Dancehall Fans Against Homophobia (www.dfah.org): Press Release
In 2005, the reggae subgenre of dancehall is under attack from a variety of sources. Most of these attacks relate to the homophobic content of some dancehall record releases. However, many of these attacks are so woefully inaccurate as to be dangerous in their own right. Dancehall Fans Against Homophobia is a newly formed organisation of dancehall fans who are as fed up with governmental and media attacks on dancehall as they are with the handful of deejays currently releasing homophobic records.
DFAH - pronounced differ – because we’re DFAHrent
1) We are fans and supporters of reggae, dancehall and Jamaican music in all its forms.
2) We are opposed to homophobia and homophobic lyrics.
3) We call on record companies to desist from releasing homophobic records and to encourage their artists to perform lyrics dealing with other issues.
4) We will no longer buy records with homophobic lyrics.
5) We call on soundsystems to desist from playing homophobic records, or from making homophobic comments on the mic at dances.
6) We will no longer support homophobic soundsystems.
7) We reject the demonisation of reggae and its fans by parts of the media.
8) We are opposed to state bans on artists.
9) We recognise the long history of homophobia in Jamaica and that there can be no "quick fix". We propose that the way forward lies in dialogue and not in gesture politics.
10) We would like to open up a dialogue between reggae fans, artists, labels owners, soundsystem operators and the reggae community worldwide.
If dancehall fans are interested in signing up to these principles, they should log on to http://www.dfah.org, and step on prejudice, in all its forms.
Press enquiries & media comment - dfah@dfah.org
In 2005, the reggae subgenre of dancehall is under attack from a variety of sources. Most of these attacks relate to the homophobic content of some dancehall record releases. However, many of these attacks are so woefully inaccurate as to be dangerous in their own right. Dancehall Fans Against Homophobia is a newly formed organisation of dancehall fans who are as fed up with governmental and media attacks on dancehall as they are with the handful of deejays currently releasing homophobic records.
DFAH - pronounced differ – because we’re DFAHrent
1) We are fans and supporters of reggae, dancehall and Jamaican music in all its forms.
2) We are opposed to homophobia and homophobic lyrics.
3) We call on record companies to desist from releasing homophobic records and to encourage their artists to perform lyrics dealing with other issues.
4) We will no longer buy records with homophobic lyrics.
5) We call on soundsystems to desist from playing homophobic records, or from making homophobic comments on the mic at dances.
6) We will no longer support homophobic soundsystems.
7) We reject the demonisation of reggae and its fans by parts of the media.
8) We are opposed to state bans on artists.
9) We recognise the long history of homophobia in Jamaica and that there can be no "quick fix". We propose that the way forward lies in dialogue and not in gesture politics.
10) We would like to open up a dialogue between reggae fans, artists, labels owners, soundsystem operators and the reggae community worldwide.
If dancehall fans are interested in signing up to these principles, they should log on to http://www.dfah.org, and step on prejudice, in all its forms.
Press enquiries & media comment - dfah@dfah.org
