Constable Michael Hayden is a very worried cop. But he is not scared of gunmen or other criminals. He is afraid of some of his colleagues. He claims they are trying to force him out of his job because of his sexual orientation.
While the 24-year-old constable admits to THE STAR that he is bi-sexual, he says some officers at the Manchester police division, where he is stationed, have been accusing him based on mere suspicion after an incident when he was almost beaten by a group of men in May Pen, Clarendon.
- The Star, 2008/2/1
This cop has no protection from the constitution of Jamaica. His superiors can fire him on any pretext and there is no one for him to appeal to. He's to be commended for coming out publicly in the way he has; such courage, some would say foolhardiness, is uncommon. Will he tough it out in Jamaica, if he's not killed, or will he escape to more accommodating parts like others who've come out or been outed like Digicel Rising Star Kyino Cunningham who i heard was shipped out to Japan by his mother?
We cannot look to the Golding administration for any relief from the obsolete laws which set the tone for the homophobia which prevails. If the Lawyers Christian Fellowship had their way, even more stringent sanctions would be written into the law and constitution. The last i heard, no one was agitating for same-sex marriage in Jamaica but i suppose they want to pre-empt any such notion.
1 comment:
Hell, Michael, I wish I could shake your hand! My late boi and I lived in the hatred of apartheid South Africa, so we know a bit of what you must be going through. I'm proud of you.
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