They Called it the ‘Abominable Crime’: An Analysis of Heterosexual Support for Anti-Gay Laws in Barbados, Guyana and Trinidad and Tobago

Abstract

The aim of this study was to evaluate support for current buggery/sodomy laws in three Caribbean countries — Barbados, Guyana and Trinidad and Tobago. To complete this task, data from the 2013 Caribbean Development Research Services (CADRES) ‘Attitudes towards homosexuals’ surveys were employed. The data analysis revealed that a majority of heterosexuals in the sample generally supported the maintenance and enforcement of the anti-gay laws, and the main predictors of said support were race, country of residence, religiosity, interpersonal contact and beliefs about the origins of homosexuality.

Keywords: Homophobia, Anti-Gay Laws, Caribbean, Commonwealth, Barbados, Guyana, Trinidad & Tobago, Buggery, Gay Rights