Dear Editor,

I wish to show my support for the letter, "A gay's life is not an easy road" of July 19, 2012, which gave insight on homophobia in our country.

I am a lesbian leaving in Jamaica for most of my life and I have observed and even experienced the harsh verbal and physical abuse of this society, supposedly claimed by former ACP Les Green as "not homophobic". But then again what do Mr Green and Mrs Blaine really know about being a gay man or woman and having to live in a country such as this? What do they know about being ostracised by your community or family for being who you were born to be - a homosexual?

As a lesbian I have suffered too much and I will no more. I remember as a teenager suffering from major depression as I couldn't understand why loving another woman was so wrong and why I would experience God's wrath for how I knew he made me. I remember too being abandoned by my family and being told harshly by my mother that my father would kill me if the news got to him.

I was verbally and physically assaulted by community members whom I grew up with and got no support from the police. I remember being stopped and threatened by random thugs on my way home and told: "Just like how dem a kill di b***man dem, mi a guh rape yuh an' kill yuh," because my attire was too masculine for a woman. Tell me, Jamaica, is this the mission we are on for this our 50th year - to destroy the Jamaican LGBT community? Aren't we the same people who have also helped to build this nation?

Jamaica, we need to consider, implement and liberate in order to move forward as a nation. I am also Jamaican and Jamaica has proved herself not to be for women loving women.

Sandy Marshall

femprotect88@gmail.com