Double standards on exclusion from the UK
“Kill gays” singers allowed into Britain
London – 10 February 2009
“The Home Secretary is guilty of gross hypocrisy. She gives visas to anti-gay demagogues who incite violence and murder, while banning from the UK a Dutch MP who has never incited violence against anyone,” said human rights campaigner Peter Tatchell.
“Jacqui Smith has refused Dutch MP Geert Wilders permission to enter Britain on the grounds that his presence would damage community harmony and threaten public disorder. I do not agree with Mr Wilders, but he has never threatened violence against Muslims.
See the BBC news report here:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/7882953.stm
“The Home Secretary regularly grants visas and work permits to Jamaican reggae singers who openly incite the murder of lesbian and gay people. Incitement to murder is a very serious criminal offence. The Home Office and Metropolitan Police also allow radio stations and record stores to promote their murder-inciting CDs.
“Last November, Jacqui Smith gave Jamaican reggae singer Bounty Killer (Rodney Price) permission to perform at a concert in east London. He had been banned from Guyana earlier in 2008 over his murderous lyrics, but the British government said he was welcome to sing in the UK.
“It is double standards to ban Geert Wilders and not Bounty Killer.
“Even if I disagree with certain political and religious leaders, I do not support them being banned from the UK, unless they incite violence. That is why I oppose the exclusion of Geert Wilders and others such as Louis Farrakhan, leader of the Nation of Islam in the US. It is more effective to challenge and defeat their ideas in open debate, than to suppress them via the bureaucratic ruse of a banning order.
“Bounty Killer encourages and glorifies gang violence. At a time when so many young people have been murdered in gang-related gun and knife crime, it is reckless and obscene for the Home Secretary to give Bounty Killer a visa and work permit.
“Rewarding with concerts maladjusted singers who incite violence sends the wrong signal.
“Bounty Killer helps reinforce and legitimate gang violence by encouraging, glorifying and celebrating the killing of gay people. His negative impact goes way beyond the gay community. He psyches up a whole generation to see hatred and violence as cool and street cred.
“For the sake of parents whose sons have been murdered in gang attacks, it is time we closed the door on Bounty Killer and similar murder music singers,” urged Mr Tatchell.
Watch this video of a Bounty Killer concert, where he openly incites the crowd: “Faggot, I kill every one of them”:
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=wTIXAToY3f8
See examples of Bounty Killer’s lyrics urging the murder of queers below.
Mr Tatchell wrote to the Home Secretary, setting out six reasons why she should revoke Bounty Killer’s visa and work permit (a copy of the letter follows below).
Three months later, Jacqui Smith has failed to give any credible justification for allowing Bounty Killer to perform in the UK.
Further information:
Peter Tatchell 0207 403 1790
Bounty Killer songs that incite homophobic violence;
Another Level
Bun a fire pon a puff and mister fagoty (Uh huh)
Translation: Burn a fire on poofs and faggots (Uh huh)
Poop man fi drown an dat a yawd man philosophy (Uh huh)
Translation: Shit men [queer men] must be drowned and that’s a yardy man [Jamaican] philosophy
Man A Badman
You know we need no promo to rub out dem homo
Translation: You know we don’t need prompting to rub out [kill] a homo
Look Good
Mi ready fi go wipe out this fag wid pure laser beam
Translation: I’m ready to go wipe out this faggot with a pure laser beam
Peter Tatchell’s letter to the Home Secretary
The Home Secretary
Home Office
19 November 2008
Dear Jacqui Smith,
Request to ban Bounty Killer (Rodney Price) from entering and performing in the UK
Name: Rodney Price (stage name, Bounty Killer)
DoB: 12 June 1972
Nationality: Jamaican
Mr Price is scheduled to perform at the Stratford Rex venue in East London this Sunday, 23 November 2008, under his stage name, Bounty Killer.
In view of the unacceptable levels of gang violence and gun and knife crime, which has tragically claimed the lives of so many young people, the LGBT human rights group OutRage! urges you, as Home Secretary, to take prompt, effective action against singers, such as Rodney Price / Bounty Killer, who contribute to the acceptability of gang culture and violence by encouraging, glorifying and celebrating the killing of LGBT human beings.
We respectfully request that you deny Rodney Price / Bounty Killer (BK) a visa and work permit (or revoke his visa and work permit) and prohibit him from performing in the UK on the following grounds:
1) BK has not signed the Reggae Compassionate Act, whereby artists promise to halt inciting hatred and violence – indeed, he was asked to sign the RCA and he refused to do so.
Read a sample of the Reggae Compassionate Act here:
https://www.petertatchell.net/popmusic/reggaecompassionateact-bujubanton.htm
2) BK has incited murder, which is a serious criminal offence and a threat to public order.
See examples of his “burn and drown” gays lyrics here:
https://www.petertatchell.net/popmusic/Dancehall-Dossier-FINAL.pdf
Watch this video of a Bounty Killer concert (uploaded to YouTube on 24 August 2008), where he openly boasts and incites the crowd: “Faggot, I kill every one of them”:
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=wTIXAToY3f8
All eight singers in this Dancehall Dossier should be prohibited from entering the UK, as they have all incited the murder of LGBT people. Some singers such as Buju Banton have signed the RCA, but have since denounced and violated it. Prohibiting BK would be a good start to tackling these proponents of homophobic murder.
3) BK has specifically incited the murder of LGBT people, which is a threat to community cohesion and good community relations. See the links above.
4) BK has been associated with repeated concert violence and anti-gay hatred and abuse. Caribbean World News reported in April this year that the government of Guyana has banned BK on the grounds of violence, disorder and his torrent of homophobic abuse at his concert that month.
5) The Home Office and the Metropolitan Police ban foreign racists and those who incite racist violence from entering the UK and performing in public, so you should adopt the same policy towards foreign homophobes and those who incite homophobic violence: no entry, no concert. LGBT people are entitled to the same protection from murderous incitements as black people – no more, no less.
6) BK’s incitements of violence are not confined to overseas. His songs advocating the killing of gay people are played on some radio stations and sold be some records stores in the UK. BK is therefore inciting violence and murder within the UK.
We do not accept the Met Police excuse that Bounty Killer will not be permitted to perform songs that incite homophobic violence at his concert on Sunday. This does not make his performance acceptable.
A white racist singer who advocated killing black people would not be allowed to perform in London, even if he agreed to not incite the killing of black people at his concert. The Met Police would argue that any stage performance by a white racist singer would risk public disorder and damage community cohesion. They would ban him, full stop. They have adopted this zero tolerance policy towards white racist bands.
Yet when it comes to straight homophobic singers who urge the murder of gay people, the police take a softer stance. They have agreed to let the Bounty Killer concert go ahead on Sunday, despite the police’s professed commitment to oppose homophobic hate crimes.
As Home Secretary, we believe you should stop Bounty Killer from entering the UK. He has committed the criminal offence of incitement to murder. If a white singer advocated the killing of black people he would not be allowed into the country. You would rightly insist on his exclusion; and deny him a visa and work permit. Why should there be double standards?
It is unacceptable to say that racism is worse than homophobia and that different standards should apply.
Allowing Bounty Killer to enter the UK is particularly difficult to justify, given the exclusion from Britain of the American Black Muslim leader, Louis Farrakhan, of the Nation of Islam. I don’t agree with Mr Farrakhan’s politics or religion, but he has not urged his followers to kill anyone. So, if he is banned from the UK, singers like Bounty Killer who incite the murder of LGBT people should definitely also be banned.
I hope this information will prompt swift action by you to block Bounty Killer’s entry into the UK and his performance this Sunday.
Many thanks and best wishes,
Peter Tatchell OutRage!