"He is our neighbor, and I would be glad to know him and welcome him here to this space. The charred station wagon led us to name the case MIBURN, for Mississippi Burning. "I don't hold any animosity to him or toward his family or to anyone," she said. Eileen Gebbie, said that she forgives him. While Martinez did not show any remorse his actions, the pastor at the church, Rev. The sentences will be served consecutively. He was convicted by a jury, and a judge sentenced him to the maximum of 15 years in prison on the arson charge, one year in jail on the reckless use of explosives charge, and 30 days for harassment. He told KCCI that he did not regret his actions and said he was "guilty as charged."ĭespite admitting his guilt on television, Martinez pleaded not guilty to the charges. He was charged with a hate crime of arson, reckless use of explosives or fire, and harassment. Martinez said that he burned the flag because he opposes homosexually. He then carried it a gentleman's club a few blocks away where he doused it with lighter fluid and lit it on fire.
Adolfo Martinez, 30, saw the flag at the Church of Christ in Ames and ripped it down. He previously served as development director of the civil rights organization.An Iowa man who burned an LBGTQ flying at a church was sentenced to 16 years in prison. George Byars is a member of Equality Florida. But we will not be inciting murder or violence against anyone.
#Lesbian gay flag burning man goes to prison free
If the concert goes on, you can be certain there will be protesters outside, exercising our First Amendment right to free speech. We are speaking out against the dehumanization of people and the murderous message these two dancehall singers continue to spew for profit. And that is what fair-minded Floridians - gay and straight alike - have been doing all across the state. It is a sign of deep respect for the First Amendment, not an affront to it, to meet hateful speech with only speech, not threats of violence. No venue, public or private, is obligated to provide space for those who use ``fighting words'' to incite violence. I firmly believe that Buju Banton and Beenie Man have a right to hate whomever they want, and to speak loudly against them, onstage and off.īut they go much further: They publicly advocate murder and other forms of indiscriminate violence against people like me and incite their listeners to commit assault. Search the Internet and you'll see him onstage in a video posted September 2009, screaming: ``There is no end to the war between me and the f-gots!''Īs for Banton's right to free speech, I'm a strong supporter of the First Amendment. A Miami Herald reporter posted a video of Buju Banton performing Boom Bye Bye in Miami in 2007.
``He was just 15 years old'' when he wrote Boom Bye Bye, his first hateful call to violence, they say. Unsurprisingly, concert promoters have done two things: downplay the incitement to violence as Banton's youthful indiscretion and invoke his First Amendment right to free speech. Nationwide, shows in Salt Lake City, Cleveland, Columbus, Detroit, Chicago, Los Angeles, Richmond and Minneapolis have been cancelled. Tampa, Orlando and Tallahassee venues have already cancelled the concert, and Toyota of Hollywood has withdrawn its financial support of the event. I am not alone in my outrage at the hateful and murderous message of Buju Banton and Beenie Man and their incitement of fans to violence against gays and lesbians. I call on the the city and the Knight Center management to cancel the concert, and for companies to end their sponsorship of the event. They are bringing their message of hate into my city, and inciting people to violence in my neighborhood. This Halloween-night concert is a personal affront and a physical threat to people like me. Knight Center at the ironically titled Reggae ``Bash'' 2009 on Oct. Beenie Man suggests that his fans ``Hang lesbians with a long piece of rope'' and sings of a new Jamaica, ``come to execute all the gays.'' Buju suggests killing us with machine guns Beenie recommends bazookas.īanton and Beenie Man are both scheduled to perform in Miami's James L. They sing lyrics that incite their fans to murder and torture all gay people, even providing specific instructions:īuju Banton incites listeners to shoot gays in the head, pour acid on us and set us on fire. I'm a black man of Jamaican ancestry - who knows, our Kingston roots may be intertwined somewhere in the past - but because I am gay, they say they are at war with me. Reggae dancehall performers Buju Banton and Beenie Man don't know me, but they say they hate me.