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Jamaica bans anti-gay pastor from visiting the island

PICTURED: Steven Anderson (Photo credit: Getty Images)

JAMAICA HAS banned an American pastor from the country, following outcry of activists requesting his access to the island to be denied.

Steven Anderson, from the Faithful Word Baptist church in Tempe, said he was about to board a flight to Kingston when he was informed he would not be allowed into Jamaica.

Anderson, who once prayed for the death of Barack Obama and said gay people should be stoned death, has previously been denied entry to South Africa, Canada, the United Kingdom and Botswana.

“The decision was made by the chief immigration officer because the pastor’s statements are not conducive to the current climate,” said a spokesperson for the ministry of national security on Monday.

The University of the West Indies, where Anderson was due to speak, also rescinded its invitation.

Speaking to The Guardian, Jay John, an activist who launched an online petition calling on the Jamaican government to bar Anderson said: “This is a positive outcome in which I am very pleased.

"I am glad that leadership was shown in protecting LGBTQ Jamaicans, women and other minority groups which Steven Anderson has attacked over the past."

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