So after surviving a stoning incident, then a mobbing planned by his own ex-lover who took on another in the house they rented which almost sent him into a nervous breakdown, then another outing through a very public brawl from the mother and a relative of the ex-lover then houndings and threats from taxi drivers in the community with former clients of his defunct business establishment and the subsequent closure of his business it seems trouble doesn't stop following this trying young man.
Following from part 1 of this story excerpted here :
"A thirty year old man had to quickly resign from his restaurant business in deep rural St. Catherine earlier in February of this year following threats leveled directly at him but not his business partner but after a loud outing incident by a female relative of his business partner took place at the address before things took a dramatic turn for the worse. The man who also received word of the impending doom from concerned customers of his now closed establishment learned of the plot that persons in the area who declared they wanted no battyman around the community were about to strike.
He said he also noticed a significant drop in his clientele over the days following the nasty outing incident. Grateful for the heads up he quickly made arrangements to move on a rainy weekend under the cover of evening shadows as some curious neighbours looked on urging him to hurry. Fortunately he got the warning early and took evasive action however sometimes we as gay men are the cause of some of our own homophobic problems. His business partner according to the man who gave an exclusive interview said the hounding partner was the reason why events had reached to this stage"
he how finds himself securing a rented house in Kingston moving away from north central Jamaica where his troubles began and thinking he can now rebuild he walks into another set of drama. Relocated and settling in while on the job hunt he is now confronted with thugs from a bordering community who were upset on the onset with his present landlord who they accuse of "betraying the order" by renting the house to an outsider. The man in his late twenties was on his way to church when he was pounced upon by three thugs one of whom he subsequently found out was a bisexual who occasionally attends gay parties in Kingston who demanded he pay over extortion funds and support them whenever they needed it or face forced removal.
Now he finds himself on the move again having to make the tedious arrangements of removal and to have to do so in a quiet way as knowing how theses inner city communities are set up of the don hierarchy there are lookouts everywhere and they report any major movements within their territory to the higher ups who often times reside in uptown settings but give instructions as to what actions to take against persons they deem trouble makers.
Such are the perils honest same gender loving men encounter from within the community and without with public homophobia being the end result. Sadly JFLAG's limited intervention was a mere financial injection and very little encouragement that I usually find myself becoming an ear for all this and trying to give some comfort to those who face this kind of stoic response to issues presented for assistance. The other side of the problem in this case also is the discrimination from immediate family members and relatives including his former female companion who is the mother of his son, it was however sweet consolation according to the young man when his 10 year old son declared he loved him none the less which brought tears to his eyes even as he related his story, a story he said he wanted told to the world to show that gays are not as comfortable as thought by some.
He is presently seeking a flat to rent and has already started to slowly move the larger pieces out of the home so as to avoid run ins with the would be extortionists and avoid to much scrutiny.
His landlord has apologized and has said she wished she could change the circumstances as she liked the demeanor of the present victim. Some friends and I have tried to help as we could in overnight options and so on and are hoping that it all comes to an end soon.
Look out for your neighbour and friends yah.
Peace and tolerance
H
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