Letter to Belly Up Tavern regarding Buju Banton Concert

On the night of June 24, 2004, six gay men were driven from their home in Kingston, Jamaica and brutally beaten by a group of assailants who hurled gay slurs at them.  At least one of the men is permanently disabled from the attack, having lost the use of one of his eyes.  Amnesty International confirmed that one of the attackers was the reggae artist Buju Banton.  Contrary to some reports, Banton was never acquitted of the charges; they were unsurprisingly dropped by law enforcement. 
 
In a country where violence against the LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) community is already encouraged by ultraconservative Christian churches and Rastafarian establishments, Banton has further aided in the calls to slaughter gay people for years.  As a direct result of the ideology that Banton espouses, gay Jamaicans live in a constant state of fear and physical danger.  Human rights organizations have documented several incidents of hate crimes, often ending in murder, of gay people in Jamaica.  These murders are often carried out by violent mobs.  Human Rights Watch has written about incidents where after gay people were killed, crowds gathered to celebrate the murder and to chant the lyrics of Buju Banton's hit "Boom, Bye Bye."
 
"Boom, Bye Bye," written by Banton in 1992, tells listeners to shoot gay people with Uzis and burn their skin off with acid. While his PR team claims he has not performed the song for 14 years, videos of performances prove otherwise.  In one of the performances, he is captured on video proudly declaring, "There is no end to the war between me and faggots."  Buju Banton still performs and profits from this song, aptly called "murder music" by anti-hate activists.
 
Another point Banton's PR offers in his defense is that he signed the Reggae Compassionate Act (RCA) in 2007, a pledge for reggae artists to not use hate speech of any kind in their songs.  Despite this, Banton has performed "Boom, Bye Bye" several times since signing the Act.  Just weeks after signing it, he denounced the RCA to the Jamaican media.  Banton's actions send a strong message - that his signing of the Act is worthless.
 
The reality of Banton's blatantly violent animosity toward the LGBT community flies in the face of his manager's description of his lyrics as "part of a metaphorical tradition."  This is not a free speech issue; it is a hate speech issue.
 
We as the members of the San Diego Alliance for Marriage Equality refuse to stand by in silence while a bigot who incites the murder of LGBT people is awarded with concerts and money.  We refuse to allow such a despicable display of prejudice and hate to go unopposed in our city.  
 
Venues nationwide have cancelled Banton's shows in response to community outcries.  We are asking that you do the same.  We have heard arguments that it is bad business to renege on a contract.  We say that it is bad business to endorse and reward bigotry and calls to exterminate a group of people.  It is a slap in the face to the LGBT community in San Diego to give this man a venue, just as it would be beyond insulting to invite a singer who incited murder of African Americans, immigrants, or women.
 
The date of Buju Banton's engagement at your establishment is growing near, but it is never too late to stand up for basic human rights.  You would not be the first concert venue to do so; you would be following the lead of concert halls in Detroit, Salt Lake City, Los Angeles, and San Francisco to name a few.  
 
The gay rights movement in San Diego and across the country has been gaining momentum and we are growing stronger every day.  It is our sincerest hope that you choose the only just course and cancel the Buju Banton concert.  If this does not happen, you can expect a loud protest outside on October 17 to oppose Banton's outrageous and flagrant abuse of LGBT people and to oppose any establishment that supports this kind of bigotry.