Is U.S. law enforcement really cracking down on Buju Banton's right to free speech as they arrest him on possession and intent to distribute charges after finding him with five kilos of coke? That's one theory be floated by his associates.
Following the reggae artist's arrest at his home in Tamarac, FL (north of Miami and Ft. Lauderdale) — after allegedly speaking to a confidential informant about plans to score a few kilos, and then taking part in a (videotaped) meeting to buy them — his supporters are coming out to defend him. Like fellow reggae star Red Rat, who collaborated with Buju over 10 years ago. "Everybody's surprised, everybody's saying it's got to be a set-up," says Red Rat, who lives in both Miami and Jamaica. "We don't know Buju as that type of person. We know Buju as the revolutionary that he is, the one who sings about love and uplifting yourself as a people in the dancehall reggae world. Yeah he did 'Boom Bye Bye,' but that was a young Buju."
Meanwhile, radio shows are being inundated with calls from fans saying the arrest must be a "conspiracy," reports the Miami Herald.
"They are convinced it's directly connected to the concert he had recently," said Winston Barnes, a Miramar city commissioner and host of a popular Jamaican talk show on WAVS (1170-AM). "What they are saying is that he got off that time and they are fixing him now."
Barnes tried without success to reason with callers, most of whom also viewed the arrest as an attack on reggae music. "It is one big mess."
In Jamaica, people clamored for details of the arrest, decrying it on radio and on street corners.
"A lot of people are wondering if it has any links with the fight against him," well-known Jamaican dub poet Mutabaruka said from Kingston. "We are trying to get more information."
Right. Because America's law enforcement actively targets high-profile people who make threats against the gays. If that were the case, there'd be a helluva lot more pastors and politicos locked up.
Interestingly, as Buju faces some 20-30 years if convicted, the one thing that could help get him a lighter sentence is his status as a reggae star.
"Conservatively speaking, we're looking in the 20- to 30-year range," said David P. Rowe, a criminal defense lawyer in Broward, who has been contacted about representing Banton. "I think a plea bargain, if he has information, might be a good course of action.
"Hopefully, the federal government will take into account that he is a reggae icon, and a cultural leader in Jamaica. Those are subjective factors but ones that should be taken into account. He really has been a source of inspiration for so many Jamaican youths."
Rep. Aaron Schock: ‘Wow, There’s a Lot On That Stick. I Really Enjoyed That’ (25)
· Michael says: @Carl: He also happens to be an anti-gay politician. »
Anne Rice Ditches Christianity Because, Have You Heard, It’s So Anti-Gay? (27)
· M says: religion has been responsible for inequality, injustice and unfairness for LGBT and so long... »
· Chris says: Simple. Religious people: prove religion exists. It’s crazy to me something... »
· Ian Jay says: Welcome to the logical side, Miss Rice. Where humanity, respect and kindness does not... »
Bothersome Gay Activists Didn’t Make Obama’s ‘Worst Parts of Presidency’ List (19)
· Ryan says: Hilarious, B. Obama is against DOMA and for EDNA in name only. He knows he would have to... »
Should We Fault Dan Choi For Earning Some Cash For Being An Activist? (32)
· Jeffree says: AndrewW & his sockpuppets are certainly busy tonight! With better than 82%... »
· earl trowbridge says: Save your criticisms for the NOM people, let Dan Choi make a bit of bread, he... »
· Bought Choi says: I think activists should make a living, but Choi is about celebrity. He works for... »
What NOM’s Logo Would Look Like If Its Own Supporters Designed It (13)
· Jeffree says: Well, I’m gonna tell some comedy secrets here. If your act doesn’ t work... »
YouTube Can’t Handle It When The Double Rainbow Becomes a Double Standard (8)
· Jeffree says: sebastian = jason »
If only!!!
Now, let us use all those magical powers to: sic the IRS with double barrel shotguns on Maggot Gallagher and her money laundering NOM; and send the IRS to dump the Catholic and Moron Churches of their tax-free statuses; oh, and be sure to put an end to DADT; pass ENDA; pass same-sex marriage…………
Well it was fun for the moment to think that we had such a power…..cause then we could also cure AIDS; cure homophobia……
Who the eff is this?
So a hate-mongering foreigner living in the USA who commits a felony should get a lighter sentence because, as stated by David P. Rowe, a criminal defense lawyer in Broward, "Hopefully, the federal government will take into account that he is a reggae icon, and a cultural leader in Jamaica. Those are subjective factors but ones that should be taken into account. He really has been a source of inspiration for so many Jamaican youths." An inspiration 'to kill gays'. Wow, maybe our fair criminal justice system should just let him walk. I wonder what the sentence in Jamaica would be for a gay person caught with coke? Death maybe? An inspiration? A hate-filled drug dealer? If this is the best that Jamaica can produce, I feel sorry for all the good people of that country.
FIVE KILOS OF COKE ! Yeah, that's some source of "inspiration" for Jamaican youths. LOL
If he's convicted, he should get the same sentence that is usually handed out for the offense in Florida. He should serve the sentence then be deported, which is usual. The conviction will severely limit his ability to tour, which is too fucking bad.
If it were only that easy… Our first target would not have been this ass.
Tamarac, Florida? What a dump! Next we'll learn that he purchased a .5 million dollar mansion west of Mt. Trashmore.
!Que Tack-o-Rama!
I hope he gets special treatment in prison. You my Buju bitch.
i KNOW THIS GUY
if he's one of their cultural leaders that doesn't say much about Jamaica
Gee, a Reggae singer that does drugs? What a shock.
that is not the buju that we know now i am jamaican, and buju as always talked about things of upliftment and all…you see you can't hold people to their past and so what if that is what he said then. the point is he is willing to work with gays, he doesn't have to support..he doesn't even need to like it. He is now talking about unity the man has no pic with you the person only by the actions and the moral of being gay.
Everybody is entiled to their own opinion.
now he is not influential where drugs is concern and knowing buju really i don't think he would want to disappoint his jamaican people to that extent.
people grow up…the only reasono why some of you have a problem with him is because the dude is jamaican…your rap stars and hip hop singers make even worst statements about gays than buju did but you all aren't "pounding" on them….no….but u ganging up on the jamaican….
Flex wrote:
Tamarac, Florida? What a dump! Next we'll learn that he purchased a .5 million dollar mansion west of Mt. Trashmore.
!Que Tack-o-Rama!
Hey, honey, be easy on Tamarac. I have a home there in the Mainlands community and it's a great city that's VERY gay friendly and plenty of gay families live there. Three of our immediate neighbors are gay couples. The vice president of our homeowners' assn is a gay man. I would also extrapolate based upon anecdotal evidence that Tamarac has more per-capita gays than the country as a whole. I think we also have a nondiscrimination ordinance in place that covers LGBT people (not certain about that, though).
I was shocked when I read this article today that this slime lived in my community of Fort Lauderdale! Tamarac is SO above this trash. I say send him to prison for 20 years, let him find a boyfriend there and then deport his arse back to Jamaica. This couldn't have happened any better. OMG, the irony.
Five kilos is a lot of coke!
I think Buju should find another lawyer to represent him. David Rowe is making a mockery of the situation. How can he be publicly admitting guilt while simultaneously seeking to represent the client. There a lot of Boom Bye Haters around so Buju should carefully choose a "straight" lawyer.
More questions than answers. Would the 5kg be for personal use or for resale? If Buju was interested in drug trafficking, why would he want to be on the ground personally? Does anyone know is Buju was sane leading up to the incident? What is the real street story on this one?
Gee, a little justice for a change. Put his skanky ass in jail for a good long time, and when they let him out, ship him back to that hole, jamaica.
I think it's hysterical that all his fans think that gays have anything to do with it. If only. Just proves even further how fucking stupid and backward they are.
Plush- I hope there are gays and friends of gays on his jury. Someone should have told him that karma is a bitch and it's coming to get him. YES!
@ Queerty:
Just a word to your editor:
It is "jury-rigged" as in a rigged jury.
OR perhaps you were thinking of Gerrymandering (similar but different, as in a "Gerrymandered" voting district, rigged to produce a particular outcome).
Does Queerty have employment opportunities for new editors?
Current news reports have Buju Banton and his associates trying to purchase 7 kilos, almost 15.5 pounds, of cocaine.
In March of 2004, Buju Banton was convicted of a marijuana drug offense in Jamaica. As a result, he was banned from the U.S. for one year.
From the July 17, 2004 Guardian, UK:
[quote]
One of Jamaica's most famous dancehall singers, Buju Banton, is being sought by police in Jamaica in connection with a homophobic attack on a group of gay men.
Mr Banton was allegedly one of a group of about a dozen armed men who forced their way into a house in Kingston on the morning of June 24 and beat up the occupants while shouting homophobic insults, according to the victims.
[end of quote]
It took several years for Buju Banton to be arrested. The case never came to trial because the victims were too afraid to testify. Afraid for their lives. For details, see Time Magazine "The Most Homophobic Place on Earth?" http://tinyurl.com/qd7h3
One of the victims of this 2004 armed gay-bashing assault, was permanently blinded in one eye. He identifies Buju Banton as his assailant.
The Time Magazine article "The Most Homophobic Place on Earth?" http://tinyurl.com/qd7h3 mentions that: "a crowd even celebrated over Williamson's mutilated body."
This quote is about Jamaican gay activist and JFLAG co-founder, Brian Williamson, who was brutally murdered on June 9, 2004.
What the Time Magazine article does not mention is that the celebrating crowd, outside Brian Williamson's home in Kingston, Jamaica, with Williamson's mutilated body still inside, was singing Buju Banton's "Boom Bye Bye." http://www.hrw.org/en/news/200.....homophobia
@ Plush #15: 5 kilos for personal use?!?! LOL
Bumboclaat
(noun or adjective)
1. a jamaican expletive. Literally "bottom cloth", a term used to describe the cloth used by women to soak up the blood during their menstrual cycle before pads were commercially available.
triplet cross rhythm for his new song, "Soap on a rope"
Anyone trying to paint Buju Banton as some kind of peaceful artist is seriously deluding himself. As far as I'm concerned, Banton is a murderer and an unrepentant homophobe who has helped make Jamaica a virtual Hell to all gay persons unfortunate enough to be born there. Show me evidence that this is not true.
He should be kept in solitary as well. Worthless prick shouldn't be allowed to organize an entourage in the slammer.
The U.S. DEA affidavit on the Buju Banton case is now online at http://www.dancehall.mobi/2009.....affidavit/
It is an interesting read.
This savage isn't even a proper reggae artist. Everyone knows they toke on blunts all day…….whats with the blow????
Buju Banton i hope they put you away for 30 years and I hope they gang rape you in prison with out lube, you homophobe. Talking about culture and religion your a bigot and hater.
You are getting what you truly deserve, the legal system here was unable to get justice for the gays you caused to be murdered and beaten up but let me see you bribe your way out of this one.
I hope you become a prison biach.
free buju banton … gays r a disgrace to humanity….
battieboy go suck ur madda!!!!!!!!……free buju…..
@No. 29 and No.30 Rick Hothead
So, we gays are a disgrace, and yet here you are Rick trolling the gay pages ogling the pics of hot naked boys. Go suck cock you fucking closet case faggot!
The U.S. DEA affidavit on the Buju Banton case is now online
OMG, it is a gay conspiracy! The undercover cop is named Sgt. CASTRO!
LOL I love it.
To Buju, at his sentencing for 20 years of prison time, I hope he's told one final thing by the judge:
"Boom Bye-Bye." :)
I hope he gets his just deverves in prison, him and all those sticking Jamaicans. get back on the boat.
This is the most homosexual bunch of responses i have seen in my life. The man has a right to freedom just like anyone else. I dont like gays either, wanna put ME in jail because of it? This conversation is one sided, so i figured i would put in my 2 cents.. Free Buju Banton!
@ Badman #35 wrote: "This is the most homosexual bunch of responses i have seen in my life."
uh, there's a reason for that, Badman. LOL!
If he's convicted, the judge will give him what he's got coming to him, and your 2 cents won't count for shit.
Listen…Buju Banton wrote Boom Bye Bye when he was a teenager. That was a long time ago. Do we penalize people for old mistakes over and over agin, even 20 tears later? Let it go man. I you lsten to his music you will see that he is so much more mature with much more uplifting music. I don't see anybody persecuting Slim Shady or whatever his name is. And Buju does not live in the US he oly goes there for work and owns a residence like so many other people, so he can't be deported. Just sent home.
its a shame….
now i am far from being gay and i am very far from hating gay men/women, in fact i always say if thats the side of the lawn you choose to live on well thats good for you….
BUT IT IS ABSOLUTLEY DISGUSTING THAT THOSE SAME GAYS WHO WENT HOME CRYING TO MOMMY BOUT THE FACT THAT BUJU HAS HIS OWN OPINION ABOUT GAYS TURN AROUND AND DISS JAMAICANS LIKE MYSELF ABOUT OUR CULTURE AND SAY SO MANY OTHER LOW-CLASS THINGS.
NOW I CAN SEE WHY MANY PPL DONT LIKE YOU GUYS… BCUZ ITS OK 4 YALL TO SAY WAT YOU WANT BUT WHEN IT COMES TO PPL HAVING THEIR OWN OPINION YOU WANNA BITCH N MOAN?
GET A LIFE N LEAVE BUJU ALONE…
NOW, I BET ALL OF YOU 20 MILLION DOLLARS THAT IF BUJU WAS IN A ROOM WITH YOU RIGHT NOW, YOU COULDNT SAY HALF THE SHIT YOU QUEERS R SAYING NOW!
SUCH DUMASSES!
AND I NOW REALIZE THERE IS SO MUCH HATE TOWARDS BUJU ON THIS SITE BECAUSE ITS A GAY SITE!
OH MY GOODNESS
HAVE MERCY ON THE WHOLE OF UNNU….
@As gay as ever!z:
GET BACK ON A BOAT WHERE?
MANY OF US JAMAICANS ARE LEGAL CITIZENS OF SUPERPOWER COUNTRIES.
I WAS BORN IN CANADA, YET I REP JAMAICA TO THE FULLEST BECAUSE ITS MY CULTURE!!
N FYI – HALF OF YOU ASSES THINK YOUR WHOLE LINE OF ANCESTRY WAS BASED IN AMERICA WHEN IN FACT MOST OF YOUR ANCESTRY WERE IMMIGRANTS JUST LIKE OTHER PPL!!
SO SAD THAT GAY WHITES THINK THEY KNOW IT ALL
GO IN A ROOM FULL OF JAMAICANS
BET YOU WONT SAY A WORD BUT " HELP! "
YOU PUNK ASS BITCHES