Following headlines over the weekend that gay lobby groups in New Zealand were presuring the promoters of music festival, Big Day Out, to pull Beenie Man from the line-up, and subsequent defence of their decision to use him as the only reggae act, the promoters have now backpedalled and have yanked the deejay from the concert. Beenie Man... yanked from line-up for music festival Big Day Out
Internet reports say that New Zealand MP Kevin Hague was among those objecting to the inclusion of the King of the Dancehall based on his anti-gay lyrics. Hague noted that hate-mongering is not welcome in New Zealand, and reportedly urged the Big Day Out to uninvite Beenie.
"Music is a powerful shaper of culture, values, attitudes and behaviour," said Hague. "Music that denigrates gay men and lesbians in the most extreme way imaginable sends some very powerful signals both to young gay and lesbian people but also to their peers. It is not true that 'sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me'.
"Hate speech like that of Beenie Man gives permission to prejudice and discrimination and creates it where it didn't previously exist. It blights and diminishes the lives of all who are exposed to it, most particularly young lesbian and gay people who suffer violence, harassment, lowered self-esteem and all the consequent health and social problems."
Gay reaction stemmed from a song recorded by the deejay in which he says, "I'm dreaming of a new Jamaica, come to execute all the gays."
The promoters had said in a previous release that they were aware of Beenie Man's controversial past, but he had renounced those feelings and was now promoting "peaceful and humanistic values".
However, a release posted yesterday said, "The depth of feeling and hurt amongst these groups has convinced us that for us to proceed with his Big Day Out appearances was, and would continue to be, divisive among our audience members and would mar the enjoyment of the event for many."
Beenie Man, as is the norm, could not be reached for comment.
The sad part about this is that it's not just Beenie who has lost out, it's the music. This is a lost opportunity to promote reggae/dancehall in a major way and would no doubt have been a big boost - financially and otherwise - for Beenie Man himself. The fact is that there must have been big demand for this artiste for the promoters to have included him in a line-up with names such as Lily Allen, Muse, Eskimo Joe, The Mars Volta, Calvin Harris, Lisa Mitchell, the Horrors, and others. Between January 15 and 31, the Big Day Out will be held in Perth, Sydney, Adelaide, Melbourne and the Gold Coast, and according to the concert's website, many of the venues are already sold out.
I popped this CD into the stereo on a recent road trip before reading any of the accompanying info or liner notes. buy ed hardy ed hardy perfume I also didn't notice the dates on the cover, so I was expecting something of a selection of Shankar's music over the course of his performing years. You know, like a Rough Guide to Ravi Shankar or something. ed hardy perfume My ears were met, however, with a single engaging track, the 48-minute "Raga Gangeshwari," recorded live on the banks of the Ganges near Allahabad in 1968. Shankar's playing is fierce, energetic as the raga builds to a satisfying climax and a rather abrupt ending. ed hardy
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http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/sep/03/portugal-paedophile-ring Carlos Cruz jailed for seven years for paedophile offencesPortuguese TV presenter among six convicted over child prostitution at Casa Pia state-run orphanages (93)Tweet this (60)Giles Tremlett and agencies The Guardian, Saturday 4 September 2010 Article history Portuguese TV presenter Carlos Cruz, who paid for sex with a 14-year-old boy, the court was told. Photograph: Tiago Petinga/EPA
One of Portugal's most famous television presenters and a former ambassador were among six men found guilty yesterday of involvement with a paedophile prostitution ring that exploited children from state-run orphanages.
The guilty verdicts handed down to TV presenter Carlos Cruz and the five others exposed the truth of more than three decades of rumours about systematic abuse of young boys at the 230-year-old Casa Pia network of orphanages.
It was only when Joel, a former orphanage boy, came forward in 2002 and accused some of the country's best-known names of being involved that Portugal woke up to full horror of the scandal.
Members of Portugal's media, civil service and professional elite were alleged to be regular abusers of the boys, some younger than 14. Even well-known politicians were involved, it was initially rumoured. A flood of accusations from boys who had passed through the Casa Pia system followed. Some 32 boys alleged at least 800 crimes.
The case pitted the orphanage boys against a group of well-educated, influential people – including a former ambassador to Unesco, a lawyer, a doctor and Cruz. Yesterday, eight years after they dared to speak out, the boys finally won their case.
The four men and two former orphanage employees received sentences of between just under six years and 18 years. Carlos Silvino, a 53-year-old Casa Pia worker who confessed to 600 crimes and gave evidence against other defendants was sentenced to 18 years.
"The court recognised that we were telling the truth," said Bernardo Teixeira, one of the victims. "It's a happy ending for us. The paedophiles are going to jail."
The court ruling was hailed as a victory by those fighting for children's rights in Portugal. "The stories that I heard were the most terrible of my life," said Catalina Pestana, who was put in charge of the Casa Pia orphanages after the crimes were first reported in 2002.
"I think Portugal, the country, all of us, won a lot from this process. Now, when a child accuses an adult, nobody will look with the same lack of attention that they did for many years."
The court case lasted six years, bringing additional outrage about the slow way in which Portugal's legal system worked. The case was already in court when three-year-old Madeleine McCann disappeared while on holiday with her family in the Algarve in 2007. Portuguese police were, at the time, defensive about claims, particularly those made in the British press, that they had a history of mishandling cases involving children.
Buried in the case paperwork are allegations that Casa Pia was known to paedophiles internationally and that some flew in to abuse children from the orphanage, according to at least one source familiar with the case.
Portuguese media provided live running coverage of the reading of the sentence. The judges said they were giving only an abbreviated version of events, with a much fuller judgment due to be made public next week. The senior member of the three-judge panel, Ana Peres, began by warning those present that the abuse they described would be graphic and shocking. "Some of the accounts could be considered pornographic," she said.
Cruz, 68, who was once voted Portugal's most popular man, had paid for sex with a 14-year-old, the judges declared. He also abused at least one other boy. The father of two was known as "Mr Television" after several decades as a national star. He was sentenced to seven years in jail.
A doctor, Ferreira Diniz, was also sentenced to seven years and a former ambassador, Jorge Ritto, 74, to six years, and the former Casa Pia ombudsman, Manuel Abrantes, to five. They were found guilty of abusing several young boys.
The court found that boys had been regularly taken to a house in the eastern town of Elvas during the 1990s to meet the paedophile clients. Abuse had also taken place in Lisbon.
Some of the victims who gave evidence were present to hear the verdicts. Psychiatrists said several of the victims had tried to kill themselves after denouncing the abuse to the police. One threw himself from a second-floor window.
Lawyers said their clients would almost certainly appeal. "It seems inevitable that we will have to appeal," said Cruz's lawyer, Antonio Serra Lopes, before the sentence was read out. "This is the first round."
