Man Arrested In Cayman Islands For Gay Kiss

International News, By Christian Taylor, 6th May, 2008

A 23 year old Massachusetts man was arrested in the Cayman Islands for kissing his partner on a dancefloor.

Aaron Chandler, 23, from Amherst, Massachusetts, had two altercations with a local who kept asking them to stop what they were doing. According to The Cay Compass, an unidentified woman approached the two men about half an hour after that and told Chandler that she had a friend for him to meet. The friend was an off-duty police officer.

“He told me he did not want me to show public displays of affection. He said it was against the law for two people of the same sex,” said Chandler. He kissed his partner again defiantly, just as his party were about to leave the Royal Palms, and the officer grabbed his wrist and told him he was under arrest.

As Chandler was led away a group of tourists and residents followed. “They were asking him why he was doing this and one asked how he could do this in a British territory,” said Chandler. He was taken to the George Town police station where he was detained for a while, and was given “a stern talking to, telling him he didn’t care what he did in private, but that he could not kiss his partner in a public place.”

Chandler was made promise that he wouldn’t kiss his partner in public again. Then he was released. He’s lucky – in many other parts of the world things could have been much worse.

“I do display affection when I’m with my boyfriend, publicly. It’s never anything most people would consider obscene however; usually it’s in the form of holding hands or a quick kiss.”

Homosexuality between two consenting adults in private was legalised under the Caribbean Territories (Criminal Law) Order, 2000.

The Director of Tourism on the Cayman Islands has since apologised to Chandler.

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