Reggae in the Park! A fun event sponsored by Global Exchange, where college kids can wear multicolored hats, bob their heads arrhythmically to the beat, and support their favorite anti-gay artists! Well, maybe not so much on the last one -- Global Exchange has just announced that they will be pulling artist Capleton from the lineup due to songs such as "Bun Di Chi Chi," which is Jamaican slang for "burn the queer" and "Whoa," which contains the line "sadomite and batty man [queer] mi shot up -- Whoa." Capleton, for his part, claims that the lyrics have been misinterpreted, the "burning" in question alludes to spiritual cleansing and that "I do not advocate violence or abuse against anyone, nor do I support prejudice, bigotry, or discrimination based upon sexual preference."

OutRage, a British gay rights group, has begun a campaign against homophobia in dancehall music, in conjunction with the group J-Flag (the Jamaican Forum for Lesbians, All-sexuals, and Gays). OutRage has called for an investigation into Capleton and other anti-gay reggae artists by Scotland Yard, and has asked U.S. Immigration to bar them from entering America based on their incitements to murder.

Read a thoughtful piece about anti-gay sentiment in reggae dancehall music from the New York Times's Kelefa Sanneh if you want to learn more. The picture above is from the protests against anti-gay artists in New York for Beenie Man's concert.