Representations of Homosexuality in Jamaica
Social and Economic Studies 60: 1 (2011)
28 Pages Posted: 27 Dec 2013
Date Written: 2011
Abstract
The purpose of this article is to deconstruct representations of homosexuality in Jamaica. Social Representation Theory (SRT) is used to discuss the violence and abuse against homosexuals and the debate between the Jamaican government and the international homosexual lobby about these vexing issues.The fanatical intolerance of the heterosexual consensus is evident in the attempted lynching of a boy suspected of being gay, instigated by the boy's father. In addition the government has been accused of not protecting homosexuals by the, Human Rights Watch. The resultant debates in the newspapers are cultural pathways to the larger cultural representations derived from the historical consensus that homosexuality is an abomination to God and therefore homosexuals should be killed.
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