Estimates from 700 to 3,500 were banded about but there were a lot of people packed into the Cayman Islands Lion Centre, Grand Cayman, for the Rally For the Promotion of Bible based Family Values last Sunday. There were at least a hundred people standing who could not find seats so I find the 700 estimate from one of our news media to be way too low. I have attended many concerts at the Lions Centre and never seen it as packed.

The “Island-Wide Mass Rally” was organised by the Cayman Ministers Association together with the Cayman Islands Conference of Seventh-Day Adventist”.

Key note speakers taking part were Dr. Brendan Bain, David Gibbs III and local Caymanian pastor Alson Ebanks.

Although in the printed advertising of the event there was no mention of it being an anti – LGBTQ event everybody who attended knew it was going to be just that and the huge audience were not disappointed.

Scheduled to start at 5pm it actually started at 4:30pm when the superb First Cayman Baptist Sanctuary Choir took to the stage and sang their hearts out for 45 minutes to great applause.

A young lady came on and gave a delightful rendering of the Cayman National Song and her voice sailed into the clouds as she reached with ease the top notes.

What I was not expecting was the appearance of Cayman Islands premier Alden McLaughlin who entered to very muted applause.

Very quickly, however, the audience warmed up to him when he announced his government would not introduce same-sex marriage. In fact the roof of the Lions Centre almost came off. He also gave assurance that the Governor of the Cayman Islands had told him the United Kingdom would not enforce the Cayman Islands to change their constitution to allow same sex marriages.

McLaughlin also gave the background to and government’s obligation to our Human Rights Bill and the European Court of Human Rights. He also said he was not “here this evening to try to change anybody’s beliefs on either side of this controversial issue. What I urge is that we consider Christ’s teachings of tolerance with regards to how we treat each other.”

He was followed by Leader of the Opposition, McKeeva Bush to a very warm and enthusiastic applause. He kept on poking fun at the organisers who had given him only three minutes to have his say but went on well past thirty minutes in which for one of the rare times his thunder had been taken away from him by the premier.

Never-the-less he tried to paint a more somber picture implying same sex marriage and same sex unions were exactly the same. They aren’t!

He left with the warning that “We have taken the first step as a country. Shame! They say they had to do it by law. Well, what else are they going to recognise by law.”

It was a very long rally, over four hours and although the organisers had put a lot of religious entertainment from local school, church and mass choirs, a superb instrumental from a saxophone player I could have listened to all night and a rap trio of young men, into the event, one could easily see people were exhausted.

The very first speaker, Dr. Brendan Bain, was dull and gave a lengthy explanation on AIDS, safe sex and personal accounts of patients he had nursed.

Thankfully, American lawyer David Gibbs III got the audience clapping and baying to his legal theatrics and stroked up Grand Cayman continually. Someone had not told him we are three islands. He even had an unnecessary bash at the media.

Finally the people’s favourite came on, Alson Ebanks, and gave a responsible and at times humourous oratory with a sobering message.

It was a shame he was left until last, but I know why the organisers did it, because if they hadn’t, even more of the audience would have left.

It was well organised with excellent ushering, but too long.