(Trinidad Express) Local non-governmental LGBTQ+ organisation PrideTT says it is dismayed by recent “blatantly false” statements made by religious leaders about the LGBTQ+ community.
The group said these actions were part of a wider campaign to spread propaganda about the community and to incite fear, violence and increased discrimination against LGBTQ+ citizens.
“PrideTT would like to urge the citizens of Trinidad and Tobago to refrain from any action that may incite violence toward any citizen of Trinidad and Tobago,” the organisation said in a statement yesterday.
“We ask that citizens have informed opinions on these issues but also the consequences of their actions on our nation’s most vulnerable populations, which includes children,” PrideTT added.
The group’s statement follows a week-long debate over books featuring LGBTQ+ characters being sold at RIK Services Ltd.
In a statement last week, headlined “Never judge a book by its cover”, RIK Services said it stood by its commitment to sell books to all members of the public, “regardless of gender affiliation or identity”.
“We do not discriminate,” the bookstore said.
Last week there was also an uproar over rumours that at least one of the books, “I am a Rainbow, too”, was to be introduced to the school curriculum in the new school term.
Despite Education Minister Dr Nyan Gadsby-Dolly denying this, an online petition was started, calling for people to “ban and oppose” the book from schools.
“The book will change the mindset of children at the primary level of their education. Parents will no longer have a say which will be against human values,” the petition, which has amassed more than 34,000 signatures, stated.
PrideTT said yesterday it was deeply saddened by the extent of misinformation and disinformation being promoted by individuals who had erroneously labelled these books as propaganda.
“Furthermore, we condemn the actions of the individuals who were seen harassing an employee at a bookstore in a video widely circulated on social media. The actions of these individuals are best characterised as intimidation against the employees and are clearly meant to deceive persons with fake information,” the group said.
On Thursday, leader of the First Wave Movement Umar Abdullah went into RIK Services in San Fernando and confronted an employee of the store about the presence of the book at the location.
A video of the exchange was shared on social media.
In the video, Abdullah is heard telling the employee that police should be called if any adult showed up to purchase the book, which was “inappropriate”.
He said the book was being advertised for children, and the “gay pride colours” were used to capture the attention of children.
“This resembles a drag queen,” he said, pointing at a character at the back of the book.
“Is it a woman, is it a man? Would any parent in T&T have bought this book five years ago for their child…this is not what you want your child to be exposed to,” Abdullah insisted.
But in its statement yesterday, PrideTT extended “heartfelt gratitude” to RIK and other allies who were “brave enough to stand with us against hatred and discrimination”.
“In the spirit of inclusion, PrideTT is willing to work with any individual and group to resolve the misinformation being propagated,” the group said.
“As we are set to celebrate Pride Month in Trinidad and Tobago, we hope this unfortunate incident will serve as a rallying cry to unite every citizen around actions that promote the inclusion and acceptance of all law-abiding people in our nation,” PrideTT added.
“This year we unite under the theme ONE Pride from June 30 to July 30 to increase advocacy and support for equal opportunities and protection for LGBTQ+ citizens who form an integral part of the national community,” the group stated.
Pride TT said it was the collective responsibility of every citizen to ensure that they create a nation that is free and safe from all forms of discrimination and inequalities against all marginalised and vulnerable groups.
“Therefore, we must unite and speak out against incidents of this nature that are rooted in homophobia and discrimination and may result in unnecessary violence toward vulnerable groups,” it said.
