Martin Niemoeller (1892-1984) was a Lutheran pastor in Germany who opposed Adolf Hitler. For this he spent the last seven years of Nazi rule in concentration camps.

One of Niemoeller’s most famous quotable quotes was: “First they came for the socialists, and I did not speak out because I was not a socialist. Then they came for the trade unionists, and I did not speak out because I was not a trade unionist. Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out because I was not a Jew. Then they came for me, and there was no one left to speak for me.”

Why do people remain silent in the face of such blatant atrocities? There are several possible answers:

1) People remain silent out of fear; fear that they too could suffer a similar fate;

2) People remain silent out of a feeling of impotence; that any action they would take couldn’t possibly make a difference; and

3) People remain silent because they share the same prejudices as the oppressor.

That was then in Nazi Germany. This is now in Jamaica; Montego Bay to be exact. And the news is that Mayor Homer Davis, mayor of the second city, unilaterally rejected a request by a lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) group, MoBay Pride, to use the municipal corporation-controlled cultural centre for an event. From what one is able to piece together from press reports, the decision was taken ostensibly to protect the sacredness of the building.

There have been howls of approval in support of the mayor’s action, which on the surface is a clear violation of the group’s civil liberties. That is, of course, if the provisions of Jamaica’s Constitution and Charter of Fundamental Rights, which are enshrined in law, mean anything. Key among these are the right to thought, conscience, and belief; the right to freedom of expression; the right to seek, receive, distribute or disseminate information, opinions, and ideas; the right to peaceful assembly and association; the right to freedom of movement; the right to equality before the law; the right to equitable and human treatment by any public authority in the exercise of any function; and the right to freedom from discrimination on the ground of being male or female, race, place of origin, class, colour, religion, political opinions.

There are glaring instances of abuse of human rights in which those with a voice remain silent, or if they do speak, do so from the perspective of their own prejudices. Two that come to mind are:

1) the incomplete promise of the Government to make good on its promise to establish a $10-million trust fund as restitution for the 1963 Coral Gardens massacre, which resulted in the death of eight and injury to hundreds of members of the Rastafarian community, and

2) the action taken by a St Catherine-based school to block a five-year-old girl from entering the institution because her dreadlocked hairstyle posed a threat to good hygiene and a proper learning environment.

But back to the MoBay Pride controversy. I caught up with the affable mayor at Pelican Grill in Montego Bay, where people of opposing political views breakfast together, argue at the top of their voices, then walk out as friends. The mayor, a frank and outspoken person, put the matter in perspective.

These are some of the salient points he shared in my conversation with him:

1) As mayor he is custodian of the municipal corporation cultural centre.

2) In this role he strives to maintain the aura of history, respect and reverence of the site and building which was created at great cost to the public purse.

3) The group MoBay Pride is not on record as having submitted a written application to use the cultural centre.

4) So there can be no claim by the group that its application has been rejected.

5) The group proceeded with social media and other activities which incensed segments of the population and raised the prospect of violence had the proposed meeting been convened at the cultural centre.

6) This would have to be taken into consideration in reaching a decision of whether to allow use of the centre by the group for the stated purpose.

Whether these reasons justify the actions of the mayor will be tested in court. Lawyers from Jamaicans For Justice have filed a suit against the mayor and the St James Municipal Corporation on the behalf of the group. There is also the court of public opinion, not just locally but internationally.

Considering Montego Bay’s status as the tourism capital of Jamaica, the mayor may want to get ahead of the news and settle this one out of court and away from the prying eyes of CNN and other cable news networks. By remaining silent he leaves room for those in the press, the political arena, and within civil society, including the Church, to frame the conversation to suit their own anti-LGBT agenda.

This is not meant to support MoBay Pride or to defend the lifestyle of its members. This is meant to support Jamaicans who daily cry out for justice and to defend the right of every citizen to equal treatment under the law.

“Then they came for me, and there was no one left to speak for me.” Silence in the face of abuse of human rights of any citizen is a weapon turned inward against those who remain silent or give tacit approval.

hmorgan@cwjamaica.com