Understanding and reducing sexual prejudice in Jamaica: Theoretical and practical insights from a severely anti-gay society

Jamaica has earned an international reputation for severe sexual prejudice: perhaps disproportionately so compared to other severely anti-LGBT societies. Until recently, however, no quantitative empirical research had investigated Jamaica’s sexual prejudice, leaving the prejudice poorly understood and methods of reducing it unclear. This article reviews the past 15 years of empirical research on Jamaican anti-LGBT prejudice. It situates Jamaica within the global context, explains the current understanding of the severity and nature of the problem, evaluates solutions currently being explored and suggests promising strategies based on available evidence. Importantly, this article also reflects on lessons learned from Jamaica that are relevant for other severely anti-LGBT societies

Must Land Reform Benefit the Victims of Colonialism?

Appealing to African values associated with ubuntu such as communion and reconciliation, elsewhere I have argued that they require compensating those who have been wronged in ways that are likely to improve their lives. In the context of land reform, I further contended that this principle probably entails not transferring unjustly acquired land en masse and immediately to dispossessed populations since doing so would foreseeably lead to such things as capital flight and food shortages, which would harm them and the broader society. Oritsegbubemi Anthony Oyowe has recently argued against my claim that land reform should be enacted in a way expected to benefit victims of colonialism while not greatly burdening innocent third parties, instead supporting the return of land to its rightful owners regardless of how the manner in which it were done would affect people’s quality of life. Here I expound Oyowe’s argumentation and respond to it in defence of my initial position, appealing to examples from southern Africa to illustrate

Developing Student Engagement in China Through Collaborative Action Research

As its market and society open up, China has transformed itself from a closed agrarian socialist economy to an urban state and an economic force. This has released accumulated tourism demand, led to the development of a diversified industry, and the spread of university and vocational courses in this field. However, the industry faces challenges to recruit and retain staff, with tourism education in higher education blamed for the shortfall in numbers and quality of candidates with suitable purpose, knowledge, and passion to serve. This chapter provides a background to the development of and problems facing tourism education in China, and suggests how to support student engagement and hence the future workforce

Jamaica, Three Years Later: Effects of Intensified Pro-Gay Activism on Severe Prejudice Against Lesbians and Gay Men

Jamaica has developed an international reputation for severe anti-gay prejudice. However, in the past few years, between 2012 and 2015, intensified waves of activism have increased the visibility of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) Jamaicans, and supported their social and legal inclusion in Jamaican society. This research investigated the effects of that activism by taking advantage of two large, representative surveys of Jamaicans' attitudes toward lesbians and gay men: one in 2012 and one in 2015. Over the three-year period there were significant reductions in desire for social distance and opposition to gay rights. However, there was no significant change in anti-gay attitudes, and there was evidence of an increase in anti-gay behaviors. There was also no evidence of polarization of responses to gay men and lesbians; rather, the most prejudiced Jamaicans showed the largest reductions in bias. Implications of these findings for activism in Jamaica and other anti-gay countries are discussed

Predictors of Prejudice Against Lesbians and Gay Men in Jamaica

Jamaica has acquired an international reputation for strong antigay prejudice, incidents of antigay violence, and outspoken, antigay public figures. In recent years, national and international gay rights groups have attempted to improve this situation. However, these efforts have not been based on an empirical analysis of the factors underlying Jamaican antigay bias, which is essential for developing effective prejudice-reducing strategies. Using data collected in two large-scale national surveys in 2011 and 2012 (N 2011 = 997, N 2012 = 945), we investigated predictors of Jamaican antigay prejudice, including age, gender, religious affiliation, education, income, and a preference for dancehall music. We also examined changes in reported antigay bias between 2011 and 2012 after accounting for other predictors. All proposed variables predicted some aspect of antigay prejudice, though sometimes in unexpected ways. Male gender emerged as a particularly important predictor. We discuss the strengths and limitations of our design and the implications of our findings for prejudice-reduction strategies in Jamaica