You have a few options if you live in Fife and need to report a hate crime.
You can report the incident directly to Police Scotland at Police Scotland Online Reporting
Alternatively, both Fife Centre for Equalities and Pink Saltire are recognised Third Party Reporting Centres.
Fife Centre for Equalities
Use their Hate Incident Reporting Page.
Pink Saltire
0800 051 7676 
info@pinksaltire.com or in person at The Hive LGBT+ Centre in Kirkcaldy.Many of you may be aware that I help coordinate a local Transgender support and social group. It is something I’ve been doing for the past four years or more.
The group has received much praise for the work it does and is well respected within the local community.
Through 2019, and especially toward the latter end of it, I felt that I was running out of the energy and motivation needed in order to continue to work for the group. I expressed my need to back away to the other Coordinator and we began to look for other group members who could step up and take over some of the responsibilities involved.
It was a slow process, but help was forthcoming and I was able to sit back in a more minor role and just keep my finger on the pulse.
Then, of course, 2020 happened.
Rainbow Responders, an initiative developed in Scotland by Pink Saltire, have just emailed me the results of their recent study into the effects of lockdown on the Scottish LGBT+ community, and I’m relaying the email to you in full in this post. It makes interesting, and concerning, reading.
2 out of 3 LGBT+ people have faced isolation or loneliness during the COVID pandemic and it has been the single biggest challenge for the community, as outlined in a new report published today.
‘Community Matters – The Impact of Lockdown on Scottish LGBT+ Communities’, released as part of the Rainbow Responders programme managed by Pink Saltire, details a worrying number of LGBT+ people are dealing with mental health challenges, with many turning to drink and drugs to help them cope.
The research has also evidenced very low levels of trust in public services amongst the LGBT+ community and disproportionately low levels of funding for vital services.
If you’re ever in need of assistance in a life threatening situation and are unable to speak clearly to the responder for fear of being found out then remember this story, and adapt it for your own country as appropriate.
Stay safe.
Pink Saltire is an organisation that I have worked closely with for a number of years now and is Scotland’s community voice for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT+) people of all age groups.
Since 2014 they have been doing an immense amount of good work for the LGBT+ community here in Scotland, and it is no exaggeration to say that recent advances in the wellbeing, understanding and acceptance of the LGBT+ community in Scotland as a whole is in no small part down to their efforts.
In this post I’ll be reviewing some of the products that are available from their online store.
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| Dear Friend, you are invited to the event LGBTI + Rural life during COVID-19. Evidence suggests that the disproportionately high incidence of poor mental health within the LGBTI+ population living rurally is due to prejudice, isolation and minority stress. Prejudice and lack of inclusion is experienced in social life, the public sector, work life and school. Evidence shows that service provision is not meeting the needs of LGBTI+ people in rural areas in Scotland. This lack of provision leads to feelings of isolation and lack of visibility. We know that these are big issues with significant impact on the community, and Covid 19 has potentially made things worse. We want to ensure that LGBTI people living rurally are heard when it comes to social, economic and community recovery. Please join us on the 17th of September at 6pm. For an online event to allow for open and safe discussion around LGBTI inclusion and equality. Open to all LGBTI people who live and work within rural spaces, who would like to share their experiences in order to see improvements made. |
Event details  Thursday, September 17, 2020 from 6:00 PM to 7:30 PM  Online Event:Register at https://www.outsavvy.com/event/5033/lgbti-rural-life-during-covid-19-tickets Please share this event on Facebook and Twitter with your friends. Book your tickets below. We hope to see you there! Yours for equality, Rebecca Crowther, Ph.D Policy Coordinator Copyright © 2019 Equality Network. All rights reserved. |
How does one reconcile conflicting needs?
I’m in a quandary and can’t make up my mind which route to take.
As regular readers will know I’ve been helping to run my local Transgender Support Group for over 4 years now and said a couple of weeks ago that I’d had enough and would be stepping down. I’ve actually been trying to step away from running the group for over 18 months because I find the mental energy that’s required is more than I feel able to exert.
But …
Every time something comes along that the group could get involved with in order to spread the word about transgender issues or to advocate for the LGBT+ community, especially in my local area, it fires up my internal inspiration and I feel that this is something I need to be doing.
After the somewhat emotionally traumatic week I’ve had it’s been so helpful to have received a lot of reassurance and support from my readers and fellow bloggers. Thank you to all who have been in touch, it really means a lot.
I followed up on one comment I received by reading through that lady’s blog and came across something which has highlighted a dilemma I face.
What happens when I die?
This is not an easy post for me to write and it may be a little disjointed.
For the past four years I’ve been one of the Coordinators of our local transgender support organisation, a position which has meant so much to me because of the good that has been achieved by the group and the help that we have been able to provide to so many people at various stages of their journeys of discovery and awareness.
Unfortunately, due to personal difficulties that I have, I realised about eighteen months ago that this work was becoming too much for me and I made it clear that I needed to step down and hand over to someone who would be able to cope better with the demands of the position. That change never happened, and then along came Covid-19.
It’s so sad that it took the death of one man to bring to the fore such a deep and meaningful expression, but in all my time I don’t think I’ve ever heard a more telling statement regarding the suppression of Human Rights.
Whoever you are, wherever you are, and no matter which minority group (or groups) you find yourself in, I hope that Rev. Al Sharpton’s words will ring out as a call for equality now and in the future.
Get your knees off our necks!!
Sending love and hope to you all.
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My Blog Site
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Tish 