The following was sent to Queer Humboldt on Monday by Carol Bruno, confirming the cancellation:

Greetings,

This email is to confirm that after lengthy consideration, Gil and myself decided that we will cancel the upcoming Buju Banton concert at the Nocturnum Nightclub scheduled for the October 11th, 2009. We have been diligently speaking with the management and various activists over the past two weeks in an effort to help establish a dialogue for discussions.  We care about our local gay community. Buju did issue a statement today that we have forwarded to you today, but it doesn't change our decision. We will continue towards positive, constructive solutions.

We regret any inconveniences this has caused to our community.

from

Carol Bruno/ People Productions

Gil Miracle/ Nocturnum

From Gil Miracle:

An open letter to the LGBT community, other Allies, and Humboldt County at large,

The past week has been very difficult for me, both personally and professionally. I have endured hateful attacks on my character and my family and friends have been drawn into the war of words. I would like to state unequivocally that I always have been and always will be an ally to the LGBT community and it hurts me to think that, due to this proposed event, public perception might be otherwise.

 Carol Bruno, of People Productions, and I assumed that the controversy that has surrounded this performer in the past was just that – in the past. Unfortunately we found that these tensions have not been eased and the pain is still all too visceral. For this reason, we have jointly decided to cancel the scheduled performance and we encourage the community to continue the dialogue that has begun. As a new business in a struggling economy it is worth noting that this decision does not come without a painful financial cost.

 I want to thank the concerned citizens who sent me thoughtful, intelligent and eloquent messages illustrating their point of view. In a fractured world it is encouraging to see our community, gay, straight, or otherwise, coalesce around themes of unity, love and equality. I am proud to be a member of this community and I am thankful for the response my business has received in the six short months we have been operating.

Please feel free to send any further correspondence to the email address below. I hope to see all of you at future events at Nocturnum.

Sincerely,

Gil Miracle
Nocturnum
High Art Productions
[email protected]

Buju's management sent out this press release last night:

Buju Banton's Rasta Got Soul US Tour A Success

NEW YORK, Oct. 5 /PRNewswire/ -- Gargamel Music, Inc. is pleased to report that over 15,000 fans have already witnessed the magic of Jamaican music icon, Buju Banton's Rasta Got Soul US Tour...

This week, the [tour] rolls into Colorado for two shows and then dips over to California, where the four-time Grammy-nominated artist, along with opening acts Gramps Morgan of Morgan Heritage, Nikki Burt and Angel Shalome, will play seven dates, before moving on... Despite the ongoing smear campaign against Banton, promoters are already calling it the biggest selling Reggae tour of the year. Buju would like to thank the promoters, venues and especially the fans for their amazing show of support at this time. To the detractors, he offers the following statement:

"Throughout my travels as an artist, I have witnessed first hand the senseless atrocities being suffered by innocent people around the world and my heart goes out to them. I do not condone violence against anyone, including gays, and I have spent my career rallying against violence and injustice through music. At this point, I can only hope that my body of work speaks for itself and that anyone still offended by the lyrics of my youth will take the time to explore my catalog or come to one of my shows before reducing my character and entire musical repertoire to a single song."