Buju Banton is a reggae singer from Jamaica. He’s become quite popular recently, not due to his talent, but for his violent, homophobic lyrics, which, according to Change.org, have “called for LGBT people to be shot in the face, have acid thrown on their bodies, and be burned alive like rubber tires.”

Over the summer, a lot of effort was made to get as many of the venues as possible on his tour to cancel his performance. It was quite successful, too. According to the effort’s WetPaint site, 23 of the 55 scheduled venues cancelled. Cities that cancelled included: Charleston, Detroit, Richland, and Salt Lake City. Cities that refused to cancel included: Atlanta, Charlotte, Dallas, Denver, Miami, Philadelphia, and, surprisingly, San Francisco.

But now, Buju Banton has been nominated for a Grammy. This takes it to another level. This is more than Buju being rewarded by a fan buying a ticket to a concert. This is Buju being rewarded by the Recording Academy.

Think about it this way- If Buju was a white performer calling for black people to be “shot in the face, have acid thrown on their bodies, and be burned alive like rubber tires,” do you think he would still have received the honor of the nomination?

If you don’t think that the Recording Academy should be rewarding Buju Banton for his homophobia, you can sign this petition, started by GLAAD (The Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation) and Change.org at this link.

~ Samantha