Jacqui Smith provides visa for "kill gays" singer

Visa for "kill gays" singer

Home Secretary grants visa and work permit

Inciter of murder allowed into the UK

Black MPs "silent and spineless"

London - 20 November 2008

"The Home Secretary has granted a visa and work permit to a Jamaican singer who incites the murder of gay people," reports human rights campaigner Peter Tatchell of OutRage!.

"Although inciting murder is a serious criminal offence, Jacqui Smith is giving Bounty Killer (Rodney Price) permission to perform at a concert in east London this Sunday," added Mr Tatchell.

"Bounty Killer was banned from Guyana earlier this year, but the British government says he is welcome to sing in the UK.

"A white racist singer who advocated the killing of black people would be refused entry to Britain. Why the double standards?

"This singer encourages and glorifies gang violence. At a time when so many young people have been murdered in gang-related gun and knife crime, it is reckless and obscene for the Home Secretary to give Bounty Killer a visa and work permit.

"Rewarding maladjusted thugs who incite violence sends the wrong signal.

"Mr Killer helps reinforce and legitimate gang violence by encouraging, glorifying and celebrating the killing of gay people. His negative impact goes way beyond the gay community. He psyches up a whole generation to see hatred and violence as cool and street cred.

"For the sake of parents whose sons have been murdered in gang attacks, it is time we closed the door on Bounty Killer and similar murder music singers," urged Mr Tatchell.

Watch this video of a Bounty Killer concert, where he openly incites the crowd: "Faggot, I kill every one of them":
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=wTIXAToY3f8

See examples of Bounty Killer's lyrics urging the murder of queers below.

Mr Tatchell has written to the Home Secretary, setting out six reasons why she should revoke Bounty Killer's visa and work permit (a copy of the letter follows below).

He has also issued a stinging rebuke to blacks MPs, condemning them as "silent and spineless."

"Murder music fuels the culture of violence that has claimed the lives of dozens of black teenagers. Instead of speaking out, black MPs sit on their hands and say nothing. They don't condemn singers like Bounty Killer who encourage straight black men to murder gay black men, and who incite a culture of violence that fuels gang warfare and has resulted in the killing of more than 20 black youths in London this year," said Mr Tatchell.

Further information:

Peter Tatchell 0207 403 1790

Bounty Killer songs that incite homophobic violence

Another Level
Bun a fire pon a puff and mister fagoty (Uh huh)
Translation: Burn a fire on poofs and faggots (Uh huh)
Poop man fi drown an dat a yawd man philosophy (Uh huh)
Translation: Shit men [queer men] must be drowned and that's a yardy man [Jamaican] philosophy

Man A Badman
You know we need no promo to rub out dem homo
Translation: You know we don't need prompting to rub out [kill] a homo

Look Good
Mi ready fi go wipe out this fag wid pure laser beam
Translation: I'm ready to go wipe out this faggot with a pure laser beam


Peter Tatchell's letter to the Home Secretary

The Home Secretary
Home Office

19 November 2008

Dear Jacqui Smith,

Request to ban Bounty Killer (Rodney Price) from entering and performing in the UK

Name: Rodney Price (stage name, Bounty Killer)
DoB: 12 June 1972
Nationality: Jamaican

Mr Price is scheduled to perform at the Stratford Rex venue in East London this Sunday, 23 November 2008, under his stage name, Bounty Killer.

In view of the unacceptable levels of gang violence and gun and knife crime, which has tragically claimed the lives of so many young people, the LGBT human rights group OutRage! urges you, as Home Secretary, to take prompt, effective action against singers, such as Rodney Price / Bounty Killer, who contribute to the acceptability of gang culture and violence by encouraging, glorifying and celebrating the killing of LGBT human beings.

We respectfully request that you deny Rodney Price / Bounty Killer (BK) a visa and work permit (or revoke his visa and work permit) and prohibit him from performing in the UK on the following grounds:

1) BK has not signed the Reggae Compassionate Act, whereby artists promise to halt inciting hatred and violence - indeed, he was asked to sign the RCA and he refused to do so.

Read a sample of the Reggae Compassionate Act here:
http://www.petertatchell.net/popmusic/reggaecompassionateact-bujubanton.htm

2) BK has incited murder, which is a serious criminal offence and a threat to public order.

See examples of his "burn and drown" gays lyrics here:
http://www.petertatchell.net/popmusic/Dancehall-Dossier-FINAL.pdf

Watch this video of a Bounty Killer concert (uploaded to YouTube on 24 August 2008), where he openly boasts and incites the crowd: "Faggot, I kill every one of them":
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=wTIXAToY3f8

All eight singers in this Dancehall Dossier should be prohibited from entering the UK, as they have all incited the murder of LGBT people. Some singers such as Buju Banton have signed the RCA, but have since denounced and violated it. Prohibiting BK would be a good start to tackling these proponents of homophobic murder.

3) BK has specifically incited the murder of LGBT people, which is a threat to community cohesion and good community relations. See the links above.

4) BK has been associated with repeated concert violence and anti-gay hatred and abuse. Caribbean World News reported in April this year that the government of Guyana has banned BK on the grounds of violence, disorder and his torrent of homophobic abuse at his concert that month.

5) The Home Office and the Metropolitan Police ban foreign racists and those who incite racist violence from entering the UK and performing in public, so you should adopt the same policy towards foreign homophobes and those who incite homophobic violence: no entry, no concert. LGBT people are entitled to the same protection from murderous incitements as black people - no more, no less.

6) BK's incitements of violence are not confined to overseas. His songs advocating the killing of gay people are played on some radio stations and sold be some records stores in the UK. BK is therefore inciting violence and murder within the UK.

We do not accept the Met Police excuse that Bounty Killer will not be permitted to perform songs that incite homophobic violence at his concert on Sunday. This does not make his performance acceptable.

A white racist singer who advocated killing black people would not be allowed to perform in London, even if he agreed to not incite the killing of black people at his concert. The Met Police would argue that any stage performance by a white racist singer would risk public disorder and damage community cohesion. They would ban him, full stop. They have adopted this zero tolerance policy towards white racist bands.

Yet when it comes to straight homophobic singers who urge the murder of gay people, the police take a softer stance. They have agreed to let the Bounty Killer concert go ahead on Sunday, despite the police's professed commitment to oppose homophobic hate crimes.

As Home Secretary, we believe you should stop Bounty Killer from entering the UK. He has committed the criminal offence of incitement to murder. If a white singer advocated the killing of black people he would not be allowed into the country. You would rightly insist on his exclusion; and deny him a visa and work permit. Why should there be double standards?

It is unacceptable to say that racism is worse than homophobia and that different standards should apply.

Allowing Bounty Killer to enter the UK is particularly difficult to justify, given the exclusion from Britain of the American Black Muslim leader, Louis Farrakhan, of the Nation of Islam. I don't agree with Mr Farrakhan's politics or religion, but he has not urged his followers to kill anyone. So, if he is banned from the UK, singers like Bounty Killer who incite the murder of LGBT people should definitely also be banned.

I hope this information will prompt swift action by you to block Bounty Killer's entry into the UK and his performance this Sunday.

Many thanks and best wishes,

Peter Tatchell