ACT NOW: Protest Upcoming Concerts by Anti-Gay Reggae Singer Capleton
February 8, 2010 by Jonathan Rosales, GLAAD's Entertainment Media Manager
GLAAD was alerted this weekend that Capleton, a reggae singer who promotes violence against the LGBT community in his lyrics, has planned multiple concerts in California, Nevada and Florida in the coming weeks. A planned concert in Arcata, CA was cancelled thanks to the efforts of local activists, Humboldt Against Hate. We urge you to expand this movement by contacting the concert promoters directly to express outrage that an artist whose lyrics promote the murder of gays and lesbians would be allowed to perform on their stages.
Capleton has come under fire in the past for his virulently anti-gay lyrics such as “bun out ah chi chi, blood out a chi chi” (“burn out a queer, blood out a queer”) and “shoulda know seh Capleton bun battyman, dem same fire apply to di lesbian” (“you should know that Capleton burns queers, the same fire applies to lesbians”).
In 2007, Capleton joined other reggae singers, including Buju Banton, who signed onto the Reggae Compassionate Act (RCA), pledging to renounce and condemn violence against the LGBT community. Unfortunately, the RCA proved useless as Capleton has continued to sing anti-gay songs, spurring protests from LGBT activists.
Last week, GLAAD joined the LA Gay & Lesbian Center to protest Buju Banton’s Grammy nomination for Best Reggae Album and we urge you now to speak out against Capleton’s upcoming concerts.
Capleton will be headlining the following shows:
- February 17 at the Downtown Brewing Company (San Luis Obispo, CA). To contact the Downtown Brewing Company, please call (805) 543-1843 or email info@downtownbrew.com
- February 18 at the Tahoe Biltmore (Crystal Bay, NV). To contact the Tahoe Biltmore, please call (775) 831-0660
- February 27 at Bayfront Park (Miami, FL). To contact Bayfront Park, please call (305) 358-7550
Capleton will also be taking part in the Tribute to the Legends concert on February 15 at the San Diego Sports Arena and the 2010 Ragga Muffins Festival February 20 at the Fox Theatre in Oakland, CA and February 21 at the Long Beach Arena in Long Beach, CA. No other known anti-gay reggae artists are performing at these events.
- To contact the Tribute to the Legends concert about Capleton’s February 15 appearance, please email: info@worldbeatcenter.org. To contact the San Diego Sports Arena, please call: (619) 224-4171
- To contact the Ragga Muffins Festival about Capleton’s February 20/21 appearances, please email: info@raggamuffinsfestival.com. To contact the Fox Theatre, please email danielle@anotherplanetent.com. To contact the Long Beach Arena press relations, please call: (562) 499-7508.
Capleton’s concert in San Luis Obispo has now been cancelled as well, thanks to excellent work by The Gay and Lesbian Alliance of the Central Coast.
I hope other communities take notice, stand up, and speak out.
Even if you are not worried for your local community, please stand up for the gay people of Jamaica. They are literally being murdered for being gay, and they have specifically requested that these murder music performers be boycotted.
If you think I’m overstating this, please Google this phrase — Brian Williamson HRW. Williamson was a founder of Jamaica’s gay rights group, was assassinated, and a Human Rights Watch observer witnessed a festive crowd outside his home singing Buju Banton’s “Boom Bye Bye,” in which he suggests that if there’s a lesbian or gay man around, you should send for the Uzi or some other automatic weapon and shoot them dead.
Capleton’s concert at Downtown Brewing Company in San Luis Obispo, California 02/17/10 has been canceled. Thank you Downtown Brewing Company and Central Coast GALA. http://calcoastnews.com/2010/02/capleton-concert-canceled-over-hate-lyrics/
Here are the remaining performances on Capleton’s 2010 U.S. tour:
02/15/10 “Tribute to the Reggae Legends” festival in San Diego, California
02/18/10 Tahoe Biltmore, Crystal Bay, Nevada
02/20/10 “Ragga Muffins Festival,” Fox Theater, Oakland, California
02/21/10 “Ragga Muffins Festival,” Long Beach, California
02/27/10 “Caribbean Festival 2010,” Miami, Florida
[...] shows cancelled, including shows across the US, in Canada and Australia. Earlier this month, GLAAD worked with the LA Gay & Lesbian Center and local activists to protest the concerts of ant…. Those concerts were canceled. In January, GLAAD and LA Gay & Lesbian Center and a consortium [...]
[...] shows cancelled, including shows across the US, in Canada and Australia. Earlier this month, GLAAD worked with the LA Gay & Lesbian Center and local activists to alert the community about …. Those concerts were canceled. In January, GLAAD and LA Gay & Lesbian Center and a consortium [...]