize my existence to suit someone else's comfort level.

And here's my response to Jimi Izrael's long-ass essay, because the polite and considerate way of including 9 long-ass paragraphs in the comments of somebody else's blog is to provide a link. Really ...

Mel Smith
July 15 2006, 10:47AM

Ronnie, I do not understand why some of you guys are so concerned with our sexuality. It is the same thing as advocating violence against us if you do not have enough time to condemn violence against us because you are so busy worrying about our same sex attraction or what we do in bed. If you condemn violence against us, say it and stop worrying about what the next person do! We do not care if you like our sexuality or not. Our goal is to get the same respect as a straight person in this country and we will get just that.

ronnie brown
July 15 2006, 11:43AM

Donald,
For me, it's not a matter of "suiting someone's comfort level"; it's more of holding people to the same standard of accountability. We as Black people endure the rants of white supremacist organizations every day who would like to exterminate us SIMPLY BECAUSE WE EXIST...they march, give public concerts, produce racist video games, propagandize the internet, etc.; and we barely register a peep...we defend their 1st amendment right to free speech by default.

Do you not see the contradiction?

secondly, Jimi Izrael's "long ass essay" shouldn't have been dismissed out of hand simply because he may have violated some unwritten "bloggers etiquette". The man made some interesting points that PEOPLE SHOULD HAVE BEEN ALLOWED TO AGREE OR DISAGREE WITH FOR THEMSELVES.

your "editing" in regard to this subject matter amounts to censorship and it undermines what a blog is supposed to be about.

Mel Smith
July 15 2006, 11:58AM

Ronnie, I disagree. We as black folks do protest against ignorance in the 21st century. We do not allow record companies or companies in general to allow others to disrespect us. What! You think Jesse Jackson, Al Sharpton and the other social activists would not say anything about someone disrespecting us? It is the same with women and Jewish people. You're late because we already said that we respect people right to hate us. Our beef is when artist have the the support of PUBLIC COMPANIES to advertise exterminating us. Have we learn anything about Rwanda? Why don't you read my first comment. Therefore, you will understand our situation.

IsleZeus
July 15 2006, 12:16PM

Have you guys seen the members of TOK? Half of them are Gay GAy GAY GAYYYYYYYY!

Donald
July 15 2006, 12:58PM

Ronnie, I don't understand the contradiction of your first point. What is the correlation between Black gay people shouting down murderous homophobia and Black people in general defending everyone's free speech? It's this: you have to be alive to speak freely.

I didn't edit Jimi's essay at all; I truncated it because it was really too long. Before doing so, I e-mailed Jimi letting him know, sending him the text from his comment and asked to be notified if he chose to post it on his own site. If you go back to his comment, you'll find a link to the entire text. And am I dismissing his essay when I choose to respond to it?

A blog's comment area is a community space offered by the blogger to others for participating in extended discussion of the topics that the blogger finds interesting. Yes, there is "unwritten bloggers etiquette" but there is also common sense and courtesy. Most people already know this, but I don't mind offering reminders to those with lapses of either memory or discernment.

ronnie brown
July 15 2006, 6:17PM

Donald, the contradiction i alluded to was this: white supremacist groups, both domestic and overseas have advocated the murder of Black people...some members of these groups have actually carried it out!...these groups are allowed to accumlate weapons, engage in live training exercises and openly agitate for a future race war. These IMMEDIATE threats get a pass while others concentrate on shutting a concert because certain Reggae artists made records of questionable content...some of those made several years ago!

I would like those same activists actually engage PEOPLE...find out what makes homosexuality so threatening to some; try to get to the root of this issue...cause i know you don't really believe that boycotting Reggae artists is an effective way of ending murderous homophobia!

In regard to Jimi's essay, i thought his particular analysis of the boycott was valuable enough to trump any concerns of length. You chose to put more emphasis on etiquette rather than information. Readers here lost out.

Mel Smith
July 15 2006, 10:55PM

Ronnie, check this out: We experienced demonic violence(beatings, dogs, little children getting bombed in chuches, etc.) against us in the 1960s because of the color of our skin. Now in that VERY SHORT PERIOD, it seems to me like black people have somewhat assimilated into American society. If you know the terrorism that our ancestors had to go through, why would you join the same people(white conservatives) who discriminated against you only 37 years ago and attack black gay folks and gay folks as a whole? Although, we still face prejudice in the 21st century along with women in Iran and other various groups. So why/how/ in the hell can we support BLACK people who want to hurt other black people who are different? Lesbian and gay brothers in sisters are oppressed in Jamiaica and it is our job to condemn anyone who advocate violence against them.

DDC
July 15 2006, 11:11PM

Ronnie, your posts here make no sense collectively. And you just couldn't resist bringing up race in a debate about sexuality- more specifically blacks- could you? Can somebody say TI-ERD. Furthermore I have been wondering for some time about why is it that so many Carribean celebrities are so ugly. Think about it: Shabba Ranks, Beenie Man, Patrick Ewing, Buju Banton, Wyclef Jean, even Tyson Beckford with his reptilian-looking face. I could go on, of course. Eww! That could be an underlying cause of the homophobia that dominates the islands, low self-esteems in the men because of their aesthetic self-loathing...

ronnie brown
July 16 2006, 12:03AM

Mel,
I ask you...does a boycott bring anyone to the table?...after the concert is scrapped, then what? Does hounding a Reggae artist for a record he made nearly 10 years after the fact create the dialogue to address homophobia? It's not about co-signin' white conservatives; it's about the Black community needing to stop doing the two-step around issues of sexuality. A boycott in the truest sense is a way to create LEVERAGE in order compel equity and fairness. But we're not talkin' about a raise in pay; we are taking about an issue that strikes to the core of our being, our identification as a species; an issue as old as mankind itself. People have deep rooted opinions about homosexuality; they don't change their minds at the drop of a hat...or a simple concert cancellation.

Mel Smith
July 16 2006, 12:22AM

Ronnie, you are right. People(especially religious people) do have deep rooted opinions about homosexuality. I guess that's why this happened: Last year, a black man punched and killed his 3-year-old son because he thought the boy behaved like a 'sissy.' It was said that the man attended bible study in his community. The following article was featured on the to.com news website:

TAMPA - Even though the boy would shake and wet himself, his father, Ronnie Paris Jr., would box with the 3-year-old, slapping him in the head until he cried because he didn't want his son to grow up to be ``a sissy,'' the boy's mother testified Monday.... He died six days later with swelling on both sides of his brain.... Even Sheldon Bostic, who was Ronnie Paris Jr.'s Bible- study friend, said he warned the father several times not to play so rough with his son."

Now, thanks Donnie McCONkin, Beenie Man and others. God will bless you!

ronnie brown
July 16 2006, 2:09AM

the death of that child is an unfortunate, tragic example of why homophobia has to be dealt with in a more comprehensive, person to person fashion.

Donald
July 16 2006, 4:38AM

Please. Sometimes you just have to let people be responsible for their own shit. I really don't give a fuck why anybody wants to kill gay people; it certainly is not my sole purpose in life to save hatemongers from themselves and their hatred. If those people really cared about living in a more harmonious world (or at least, in the case of Beenie Man, a more lucrative one), they'd at least attempt to get their shit together on their own. They wouldn't wait for me to come to them. Besides, I have my own shit to get together.

jazzi
July 16 2006, 11:59AM

I wonder why Beenie, Buju, TOK & the rest aren't calling for a dialogue? Why won't they sit down with the gay community & explain where they're coming from & why? This isn't the first time their shows have been boycotted & canceled & they know why their being canceled. So why aren't they initiating so form of sit down? Just asking.

sbc
July 17 2006, 11:51AM

Beenie Man Speaks Out After Concert Cancelled Because of Protests: http://www.andpop.com/article/6465

Donald
July 17 2006, 3:32PM

Beenie Man, it's really simple: we protest because we feel our lives are at stake. You've sung (and by all reports, continue to sing) songs that advocate the murder of gay people. You've also reneged on your promise never to sing those songs again.

We protest you because we don't want the violence to continue. We don't want the murders to continue. We will do what we must for change, even if that means shutting you down wherever you go. You don't seem to value the lives that are at stake. You claim that your countrymen would understand and agree with your murderous intentions, but what about your dead countrymen? What about Brian Williamson and Lenford 'Steve' Harvey - your countrymen fighting HIV/AIDS back home, one chopped in the head more than 70 times and the other shot in the head and in the back? What about Jamaicans who have been murdered just because someone THOUGHT they might be gay? Are you doing everything in your power to make sure that doesn't happen to ANY Jamaican?

Right now your word means nothing to all the activist who will surely shut you down wherever you go. Nothing short of a complete renunciation of homophobia in dancehall will suffice from the purported King of the Dancehall. For the most part, we don't care if you like us, but if you are sincerely interested in fighting the HIV/AIDS pandemic, you can not do it without us. Sure, select who you want to help; there is plenty of work to be done. Just don't let your hate get in the way of the work you say you want to do.

That's the work you need to do before you ever attempt another HIV/AIDS benefit. I hope you can get yourself together. Just remember in the meantime, your countrymen are dying of AIDS and need your support.

Erick
July 19 2006, 12:19AM

Kudos to all of those active participants in this historic and necessary event. I don't believe LIFEBeat initially acted out of ignorance. It's that they didn't expect the Black Gay community to rally together and take a stand against something this insensitive and discriminatory.

We (myself included) have a history of not standing on the sidelines but hiding in the backroom when it comes to denouncing homophobia. It's a sign of progress for us as black gay men and women when something like this happens. It's a reminder to stand up and shout, "I'm black, GAY and proud!

Legin
July 20 2006, 4:51AM

Take a look at the pitiful response from Beenie Man (from http://www.andpop.com/article/6465 ). Poor thing !!

Don the King
July 28 2006, 4:27PM

I don't know why you batty boys won't leave Jamaican people alone. Listen, if you boys want to suck each other dicks and play in each other shit, fine. Just keep your germ in your corner.

Reggae is here to stay and no matter how many shows get cancelled we will survive. But as for you guys LIGHTENING & THUNDER fi yu.

Get your facts right before you come chat online. The two women who were murdered in Jamaica has nothing to do with any of Beenie Man's lyrics or Reggae Music for that matter. Just as how you guys claim freedom to play in SHIT, we as a people have the right to say whatever we wish. " FIRE FI ALL BATTY BOY"