Exodus’ Message to the Caribbean
For many years the Caribbean has had a culture that encourages abuse towards gays. This has been most visible in Jamaica where a popular style of music seems obsessed with violence and death to gay people but now it is spreading throughout the area.
As is discussed in an article by Wayne Besen, among many , the attack has not been restricted to words or music:
• Jamaican reggae star Buju Banton was recently arrested for allegedly leading a small group of thugs who burst into a local gay man’s home and beat him. His hit song ‘Boom Bye-Bye’ tells fans to shoot gay people.
• Two Jamaican gay activists Brian Williamson and Steve Harvey were murdered within the last two years – the crowd celebrating as they publicly mutilated Williamson’s body.
• In 2004, a Jamaican father arranged for a mob to lynch his own son after discovering he was gay. The teen barely escaped with his life.
• Recently a gay man drowned after being chased off a pier by an angry crowd in Montego Bay.
• When Rosie O’Donnell’s cruse landed in Nassau, they were met with protestors telling them that “sissies” were not welcome on the island
• This past week a gay man was chased through the campus of the University of the West Indies in Kingston, Jamaica by rioting students after a student claimed the man had propositioned him in a college washroom. Although the police saved his life, he is being investigated under Jamaica’s sodomy law and will be charged with trespassing.
• Last week two gay newsmen were beaten with a tire iron outside a bar in St. Maarten. The police did not respond to calls for help.
The homophobia and violence in the Caribbean has reached the point where it has caught the attention of the straight world. Time Magazine has named Jamaica the most homophobic spot on earth.
The Caribbean communities have not felt shame for their actions. A Jamaican newspaper protested that they were not homophobic because they did not fear gays, gays feared them. A newspaper on St. Maarten blamed the victims for their own brutal beating and “silly homosexuals” in New York for trying to make anti-gay violence a “no-no”.
Exodus is stepping into this climate to bring a seminar on “Sex, Sexuality and Homosexuality: Engaging the Truth”.
What message will this seminar bring to this part of the world where murder of gay people is glorified and celebrated? The opening comment on their website gives us a clue:
As the world promotes more sexual freedom, increasing numbers of children, teens and adults in every part of the world are struggling with and being hurt by homosexuality, prostitution, sexual abuse, gender changes, pornography, sex before marriage and sex outside of marriage. Do you or your church know how bad the problem of sexual brokenness is?
In other words, the problem is not murder, but children being hurt by homosexuality. The Caribbean need not fight against beatings and death, but against sexual freedom. Lest there be any confusion that Exodus wishes to oppose the brutality and bring a message of change, the heading given to their flyer advertising this event is:
Some say decriminalise homosexuality……we say lets offer solutions
And what will the speakers have to say?
I was unable to find much about Pat Lawrence, other than she seems to focus on “how bad is sexual brokenness?”
However, on speaker DL Foster there is plenty. DL is not hesitant to clearly demonstrate the level of contempt he has for those individuals who are gay. DL has said the following:
On Foster’s religious conversion
The TV screen came into focus and my eyes immediately fell upon a troubling scene…Then a strange then happened. The “scene” froze. Everyone and everything. Nothing moved except him… He said to me, “I did all of this just for you.” Then he lowered his head again and continued on up the hill with his cross, on his way to PROVE what he had just said…When I came to myself I looked again at the crowd. This time I recognized a familiar face: it was my own. I also realized it was Jesus who has spoken to me.
On United Church of Christ ads welcoming all
The UCC has been co-opted by spiritually violent homosexuals who care little about the integrity of Christ’s church. Rather the church to them is simply a vehicle to launch an assualt on anyone who will not accept their lifestyle.
The question becomes then, how do we talk about the issues affecting us and important to us in the public square as former homosexuals under the threat of such harsh judgement? We can step out and advocate for our beliefs (which is our right as taxpaying citizens) or we can remain silent and hidden, thereby giving credence to a false idea that there are no former homosexuals…Like Daniel and Paul we must encounter our enemies in that arena and declare the glory of God.
On exgaywatch and those of us who write here
“XGWers” sit around like a bunch of gossiping sissies, oops queers, disparaging people and their lives, wetting your pink panties laughing at the death of good men and mocking the faith of Christians who disagree with you. BUT when you get an ounce of xlax you fall apart. Typical for a hen house.
On gay pride and the “all the people”
Do you think ancient Sodom held gay pride parades? I think they did. Everyday. Regardless of how long this has been going on, it is still very strongly considered unnatural behavior. Thousands of years of social standards have excluded homosexuality from acceptable sexual activity… Millions of Americans are sick and disgusted at having to endure what they believe is an affront to God Almighty… I want to be the first to applaud the President for cutting off the flow of official recognition for such a shameful, political spectacle. This is what I call being President of all the people.
And finally, as DL Foster heads to the Caribbean, site of murder and beatings, here are his thoughts on homophobia in Jamaica
I have written before that so called homophobia is a justified reaction…In his powerfully written argument published in the Jamaica Gleaner, Dr. Leachim Semaj says “I take issue with the recent discussion describing Jamaican people who see homosexuality as dysfunctional or deviant as being sick people. This is what is done when one subscribes to the concept of “homophobia”…Dr. Semaj who has written for major outlets internationally, is on point with his commentary.
I think it is quite clear that the choice to send DL Foster to Barbados was not accidental. His message of derision of gay people and his championing of homophobia is the message that Exodus has for the Caribbean.
I wonder if they’ve gone too far. I wonder if violence and death will result from this seminar. I wonder if finally some of those in Exodus will look at the blood on their hands and realize that in their efforts to win political battles they have become instruments of evil.
ADDENDUM: Thanks to grantdale for brining this trip to our attention along with Scott for Foster’s personal attack in reponse to this thread
Damn! DL didn’t mention me in the blog. I am pissed.
Aaron, Timothy, Boo, or someone, please email me a link to DL’s blog where you find this stuff.
randi.schimnosky@sasktel.net
Randi, it’s earlier up in this thread
http://psimo.blogspot.com/
Hopefully, this is not off-topic (I never know those things), but while at his site, read “Pedophiles and ‘family pride’”.
From his statements, he clearly equates pedophiles and gays, but he never says quite why.
What is really disturbing is equating these three things to the White House Easter Egg Event (with gays):
1. Ramses’ murders of baby boys
2. King Herod’s murders of babys
3. Hitler’s desire to create a new superman race
How he could equate such an innocent event with these three things is very strange.
Thankyou anonymous, I’m not sure how I missed it earlier. I see DL’s up to his usual BS. He can’t argue with me logically on my actual words so he’s got to pretend I said something horrible.
DL, you know you don’t have a leg to stand on when you have to make stuff up to denigrate LGBTs.
Timothy, I know this is going to disappoint DL, but you really are a knight in rainbow armour. I like DL’s excuse “aahh, its only a few murders and beatings, whatcha whining about, its all good Christian stuff.”
Hm. And here I though that the stuff that went on Iran did qualify as homophobia.
Maybe it counts only if it happens in Iran.
Aaron, thanks for pointing out the ugly and irrational comments Foster made in Pedophiles & Family Pride. That kind of slander is outrageous.
I see he pulled the same trick in his response to this post:
How on earth can he construe that Randi was defending paedophiles? The same way he turned Family Pride into paedophiles, I guess!
DL is basically performance art. Usually ugly, occasionally fascinating, one of those guilty time wasters like Springer or cutsey fluff like Hamsterdance.
Aaron- I think the thinking process is that if kids in gay families get too many eggs, Bush will order all kids of gay families slaughtered because they interfered with his plans to breed a new master chicken race.
My favorite DL post is still the one where he crows in triumph at having turned off his blog comments.
Timothy said:
I tried doing a search but for some reason wasn’t able to find DL’s blog/rant by googling.
I also had a difficult time finding it through Google – and I used some specific terms that should have given me an accurate return. I wonder if they have it weighted low because of the hatred factor
Just about the time I forget all about DL, someone calls attention to another incident where he has exposed his posterior for all the world to see. Like a bad accident, I just have to take a quick look and then I am sorry I did.
I have done a rather small and unscientific survey of some members of a couple of what one would call solid, fundamentalist churches in the area We are about an hour away from Exodus and arguably the most conservative county in Florida. Of those who knew about Exodus, most were only vaguely aware of what they are. They knew that their main purpose was opposition to homosexuality (which each of these people considers a sin) and some knew about reparative therapy and the LIA controversy. When I let them read some excerpts of DL’s rantings (and mind you very mild excerpts compared to some), they were completely turned off and I’m sure have reassessed any positive view of Exodus. One even suggested that he (DL) would have more compassion if he had the Lord in his life! That was worth the effort right there.
I don’t find DL too significant because he will always have a limited following. The significance is in the fact that Exodus and PFOX maintain an active relationship with him, and even ask him to represent them. They can’t associate themselves with such absurd viewpoints and then expect even the average fundamentalist Christian in the pews to have a positive opinion of their work, much less the more tolerant ones. I would be willing to bet that the average FOTF listener would be appalled by what comes out of DL’s mouth. At some point, if it hasn’t already, that has to come through in a reduction of funding.
In other words Alan, if you can’t understand why DL is morally repugnant, then at least consider the financial liability he represents.
David
Well, but I suppose that’s probably why he’s representing them somewhere other than stateside…has he ever spoken publicly under the Exodus banner in the U.S.?
Which brings up the point, why exactly are they using him, and not someone else? Is he the only black ex-gay leader? Was race the factor in selecting him to go there?
He’s not exactly a ringing endorsement for the ex-gay movement (he doesn’t even seem to espouse the regular Exodus-type ex-gay methods).
Makes me wonder.
Posted by: Dave Rattigan at April 27, 2006 04:00 AM
Thanks for standing up for me Dave. Even though I try to be prepared for the evil I know DL will spew it hurt a lot anyway. This is the sort of speech Alliance “Defence” Fund wishes to make as an example of cherished, free, and religious. I have a rough idea of the law and maybe it is slander. Would that I had the money of an Alan Sears to fight this out in court. I’d love to see DL try to defend his statements and at the same time have the opportunity to defend mine. All in a controlled environment where I get equal time and DL is bound by the bible to answer substantively and honestly. Now that would be heaven.
I can see what’s going on with DL. He is mentally ill and he hates gays because he so hates his own same sex attraction that’s so hard to supress. I’ve been there. When I was young I was in that situation and I motivated myself to think of gays in the most despicable hateful terms in order to suppress my attraction to men. It wouldn’t have taken much to cross the line into violence and that’s what I see in DL. Hopefully he sees a solid moral barrier between verbally and physically attacking LGBTs, unfortunately I don’t think I’ve ever seen him specifically affirm that boundary and his poo-pooing the tip of the iceberg of hatred and violence in the Carribean doesn’t encourage me either.
DL, please look into Risperidone. Are you going to spend your whole life fearing and hating your same sex attractions so much that the line between verbal and physical violence is a dangerous blur? That’s going to take a terrible toll on you over time DL. Its in your best interests and society’s if you learn to accept that which you cannot help but feel. Many many Christians are honestly convinced the bible does not say there is anything wrong with a loving monogamous same sex relationship. You know Jesus never spoke against gays in any way. How about you at least follow his example, surely that’s not to much to ask of anyone who calls themselves’ Christian. You already know you can’t argue against a morality based on fairness and equality.
I just read an article on DL Foster in the NationNews (Barbados): From gay to god. This man appears to be a mass of contradictions. He claims to have experienced homosexual attraction at an early age, yet he claims it is a choice that homosexuals make. So did he choose that homosexual attraction at that young age.
And what is with the hating women that he claims? What does that have to do with being gay? Hell, about half the time I was in my 20s I wanted to be a woman.
And “when he had pursued all the sexual partners he wanted to pursue, that he felt an overwhelming dissatisfaction with his life.” In other words he had no self respect and needed to change. And also “the transformation from homosexual to heterosexual didn’t happen overnight, however. It took time to resolve all the anger and emotions and the relationship issues he was carrying on the inside.” But DL…. I thought it was nothing but a mere choice?
So many contradictions seemingly point to either a made-up story, or a man who is deeply confused.