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 Controversial
Jamaican DJ, Sizzla, has been banned from the United Kingdom because of
his homophobic lyrics that reportedly incite violence against the gay
community.
It was reported in early November by UK government sources that Miguel
Collins a.k.a. Sizzla Kalonji was denied a visa to enter Britain. Sizzla
was refused entry by immigration officers at Heathrow Airport as he arrived
from Jamaica on Monday, November 1, for a UK tour.
Five of his shows were cancelled after gay rights group Outrage! launched
an all-out campaign to have the reggae artiste barred.
Sizzla is reported to be one of eight acts (whose lyrics are being translated
from the Jamaican patois dialect to standard English) being investigated
by Scotland Yard’s Racial & Violent Crime Task Force after a
complaint from Outrage!.
Sizzla's UK tour was to have started at the Empire nightclub in Milton
Keynes. Other venues which cancelled were Aston Villa Leisure in Birmingham,
Bristol's Carling Academy, Bradford's Town & Country Club and London's
Stratford Rex.
Some venues protested that they had ensured Sizzla would not sing offending
material and had even written it into his contract. But all five gigs
were called off due to growing protests, coupled with advice from local
police and councils.
A UK Home Office source said: “The Home Secretary has always made
clear his feelings about individuals who preach hatred, whether in speeches
or song lyrics. We can confirm that a letter has been sent to Mr. Collins
regarding his immigration status.”
It is understood that UK Home Secretary, David Blunkett, who signed the
order banning Sizzla, is also still considering issuing an exclusion order
against him. Mr. Blunkett can turn away foreign visitors to the UK on
public-order grounds.
UK police chiefs fear youngsters are attacking gays under the influence
of lyrics in reggae songs that incite hatred against homosexuals.
The ban on Sizzla comes after the murder of gay bartender David Morley,
37, by a gang of teenagers.
David, who survived the 1999 Soho mailbomb which killed three people and
injured more than 100, was one of five gay men attacked by the gang after
leaving London’s Heaven nightclub on the Saturday morning before
Sizzla arrived in the UK.
Outrage! claims Sizzla's lyrics promote ‘gay-bashing’ and
said the murder of Morley made the concerts particularly inappropriate.
Outrage! spokesman Peter Tatchell said, “Our understanding is that
Sizzla has not, and will not be issued with a visa. He therefore cannot
perform in Britain, which means that none of his concerts will go ahead
- either now or in the foreseeable future.
"It is estimated that the concert cancellations have cost Sizzla,
his promoters and the venues over £100,000 in lost income. Sizzla's
songs promote the murder of gays and lesbians. If his performances had
gone ahead they may have led to public disorder and to homophobic and
racist hate crimes.
"No one would give a platform to a singer who advocated killing black
or Jewish people. In a free society, Sizzla has a right to criticise homosexuality.
But he does not have a right to advocate the killing of lesbians and gay
men. He has gone too far.”
It is also reported that Amnesty International has documented how Sizzla
boasted to an audience in Chicago in a recent concert that: “I kill
sodomites and queers, they bring AIDS and disease upon people.”
And as the gays vs. DJs controversy continues, one of Britain’s
leading music awards ceremonies, Urban Music Awards, dropped Beenie Man
and Vybz Kartel from the nominations for Best Reggae Act. Earlier this
year, the MOBO Awards had dropped Elephant Man and Vybz Kartel from its
nominations for Best Reggae Single.
In the meantime, protests are being planned in support of the reggae artistes
at the Home Office. According to a statement from the supporters, the
protests are to lend support to the reggae artistes who have had their
shows cancelled recently.
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