Fred Mitchell, our minister of foreign affairs, last month said at a lecture in Trinidad that his career has been harmed by his advocacy for gay rights. Mitchell engaged in hyperbole with that remark, as he is one of the most successful politicians of his generation. He was a senator. He is a three-time member of Parliament. Mitchell is a Cabinet minister for the second time. All that's left for Mitchell in The Bahamas is to be prime minister - something he very much wants.
But, we digress. Mitchell's main point is worth reflecting on. He said there must be tolerance at a minimum and we must uphold the principle that the general rights for which we fought as a people to be free from oppression from our former colonial rulers cannot be derogated from because of someone's sexual orientation.
"Do we as a society, for example, condone violence against people simply because of their sexual orientation?" he asked.
"The answer to that must be no. And if the answer is not no to that, then the charter (CARICOM) is not worth the paper it is written on."
Bahamians, in the main, are irrationally hostile to homosexuals and the issue of gay rights. We are pleased that the post-colonial and civil rights movements have led to an independent Bahamas led by its majority. However, we do not want to extend that pluralistic and democratic spirit to our homosexual brothers and sisters who face bigotry in our land.
Homosexuals have the same human dignity as heterosexuals. They should not be denied employment because of their sexual orientation; they should not be physically harmed because of their sexuality; they should not be denied the right to advance in the workplace because of their sexuality.
As a liberal democracy we have embraced the concept of separation of church and state. Various religions and religious denominations have various views of homosexuality. These faiths and churches are going through debates on the issue. However, the views of the faiths on homosexuality should have no direct bearing on how our secular state and secular laws treat homosexuals. Homosexuals, blacks, whites, Haitians, Greeks, Jews, Chinese and other ethnic groups have a right to live in peace, to work and to enjoy the fruits of their labor in our commonwealth without being discriminated against just because of who they are.
While we do not agree with some of the xenophobic positions Mitchell has put forward as immigration minister, we do agree that The Bahamas and the wider Caribbean should move toward a more tolerant position when it comes to homosexuality. We should not hate our brothers and sisters just because they are gay. They are of us. They are part of our diverse chain of islands. They are preachers; politicians; policemen; lawyers; journalists; educators; our friends and our neighbors.
We must learn that the guarantee of our democratic freedoms is the guarantee of the freedoms of those who are different than us.
Click here to read more at The Nassau Guardian
