Buju Banton faces
trial for gay-bashing charge

Reggae artist Buju Banton will face trial this month for his alleged role in an attack against a group of gay men in Jamaica's capital last year, a judge said Friday. The 31-year-old Banton and Horace Hill are accused of beating six gay men in June 2004 at a home in the Red Hills Road section of Kingston. Both men have pleaded not guilty. They will be tried on October 19.

A spokesperson for the local gay rights group, J-Flag, said one of the men reported the matter to the police, who arrested Banton and Hill on September 23. Gay rights groups like the United Kingdom's Outrage! have reported the incident on their Web sites.

Banton, a Grammy-nominated performer, has been at odds with gay rights advocates since 1994, when he recorded the homophobic anthem "Boom Bye Bye," which talks about shooting gays. Last year the Rastafarian rapper along with other popular dancehall acts like Capleton and Sizzla were forced to cancel dates in Europe and North America after protests by gay groups that their music promoted violence against gays and lesbians. (Howard Campbell, via AP)