The changing sexual habits of the Jamaican male

Jamaican men have been chowing down on a variety of new ‘treats’ over the years, many now aquiring a taste for many of those once seen as taboo.

One of these treats – the practice of oral sex – has been condemned and criticised by many within Jamaican society. And many who indulge have been given less than flattering labels, among the more publishable ones, ‘lickie ricky’ ‘vacuum’ and ‘vampire’.

But believe it or not, the practice is steadily gaining popularity, even among those who pledge fire for all partakers.

This reporter did not have to journey very far, or venture into the underbelly of proper society as he thought, as the self-professed ‘eaters’ weren’t hiding.

The first, a 54 year-old regular at the Beechwood Avenue gas station, was more than willing to share his experiences.

“Me love it, me love it,” he said, flexing his tongue in a ‘come-hither’ motion in an effort to illustrate his affinity for the practice. The burly man, who identified himself only as Churchill, told all woman that he has “been taking the vitamin V for years now”.

“Me ah nyam dat from ’72 when it ah did crime,” he said, adding that at his age he is no longer interested in the traditional methods.

Erupting in laughter, he delighted in the idea that “nothing is wrong with oral sex if the woman practises good hygiene”.

Mere metres away, at a stall across the street, another man named Riley also confessed to partaking in the delights.

“I chew up dat bad, bad.mek she feel good,” he mused, as he sat cutting up a stick of weed with a rusty ratchet. The old man added that, now out of his prime, the only satisfaction he gets comes from hearing his partners’ delightful screams brought on by his actions.

“Me love it man, especially when them rosy like she,” Riley said alluding to a woman seated near to him.

Still, the fast-rising ‘oral fixation’ culture does not only rest only among older men.

Marlon is a 19-year-old university student who unabashedly declares that he indulges.

“I’ve been doing it as long as I’ve been having sex,” he said adding that his present girlfriend of two years is his first and only partner. He said, too, that while he didn’t really learn how to do it from anyone in particular, he was guided by the actions of porn stars.

“I used to see men on blue movies do it and just decided that anytime I have sex I am going to do it too,” Marlon told all woman in a telephone interview Friday. He admits that he is not the only one in his peer group that does it. However, he said that unlike him, his friends are not as willing to ‘fess up.

“Dem do it too.but we don’t really talk ’bout it,” he said, adding that what he does “is nobody’s business”.

Still, other 19 year-olds like Richard blast the practice as “a nasty, dirty habit,” that is only done by men who suffer from erectile dysfunction.

“My lord, why yuh would do that when yuh [penis] deh deh?” he said. With his voice now several decibels higher he continued: “No time [will I ever do that]. me no innah dem ting deh.”all woman approached several others on the streets of Kingston, most of whom cried shame on the practice. Aside from the usual shrug and “no comment” claim, some expressed their disgust at the thought of oral sex being a normal part of the sex act.

Clive, a self-described “religious man,” wants nothing to do with the practice.

“Me reject those things innah Jesus name.me nuh want nothing to do with dem things,” he said before dismissing the conversation.

Women in the streets, however, had a more universal view.

Farrah believes “half a Jamaican man ah do it”. She declined to say whether or not she indulges but only added, “what happens behind closed doors, stays behind closed doors”. Her companion, Lisa, has been treated several times over.

“It happen to me nuff time,” she said, her comment eliciting laughter. Lisa confirmed both Churchill and Riley’s comments, reiterating that, “nothing is wrong with it”. Sometimes it’s so good, she says, that she spends days just swooning over her last time.

However, she discourages unsafe oral sex practices.

“I don’t think people should just go around with anybody an’ do it. [that] is nasty,” she said.

It’s no secret that our attitudes have been shaped hugely by the opinions of our entertainers who blast the ‘no-bow’ rule from any platform they’re working from. But ironically, according to an expert, core participants in the dancehall are doing it.

In a recent Observer interview on sex practises in the dancehall cultural, anthropologist and lecturer at the University of the West Indies Dr Kingsley Stewart said that core participants of Jamaican dancehall are actively involved in various forms of oral sex. He said that though sexuality is exalted within the dancehall space, “participants are very cagey and not forthright with what they are doing,” as it pertains to oral sex.

“Some would even engage in violence against others for doing it even though they are doing it too,” he said then, adding that the dancehall is an extremely public space. The issue of oral sex, he said, is not entirely avoided since some male artistes are quick to talk about “getting but not giving”.

And while many women seem more willing to speak at length about the practice, Andrian Thomas, believes that “it is someone’s right to keep that private.”

“I don’t have to say whether or not I do it.that is my business and everybody ah big people,” she said.