Yvonne Artis, Jamaica

I am deeply honoured to be among so many people from all different walks of life, fighting for one cause; human rights.

In my country I have been a “front liner” on many occasions. I have had to go “up front” to represent the gay community in my country. This year alone three gay men have been violently killed. There has been no investigation into their murders, by the relevant authorities.

On July 11 of this year I went to rescue a young gay man from a Burger King restaurant in Kingston. On reaching the Burger King I had to push my way through a large crowd to get to the lad. On my way I was attacked by the mob, which shouted aggressively at me that I was a lesbian. I was pushed and pulled. The police arrived just in time. I was placed in a police car and the mob threw stones and bottles at it, trying to get to me, saying that I needed to be killed because I was helping a “battyman” (homosexual). The police had to fire shots into the air to scare the crowd away from the car. One of the policemen was injured while helping me.

We, the gay community of Jamaica need support to help us in our struggle to decriminalize homosexuality in Jamaica.