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Selena Blake takes on
published: Tuesday | July 1, 2008
Howard Campbell, Gleaner [COLOR=orange! important][COLOR=orange! important]Writer[/COLOR][/COLOR]
Blake
FROM HER home in New York City, Selena Blake keeps up to date with events in her native Jamaica. She is aware of the music scene and perennial crime, but chose to focus on an embattled minority for Taboo ... Gay and Lesbian Yardies: The Voices of Those Who Dare to Speak, her second [COLOR=orange! important][COLOR=orange! important]documentary[/COLOR][/COLOR].
Blake, 45, said she decided to take on the sensitive subject of Jamaican aggression toward gays last year. At a [COLOR=orange! important][COLOR=orange! important]fund-raising [COLOR=orange! important]event[/COLOR][/COLOR][/COLOR] in New York City for Taboo last week, she said patrons were concerned that violence against homosexuals was still rampant in Jamaica.
"I was speaking to someone who told me that Elton John has completely boycotted Jamaica because of this, and it's not just him. Several prominent folks have decided not to do stuff in Jamaica," Blake told The Gleaner.
Production cost
Blake plans to gather an eclectic 'cast' for Taboo which she says will cost US$250,000 to produce. She is planning to interview persons from 'across the board' in Miami, Canada, England and Jamaica.
To date, Blake has spoken to members of the Caribbean gay community in New York City including Jamaican activist Staceyann Chin and Christine Quinn, the openly gay speaker of the New York City Council.
"This documentary is not just about gays, it's about Jamaica," Blake pointed out. "I want to show that we are not monsters, we are not all homophobic."
Taboo follows on the heels of Queensbridge: The Other Side, Blake's revealing documentary about the Long Island housing project, which got strong reviews from noted publications like the New York Times. She went public with Taboo at a time when Jamaican indifference to gays is once again on the radar.
Hopes to interview Golding
During a television interview with the British Broadcasting Corporation in May, Prime Minister Bruce Golding scoffed at 'boycott Jamaica' threats by gay groups in Canada and Europe. He also said he would not consider a homosexual for a post in his Cabinet.
Blake said she hopes to interview Golding when she comes to Jamaica for [COLOR=orange! important][COLOR=orange! important]filming[/COLOR][/COLOR]. She also looks forward to similar meetings with some of the dancehall acts who have been criticized by gay rights groups for encouraging violence against homosexuals.
Buju Banton, Sizzla, Beenie Man and Capleton are among the dancehall artistes who have been dogged by groups like Britain's Outrage! for their anti-gay stance.
'Funny people'
Selena Blake remembers 'funny people' being ostracised for their lifestyle in her hometown of Old Harbour, St Catherine, but were never heckled or beaten.
"There was a lesbian who served in a bar and a gay man in the community, but honestly I cannot recall anyone troubling them," she said.
Blake, the youngest of six daughters, immigrated to the New York City borough of Queens with her mother in 1979. She built a 20-year career as a model and gained bit parts in films and [COLOR=orange! important][COLOR=orange! important]television[/COLOR][/COLOR] commercials.
She said she got the film-maker bug from being around film and commercial sets. Two years ago, Blake challenged racial stereotypes in her documentary on Queensbridge, America's largest low-income housing project where she once lived with her son.
'Taboo' is bound to be just as explosive but Blake insists the film will not be sensational.
"This is going to show that gays, straight people, transsexuals, whoever, need to sit down and talk about this issue because it's not going to go away," she said.
In 1988, a teenaged Buju Banton records the anti-gay anthem, Boom Bye Bye.
Sizzla is barred from entering Britain where authorities cite his anti-gay lyrics as inciting violence. In 2007, the singer's shows in Toronto and Montreal are cancelled after protests by gay groups.
In 2004, producers drop Beenie Man from the MTV awards following protests by gay rights activists.
published: Tuesday | July 1, 2008
Howard Campbell, Gleaner [COLOR=orange! important][COLOR=orange! important]Writer[/COLOR][/COLOR]
Blake
FROM HER home in New York City, Selena Blake keeps up to date with events in her native Jamaica. She is aware of the music scene and perennial crime, but chose to focus on an embattled minority for Taboo ... Gay and Lesbian Yardies: The Voices of Those Who Dare to Speak, her second [COLOR=orange! important][COLOR=orange! important]documentary[/COLOR][/COLOR].
Blake, 45, said she decided to take on the sensitive subject of Jamaican aggression toward gays last year. At a [COLOR=orange! important][COLOR=orange! important]fund-raising [COLOR=orange! important]event[/COLOR][/COLOR][/COLOR] in New York City for Taboo last week, she said patrons were concerned that violence against homosexuals was still rampant in Jamaica.
"I was speaking to someone who told me that Elton John has completely boycotted Jamaica because of this, and it's not just him. Several prominent folks have decided not to do stuff in Jamaica," Blake told The Gleaner.
Production cost
Blake plans to gather an eclectic 'cast' for Taboo which she says will cost US$250,000 to produce. She is planning to interview persons from 'across the board' in Miami, Canada, England and Jamaica.
To date, Blake has spoken to members of the Caribbean gay community in New York City including Jamaican activist Staceyann Chin and Christine Quinn, the openly gay speaker of the New York City Council.
"This documentary is not just about gays, it's about Jamaica," Blake pointed out. "I want to show that we are not monsters, we are not all homophobic."
Taboo follows on the heels of Queensbridge: The Other Side, Blake's revealing documentary about the Long Island housing project, which got strong reviews from noted publications like the New York Times. She went public with Taboo at a time when Jamaican indifference to gays is once again on the radar.
Hopes to interview Golding
During a television interview with the British Broadcasting Corporation in May, Prime Minister Bruce Golding scoffed at 'boycott Jamaica' threats by gay groups in Canada and Europe. He also said he would not consider a homosexual for a post in his Cabinet.
Blake said she hopes to interview Golding when she comes to Jamaica for [COLOR=orange! important][COLOR=orange! important]filming[/COLOR][/COLOR]. She also looks forward to similar meetings with some of the dancehall acts who have been criticized by gay rights groups for encouraging violence against homosexuals.
Buju Banton, Sizzla, Beenie Man and Capleton are among the dancehall artistes who have been dogged by groups like Britain's Outrage! for their anti-gay stance.
'Funny people'
Selena Blake remembers 'funny people' being ostracised for their lifestyle in her hometown of Old Harbour, St Catherine, but were never heckled or beaten.
"There was a lesbian who served in a bar and a gay man in the community, but honestly I cannot recall anyone troubling them," she said.
Blake, the youngest of six daughters, immigrated to the New York City borough of Queens with her mother in 1979. She built a 20-year career as a model and gained bit parts in films and [COLOR=orange! important][COLOR=orange! important]television[/COLOR][/COLOR] commercials.
She said she got the film-maker bug from being around film and commercial sets. Two years ago, Blake challenged racial stereotypes in her documentary on Queensbridge, America's largest low-income housing project where she once lived with her son.
'Taboo' is bound to be just as explosive but Blake insists the film will not be sensational.
"This is going to show that gays, straight people, transsexuals, whoever, need to sit down and talk about this issue because it's not going to go away," she said.
Tracking the dancehall 'gaydar'
In 1988, a teenaged Buju Banton records the anti-gay anthem, Boom Bye Bye.
Sizzla is barred from entering Britain where authorities cite his anti-gay lyrics as inciting violence. In 2007, the singer's shows in Toronto and Montreal are cancelled after protests by gay groups.
In 2004, producers drop Beenie Man from the MTV awards following protests by gay rights activists.
The taboo
'This is going to show that gays, straight people, transsexuals, whoever, need to sit down and talk about this issue because it's not going to go away.'
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