{"version":"1.0.0","segments":[{"startTime":5.745,"endTime":10.615,"body":"Quote, it takes no compromise to give people their rights."},{"startTime":11.315,"endTime":14.215,"body":"It takes no money to respect the individual."},{"startTime":14.995,"endTime":17.975,"body":"It takes no political deal to give people freedom."},{"startTime":19.075,"endTime":24.295,"body":"It takes no survey to remove repression Harvey Milk."},{"startTime":26.505,"endTime":26.975,"body":"Thank you."},{"startTime":27.025,"endTime":32.943,"body":"Thank you for joining me today as we delve into the complex and deeply nuanced"},{"startTime":32.943,"endTime":36.495,"body":"landscape of LGBT rights in the Commonwealth Anglo Caribbean."},{"startTime":38.755,"endTime":43.855,"body":"Now \u003claugh\u003e in 45 minutes to an hour, I don't think I'm going to be"},{"startTime":43.855,"endTime":46.575,"body":"able to do proper justice to this topic."},{"startTime":47.575,"endTime":48.695,"body":"I will try my best."},{"startTime":50.775,"endTime":54.904,"body":"The Gresham College lecture that you're listening to right now is giving you knowledge and"},{"startTime":54.904,"endTime":55.18,"body":"insight from one of the world's leading academic experts making it takes a lot of"},{"startTime":55.18,"endTime":55.455,"body":"time, but because we want to encourage a love of learning, we think it's well"},{"startTime":55.455,"endTime":63.715,"body":"worth it."},{"startTime":64.655,"endTime":68.838,"body":"We never make you pay for lectures, although donations are needed, all we ask in"},{"startTime":68.838,"endTime":69.675,"body":"return is this."},{"startTime":70.185,"endTime":72.315,"body":"Send a link to this lecture to someone you think would benefit."},{"startTime":72.655,"endTime":76.771,"body":"And if you haven't already, click the follow or subscribe button from wherever you are"},{"startTime":76.771,"endTime":77.595,"body":"listening right now."},{"startTime":78.615,"endTime":80.235,"body":"Now let's get back to the lecture."},{"startTime":82.595,"endTime":90.19,"body":"However, I wish to acknowledge that this is a topic that demands a delicate balance"},{"startTime":90.19,"endTime":90.696,"body":"between recognizing the historical influences that contributed to the persistence of anti LGBT laws that"},{"startTime":90.696,"endTime":91.202,"body":"have and the lived experience of those affected, while also acknowledging the diverse cultural and"},{"startTime":91.202,"endTime":108.925,"body":"religious tapestry that shapes this particular region."},{"startTime":110.795,"endTime":118.745,"body":"It's essential to approach this discussion with an understanding that the journey towards acceptance and"},{"startTime":118.745,"endTime":121.925,"body":"equality is neither linear nor universal."},{"startTime":123.025,"endTime":129.545,"body":"As we explore the impact of colonial legacies on restrictive sex laws, it's important to"},{"startTime":129.545,"endTime":129.98,"body":"be mindful of the live realities of the people we discuss, especially in societies deeply"},{"startTime":129.98,"endTime":137.805,"body":"rooted in religious traditions."},{"startTime":139.385,"endTime":146.547,"body":"The discussion surrounding LGBT rights is not a mere clash of liberal ideal from the"},{"startTime":146.547,"endTime":150.845,"body":"global North against the values of the global south."},{"startTime":151.865,"endTime":161.125,"body":"Rather, it's a nuanced exploration on how external influences intersect with deeply ingrained cultural norms."},{"startTime":162.385,"endTime":168.695,"body":"So it's a crucial for us, I think, to engage in this dialogue with sensitivity,"},{"startTime":168.695,"endTime":175.005,"body":"respecting the autonomy of Caribbean societies to navigate their own paths towards progress and acceptance."},{"startTime":177.745,"endTime":187.14,"body":"But there's no doubt in the atrocities faced by the LGBT community from persecution, homelessness,"},{"startTime":187.14,"endTime":191.525,"body":"murder are undeniable and demand our attention."},{"startTime":193.435,"endTime":198.925,"body":"However, the path to change must be paved with empathy, recognizing"},{"startTime":201.165,"endTime":202.005,"body":"Regional differences."},{"startTime":204.985,"endTime":212.101,"body":"My goal is not to impose an external view, but to foster dialogue that allows"},{"startTime":212.101,"endTime":216.845,"body":"for understanding, empathy and a shared commitment to human rights."},{"startTime":218.545,"endTime":223.005,"body":"So let's embark on this exploration with open minds."},{"startTime":223.005,"endTime":231.338,"body":"Acknowledging that progress re requires a collaborative effort, one that respects unique narratives of each"},{"startTime":231.338,"endTime":231.893,"body":"society whilst working towards the future where all individuals, regardless of sexual orientation, can live"},{"startTime":231.893,"endTime":243.005,"body":"free and from fear and discrimination."},{"startTime":244.905,"endTime":245.725,"body":"So thank you."},{"startTime":246.295,"endTime":248.645,"body":"Thank you for being part of this important conversation."},{"startTime":249.505,"endTime":250.885,"body":"Let me begin."},{"startTime":254.265,"endTime":263.667,"body":"In the heart of the C Caribbean, where there are Azure waters which meet golden"},{"startTime":263.667,"endTime":264.294,"body":"sands, a perpetual sun that dances across the horizon, there exists a silent struggle concealed"},{"startTime":264.294,"endTime":276.205,"body":"beneath the facade of paradise."},{"startTime":278.375,"endTime":286.814,"body":"Imagine a childhood where the realization of one's feelings becomes a clandestine burden and awareness"},{"startTime":286.814,"endTime":287.377,"body":"that the very essence of who you are is not only deemed and illegal, but"},{"startTime":287.377,"endTime":297.505,"body":"cast aside as immoral."},{"startTime":298.645,"endTime":309.505,"body":"It is within this juxta position of idyllic landscapes and archaic prejudices that we navigate."},{"startTime":309.645,"endTime":318.345,"body":"The legacy of British colonial laws a legacy that continues to this day to cast"},{"startTime":318.345,"endTime":325.305,"body":"profound shadow over the lives of so many in the L-G-B-T-Q community."},{"startTime":328.015,"endTime":336.272,"body":"Growing up on an island adorned with the moniker Little Britain one inherits more than"},{"startTime":336.272,"endTime":339.025,"body":"the remnants of colonial architects"},{"startTime":340.735,"endTime":343.355,"body":"And the echoes of British manners."},{"startTime":344.655,"endTime":352.938,"body":"The legacy includes a tapestry woven with archaic laws that criminalize and ostracize those who"},{"startTime":352.938,"endTime":359.565,"body":"do not conform to the heteronormative ideals imposed by a bygone empire."},{"startTime":360.875,"endTime":365.205,"body":"It's a legacy that transcends legal structures."},{"startTime":366.105,"endTime":373.716,"body":"It ill infiltrates the very fabric of society, shape and perceptions, norms, and the lived"},{"startTime":373.716,"endTime":379.805,"body":"experience of individuals who dare to love outside the boundaries of convention."},{"startTime":381.155,"endTime":386.563,"body":"Picture a childhood where the first inklings of love are met, not with innocence, but"},{"startTime":386.563,"endTime":387.285,"body":"with fear."},{"startTime":388.215,"endTime":394.685,"body":"Where discovering one's authentic self becomes an act of rebellion against societal norms."},{"startTime":395.585,"endTime":399.525,"body":"At social gatherings, the air is tainted with derogatory remarks."},{"startTime":400.525,"endTime":407.205,"body":"Creating a landscape where authenticity is not only discouraged but is dangerous."},{"startTime":408.545,"endTime":414.331,"body":"The struggle to reconcile one's identity of with a society deeply rooted in intolerance, leaves"},{"startTime":414.331,"endTime":414.717,"body":"an indelible mark on the soul, a mark that's carried into adulthood as a testament"},{"startTime":414.717,"endTime":423.205,"body":"to the enduring impact of a colonial legacy."},{"startTime":424.625,"endTime":429.195,"body":"Let me read to you one account from a young man's experience growing up in"},{"startTime":429.195,"endTime":429.805,"body":"the Caribbean."},{"startTime":432.765,"endTime":439.245,"body":"I love my country, it's beaches and it's 365 days a year."},{"startTime":439.465,"endTime":439.685,"body":"Sun."},{"startTime":440.685,"endTime":444.605,"body":"I love the food, the humor, the easiness of the island."},{"startTime":445.665,"endTime":454.015,"body":"But there is a dark underbelly of intolerance, of religious zealousness and of rampant hypocrisy,"},{"startTime":454.015,"endTime":462.365,"body":"which if you are not strong enough, will slowly kill you from the inside out."},{"startTime":464.445,"endTime":472.752,"body":"I remember that was, I remember everything that was ever said that hurt me, especially"},{"startTime":472.752,"endTime":478.845,"body":"the words said by those I love and who loved me."},{"startTime":479.905,"endTime":486.764,"body":"My father once shouting at my mother and saying, it's because of you and your"},{"startTime":486.764,"endTime":489.965,"body":"mother, my grandmother, that he's like that."},{"startTime":491.785,"endTime":496.365,"body":"My mother years later telling me she will never accept this."},{"startTime":499.115,"endTime":506.861,"body":"When I officially came out to her and even my wonderful grandmother once saying that"},{"startTime":506.861,"endTime":507.378,"body":"she hopes I find more happiness than my uncle, my uncle, her son is also"},{"startTime":507.378,"endTime":515.125,"body":"gay."},{"startTime":516.784,"endTime":518.125,"body":"School was even worse."},{"startTime":519.304,"endTime":522.725,"body":"Any slight movement of the head or hand could give you away."},{"startTime":522.825,"endTime":526.205,"body":"So you had to watch and plan everything carefully."},{"startTime":528.485,"endTime":534.707,"body":"A few days ago, I watched the video of Wentworth Miller, the gay actor who"},{"startTime":534.707,"endTime":539.685,"body":"said that every day growing up was like being in survival mode."},{"startTime":541.105,"endTime":543.805,"body":"It is as if he lived my life."},{"startTime":544.745,"endTime":550.085,"body":"All of us grown up gay in the Caribbean are in survival mode."},{"startTime":551.305,"endTime":558.702,"body":"We defend ourselves against the religious leaders and followers who praise the law, demonizing that"},{"startTime":558.702,"endTime":559.195,"body":"which they don't understand, or as is commonplace in this island of masks that which"},{"startTime":559.195,"endTime":570.045,"body":"they, they are but don't want to see."},{"startTime":571.945,"endTime":578.559,"body":"We defend ourselves against the music, the music of Jamaica, which calls for gay people"},{"startTime":578.559,"endTime":581.205,"body":"to be murdered and burned alive."},{"startTime":582.995,"endTime":590.597,"body":"Imagine being in a gay closeted teenager and going to your first party and hearing"},{"startTime":590.597,"endTime":595.665,"body":"the words shut the body boy blaring from the speakers."},{"startTime":596.415,"endTime":597.105,"body":"What do you do?"},{"startTime":598.565,"endTime":603.401,"body":"You bop your head, cock your hand into the sign of a gun and point"},{"startTime":603.401,"endTime":606.625,"body":"it at the guy who is even gayer than you."},{"startTime":607.835,"endTime":616.825,"body":"Point it and humiliate the ones who dare to let their masks fall anonymous."},{"startTime":619.355,"endTime":620.015,"body":"End of quote."},{"startTime":622.035,"endTime":628.143,"body":"Yet as we explore the depths of this struggle, it's crucial to acknowledge the love"},{"startTime":628.143,"endTime":632.215,"body":"for the Caribbean, A love that exists alongside the pain."},{"startTime":632.795,"endTime":639.735,"body":"The crystal clear waters and the warmth of the sun are juxtaposed with the darker"},{"startTime":639.735,"endTime":642.975,"body":"underbelly of intolerance, religious zealousness, and hypocrisy."},{"startTime":644.235,"endTime":652.431,"body":"It is within this dichotomy that individuals from the LG LGBTQ plus community find themselves"},{"startTime":652.431,"endTime":652.978,"body":"negotiating the interest intricacies of identity against the backdrop of a society both beautiful and"},{"startTime":652.978,"endTime":661.175,"body":"unforgiven."},{"startTime":666.545,"endTime":674.148,"body":"In the following moments, we will traverse the corridors of history, examining how the echoes"},{"startTime":674.148,"endTime":681.245,"body":"of the past resonate in the presence, perpetuating a cycle of discrimination and persecution."},{"startTime":683.105,"endTime":691.097,"body":"Our journey's going to delve into a painful narrative of those despite the challenges who"},{"startTime":691.097,"endTime":691.63,"body":"have found resilience and strength, it's a testament to the power of the human spirit"},{"startTime":691.63,"endTime":705.485,"body":"to endure, to challenge, and ultimately to redefine narrative for future generations."},{"startTime":707.885,"endTime":708.245,"body":"I hope."},{"startTime":708.505,"endTime":710.485,"body":"In the face of adversity, we find hope."},{"startTime":711.355,"endTime":718.574,"body":"Hope in the emergence of advocacy groups demanding a voice for the LGBTQ plus community"},{"startTime":718.574,"endTime":719.055,"body":"in the hope of increasing visibility of role models, challenging the norms and hope in"},{"startTime":719.055,"endTime":730.125,"body":"the love stories that begin to shatter the silence."},{"startTime":732.105,"endTime":740.714,"body":"Yet we must also confront the harsh reality that for many years this journey towards"},{"startTime":740.714,"endTime":741.288,"body":"acceptance often requires leaving the Caribbean a sacrifice that underscores the arduous path to equality"},{"startTime":741.288,"endTime":751.045,"body":"within the region."},{"startTime":754.465,"endTime":760.86,"body":"Our exploration is not only an intellectual endeavor, but a compassionate inquiry into the lives"},{"startTime":760.86,"endTime":763.845,"body":"of those who've navigated this complex terrain."},{"startTime":766.275,"endTime":774.984,"body":"It's also an acknowledgement of the collective responsibility to unravel the intricacies of inherited biases,"},{"startTime":774.984,"endTime":775.564,"body":"to challenge the norms that perpetuate discrimination and to envisage envisage a future where love"},{"startTime":775.564,"endTime":785.435,"body":"knows no boundaries."},{"startTime":788.775,"endTime":796.275,"body":"So this lecture is about LGBTQ plus rights in the Caribbean Commonwealth Caribbean."},{"startTime":796.935,"endTime":811.152,"body":"I'm going to explore the anti-gay laws that the Commonwealth Caribbean inherited from the UK"},{"startTime":811.152,"endTime":818.735,"body":"Letters embark on our journey in October, 2012."},{"startTime":820.555,"endTime":827.565,"body":"In the grand rooms of the British House of Lords, there was a debate"},{"startTime":829.975,"endTime":835.855,"body":"Entitled the treatment of homosexual men and women in the developing World."},{"startTime":837.515,"endTime":849.046,"body":"During that debate, British parliamentarians condemned Britain's responsibility for laws' criminalizing homosexuality in its former"},{"startTime":849.046,"endTime":849.815,"body":"colonies."},{"startTime":851.105,"endTime":859.575,"body":"Quote, we must remember where the laws criminalizing homosexuals in many countries came from."},{"startTime":860.365,"endTime":868.786,"body":"They came from Britain, which alone amounted the European empires of the 19th century, possessed"},{"startTime":868.786,"endTime":869.347,"body":"a criminal code under which homosexuals face severe penalties just for expressing their love and"},{"startTime":869.347,"endTime":880.015,"body":"physical desire for one another."},{"startTime":881.115,"endTime":889.28,"body":"In India in the nine 1820s, Thomas McCauley, later the greatest of all the wig"},{"startTime":889.28,"endTime":897.445,"body":"historians devised a legal system which incorporated Britain's then firm and unbending intolerance of homosexuality."},{"startTime":898.425,"endTime":905.25,"body":"The Indian penal code became the model for the legal systems of Britain's colonies in"},{"startTime":905.25,"endTime":907.525,"body":"most of Africa and Asia."},{"startTime":909.505,"endTime":910.005,"body":"End quote."},{"startTime":912.565,"endTime":919.435,"body":"I suppose the obvious question is how did this happen and more significantly, what is"},{"startTime":919.435,"endTime":921.725,"body":"the state of play today?"},{"startTime":929.095,"endTime":929.865,"body":"Some history,"},{"startTime":933.325,"endTime":941.291,"body":"I start this story by talking about the history of persecution of LGBT people in"},{"startTime":941.291,"endTime":942.885,"body":"England and Wales."},{"startTime":943.915,"endTime":950.999,"body":"That is because the form British colonies of the Caribbean received the the English common"},{"startTime":950.999,"endTime":951.471,"body":"law, and most of their statutes have historically been modeled on English statutes or on"},{"startTime":951.471,"endTime":960.445,"body":"statutes from other British colonies."},{"startTime":962.245,"endTime":967.411,"body":"Although the history somewhat different in Scotland, and I won't be going into Scot's Law"},{"startTime":967.411,"endTime":967.756,"body":"for the purposes of this lecture, because it's generally English, not Scot's law that the"},{"startTime":967.756,"endTime":974.645,"body":"UK exported to its colonies abroad."},{"startTime":976.305,"endTime":983.448,"body":"The first English statute criminalized in sexual activity between men was the Buggery Act in"},{"startTime":983.448,"endTime":983.925,"body":"1533."},{"startTime":984.505,"endTime":991.714,"body":"Before that, it had been within the jurisdiction of the ecclesiastical courts as part of"},{"startTime":991.714,"endTime":992.195,"body":"Henry VI Eight's policy on reducing the role of the ecclesiastical courts and expanding Royal"},{"startTime":992.195,"endTime":992.675,"body":"Authority Parliament passed the 1533 Act, which made buggery a capital offense to be tried"},{"startTime":992.675,"endTime":993.156,"body":"in this, in secular courts, originally time limited, the 1533 act was made permanent in"},{"startTime":993.156,"endTime":993.637,"body":"1540, repealed in 1547, repealed with a more limited statute in 1548, then repealed again"},{"startTime":993.637,"endTime":994.117,"body":"in 1553 in the reign of Mary, the first with jurisdiction being restored to the"},{"startTime":994.117,"endTime":1028.723,"body":"ecclesiastical courts."},{"startTime":1029.435,"endTime":1038.884,"body":"Finally, in 1562 in the reign of Elizabeth, the first parliament revived the 1533 Act"},{"startTime":1038.884,"endTime":1046.444,"body":"and made it permanent there it remained for the next 266 years."},{"startTime":1049.415,"endTime":1053.115,"body":"Now the 1533 act did not define the term buggery."},{"startTime":1053.625,"endTime":1059.959,"body":"However, it was generally understood to include anal sex, not just between two men, but"},{"startTime":1059.959,"endTime":1062.915,"body":"also between a man and a woman."},{"startTime":1064.735,"endTime":1072.925,"body":"Get this, no distinction was made between consensual or non-consensual sex."},{"startTime":1074.265,"endTime":1079.885,"body":"The crime of buggery also included sex between a person and an animal."},{"startTime":1080.665,"endTime":1082.605,"body":"The term sodomy was also used."},{"startTime":1085.275,"endTime":1089.565,"body":"Convictions under the 1533 act were rare at first."},{"startTime":1090.115,"endTime":1098.988,"body":"According to Jerome Gross Claude quote, by 1641, only three people had been convicted of"},{"startTime":1098.988,"endTime":1099.58,"body":"buggery, Lord wa Walter Hungerford in 1540, Melvin or Mervin Touche, the second Earl of"},{"startTime":1099.58,"endTime":1109.045,"body":"Castle Haven."},{"startTime":1109.825,"endTime":1119.658,"body":"In 1631 and nine years later, the Church of Island Bishop of Waterford and Lismore"},{"startTime":1119.658,"endTime":1120.314,"body":"John Atherton Gross Claude highlights that these three prosecutions were political used as a means"},{"startTime":1120.314,"endTime":1132.115,"body":"to further discredit men."},{"startTime":1132.655,"endTime":1138.823,"body":"It was deemed urgent to suppress by any means possible for religious and or political"},{"startTime":1138.823,"endTime":1139.235,"body":"reasons."},{"startTime":1140.705,"endTime":1144.275,"body":"However, things changed over time."},{"startTime":1145.725,"endTime":1152.015,"body":"Gross Claude notes that there were increased repression of sodomy from the late 17th century"},{"startTime":1152.015,"endTime":1152.435,"body":"onwards."},{"startTime":1152.935,"endTime":1161.729,"body":"In part driven by the societies of reformation of manners, religious societies which prosecuted blasphemers,"},{"startTime":1161.729,"endTime":1164.075,"body":"prostitutes, pornographers, and buggers."},{"startTime":1164.965,"endTime":1168.595,"body":"These societies conducted raids on Molly houses."},{"startTime":1169.615,"endTime":1176.668,"body":"For context, Mary uh, McKee explains Molly was a slur for use, for being effeminate"},{"startTime":1176.668,"endTime":1177.139,"body":"for homosexual men, and the term Molly house was adopted to describe clubs, taverns, inns,"},{"startTime":1177.139,"endTime":1187.955,"body":"or coffee houses where they met up in secret."},{"startTime":1189.215,"endTime":1195.072,"body":"She also warns that we must tread lightly when assigned in 21st century terms to"},{"startTime":1195.072,"endTime":1196.635,"body":"the 18th century culture."},{"startTime":1197.255,"endTime":1204.623,"body":"But notes that the descriptions we do find of the mollies and the activities which"},{"startTime":1204.623,"endTime":1205.114,"body":"transpired at Molly houses does hint at a cross dressing or drag culture with some"},{"startTime":1205.114,"endTime":1217.395,"body":"suggestion of trans identities as to the response of the courts."},{"startTime":1217.515,"endTime":1224.172,"body":"Gross Claude says, quote, the judicial repression, however, was quite lenient when one bears in"},{"startTime":1224.172,"endTime":1224.615,"body":"mind that sodomy was a capital offense and judges usually sentenced to a four small"},{"startTime":1224.615,"endTime":1236.155,"body":"fine and a few hours in in the pilly for attempted sodomy."},{"startTime":1236.155,"endTime":1242.7,"body":"Since the actual offense was very difficult to prove, although the pilly was the lightest"},{"startTime":1242.7,"endTime":1249.245,"body":"penalty, a judge could impose such a sentence, could have grave consequences for the defendant."},{"startTime":1249.385,"endTime":1253.045,"body":"In addition to the public humiliation of being thus exposed."},{"startTime":1254.035,"endTime":1261.405,"body":"Mobs were not infrequently known to pelt pillared offenders with eggs and even stones"},{"startTime":1266.355,"endTime":1270.815,"body":"In 1781."},{"startTime":1270.815,"endTime":1276.729,"body":"In Hill's case, the English judges decided by majority that it was necessary to prove"},{"startTime":1276.729,"endTime":1281.855,"body":"the actual mission of seed to establish that car knowledge had taken place."},{"startTime":1283.675,"endTime":1289.175,"body":"Hill's case involved rape of a woman, but the same principles applied to buggery."},{"startTime":1289.645,"endTime":1295.055,"body":"This obviously made prosecutions for buggery as opposed to attempted buggery difficult."},{"startTime":1296.045,"endTime":1302.843,"body":"This was reversed by section 15 of the offenses against a person's Act 1828, which"},{"startTime":1302.843,"endTime":1303.296,"body":"provided that proof of actually mission of seed was not required and that penetration was"},{"startTime":1303.296,"endTime":1310.095,"body":"sufficient."},{"startTime":1311.875,"endTime":1318.081,"body":"Not all sexual activity between men came within the definition of buggery in crown against"},{"startTime":1318.081,"endTime":1318.495,"body":"Jacobs."},{"startTime":1318.495,"endTime":1325.147,"body":"In 1817, the crown of courts cases reserved, held that man who had orally raped"},{"startTime":1325.147,"endTime":1328.695,"body":"a 7-year-old boy was not guilty of buggery."},{"startTime":1330.155,"endTime":1338.052,"body":"This case illustrates powerfully that buggery, the buggery law was not concerned with protecting children"},{"startTime":1338.052,"endTime":1340.685,"body":"or adults from sexual assault."},{"startTime":1341.965,"endTime":1348.885,"body":"Criminalization turned on the nature of the sex act not on whether it was consensual."},{"startTime":1350.275,"endTime":1359.645,"body":"Meanwhile, England exported the criminalization of gay intimacy and sex to its colonies abroad."},{"startTime":1360.345,"endTime":1367.231,"body":"The Indian penal code, which codified the criminal laws of India under the British RA,"},{"startTime":1367.231,"endTime":1370.445,"body":"was drafted by Thomas Bain Bain McCauley."},{"startTime":1371.345,"endTime":1376.765,"body":"He completed the work in 1837, but it did not come into force until 1860."},{"startTime":1377.595,"endTime":1382.285,"body":"Instead, using the term buggery, McCauley chose to use a new language."},{"startTime":1383.585,"endTime":1391.005,"body":"His original draft would've criminalized touch in a person intended to gratify unnatural lust."},{"startTime":1391.985,"endTime":1400.157,"body":"His original draft also distinguished between consensual and non-Consensual unnatural offenses both were to be"},{"startTime":1400.157,"endTime":1405.605,"body":"criminalized, but the latter were to be punished more severely."},{"startTime":1406.475,"endTime":1413.913,"body":"However, the final version that came into force in 1860 differed considerably from McCauley's draft"},{"startTime":1413.913,"endTime":1414.409,"body":"section 377 of the final code provided that quote, whoever voluntarily has carnal intercourse against"},{"startTime":1414.409,"endTime":1414.905,"body":"the order of nature with any man, woman, or animal shall be punished with imprisonment"},{"startTime":1414.905,"endTime":1415.401,"body":"for life or with imprisonment for a term which may extend to 10 years and"},{"startTime":1415.401,"endTime":1439.205,"body":"shall be liable to a fine"},{"startTime":1441.565,"endTime":1443.505,"body":"As human rights watch highlights."},{"startTime":1444.135,"endTime":1450.663,"body":"This version went back to the outlines of the old standards of buggery, replacing the"},{"startTime":1450.663,"endTime":1454.145,"body":"reference to touching with the criteria of penetration."},{"startTime":1454.755,"endTime":1461.68,"body":"There was still plenty of ambiguities, including the question of what had to be penetrated"},{"startTime":1461.68,"endTime":1463.065,"body":"and by what."},{"startTime":1463.725,"endTime":1469.551,"body":"On the other hand, the attempt to organize the offense around the axis of consent"},{"startTime":1469.551,"endTime":1471.105,"body":"stroke, non-consent was dropped."},{"startTime":1472.205,"endTime":1479.441,"body":"In principle, stipulating that the act had to be voluntary meant that the victim of"},{"startTime":1479.441,"endTime":1484.265,"body":"forcible car knowledge, knowledge, or intercourse could not be criminalized."},{"startTime":1485.525,"endTime":1491.425,"body":"But the other actor received the same punishment and was guilty of the same offense."},{"startTime":1491.815,"endTime":1506.856,"body":"Whether the act was forcible or not, section 377 was exported to many British colonies"},{"startTime":1506.856,"endTime":1509.865,"body":"back in England."},{"startTime":1510.845,"endTime":1516.505,"body":"The offenses against a person Act 1861 abolished the death penalty for buggery."},{"startTime":1517.175,"endTime":1521.785,"body":"Instead, a maximum penalty became penal servitude for life."},{"startTime":1522.335,"endTime":1528.745,"body":"However, major change to England's anti-gay laws came with the criminal amendment Act 1885."},{"startTime":1529.495,"endTime":1534.939,"body":"This act mainly concerned with protecting young girls by raising the age of consent for"},{"startTime":1534.939,"endTime":1535.665,"body":"heterosexual sex."},{"startTime":1536.095,"endTime":1545.075,"body":"However, liberal MP Henry Laber tabled an amendment to this act, the Laber amendment, which"},{"startTime":1545.075,"endTime":1549.865,"body":"criminalized gr acts of gross indecency between men."},{"startTime":1550.815,"endTime":1558.309,"body":"This was a much broader, albeit less serious crime and buggery, any kind of sexual"},{"startTime":1558.309,"endTime":1563.305,"body":"activity between men consensual or not, was now potentially punishable."},{"startTime":1565.205,"endTime":1574.273,"body":"The most famous person prosecuted under Labu share's amendment was of course Oscar Wilde, who"},{"startTime":1574.273,"endTime":1578.505,"body":"was convicted of this offense in 1895."},{"startTime":1579.245,"endTime":1584.775,"body":"So by the end of the 19th century, any kind of sex act between men"},{"startTime":1584.775,"endTime":1585.144,"body":"was potentially a criminal offense, regardless of their ages, whether it was committed in public"},{"startTime":1585.144,"endTime":1593.625,"body":"or private, and whether or not it was consensual."},{"startTime":1597.925,"endTime":1605.275,"body":"The Sexual Offenses Act 1956 reenacted the C criminalization of buggering and gross indecency between"},{"startTime":1605.275,"endTime":1605.765,"body":"men."},{"startTime":1605.875,"endTime":1613.706,"body":"However, in August, 1954, the department committee on homosexual offenses and prostitution had been appointed,"},{"startTime":1613.706,"endTime":1618.405,"body":"known as the Wolfing Dun committee after its chair."},{"startTime":1619.195,"endTime":1624.464,"body":"Part of the committee's terms of res reference was to consider the law and practice"},{"startTime":1624.464,"endTime":1624.815,"body":"relating to homosexual offenses and the treatment of persons convicted of such offenses by the"},{"startTime":1624.815,"endTime":1630.085,"body":"court."},{"startTime":1630.795,"endTime":1637.973,"body":"When the committee reported in September, 1957, it recommended that homosexual acts between consent and"},{"startTime":1637.973,"endTime":1640.845,"body":"adults in private should be decriminalized."},{"startTime":1642.225,"endTime":1647.885,"body":"It took another decade before the committee's recommendations were implemented."},{"startTime":1649.565,"endTime":1657.365,"body":"Ultimately, consensual gay sex in private between men over 21 was decriminalized by the sexual"},{"startTime":1657.365,"endTime":1665.165,"body":"offenses Act 1967 by a private member's bill introduced by labor back bencher Leah Abey."},{"startTime":1668.655,"endTime":1670.755,"body":"So what about sex between women?"},{"startTime":1672.485,"endTime":1679.74,"body":"There was never a specific criminal offense of Le lesbianism as such, but such offense"},{"startTime":1679.74,"endTime":1681.675,"body":"was very nearly introduced."},{"startTime":1683.175,"endTime":1688.851,"body":"In 1921, the House of Commons passed an amendment to the criminal law bill, which"},{"startTime":1688.851,"endTime":1692.635,"body":"would've criminalized any act of gross indecency between female persons."},{"startTime":1693.655,"endTime":1698.875,"body":"The clause was removed, moved from the bill by the House of Lords."},{"startTime":1700.095,"endTime":1706.963,"body":"Why you may wonder, well, the debate illustrates the extraordinarily homophobic attitudes of the British"},{"startTime":1706.963,"endTime":1708.795,"body":"elite at the time."},{"startTime":1711.585,"endTime":1718.611,"body":"One Earl apologized for raising the discussion upon what must be to all of us,"},{"startTime":1718.611,"endTime":1719.079,"body":"a most disgusting and polluting subject, and argue that the clause would increase the opportunities"},{"startTime":1719.079,"endTime":1719.548,"body":"for blackmail, that it would practically be impossible to obtain evidence, and that the more"},{"startTime":1719.548,"endTime":1738.285,"body":"you advertise vice by prohibiting it, the more you will increase it."},{"startTime":1739.985,"endTime":1746.024,"body":"The Earl of Disor similarly argued that the results of a prosecution would be appalling"},{"startTime":1746.024,"endTime":1746.427,"body":"in that it would be made public to thousands of people that there was this"},{"startTime":1746.427,"endTime":1755.285,"body":"offense and that there would be such horror."},{"startTime":1756.665,"endTime":1763.66,"body":"He added, how many people does one suppose are really so vile, so unbalanced, so"},{"startTime":1763.66,"endTime":1766.925,"body":"neurotic, so decant as to do this?"},{"startTime":1767.585,"endTime":1772.242,"body":"You may well say that a number of them, but it would at most be"},{"startTime":1772.242,"endTime":1773.485,"body":"an extremely small minority."},{"startTime":1774.225,"endTime":1778.622,"body":"Are you going to tell the whole world that there is such an offense to"},{"startTime":1778.622,"endTime":1778.915,"body":"bring it to the notice of women who've never heard of it, never thought of"},{"startTime":1778.915,"endTime":1784.485,"body":"it, never dreamed of it?"},{"startTime":1787.005,"endTime":1788.585,"body":"The Lord Chancellor asserted."},{"startTime":1789.905,"endTime":1797.04,"body":"I would be bold enough to say that of every thousand women taken as a"},{"startTime":1797.04,"endTime":1803.225,"body":"whole, 19 900, 999 have never even heard a whisper of these practices."},{"startTime":1807.895,"endTime":1815.592,"body":"Lesbianism was not specifically criminalized seemingly because the establishment feared that criminalizing it would raise"},{"startTime":1815.592,"endTime":1817.645,"body":"awareness of its existence."},{"startTime":1818.235,"endTime":1823.365,"body":"However, this does not mean that lesbians were free to of, of legal persecution."},{"startTime":1824.685,"endTime":1827.765,"body":"Radcliffe's Hall, groundbreaking lesbian novel."},{"startTime":1827.905,"endTime":1835.947,"body":"The well of Loneliness about female ambulance drivers in the First World War resulted in"},{"startTime":1835.947,"endTime":1839.165,"body":"the obscenity trial in November, 1928."},{"startTime":1839.665,"endTime":1845.085,"body":"The chief magistrate held the book to be so obscene and ordered it be destroyed."},{"startTime":1846.145,"endTime":1849.805,"body":"It was not published for the next 20 years."},{"startTime":1850.525,"endTime":1856.136,"body":"I mentioned this because it's important not to assume that lesbians had it easier than"},{"startTime":1856.136,"endTime":1856.885,"body":"gay men."},{"startTime":1857.495,"endTime":1861.805,"body":"Their experiences were different, but they too were persecuted."},{"startTime":1865.625,"endTime":1871.58,"body":"Uh, finally, before we come onto the Caribbean, I just want to look at the"},{"startTime":1871.58,"endTime":1873.565,"body":"persecution faced by trans people."},{"startTime":1877.115,"endTime":1880.685,"body":"It's important to look at the historical treatment of trans people."},{"startTime":1881.265,"endTime":1882.525,"body":"The historian Zoe."},{"startTime":1882.785,"endTime":1889.443,"body":"Um, Platon has uncovered the story of, um, Owen Forbes, a trans man born, born"},{"startTime":1889.443,"endTime":1889.887,"body":"to a aristocratic family,  Platon whose findings are summarized by, uh, Patrick, um, Strudwick"},{"startTime":1889.887,"endTime":1898.765,"body":"In an article for the eye."},{"startTime":1899.945,"endTime":1906.623,"body":"Up until the 1960s, trans people who had had gender confirmation surgery were permitted to"},{"startTime":1906.623,"endTime":1908.405,"body":"change their birth certificates."},{"startTime":1910.215,"endTime":1912.505,"body":"Ewan Forbes was one man to do so."},{"startTime":1913.365,"endTime":1920.968,"body":"The problem came in 1965 and Forbes's older brother died, and Forbes inherited a hereditary"},{"startTime":1920.968,"endTime":1926.545,"body":"bar, which could only be passed down to the male lying."},{"startTime":1927.465,"endTime":1933.145,"body":"A cousin challenged this succession based on the facts that Forbes was not male."},{"startTime":1935.445,"endTime":1942.904,"body":"In 1968 in secret proceedings, Forbes won the case and was declared the rightful holder"},{"startTime":1942.904,"endTime":1946.385,"body":"of the, and could become the barren."},{"startTime":1946.725,"endTime":1950.625,"body":"But Platon states that this caused a constitutional crisis."},{"startTime":1951.775,"endTime":1956.585,"body":"ASIC writes quote, the effect on trans people had already been dramatic."},{"startTime":1958.205,"endTime":1964.962,"body":"In 1970 April, Ashley, who had become the fir first well-known trans woman in Britain"},{"startTime":1964.962,"endTime":1965.413,"body":"after being outed by tabloid was seven years into her marriage to the as Astora"},{"startTime":1965.413,"endTime":1975.325,"body":"or Arthur Cor Corbett, but it was failing."},{"startTime":1975.505,"endTime":1981.136,"body":"Rather than divorce her and give her money, Corbett dis attempted to have the marriage"},{"startTime":1981.136,"endTime":1983.765,"body":"old as certain that she was male."},{"startTime":1984.465,"endTime":1990.596,"body":"The judge sided with the aristocrat and swore the lawyers to secrecy about the Forbes"},{"startTime":1990.596,"endTime":1991.005,"body":"trial."},{"startTime":1991.625,"endTime":1999.311,"body":"During the Ashley Case, the judge created a sex test, which authenticates her, says Platon"},{"startTime":1999.311,"endTime":1999.824,"body":"Ashley was subjected to the most invasive genital examinations imaginable twice be because after the"},{"startTime":1999.824,"endTime":2014.685,"body":"expert clinicians concluded she had a perfectly use usual vagina, the judge demanded, look again,"},{"startTime":2017.715,"endTime":2021.445,"body":"That judgment is Corbett against Corbett 1971."},{"startTime":2021.985,"endTime":2025.799,"body":"And that stood as the lead in authority on the mean of sex in English"},{"startTime":2025.799,"endTime":2027.325,"body":"law for more than three decades."},{"startTime":2027.435,"endTime":2033.063,"body":"Despite it, despite its transphobic nature, Mr. Justice Amrod held that la marriage of Corbett"},{"startTime":2033.063,"endTime":2034.565,"body":"and Ashley was void."},{"startTime":2035.025,"endTime":2041.513,"body":"In Sir Holden, he sought to define person sex in the eyes of law and"},{"startTime":2041.513,"endTime":2041.946,"body":"held that the law should adopt three tests, chromosomal factors, um, al factors and gen,"},{"startTime":2041.946,"endTime":2050.165,"body":"um, genital, uh, uh, factors."},{"startTime":2051.155,"endTime":2057.095,"body":"Accordingly, a trans person could not change their sex, uh, by taking hormones or have"},{"startTime":2057.095,"endTime":2058.284,"body":"gender reassignment surgery."},{"startTime":2059.235,"endTime":2063.405,"body":"This effectively didn't denied trans people any legal recognition at all."},{"startTime":2067.215,"endTime":2073.006,"body":"Three decades later when attitudes had changed somewhat, the matter came before the European Court"},{"startTime":2073.006,"endTime":2074.165,"body":"on human rights."},{"startTime":2074.505,"endTime":2079.146,"body":"In the case of Godwin against the United Kingdom, the applicant trans woman challenged the"},{"startTime":2079.146,"endTime":2079.456,"body":"failure of the UK law to allow her to change agenda on her birth certificate"},{"startTime":2079.456,"endTime":2085.645,"body":"to be recognized as a woman."},{"startTime":2086.594,"endTime":2090.605,"body":"This had numerous impacts on her, which were not limited to marriage."},{"startTime":2090.605,"endTime":2095.205,"body":"She was treated as a man for the purposes of social security, employment and pensions."},{"startTime":2095.715,"endTime":2099.645,"body":"This meant that her state pension age was 65 rather than 60."},{"startTime":2100.195,"endTime":2105.629,"body":"That just, that didn't just put her in a less advantageous position financially, but also"},{"startTime":2105.629,"endTime":2108.165,"body":"risked out in her to her employer."},{"startTime":2108.985,"endTime":2115.085,"body":"She was also sexually harassed at work and not being accorded adequate legal protection."},{"startTime":2115.855,"endTime":2121.246,"body":"Strasbourg held that the lack of legal recognition of her gender constituted the breach of"},{"startTime":2121.246,"endTime":2121.965,"body":"her rights."},{"startTime":2121.965,"endTime":2127.174,"body":"Under Article eight of the convention, the Right to Private and Family Life and Article"},{"startTime":2127.174,"endTime":2127.521,"body":"12, the Right to Marry and Found a Family shortly afterwards in Bellinger against Bellinger,"},{"startTime":2127.521,"endTime":2137.245,"body":"the House of Lords decided that Section 11 of the Match Money Causes Act."},{"startTime":2138.005,"endTime":2144.16,"body":"1973, which made a marriage void of parties were not respectively, male and female, was"},{"startTime":2144.16,"endTime":2149.085,"body":"incompatible with articles, uh, eight and 12, the rights of trans people."},{"startTime":2149.325,"endTime":2154.913,"body":"A declaration of incompatibility was made a declaration under the Human Rights Act, uh, which"},{"startTime":2154.913,"endTime":2155.286,"body":"does not change the law, but instead serves as a signal to parliament that it"},{"startTime":2155.286,"endTime":2162.365,"body":"needs to change the law."},{"startTime":2162.545,"endTime":2164.645,"body":"To bring it in line with the convention."},{"startTime":2165.535,"endTime":2167.405,"body":"Parliament did change the law."},{"startTime":2167.745,"endTime":2172.507,"body":"The Gender Recognition Act in 2004 allowed for trans people to obtain legal recognition of"},{"startTime":2172.507,"endTime":2175.365,"body":"the change of their gender for the first time."},{"startTime":2175.365,"endTime":2181.405,"body":"However, the two 2004 Act is rightly viewed as unsatisfactory by most trans people."},{"startTime":2182.415,"endTime":2185.165,"body":"Trans people can't change their legal gender."},{"startTime":2185.225,"endTime":2191.493,"body":"As of right, it's subject to a gender recognition panel, which decides whether or not"},{"startTime":2191.493,"endTime":2193.165,"body":"to permit the change."},{"startTime":2195.625,"endTime":2200.485,"body":"And, uh, medical diagnosis of gender dysphoria is required."},{"startTime":2204.955,"endTime":2205.845,"body":"It's intrusive."},{"startTime":2207.425,"endTime":2214.005,"body":"The situation is medicalized cumbersome, and it's a bureaucratic process."},{"startTime":2216.935,"endTime":2224.325,"body":"Let's come on to how these laws have been transferred to the Caribbean."},{"startTime":2230.555,"endTime":2233.715,"body":"Commonwealth Caribbean inherited the UK's anti-gay laws."},{"startTime":2235.855,"endTime":2239.955,"body":"The exact wording of statutes varies between jurisdictions."},{"startTime":2240.755,"endTime":2245.891,"body":"A 2018 report by Human Rights Watch gives a helpful overview of the laws in"},{"startTime":2245.891,"endTime":2249.315,"body":"the Eastern Caribbean at that time in the southern countries."},{"startTime":2249.315,"endTime":2252.675,"body":"Covered in this report, there is no consistent definition of buggery."},{"startTime":2252.895,"endTime":2257.53,"body":"All the penalties imposed Antigua and Bar Budda and Dominica define buggery as anal intercourse"},{"startTime":2257.53,"endTime":2257.839,"body":"by male person with a male person or by a male person with a female"},{"startTime":2257.839,"endTime":2262.475,"body":"person."},{"startTime":2263.545,"endTime":2265.635,"body":"Most countries, including Barbados, St."},{"startTime":2265.645,"endTime":2266.555,"body":"Lucia, St."},{"startTime":2266.555,"endTime":2272.967,"body":"Vincent, and the Grenadines leave it undefined, specifying only only the prison term to be"},{"startTime":2272.967,"endTime":2273.395,"body":"imposed."},{"startTime":2274.295,"endTime":2280.065,"body":"St Kit Nevus criminalizes sodomy and bestiality and defines the term by reference to the,"},{"startTime":2280.065,"endTime":2285.835,"body":"a vulnerable, uh, crime of buggery committed either by with mankind or with any animal."},{"startTime":2287.105,"endTime":2294.871,"body":"Grenada has the most open-ended provision, criminalizing unnatural connections, which is undefined and has been"},{"startTime":2294.871,"endTime":2295.388,"body":"interpreted in in the past case law to con include consensual anal intercourse between same-sex"},{"startTime":2295.388,"endTime":2303.155,"body":"persons."},{"startTime":2303.755,"endTime":2307.875,"body":"Barbados has the most severe punishment life imprisonment."},{"startTime":2308.715,"endTime":2314.632,"body":"Dominica grants the courts of power to order that the convicted person be admitted to"},{"startTime":2314.632,"endTime":2316.605,"body":"a psychiatric hospital for treatment."},{"startTime":2317.225,"endTime":2317.685,"body":"And St."},{"startTime":2317.715,"endTime":2324.525,"body":"Kitt Nevis allows the courts to add hard labor to the final judicial decision."},{"startTime":2326.185,"endTime":2328.205,"body":"As human rights watch rightly highlights."},{"startTime":2328.205,"endTime":2335.247,"body":"These laws do not distinguish between consensual or non-consensual sex, contrary to what is sometimes"},{"startTime":2335.247,"endTime":2337.125,"body":"asserted by Caribbean politicians."},{"startTime":2337.755,"endTime":2340.925,"body":"They're not about protecting people from rape."},{"startTime":2343.075,"endTime":2347.411,"body":"Some people define these laws by saying that consensual gay sex is really prosecuted in"},{"startTime":2347.411,"endTime":2349.725,"body":"the Caribbean, but that is not the point."},{"startTime":2350.985,"endTime":2357.789,"body":"As human rights watch says of Jamaica's laws against buggery and gross indecency quote, the"},{"startTime":2357.789,"endTime":2360.965,"body":"laws have a real and negative impact."},{"startTime":2361.285,"endTime":2368.251,"body":"Criminalized in sexual intimacy between gay between men offers legal sanctions to discrimination against sexual"},{"startTime":2368.251,"endTime":2369.645,"body":"and gender minorities."},{"startTime":2370.065,"endTime":2376.498,"body":"And in a context of widespread homophobia gives social sanctioned prejudice and helps to create"},{"startTime":2376.498,"endTime":2381.645,"body":"a context in which hostility and violence is directed against LGBT people."},{"startTime":2382.505,"endTime":2389.831,"body":"The laws have been used by the police to exhort extort money from adults engaged"},{"startTime":2389.831,"endTime":2390.319,"body":"in consensual homosexual sex by public television sta stations to justify refusal of, to air"},{"startTime":2390.319,"endTime":2390.807,"body":"public service announcements by making positive statements about LG BT persons and by landlords to"},{"startTime":2390.807,"endTime":2406.925,"body":"justify refusal to rent apartments."},{"startTime":2409.705,"endTime":2417.15,"body":"Though those arrested are really, if other prosecuted gay men are outed through arrest risk"},{"startTime":2417.15,"endTime":2417.646,"body":"violence and other abuse by community members, nor is it a gay men who are"},{"startTime":2417.646,"endTime":2426.085,"body":"targets human rights."},{"startTime":2426.165,"endTime":2433.622,"body":"Watch notes again in relation to Jamaica quote, while the law does not directly reference"},{"startTime":2433.622,"endTime":2434.119,"body":"transgender people, trans transgender women and homosexuals are often conflated gender non-conforming Jamaicans, especially transgender"},{"startTime":2434.119,"endTime":2434.616,"body":"women and gender non-conforming gay men who are publicly visible are the most likely to"},{"startTime":2434.616,"endTime":2450.525,"body":"suffer violence and discrimination."},{"startTime":2451.125,"endTime":2458.272,"body":"Same-sex relationships between women are not criminalized in Jamaica, however, lesbians and bisexual women are"},{"startTime":2458.272,"endTime":2462.085,"body":"stigmatized and subjected to violence, including sexual violence."},{"startTime":2465.625,"endTime":2471.156,"body":"From a legal perspective, there has been some real progress In the last few years"},{"startTime":2471.156,"endTime":2471.525,"body":"in a number of jurisdictions, the courts have struck down the criminalization of same sex"},{"startTime":2471.525,"endTime":2477.795,"body":"activities as unconstitutional."},{"startTime":2478.335,"endTime":2485.182,"body":"The Supreme Court ize held that the ize laws against unnatural carnal knowledge was unconstitutional"},{"startTime":2485.182,"endTime":2488.835,"body":"in the case of Caleb or Rose Co."},{"startTime":2488.905,"endTime":2493.92,"body":"Against the Attorney General, the high court in Trinidad and Tobago struck down laws against"},{"startTime":2493.92,"endTime":2494.254,"body":"buggery and Sir indecency in the case of Jason Jones against the Attorney General, the"},{"startTime":2494.254,"endTime":2494.588,"body":"high court of Barbados followed suit and Rene Hold and McLean Ramirez against the Attorney"},{"startTime":2494.588,"endTime":2504.285,"body":"General."},{"startTime":2505.305,"endTime":2511.005,"body":"The Eastern Caribbean High Court struck down the criminalization of buggery and attempted buggery in"},{"startTime":2511.005,"endTime":2511.765,"body":"sent kits."},{"startTime":2511.805,"endTime":2518.495,"body":"In the case of Jamal Jeffers and the criminalization of buggery in serious indecency in"},{"startTime":2518.495,"endTime":2518.941,"body":"anti and barbuda in the or David Case, anti-gay laws in the Commonwealth Caribbean are"},{"startTime":2518.941,"endTime":2526.525,"body":"falling like dominoes."},{"startTime":2527.675,"endTime":2534.183,"body":"Another judgment on LGBT rights, which I've mentioned in a previous lecture, is McEwen against"},{"startTime":2534.183,"endTime":2535.485,"body":"the Attorney General."},{"startTime":2535.995,"endTime":2541.276,"body":"That is a decision of the Caribbean Court of Justice in its capacity as the"},{"startTime":2541.276,"endTime":2542.685,"body":"highest court of Guyana."},{"startTime":2544.165,"endTime":2549.544,"body":"I talked in the previous lecture about how some, but not all Caribbean jurisdictions have"},{"startTime":2549.544,"endTime":2554.565,"body":"replaced the Privy Council with the Caribbean Court of Justice as the highest court."},{"startTime":2555.345,"endTime":2561.47,"body":"Now, the McEwen case concerns a group of trans people who arrested and prosecuted under"},{"startTime":2561.47,"endTime":2561.879,"body":"an archaic colonial law for wherein female attire in the public place for an improper"},{"startTime":2561.879,"endTime":2568.005,"body":"purpose."},{"startTime":2568.625,"endTime":2574.338,"body":"Extraordinarily the magistrate who sentenced them told 'em that they should go to church and"},{"startTime":2574.338,"endTime":2577.005,"body":"to give their lives to Jesus Christ."},{"startTime":2578.475,"endTime":2584.05,"body":"They brought a constitutional challenge, ultimately the Caribbean Court of Justice that held that the"},{"startTime":2584.05,"endTime":2585.165,"body":"statute was unconstitutional."},{"startTime":2585.905,"endTime":2591.325,"body":"In doing so, the court considered the history of the law against cross-dressing."},{"startTime":2593.865,"endTime":2600.178,"body":"The prohibition against cross-dressing for an improper person was enacted in Guyana in 1893 to"},{"startTime":2600.178,"endTime":2603.125,"body":"towards the end of the 19th century."},{"startTime":2604.225,"endTime":2608.205,"body":"The law was a part of a suite of laws enacted against vagrancy."},{"startTime":2608.495,"endTime":2613.853,"body":"These laws were passed in the post emancipation period, both in the Caribbean and in"},{"startTime":2613.853,"endTime":2614.925,"body":"the United States."},{"startTime":2615.145,"endTime":2621.388,"body":"To cope with the paradigm shift in the mode of production from slavery to free"},{"startTime":2621.388,"endTime":2621.805,"body":"labor."},{"startTime":2622.545,"endTime":2630.325,"body":"The laws were designed to regulate and exercise control of the both ex-slave population."},{"startTime":2630.545,"endTime":2639.067,"body":"And in places like Guyana, the newly imported indented laborers, the object was to curel"},{"startTime":2639.067,"endTime":2643.045,"body":"mobility to keep close to the plantations."},{"startTime":2643.175,"endTime":2647.885,"body":"Those whose labor was essential for continued exploitation."},{"startTime":2648.695,"endTime":2656.02,"body":"Legal coercion became indispensable to maintain an already source of cheap labor in the emerging"},{"startTime":2656.02,"endTime":2657.485,"body":"free labor system."},{"startTime":2658.105,"endTime":2666.148,"body":"The laws which also regulated gender and religion were rigorously enforced by the magistrates and"},{"startTime":2666.148,"endTime":2666.685,"body":"police."},{"startTime":2668.745,"endTime":2670.245,"body":"You see, this is hugely important."},{"startTime":2671.035,"endTime":2677.215,"body":"History highlights that the criminalization of LGBT people in Britain's car, uh, Caribbean colonies has"},{"startTime":2677.215,"endTime":2677.627,"body":"its roots in a system of colonial social control designed to serve the interest of"},{"startTime":2677.627,"endTime":2685.045,"body":"our former colonial masters."},{"startTime":2685.955,"endTime":2693.553,"body":"Many Caribbean politicians today suggest that LGBT rights are contrary to Caribbean values or even"},{"startTime":2693.553,"endTime":2699.125,"body":"a colonial imp, uh, or even a colonial imposition, but actually"},{"startTime":2701.335,"endTime":2709.605,"body":"Homophobic and transphobic laws which are colonial in positions."},{"startTime":2713.825,"endTime":2719.777,"body":"The court in McEwen went on to hold that the saving clause, and if you"},{"startTime":2719.777,"endTime":2720.174,"body":"dunno what saving clause is, do look back on my lecture on the Privy Council"},{"startTime":2720.174,"endTime":2731.285,"body":"of the Constitutional of Guyana did not save the colonial statute from being unconstitutional."},{"startTime":2732.035,"endTime":2736.398,"body":"I've already discussed this at length in previous lectures in the context of the death"},{"startTime":2736.398,"endTime":2738.725,"body":"penalty, so I won't repeat that discussion here."},{"startTime":2738.745,"endTime":2743.965,"body":"But in brief, saving clauses are found in many Commonwealth Caribbean's constitutions."},{"startTime":2743.965,"endTime":2750.822,"body":"There you vary widely in their scope, but to a greater or lesser extent, they"},{"startTime":2750.822,"endTime":2756.765,"body":"immunize from constitutional challenge laws, which existed before the commencement of the Constitution."},{"startTime":2757.105,"endTime":2763.315,"body":"And as I explained in the previous lecture, the Caribbean Court of Justice has in"},{"startTime":2763.315,"endTime":2769.525,"body":"recent years adopted a more limited interpretation of saving clauses than the the Privy Council."},{"startTime":2771.225,"endTime":2776.359,"body":"So we can see the winds of change are blowing in the Caribbean and the"},{"startTime":2776.359,"endTime":2780.125,"body":"laws which criminalize LGBT people are being struck down as unconstitutional."},{"startTime":2780.435,"endTime":2786.045,"body":"However, we are a long way from achieving equality."},{"startTime":2786.755,"endTime":2792.063,"body":"Just because LGBT people are no longer criminalized in some jurisdictions does not mean that"},{"startTime":2792.063,"endTime":2793.125,"body":"they're treated equally."},{"startTime":2793.995,"endTime":2800.765,"body":"Same sex marriage still remains illegal in the Commonwealth Caribbean and legal protections against discrimination"},{"startTime":2800.765,"endTime":2803.925,"body":"in employment and service provision or lacking."},{"startTime":2804.345,"endTime":2810.363,"body":"Nor has any commonwealth Caribbean country adopted laws allowing trans people to change their legal"},{"startTime":2810.363,"endTime":2810.765,"body":"gender."},{"startTime":2812.435,"endTime":2818.442,"body":"It's likely that were the matter to come before them, the Commonwealth Caribbean Court, they"},{"startTime":2818.442,"endTime":2820.845,"body":"would still follow the corbit judgment."},{"startTime":2823.385,"endTime":2828.685,"body":"And while the laws can change, changing culture takes a lot longer."},{"startTime":2829.415,"endTime":2835.817,"body":"Human rights watch have powerfully written that the about the experience of societal discrimination faced"},{"startTime":2835.817,"endTime":2838.805,"body":"by LGBT people in the Eastern Caribbean."},{"startTime":2839.025,"endTime":2846.525,"body":"The report states, quote, in St Kits, few LGBT people come out of the closet,"},{"startTime":2846.525,"endTime":2847.025,"body":"fearing the entire island will know gay people feel isolated in some fear, harassment and"},{"startTime":2847.025,"endTime":2857.525,"body":"violence beaten glass bottles thrown at them."},{"startTime":2858.075,"endTime":2864.721,"body":"Most of the men human rights watch spoke with on St Kits had seriously contemplated"},{"startTime":2864.721,"endTime":2865.165,"body":"suicide."},{"startTime":2867.195,"endTime":2873.442,"body":"They interviewed Rosa, a lesbian activist in St Kits, and as the report states, people"},{"startTime":2873.442,"endTime":2875.525,"body":"in Rosa's community on St."},{"startTime":2875.595,"endTime":2877.965,"body":"Kits didn't believe she's really a lesbian."},{"startTime":2878.235,"endTime":2884.685,"body":"They thought that because she was raped as a teenager, her fear of men made"},{"startTime":2884.685,"endTime":2889.845,"body":"her gay life and sink kits can be awful for gay men."},{"startTime":2889.915,"endTime":2894.823,"body":"They're frequently harassed, threatened, attacked, tossed out of their homes and abandoned by their family"},{"startTime":2894.823,"endTime":2895.805,"body":"for being gay."},{"startTime":2896.585,"endTime":2900.853,"body":"One time Rosa walked down the street with a gay man and a group of"},{"startTime":2900.853,"endTime":2902.845,"body":"guys were yelling insults at her friend."},{"startTime":2904.555,"endTime":2906.885,"body":"Life is not easy for transgender women either."},{"startTime":2907.355,"endTime":2912.476,"body":"Another friend of Rosa who'd lived openly as a trans woman in the United States,"},{"startTime":2912.476,"endTime":2914.525,"body":"but was deported back to St."},{"startTime":2914.655,"endTime":2917.765,"body":"Kit's, has had to dial it back."},{"startTime":2918.265,"endTime":2925.222,"body":"She said, end of quote, the report also interviewed Barry, a closet closeted gay man"},{"startTime":2925.222,"endTime":2928.005,"body":"serving in the Antiguan Police Force."},{"startTime":2929.175,"endTime":2933.885,"body":"Quote, most day, Barry hears his fellow officers making homophobic slurs."},{"startTime":2934.675,"endTime":2938.902,"body":"They say that gaze should be locked up, that they are nasty, that they don't"},{"startTime":2938.902,"endTime":2942.285,"body":"know how they could ki how a man could kiss a man."},{"startTime":2943.265,"endTime":2947.285,"body":"One supervisor called being gay an abomination."},{"startTime":2949.345,"endTime":2953.965,"body":"He also knows that some officers don't take crimes against LGBT people."},{"startTime":2953.995,"endTime":2959.282,"body":"Seriously, like the time a transgender friend of Barry was stabbed and badly wounded, the"},{"startTime":2959.282,"endTime":2961.045,"body":"police refused to help her."},{"startTime":2961.195,"endTime":2968.403,"body":"Instead behind her back, Barry heard her call, call her an anti-man, a derogatory term"},{"startTime":2968.403,"endTime":2969.365,"body":"and disgusting."},{"startTime":2969.755,"endTime":2975.898,"body":"Another friend, also a trans woman, was beaten so badly by policeman that she practically"},{"startTime":2975.898,"endTime":2978.765,"body":"lost her sight in her right eye."},{"startTime":2979.585,"endTime":2983.405,"body":"He was aware that if people knew he was gay, he could be attacked."},{"startTime":2984.385,"endTime":2988.901,"body":"He also feared eviction from his rented home, and he was afraid of what his"},{"startTime":2988.901,"endTime":2989.805,"body":"colleagues would think."},{"startTime":2990.055,"endTime":2996.076,"body":"Think of what they suspected, even though they show me respect in my presence when"},{"startTime":2996.076,"endTime":2998.485,"body":"my back is turned, they talk."},{"startTime":2998.745,"endTime":3006.987,"body":"He said, when Caribbean societies have changed and are changing and they remain predominantly Christian,"},{"startTime":3006.987,"endTime":3007.537,"body":"socially conservative, those of us who have platforms of influence need to use what power"},{"startTime":3007.537,"endTime":3020.725,"body":"we have to change the Caribbean culture for the better."},{"startTime":3021.225,"endTime":3027.408,"body":"For LGBT rights, we need to recognize that homophobia and transphobia Caribbean are hangover from"},{"startTime":3027.408,"endTime":3028.645,"body":"our colonial past."},{"startTime":3032.065,"endTime":3042.517,"body":"Uh, I want to just touch upon two things as I come close to the"},{"startTime":3042.517,"endTime":3045.305,"body":"end of my time."},{"startTime":3048.655,"endTime":3058.823,"body":"Despite the UK's government's vaunted c commitment to LGBT rights, same-sex marriages, note this, it's"},{"startTime":3058.823,"endTime":3059.501,"body":"not even legal, it all the UK's overseas territories in Bermuda and Cayman Islands, they"},{"startTime":3059.501,"endTime":3074.415,"body":"have civil partnerships, but not same sex marriage."},{"startTime":3074.975,"endTime":3082.085,"body":"Anguilla and the British Virgin Islands, monstra Turks and CCOs have no provisions for the"},{"startTime":3082.085,"endTime":3084.455,"body":"recognition of same sex relationships."},{"startTime":3085.585,"endTime":3088.815,"body":"There have been two unsuccessful constitutional challenges on the issue."},{"startTime":3089.365,"endTime":3094.79,"body":"Chantelle Day against the government of the Cayman Islands, the Privy Council held that the"},{"startTime":3094.79,"endTime":3100.215,"body":"lack of same sex marriage in the Caymans did not breach the Cayman Islands constitution."},{"startTime":3101.355,"endTime":3106.792,"body":"The court of Appeal in the same case declared that the absence of civil partnerships"},{"startTime":3106.792,"endTime":3110.055,"body":"for same-sex couples was unconstitutional, which was not appealed."},{"startTime":3110.055,"endTime":3116.584,"body":"And in response, the claim and parliament passed the civil partnership law, which allowed for"},{"startTime":3116.584,"endTime":3117.455,"body":"civil partnerships."},{"startTime":3117.525,"endTime":3122.495,"body":"However, the appellants appealed to the Privy Council on the issue of marriage and lost."},{"startTime":3123.285,"endTime":3130.26,"body":"Similarly in the Attorney General against, uh, of Bermuda against Roderick Ferguson, the Domestic Partnership"},{"startTime":3130.26,"endTime":3131.655,"body":"Act of 2018."},{"startTime":3131.675,"endTime":3137.603,"body":"And Bermuda, which legalizes domestic partnerships the same sex couples, but denied them, the right"},{"startTime":3137.603,"endTime":3139.975,"body":"to marry was upheld as constitutional."},{"startTime":3141.615,"endTime":3147.327,"body":"I I can see how that the UK government might understandably be reluctant to override"},{"startTime":3147.327,"endTime":3151.135,"body":"the wishes of the local parliaments for their overseas territories."},{"startTime":3151.465,"endTime":3155.455,"body":"Doing so might well be regarded as a con colonial imposition,"},{"startTime":3157.395,"endTime":3163.963,"body":"But the UK government has no com compunction to about overriding local legislature when it"},{"startTime":3163.963,"endTime":3170.095,"body":"comes to issues as imp when, when, when they thinks the issue is important."},{"startTime":3170.595,"endTime":3178.505,"body":"So for instance, in 2022, the UK government vetoed the bill passed by Bermuda that"},{"startTime":3178.505,"endTime":3180.615,"body":"would've legalized recreational cannabis."},{"startTime":3181.885,"endTime":3189.777,"body":"This shows the priorities of the current government, its willingness to impose its will on"},{"startTime":3189.777,"endTime":3190.303,"body":"overseas territories in its continued failed war on drugs, but not to extend the rights"},{"startTime":3190.303,"endTime":3199.775,"body":"of same sex couples."},{"startTime":3200.795,"endTime":3202.935,"body":"So let me conclude this lecture."},{"startTime":3205.785,"endTime":3209.205,"body":"It is evident that a significant transformation is imperative."},{"startTime":3209.425,"endTime":3216.973,"body":"The Commonwealth, um, Caribbean jurisdictions persisting with arcade laws criminalizing buggery, gross in decency or"},{"startTime":3216.973,"endTime":3222.005,"body":"similar offenses, I think without reservation, should undertake the repeal."},{"startTime":3222.985,"endTime":3229.085,"body":"Courts in their role as guardians of justice should persist in striking down down these"},{"startTime":3229.085,"endTime":3229.491,"body":"laws as unconstitutional, recognizing their roots and the legacy of social control imposed by our"},{"startTime":3229.491,"endTime":3236.405,"body":"former colonial masters."},{"startTime":3237.115,"endTime":3244.039,"body":"Crafted not for the benefit of Caribbean people, but to serve imperial interests while advocating"},{"startTime":3244.039,"endTime":3244.5,"body":"for the dismantling of these legal barriers is essential to broaden our vision, uh, for"},{"startTime":3244.5,"endTime":3244.962,"body":"the future of LGBT rights in the Caribbean campaigning for progressive change, including the introduction"},{"startTime":3244.962,"endTime":3262.965,"body":"of same-sex marriages, legal protection against discrimination employment and service provision."},{"startTime":3263.385,"endTime":3268.885,"body":"The opportunity for trans individuals to change their gender, their legal gender is paramount."},{"startTime":3269.055,"endTime":3276.667,"body":"These legal amendment meant, I feel, are vital to address systemic inequalities that persist in"},{"startTime":3276.667,"endTime":3279.205,"body":"the shadow of outdated legislation."},{"startTime":3280.315,"endTime":3287.125,"body":"However, the transformation sort goes beyond the confines of legal frameworks."},{"startTime":3287.995,"endTime":3295.88,"body":"There's a more arduous journey of cultural change and legislation alone may not be suffice"},{"startTime":3295.88,"endTime":3303.765,"body":"in the eradicating, deeply ingrained prejudices leading to the persecution faced by LGBT individuals today."},{"startTime":3304.625,"endTime":3312.005,"body":"It requires a collective effort to challenge societal norms, fostering, understanding, empathy, and acceptance."},{"startTime":3313.395,"endTime":3320.985,"body":"It's a call for action to activists, policy makers, citizens alike, to contribute to that"},{"startTime":3320.985,"endTime":3326.045,"body":"cultural shift where diversity is not only tolerated but celebrated."},{"startTime":3327.325,"endTime":3333.061,"body":"Changing hearts and minds is going to be an ongoing process and one that necess"},{"startTime":3333.061,"endTime":3336.885,"body":"states open dialogue, education, and commitment to dismantling ingrained biases."},{"startTime":3338.645,"endTime":3346.945,"body":"Ultimately, our shared aspiration is for LGBT individuals in the Commonwealth Caribbean to genuinely, uh,"},{"startTime":3346.945,"endTime":3355.245,"body":"relish equal rights, rights free from persecution, discrimination, and the shutters of this colonial past."},{"startTime":3356.945,"endTime":3363.387,"body":"So may this journey towards equality be marked not only with legal reforms, but a"},{"startTime":3363.387,"endTime":3365.965,"body":"profound shift in societal act attitudes."},{"startTime":3367.465,"endTime":3369.565,"body":"Let me finish with two quotes."},{"startTime":3371.235,"endTime":3377.143,"body":"Firstly, I want to go back to our anonymous hero at the beginning, the quote"},{"startTime":3377.143,"endTime":3377.536,"body":"that I started with from that, that was from a Guardian article by the way,"},{"startTime":3377.536,"endTime":3383.445,"body":"quote."},{"startTime":3386.865,"endTime":3392.365,"body":"But today, 25 years later, I'm seeing a change."},{"startTime":3393.305,"endTime":3397.788,"body":"Social media has helped young gay men and women in the Caribbean to know they"},{"startTime":3397.788,"endTime":3398.685,"body":"are not alone."},{"startTime":3399.955,"endTime":3406.74,"body":"Amazing advocacy groups are increasingly pop popping up in Barbados, Jamaica Guyana, who are demanding"},{"startTime":3406.74,"endTime":3413.525,"body":"that gay men and women have a voice and a right to be treated equally."},{"startTime":3415.355,"endTime":3419.645,"body":"There's a pond of role models, is slowly deepening."},{"startTime":3420.265,"endTime":3427.45,"body":"We see ministers and diplomatic representatives, media spokespeople and doctors, artists and teachers increasingly being"},{"startTime":3427.45,"endTime":3430.325,"body":"less guarded about who they are."},{"startTime":3431.345,"endTime":3432.845,"body":"We see people finding love."},{"startTime":3434.565,"endTime":3440.25,"body":"I have seen boys and girls, I've grown up with part of the survival mode,"},{"startTime":3440.25,"endTime":3442.525,"body":"clan, living happily with their partners."},{"startTime":3443.385,"endTime":3446.725,"body":"I'm getting an increasing number of invitation to weddings."},{"startTime":3447.725,"endTime":3452.858,"body":"Weddings growing up, we were never even allowed to think of ourselves that such a"},{"startTime":3452.858,"endTime":3453.885,"body":"thing was possible."},{"startTime":3455.465,"endTime":3458.925,"body":"But two things are consistent."},{"startTime":3459.785,"endTime":3466.46,"body":"One, to find this love and survival, the vast majority of these brilliant, creative, passionate"},{"startTime":3466.46,"endTime":3468.685,"body":"souls have left the Caribbean."},{"startTime":3469.465,"endTime":3474.932,"body":"And two, although social media has connected those of us who thought we were unconnected,"},{"startTime":3474.932,"endTime":3475.296,"body":"it is also given the voice to the cowardly and the ignorant read the comment"},{"startTime":3475.296,"endTime":3475.661,"body":"section of this art of any article on the topic of homosexuality in the Caribbean"},{"startTime":3475.661,"endTime":3487.325,"body":"at your own risk."},{"startTime":3488.985,"endTime":3491.885,"body":"But these people are not on the right side of history."},{"startTime":3492.545,"endTime":3497.405,"body":"The younger generation is increasingly more accept and able to think for themselves."},{"startTime":3498.225,"endTime":3504.162,"body":"My hope is that this free thinking will lead them on a path not the"},{"startTime":3504.162,"endTime":3507.725,"body":"to the dreaded tolerance, but to acceptance of equality."},{"startTime":3508.505,"endTime":3512.565,"body":"For me, I've just celebrated my 12th anniversary of my partner."},{"startTime":3513.345,"endTime":3515.365,"body":"My parents are my best friends."},{"startTime":3515.825,"endTime":3520.91,"body":"Having embraced my truth and embraced my partner, I silently work to push for equality"},{"startTime":3520.91,"endTime":3522.605,"body":"at every stage I can."},{"startTime":3523.085,"endTime":3525.325,"body":"I am no longer in survival mode."},{"startTime":3525.955,"endTime":3529.765,"body":"Well, not a hundred percent like my home country."},{"startTime":3530.005,"endTime":3533.365,"body":"I still have a way to go, but I'm on the right route."},{"startTime":3536.465,"endTime":3544.597,"body":"And finally, love is the only force capable of transform, forming an enemy into a"},{"startTime":3544.597,"endTime":3545.139,"body":"friend in our journey for equality, let love be our guide, breaking down barriers and"},{"startTime":3545.139,"endTime":3556.525,"body":"illuminating the path to acceptance for all."},{"startTime":3557.545,"endTime":3559.405,"body":"Bayard Rustin."},{"startTime":3559.975,"endTime":3560.405,"body":"Thank you."},{"startTime":3565.335,"endTime":3566.365,"body":"Thank you very much, Leslie."},{"startTime":3566.785,"endTime":3571.347,"body":"Um, I'm able on this machine to gather a variety of questions that have come"},{"startTime":3571.347,"endTime":3574.085,"body":"in from online as well as in the room."},{"startTime":3574.945,"endTime":3579.245,"body":"And there's some that have very grouped together with a a similar question."},{"startTime":3579.265,"endTime":3585.33,"body":"So I'll start with one of those, which is that you started with the laws"},{"startTime":3585.33,"endTime":3585.735,"body":"that were imposed from the colonial era, but you haven't actually told us what the"},{"startTime":3585.735,"endTime":3595.845,"body":"attitudes were to LGBT community and people pre the colonial era."},{"startTime":3597.505,"endTime":3599.525,"body":"Can you expand on that at all?"},{"startTime":3601.035,"endTime":3601.325,"body":"Yeah."},{"startTime":3602.065,"endTime":3613.476,"body":"In my research on this, it's interesting because, um, there are certain other European colonial"},{"startTime":3613.476,"endTime":3622.605,"body":"countries that had a greater tolerance of, um, gay couples, gay relationships."},{"startTime":3623.665,"endTime":3633.215,"body":"Um, and indeed some of my research seemed to indicate that prior to, uh, you"},{"startTime":3633.215,"endTime":3633.851,"body":"know, um, the, some of the worst horrors of slavery, certainly certain, um, peoples from"},{"startTime":3633.851,"endTime":3650.405,"body":"Africa had a great deal of tolerance for, um, same sex relationships."},{"startTime":3650.505,"endTime":3659.302,"body":"And I found that, I found that fascinating, that it very much appeared to be"},{"startTime":3659.302,"endTime":3659.888,"body":"a, um, European, um, imposition on people of color in relation to, you know, the,"},{"startTime":3659.888,"endTime":3670.445,"body":"these, uh, regressive laws."},{"startTime":3671.905,"endTime":3675.565,"body":"But I didn't research that in a great deal."},{"startTime":3675.765,"endTime":3680.526,"body":"I concentrated on the laws as, as opposed to, you know, the, the history because"},{"startTime":3680.526,"endTime":3680.843,"body":"this is a meant to be a legal lecture as opposed to a history le"},{"startTime":3680.843,"endTime":3685.605,"body":"lecture."},{"startTime":3685.745,"endTime":3688.405,"body":"So that, that's as far, uh, as I can take that"},{"startTime":3688.825,"endTime":3694.362,"body":"The, um, rules, the the laws that were imposed by our pre, uh, through the"},{"startTime":3694.362,"endTime":3697.685,"body":"colonial government that we were running at the time."},{"startTime":3697.845,"endTime":3705.42,"body":"I guess, um, how much of that was mirrored by what churches felt, what religion"},{"startTime":3705.42,"endTime":3705.925,"body":"felt?"},{"startTime":3705.925,"endTime":3711.788,"body":"So we looked out to attitudes in Africa, for example, to LGBT rights, which seemed"},{"startTime":3711.788,"endTime":3714.525,"body":"to be significantly driven by church communities."},{"startTime":3714.595,"endTime":3714.885,"body":"Yeah."},{"startTime":3715.105,"endTime":3719.746,"body":"Was there any evidence of that happening at the same time as the colonial imposition"},{"startTime":3719.746,"endTime":3720.365,"body":"from England?"},{"startTime":3721.425,"endTime":3727.645,"body":"Uh, you know, the situation is really nuanced and complicated."},{"startTime":3728.565,"endTime":3736.444,"body":"I think the question that you have to, so firstly, I I I don't know"},{"startTime":3736.444,"endTime":3736.969,"body":"specifically, but if I was to have an intelligent guess at this, what I would"},{"startTime":3736.969,"endTime":3737.495,"body":"say is there was a, a really strong connection between the church and colonial masters"},{"startTime":3737.495,"endTime":3738.02,"body":"who were landowners because as I touch upon, uh, in, in my talk, a lot"},{"startTime":3738.02,"endTime":3764.285,"body":"of the control was tied to the land."},{"startTime":3765.865,"endTime":3771.171,"body":"And uh, uh, you know, uh, I suppose it's as far as I can take"},{"startTime":3771.171,"endTime":3771.525,"body":"that."},{"startTime":3772.575,"endTime":3774.725,"body":"Let's, um, take some questions from the floor."},{"startTime":3774.785,"endTime":3776.845,"body":"We have one just to your right there."},{"startTime":3777.135,"endTime":3777.925,"body":"Thank you very much."},{"startTime":3778.585,"endTime":3778.805,"body":"Hi."},{"startTime":3778.825,"endTime":3785.169,"body":"Um, it took a very well, um, presented talk and I learned a lot this"},{"startTime":3785.169,"endTime":3790.245,"body":"evening about the legislative background and the historic background in the uk."},{"startTime":3790.745,"endTime":3796.805,"body":"Um, it took under the sixties for the law to change attitudes."},{"startTime":3796.875,"endTime":3798.805,"body":"Took many more years to change."},{"startTime":3799.605,"endTime":3804.366,"body":"A new generation had to grow up and realize, you know, what things were and"},{"startTime":3804.366,"endTime":3804.683,"body":"how things really, you know, how people were in real life rather than pretending to"},{"startTime":3804.683,"endTime":3809.445,"body":"be."},{"startTime":3810.315,"endTime":3816.619,"body":"What I want to know is the education system took a long time and much"},{"startTime":3816.619,"endTime":3817.039,"body":"a greater period of time to change, to be enlightened, to, to teach, uh, children,"},{"startTime":3817.039,"endTime":3825.445,"body":"to be enlightened about their sexuality."},{"startTime":3826.185,"endTime":3830.216,"body":"Has that been occurring in the Caribbean or is that, are we still awaiting that"},{"startTime":3830.216,"endTime":3830.485,"body":"change?"},{"startTime":3831.725,"endTime":3834.645,"body":"I would say we are still awaited that change."},{"startTime":3835.785,"endTime":3845.365,"body":"Um, that there are still, this topic really sparks strong feelings."},{"startTime":3846.625,"endTime":3849.845,"body":"Not everybody welcomes this discussion."},{"startTime":3850.985,"endTime":3860.007,"body":"And uh, you know, you just need to look at some, some popular culture, you"},{"startTime":3860.007,"endTime":3860.609,"body":"know, the dance hall music, um, from some of the Caribbean islands where, you know,"},{"startTime":3860.609,"endTime":3875.045,"body":"really homophobic transphobic lyrics which are, um, repeated and tolerated."},{"startTime":3876.085,"endTime":3880.305,"body":"Um, there there is a strong sense of morality."},{"startTime":3881.465,"endTime":3884.225,"body":"I question whose morality, but you understand what I mean."},{"startTime":3885.445,"endTime":3895.279,"body":"And, uh, politicians see this as a popular cause, um, to jump on at, um,"},{"startTime":3895.279,"endTime":3900.525,"body":"you know, when there, when there's an election."},{"startTime":3901.785,"endTime":3909.613,"body":"So gay rights are very much an unpopular in the minority and the, you know,"},{"startTime":3909.613,"endTime":3910.135,"body":"the, the voices who are calling for these rights are still very much, um, the"},{"startTime":3910.135,"endTime":3918.485,"body":"quieter voices."},{"startTime":3919.475,"endTime":3920.685,"body":"Does that answer your question?"},{"startTime":3921.065,"endTime":3921.285,"body":"Yes."},{"startTime":3921.675,"endTime":3921.965,"body":"It's"},{"startTime":3921.965,"endTime":3922.285,"body":"A shame."},{"startTime":3922.665,"endTime":3926.845,"body":"It is a shame, but things are changing."},{"startTime":3927.025,"endTime":3934.406,"body":"And what I want to get across is even though there is a degree of"},{"startTime":3934.406,"endTime":3934.898,"body":"populism, um, which is regressive the courts, particularly the, uh, some of the higher courts"},{"startTime":3934.898,"endTime":3935.39,"body":"that there, there have been some great decisions which have been paving the way which,"},{"startTime":3935.39,"endTime":3953.105,"body":"which, which is good, which is really good."},{"startTime":3954.405,"endTime":3957.345,"body":"So can can I bring you back to another legal point?"},{"startTime":3957.525,"endTime":3963.225,"body":"So you're making a very passionate case for law reform or better interpretation of the"},{"startTime":3963.225,"endTime":3964.745,"body":"laws which exist elsewhere."},{"startTime":3965.685,"endTime":3971.01,"body":"But are you, how do you shift the dial, presumably if you want to, we"},{"startTime":3971.01,"endTime":3975.625,"body":"still have some control through the Privy Council over some of these setups."},{"startTime":3975.765,"endTime":3980.159,"body":"So do you push it from here, in which case you are almost recreating a"},{"startTime":3980.159,"endTime":3980.745,"body":"colonial legacy?"},{"startTime":3981.445,"endTime":3985.407,"body":"Or do you have to wait for it to emerge from there with people appealing"},{"startTime":3985.407,"endTime":3987.785,"body":"through what looks like an archaic legal system structure?"},{"startTime":3987.785,"endTime":3988.065,"body":"Well,"},{"startTime":3988.095,"endTime":3994.316,"body":"Well the, the, I do encourage everybody, if you haven't seen my lecture on the"},{"startTime":3994.316,"endTime":3994.731,"body":"Privy Council, I do, I do invite 'cause it, it's on the death penalty, but"},{"startTime":3994.731,"endTime":3995.146,"body":"there is a connection between these rights and, and the death penalty and the sadden"},{"startTime":3995.146,"endTime":4007.175,"body":"clause."},{"startTime":4007.995,"endTime":4014.118,"body":"The problem with the way that the Privy Council has, has interpreted the, um, the"},{"startTime":4014.118,"endTime":4014.935,"body":"saving clause."},{"startTime":4014.935,"endTime":4018.095,"body":"This has been re quite restrictive."},{"startTime":4018.725,"endTime":4025.784,"body":"They, and, and that part partly that has been because, um, many of the Caribbean"},{"startTime":4025.784,"endTime":4026.254,"body":"countries have said, you know, the Privy Council is a, a, a legacy from the"},{"startTime":4026.254,"endTime":4034.255,"body":"former colonial past."},{"startTime":4035.435,"endTime":4041.455,"body":"And that has led to, this is my interpretation, it's not necessarily right, but it's"},{"startTime":4041.455,"endTime":4041.856,"body":"my opinion that that has led to the Privy Council taken a more stand back"},{"startTime":4041.856,"endTime":4053.095,"body":"position and, and allow and allowing the sa clauses not striking down savings clauses."},{"startTime":4053.445,"endTime":4059.695,"body":"Whereas the Caribbean Court of Justice, which is, which some of the Caribbean islands have"},{"startTime":4059.695,"endTime":4064.695,"body":"signed up to, so they no longer use the Privy councilors there."},{"startTime":4065.045,"endTime":4071.623,"body":"Highest appeal court has been much more radical in, in striking down many of these"},{"startTime":4071.623,"endTime":4074.255,"body":"cases and striking down saving clauses."},{"startTime":4074.715,"endTime":4080.002,"body":"And remember, saving Clause says that if this was the law, if if something was"},{"startTime":4080.002,"endTime":4083.175,"body":"the law before the Constitution, then it's very difficult."},{"startTime":4083.175,"endTime":4087.655,"body":"Unless the Constitution specifically says it's to be struck down."},{"startTime":4087.685,"endTime":4094.069,"body":"It's very difficult to say that that law, the pre constitutional law should not be"},{"startTime":4094.069,"endTime":4094.495,"body":"followed."},{"startTime":4095.305,"endTime":4100.915,"body":"And the, um, Caribbean Court of Appeal has been much more radical in striking down"},{"startTime":4100.915,"endTime":4105.404,"body":"these saving clauses, whereas the Privy Council has been more stand back."},{"startTime":4105.984,"endTime":4113.078,"body":"We don't want to be looked seen as a colonial court imposing our will, even"},{"startTime":4113.078,"endTime":4113.551,"body":"though, you know, you have the Supreme Court, same judges with different hats on sitting"},{"startTime":4113.551,"endTime":4114.024,"body":"in the Privy Council come to contrary decisions for, you know, um, laws in the"},{"startTime":4114.024,"endTime":4131.524,"body":"U United Kingdom and laws in the, um, Commonwealth."},{"startTime":4132.095,"endTime":4132.444,"body":"Hello."},{"startTime":4132.654,"endTime":4133.524,"body":"Thank you very much."},{"startTime":4133.555,"endTime":4134.805,"body":"That was super interesting."},{"startTime":4135.064,"endTime":4139.514,"body":"And um, I loved how you eloquently described the impact on the laws of everybody"},{"startTime":4139.514,"endTime":4140.404,"body":"in the Caribbean."},{"startTime":4140.965,"endTime":4143.984,"body":"I do have a question, but the first thing I'm gonna say is Lexi and"},{"startTime":4143.984,"endTime":4144.185,"body":"I, here we are filmmakers and we are making a feature documentary on this very"},{"startTime":4144.185,"endTime":4147.205,"body":"topic."},{"startTime":4147.705,"endTime":4150.085,"body":"So we'd love your support and we're also looking for funding."},{"startTime":4150.185,"endTime":4153.745,"body":"So if you've got really deep pockets, please come and speak to us afterwards, but"},{"startTime":4153.745,"endTime":4155.645,"body":"also just come and chat to us anyway."},{"startTime":4156.265,"endTime":4160.676,"body":"So my question is what are the ways in which we can all other than"},{"startTime":4160.676,"endTime":4164.205,"body":"we can support the cause globally other than through helping our film?"},{"startTime":4165.575,"endTime":4165.925,"body":"Great,"},{"startTime":4165.935,"endTime":4166.365,"body":"Thank you."},{"startTime":4168.604,"endTime":4168.885,"body":"Absolutely."},{"startTime":4169.005,"endTime":4170.045,"body":"Fantastic question."},{"startTime":4171.325,"endTime":4178.675,"body":"I, I think, um, one of the main things that, um, those who wish to"},{"startTime":4178.675,"endTime":4183.085,"body":"help activists is to join up with local groups."},{"startTime":4183.875,"endTime":4189.033,"body":"What you, the one thing you don't want to do, one thing that's really difficult,"},{"startTime":4189.033,"endTime":4189.377,"body":"um, and I think is damaging to the cause, and I was trying to touch"},{"startTime":4189.377,"endTime":4189.721,"body":"upon this right at the very beginning of the talk, and that is to come"},{"startTime":4189.721,"endTime":4190.065,"body":"as if we know it all, we are right, we are, we are imposing, we're"},{"startTime":4190.065,"endTime":4205.885,"body":"right, you are wrong."},{"startTime":4207.225,"endTime":4210.565,"body":"Um, get out of the way we're talking progress."},{"startTime":4210.665,"endTime":4216.405,"body":"You dunno what you're talking about because that smacks of a new colonialism."},{"startTime":4217.025,"endTime":4218.045,"body":"Am I making sense?"},{"startTime":4219.065,"endTime":4220.285,"body":"So it is much better."},{"startTime":4221.205,"endTime":4226.581,"body":"I I in fact, when I was doing the research for this lecture, I came"},{"startTime":4226.581,"endTime":4230.165,"body":"across an article whereby, uh, this very issue was discussed."},{"startTime":4230.305,"endTime":4231.125,"body":"How can we help?"},{"startTime":4232.025,"endTime":4240.656,"body":"And local activists were saying, you know, we understand the dynamics, we understand our politicians,"},{"startTime":4240.656,"endTime":4244.685,"body":"we understand how our religious leaders think."},{"startTime":4245.265,"endTime":4250.015,"body":"And we were taken an approach and then, and we were bringing our litigation in"},{"startTime":4250.015,"endTime":4250.965,"body":"a particular way."},{"startTime":4251.825,"endTime":4260.322,"body":"And outside groups came in as friends of the court, you know, a MICUs took"},{"startTime":4260.322,"endTime":4260.888,"body":"over, didn't listen to our voices and messed it up and put our calls back"},{"startTime":4260.888,"endTime":4272.785,"body":"years because there is a sensitivity there."},{"startTime":4272.795,"endTime":4277.85,"body":"There really is a sensitivity about the global North knowing everything from the global south"},{"startTime":4277.85,"endTime":4278.525,"body":"being ignorant."},{"startTime":4278.705,"endTime":4280.565,"body":"And we have to be cognizant of that."},{"startTime":4281.065,"endTime":4286.874,"body":"And I, and in a way I see that because I practice here and I"},{"startTime":4286.874,"endTime":4287.261,"body":"practice there, uh, and unfortunately because \u003claugh\u003e, because I was born in this country, I"},{"startTime":4287.261,"endTime":4293.845,"body":"speak like this."},{"startTime":4294.345,"endTime":4298.95,"body":"So when I'm there, the, as soon as I open my mouth, there's a degree"},{"startTime":4298.95,"endTime":4299.565,"body":"of suspicion."},{"startTime":4299.685,"endTime":4306.02,"body":"I might look like the people in the Caribbean, but they can tell immediately I'm"},{"startTime":4306.02,"endTime":4306.865,"body":"an outsider."},{"startTime":4306.865,"endTime":4311.305,"body":"There's a, you know, you've got to prove yourself."},{"startTime":4312.545,"endTime":4314.625,"body":"I hope that makes sense, what I'm trying to say."},{"startTime":4316.615,"endTime":4317.085,"body":"Thank you."},{"startTime":4317.585,"endTime":4320.565,"body":"We have to give you, get you to give this lecture in Patua next time."},{"startTime":4321.485,"endTime":4326.485,"body":"\u003claugh\u003e."},{"startTime":4321.905,"endTime":4326.765,"body":"Um, ladies and gentlemen, please join me in thanking those, Thomas for a wonderful lecture."}]}