Tragedy struck in the island nation of Jamaica this week as news has spread that a “cross-dressing” teenager “chopped and stabbed” to death by an angry mob after it was discovered that he was a man dressed in women’s clothes.
According to radio station Irie FM, Dwayne Jones, a gender-noncomforming 17-year-old teen from Paradise Rowe, was at a river party being held in St. James on the evening of July 21. Jones was reportedly dancing with a man when a female partygoer recognized him and told a group of partygoers that Jones was biologically a man.
One of the men then went up to Jones and groped him, discovering that Jones was indeed a male. A mob of partygoers then set up on Jones and chased him down and later “chopped and stabbed” him to death.
According to the Jamaica Gleaner, several explosions were also heard, prompting police to convene at the scene. Police discovered Jones’ body at around 5 a.m. on a nearby roadway, with multiple stab wounds and a gunshot wound.
According to reports from Jamaican LGBT rights advocate, Maurice Tomlinson, no one tried defend or save Jones, who called himself a “Gully Queen.”
It’s unclear whether Jones considered himself transgender, but all reports from the island nation refer to him as a “cross-dresser.”
The Jamaica Forum for Lesbians, All-Sexuals and Gays (J-FLAG) recently spoke to the Huffington Post about the tragedy and condemned the violent murder of Jones.
“J-FLAG notes with deep concern the recent mob killing of Dwayne Jones, a teenager in St James who is gender non-conforming,” read a statement from the organization. “We encourage persons in the Irwin community of St. James to support the police with any information that could lead to the arrest of the perpetrators.”
Sadly, this is not the first time Jamaica has seen one of its LGBT citizens murdered in a hate crime. Jamaica has long been recognized as an anti-sodomy law nation that deems sex between two men illegal and punishable by up to 10 years in prison. Public or private displays of affection between men are also punishable by Jamaica’s strict anti-gay laws as well.
Jones’ killing now marks at least the tenth hate-related murder of an LGBT individual in Jamaica this year.
Unfortunately, these kind of hate crimes also happen around the globe, as well: – nicholas robinson
