Police, health workers & employers accused of continued discrimination against LGBTQ members

The LGBTQ group takes a photo Opportunity with Minister of Youth Affairs Broomes

A small group of LGBTQ members who met with Youth Affairs Minister Simona Broomes on Friday spoke of taunts and laughs they are usually subjected to when visiting police stations and public health facilities. Minister of State Dawn Hastings-Williams also sat in for a period during the meeting at the Ministry of the Presidency.

“I had to do a lot of running around and at the end of the day I got no justice, basically it was a laughing stock until I got frustrated and I just give up so for me, my major issue is the police force needs to change in terms of when it comes to the LGBT community” one individual told the minister on Friday.

The group also spoke of the police unwillingness to investigate their reports with the same vigour they do for other member of the public while pointing to two cases of recent assault where the police have been either unable or reluctant to go after the perpetrators identified in the battering of two members of the LGBTQ community.

“Also when you going to access health care as well when you go to the Georgetown Public Hospital ok so it’s like someone on the road attacks you and you go with your female clothes or you go to show support to one of your colleagues they are going to be steering and laughing and pointing and make you feel so very uncomfortable so we just leave sometimes without getting the medical attention” a member of the group lamented.

The issue of jobs being denied to them by both public and private establishments on the perceived basis of their sexual orientation was also raised with the ministers. One member spoke of instances where applications are taken into establishments and agencies and tho being qualified for the positions advertised, some entities would either not return the calls or just give excuses as to why employment cannot be granted.

“In the job environment when you go seeking for jobs they are very homophobic, they laugh at you, they will look at you like you have shit on you they collect your application and waste your time and don’t even call you back and when you go back to check up on it they tell you to come back and all these kinds of things before they just be straight forward with you rather than wasting your time” another LGBTQ member told the minister

It was noted that among those who met with the ministers were individuals who are trained and do operate their own small businesses such as doing hair and nails, fabric designing and accounting. They have also raised concerns about accessing funds for expansion from the Small Business Bureau.

Broomes initial engagement with the group dates some one week back which came on the heels her facilitating through government, funds to bury one of the LGBTQ members who died in neighboring Cayenne and was brought back to Guyana.

The body of the individual was kept at a morgue on the Corentyne Coast for close to one month due to the unavailability of funds both by relatives and friends to pay off the parlour and for the burial itself.

Friday’s meeting also saw discussions surrounding safe spaces which are being explored by one of the organisations where living an employment opportunities can be had for members of the LGBTQ community as well as.

Minister Broomes and the group walks out of the Ministry of the Presidency Complex

The LGBTQ members said this the first time that they were able to meet with any government functionary within the Office of the President Complex and this according to them, reflects the testimony of Government at the highest level, being serious about addressing their concerns. Before the meeting commenced however, the group made it clear that they were not there for any photo opt and ask that the conversations bear fruit as they were totally opposed to being part of photo opts with no tangible results. However Minister Broomes made it clear that every engagement she has with citizens is to produce tangible results.

On Sunday, BIG Smith Crime Watch made contact with former Information Liaison within the Peoples Progressive Party Civic Government Kwame McCoy to confirm if at any time within the rule of the PPP, the LGBTQ Community was engaged within the Office of the President Complex.

McCoy said that what he can recall is that the groups had regular engagements with Government through the Ministry of Health at the time, but has no clear recollection of if engagements were ever held within the Office of the President Complex, now Ministry of the Presidency.