The discrimination debate

ANTHONY GOMES

Wednesday, April 20, 2011

The newspaper article, "The right to discriminate" strikes at the heart of the fundamental right to discriminate as a tenet of free will, that resulted in a flurry of recrimination by readers who considered Deacon Peter Espeut's opinion to be out of order. Democracy at work!

The first part of his article deals with a clause in the Charter of Rights which would make discrimination on the basis of language unconstitutional. He makes a strong case against any move to introduce patois as a second language. His observation includes an example of the possibility for bilingual labelling, to be used as a non-tariff barrier for the importation of foreign products. He states: "It is overkill to enshrine in the Constitution the right of non-discrimination on the grounds to achieve judicial equality for Jamaican Creole speakers who are not proficient in Standard English - a problem caused by the failure of the education system." Canada and Wales are two bilingual countries where fluency in both national languages is necessary for government employees, and public notices must be in both languages in designated areas.

The second part of Deacon Espeut's treatise deals with the thorny issue of discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. The British Government introduced the Sexual Orientation (Provision of Goods and Services) Regulations which are diametrically opposed to the Christian teaching dealing with homosexuality, casting the state in the role of moral transgressor. An adverse side effect of the British-proposed regulations could force Christian marriage preparation, guidance counsellors, retreat houses, conference centres and hostels to accept gay couples. Teaching that homosexuality is the moral equivalent of heterosexual marriage could also be compulsory in religious schools.

In Jamaica, could this ever come to pass at Campion College, St George's College, Immaculate Conception High School, Alpha Convent of Mercy School, Holy Childhood High School and the list of Roman Catholic schools continues... in addition to the many other Christian schools? The official Vatican newspaper reported: "The Catholic Church contests these revolutionary innovations which in the name of freedom, seek to legitimise a union regarded by the universal consciousness as going against nature." In 2000 the British Government reduced the age for permissible gay sex from 18 to 16 to provide equality under the law for homosexuals and heterosexuals.

As with the British leadership, there could be a raft of adverse side effects if the Jamaican churches clash with the state on non-discrimination against homosexuals. It should be recalled that Jamaica is considered to be a Christian country with a profonderance of Christian schools, where the characters of the young are forged on the basis of Christian principles that do not accept homosexuality as an alternative lifestyle for marriage between a man and a woman. This is the essence of Jamaican culture that precludes gay sex that is deeply unpopular as evidenced by both the Observer and Gleaner polls. Any government which attempts to displace this long-standing tradition and belief by repealing the sodomy law would be committing political suicide.

There are numerous pressure groups attempting to infiltrate Jamaica's culture by asserting their lifestyles as normal practice. Besides homosexuals, these groups include the pro-abortionists, the ganja lobby, the polygamists and the polyandrous protagonists, the believers in euthanasia, the supporters of decriminalisation of drugs and those lobbying to legalise male and female prostitution. This is happening in parallel with the media concerning lewd and sexually explicit public expression, which had developed unfettered over the years until it has reached critical and culturally damaging proportions, resulting in the recently publicised reprimand issued by the Broadcasting Commission. Any attempt to enshrine non-discrimination in the Charter of Rights on the basis of sexual orientation would be fallacious, as the male lifestyle includes illegal associations which do not conform to the national standard of natural behaviour.

The Declaration of Human Rights and Sexual Orientation tabled in the United Nations in 2008, as reported by Attorney-at-law Shirley Richards, sought to expand the existing human rights concept to include "sexual orientation" and gender identity as human rights. The declaration was not supported by Jamaica. Simultaneously, a contrary proposal stated that the declaration was an "attempt to introduce to the UN notions that have no legal foundation in any human rights instrument". There appears to be no UN consensus on including sexual orientation and gender identity as human rights. Obviously, the power brokers at the UN are hell-bent on imposing a new version of human rights on the rest of the unwilling world. It is an attempt to assert the moral equivalence of all forms of sexual preferences and to harm moral and sound discernment, all in the name of "human rights". This point deserves serious recognition by the government, particularly with regard to the potential for lifestyle deviation of Jamaican youth.

A prominent columnist asserts that "homosexuality is not an unpreventable disease, it is an option. It is learned behaviour, practised by more and more people who simply disregard the limits of personal conduct as well as God-given principles and morals". Apart from being in tune with the changing times, contemporary liberalism has gone beyond the realm of propriety in its expectations. Society is replete with demands to liberalise the very constraints that are there to protect citizens from doing themselves harm.

With that said, we welcome the newly appointed Archbishop of Kingston, Charles Dufour, in anticipation of his entry into the debate on discrimnination.

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COMMENTS (20)

St. Ann
4/23/2011

@ howie J, I'm well aware that Christianity didn't originate in Europe, but rather has its roots in the Middle Eastern world of the Old Testament. I didn't mention "Christianity" I used the word "Religions" in my post. I'm also well aware that the African people were enslaved by Arabs long before they were enslaved by the Europeans.Christianity was used as a tool of European imperialism to dominate many nations especially Africa even today look at Sudan, divided.

howie J
4/22/2011

@St. Ann, if you want to know if someone is breaking the rules, all you have to do is check the scriptures. Does Christianity support slavery, wars and hate? The answer is a resounding no! Therefore, don’t blame the Christian doctrine for the actions of corrupt people. Martin Luther the German reformer was knowledgeable of the doctrine of Christianity to know that the Roman Catholic Church of his day was corrupt. Therefore instead of blaming Christianity, he demanded that the catholic leaders stop their corrupt practices.
Anybody who declares wars and hates in the name of Christianity is an enemy to the truth of Christianity.

howie J
4/22/2011

@St. Ann, Christianity did not originate in Europe; it was made the official religion of the Roman Empire by Emperor Theodosius1 sometime in the late 4th century. Most of the early church fathers were Africans. Christianity spread to Northern Europe by northern barbarians after they invaded the western section of the Roman Empire, found and adapted Christianity and took it back to northern Europe. Before Christianity spread to northern Europe it was largely a peaceful religion.
Now what is enslaving us is our willingness to accept what European say and hand over our heritage to them on a platter without researching the facts for ourselves.

St. Ann
4/21/2011

@ howie J, "Why is it that so many other peoples have benefitted from their religions, but many Jamaicans say it is enslaving us?" You see howie we where exposed to our slave masters religions, and religion was also used to achieved obedience from slaves. We cannot really benefit from religion as a nation if it is not originally from our culture, religion give us the motivation to do things by the belief that you will be successful. The most notable example is Jamaican singer/songwriter Bob Marley he was Rastafarian.

howie J
4/21/2011

Many things don’t work in Jamaica, but we never seem to blame ourselves for lack of understanding. Instead, we like to get rid of things in Jamaica or seek alternatives, but never really humbling ourselves to the point of thinking that maybe we may not really understand what we are doing. How do we explain the failure of the Jamaica Cement Company with all the blessings of nature? Why do we blame our failing education system on our inability to learn English Language? Other than floating along with increasing entropy (disorder), in what area can we truly say that Jamaicans have excelled? Why is it that so many other peoples have benefitted from their religions, but many Jamaicans say it is enslaving us?

Roy C
4/20/2011

@Obi Wan all of those things happen in the Dispensation called Law now we are in a different dispensation called Grace. Because God not responding swiftly in wrath like first time ppl take disadvantage by ignoring his moral principles and although his principles are ignored nations tht ignore God will continue to prosper until the time of their sudden destruction like Sodom and Gomorrah, Babylon, Rome and others.

Obi Wan
4/20/2011

God rewarded Lot, even after he offered his daughter to be raped by a mob. God also ordered genocide (ethnic cleansing), a war crime, against the Midianites, so we know that God doesn't really care about morality (at least as we know it today). Funny, maybe that is why countries that ignore the Bible are more principled (and richer) than countries that espouse Biblical fundamentalism.

ras london
4/20/2011

@tickyticky fish. Hold your ground. We need more like you to stand up to those who think that anyone who speaks out against homosexuality is backwards. We in JA are very tolerant. Those who think otherwise have never been to any other Caribbean islands where this is not even allowed as a topic of conversation. They will never accept it and neither will JA. If yanyone is not sure if he /she is a man or woman just LOOK down.

Lenny D
4/20/2011

It’s time Jamaicans rid themselves of the religious yoke that has kept them in mental slavery for so long. Discrimination reflects hate towards identifiable groups of people. The various churches in Jamaica have for too long fostered hate/intolerance towards others including other religious groups. Politicians who make the law should properly consult with the public in a non-partisan way, and at the same time look at international conventions to determine where discriminatory laws and practices exist and remove them. I would suggest that the anti-discrimination laws of post apartheid South Africa would be a good model

tickyticky fish
4/20/2011

@ Andrew Lewin what is trival to you is detrimental to a God fearing society who see these immoral practices as a hindrance to the development and prosper of their country. One bad mango will spoil the whole basket of mangoes or one stinking fish will stink up the rest of the fish that are in the basket.

Andrew Lewin
4/20/2011

@tickyticky, stop being trivial and contribute sensibly to a debate. Noone in their right mind would want to decriminalise incest and bestiality. I see that you haven't mentioned Paedophilia, which happens seems to be prevalent in Jamaica. And i'm not only talking about men preying on young boys, i'm talking about grown men abusing little girls.

Andrew Lewin
4/20/2011

It's rather amusing to hear Jamaicans saying they don't want the British imposing their immoral laws on them when they ARE living under a lot of laws conceived by the British. Yes, most of the laws on the statute books in Jamaica are actually British. The same law against homosexuality was imposed by the Briitish in 1533, and who then abolished it in England in 1965. Educate yourselves people, it's a medieval law. Stop looking like idiots to the outside world.

tickyticky fish
4/20/2011

Lest we forget Sodom and Gomorrah
If my people, which are called by my name,shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.

Obi Wan
4/20/2011

In spite of the best efforts of the "situational moralists," hiding under the cloak of religion, no one can point to anything that they have done to improve the country. We are still destitute, with a per capita GDP placing us near the bottom, and we still have a crime rate that places us near the top of all the countries in the world. They say the classic definition of an idiot is one who does the same thing over and over, expecting to get a different result. Nuff said ...

Izett Gordon
4/20/2011

Tthose who know better do better. Do not compromise your morals to satisfy the whims of others who consider themselves the 'leaders' in society. Can you fathom the difference between these days and the times when Stephen and others of bible fame stood their ground and were stoned for their decent beliefs? We have become a nation of ditherers and followers, and not of good behaviour either. We must STAND at all cost for non-deviant characteristics. Discrimination separates right from wrong.

Anthony II
4/20/2011

The other laughable idea, especially when seen online, is this idea that Jamaica (in its "righteous uprightness") should not allow others to influence it. JA is so separate and apart and so "better" than to be influenced by others. I have news for you: Get off the Internet, then; it is a source of outside influence; tun aff di TV; the programs are mainly from outside. Lack dung all di movie theater dem dat show farrin movies. An stop traveling overseas. We are an island unto ourselves!

Anthony II
4/20/2011

It is always amusing to read the proponents of discrimination, especially when they invoke this idea of religiosity and Jamaica: "Jamaica is considered to be a Christian country." HA! "Is considered to be" and "is" are two different things.
.
I can only imagine what similar columns in 1750s JA papers might have read like: "It should be recalled that blacks are no better than animals and are inferior to whites, and so have to be kept in conditions of slavery to ensure their moral improvement."

andrew allen
4/20/2011

not until brave and commited leaders in third world nations wake up to the evil of religion will their countries have a chance.
The world moves ahead, while in places like jamaica the mental hold of medieval thought systems, proclaimed by men dressed in comical 9th century european outfits remains.
That there should even be the hint of equivalency between the right of people to peddle such nonsense and the civil rights of people irrespective of their sexuality is a sad indicator indeed.

2kool .
4/20/2011

We cannot legalize everything just because of a simple minority. Most Jamaicans do not want patois as an official language and an even greater number do not want the "British" imposing their immoral and ungodly, secular laws and behavior on us. We have enough problems already.

tickyticky fish
4/20/2011

Be careful what dem ask for next ting yuh know dem will start to ask for the descriminalisation /repealing of the incest and beastuality laws.

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The discrimination debate