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UNITED KINGDOM

Why Has the London Police Broken the Agreement on Anti-Gay Reggae ‘Murder Music’?

Police allows Bounty Killer to perform in London
 

■ Bounty Killer:  Police permitting concert in London.

EDITORIAL

It is astonishing that a Jamaican reggae singer who features lyrics enticing violence against gays – and even murder – in his repertoire should be performing in the United Kingdom.

But this is what is about to happen on Sunday when Bounty Killer (real name Rodney Basil Price), who styles himself as “Di 5 Star General”, is scheduled to perform in East London at the Stratford Rex this weekend.

And even more astonishing is that London’s Metropolitan Police, which prides itself on being very “gay friendly”, should approve this concert.

What would the police do if it was a question of a singer enticing violent racism through lyrics at a concert?

Is it any wonder that Peter Tatchell is angry?

Mr. Tatchell was instrumental in bringing together various concerned groups to devise the Reggae Compassionate Act (RCA), an agreement in which Jamaica artists and music industry pledged to discontinue the homophobia and not to perform the songs.

There is nothing ‘racist’ in the RCA or the campaign against “murder music”.  Among those joining Outrage! in it’s action were in Black Gay Men’s Advisory Group in London;  Jamaican gay rights movement, J-Flag: and the Caribbean-wide C-Flag coalition of black gay and straight human rights organisations.

The Swiss have a more pragmatic attitude, it appears.  A concert by Capleton in Berne on November 6 was cancelled at the last moment following pressure from Homosexuelle Arbeitsgruppen Basel.

Capleton was a signatory to the RCA and was exempt from any performance ban.

But Homosexuelle Arbeitsgruppen Basel and “Stop Murder Music Bern” had irrefutable evidence that the singer had broken the agreement. And as a result of this breach, the appearance was cancelled.

In the case of Bounty Killer, he has always refused to sign the agreement – and continues to feature songs that incite homophobic violence, with lines like “Bun a fire pon a puff and mister fagoty (Uh huh)” – translated from Jamaican patois: “Burn a fire on poofs and faggots (Uh huh)”.

So, we ask, why has the British Government issued both a visa and work permit to Bounty Killer?

And why has the Metropolitan Police given its blessing to Sunday’s concert at the Stratford Rex?  At the end of the day, the police are ignoring an agreement with RCA that homophobic singers who had not signed the RCA would not be allowed to perform in London.

Police in Birmingham and Bradford have already banned Bounty Killer from performing this year.  So why the ‘shilly-shallying’ from the ‘Met’?

As Peter Tatchell wrote in an article posted yesterday on The Guardian website under the headline Hypocrisy on Homophobia: The Metropolitan Police is colluding with 'murder music' singers who incite the killing of lesbian and gay people:

The Metropolitan Police is hypocritical on hate crimes. It allows homophobic singers to perform in London, but not racist ones. Racist artists are banned on the grounds that they are a threat to public order and good community relations. This is a case of double standards.

Why are homophobic artists given the green light to perform, even when they are on record inciting the murder of lesbian and gay people?

Mt. Tatchell has today called for “Urgent Action – Stop Bounty Killer’s Concert”.

“Please help us by emailing the Metropolitan Police Commissioner and the Home Secretary, requesting that they take urgent action to halt the "kill queers" Bounty Killer concert, which is scheduled to take place in London this coming Sunday,” he writes.

Email addresses (remove the spaces and substitute “at” with the  usual) are:  commissioner at met.police.uk and  public.enquiries at homeoffice.gsi.gov.uk.

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