US gays putting pressure on Coca-Cola

Gay activists in the United States have turned their spotlight on the international beverage producer Coca-Cola over its sponsorship of the Coke Zero Live concert which was held in Montego Bay, St James, in late April.

The activists have made several demands on Coca-Cola for what they claim was its sponsorship of a "murder music festival in Jamaica".

But yesterday reports surfaced in the international gay community that the company has stopped negotiations with the gay activists, including the group AIDS-Free World.

According to the gay-rights group, at the Coke Zero Live event, dancehall star Sizzla performed the notorious Buju Banton original Boom Bye Bye.

AIDS-Free World has now reportedly written to Steve Bucherati, Coca-Cola's chief diversity officer, accusing the company of engaging in a "protracted but unproductive written and phone communication".

The gay-rights group claims that Coca-Cola had promised to submit an article to all Jamaican newspapers once the sponsorship policy review was completed, apologising for the Sizzla performance and announcing a new corporate policy.

The gay activists allege that this has not been done and the beverage giant is being disingenuous.

They want Coca-Cola to publish a full-page advertisement in The Sunday Gleaner and other major Jamaican newspapers denouncing Sizzla's performance and expressing support for sexual diversity.

The company is also being asked to issue a formal statement explaining that it will no longer sponsor artistes who are known to have performed and refuse to apologise for homophobic songs and include a clause in all future sponsorship agreements prohibiting homophobic speech or actions against performers.

The gay-rights group also wants Coca-Cola to sponsor a concert in Jamaica devoted entirely to artistes who have not engaged in homophobic slurs.