Dublin Lesbian Line and Switchboard relaunch vital helpline for women and non-binary folk

[IwantToRetire]

The new “Women’s Night” will run weekly on Tuesday evenings from 6:30pm to 9pm and will offer support to all female, non-binary and female-aligned people in the LGBTQ+ community.

Although DLL and The Switchboard both share their roots in Ireland’s first LGBTQ+ helpline, Tel-A-Friend, which commenced its services in 1974, DLL later went on to establish itself as an independent volunteer collective in 1979, providing a dedicated service for lesbian and bisexual women.

It quickly became a cornerstone of the lesbian community, spawning lesbian lines across the country in Cork, Belfast, Galway, Derry and Sligo.

With over four decades of experience, Dublin Lesbian Line has remained a steadfast pillar of assistance and empowerment not just for Dublin but for the queer community across Ireland.

“During COVID-19 we had some tough decisions to make including a temporary pause of our helpline. “Our helpline has been an integral part of our history and identity, so the decision to pause it left us uncertain about the future. We were unsure when we could gather the necessary resources to resume our vital services.”

She continued, “Recognizing the immense significance of providing a dedicated space for women, non-binary, and female-aligned members of our community to find support, we knew it was essential to find a way forward.

“The unwavering support of The Switchboard made this partnership possible, a remarkable testament to the strength of the queer community, coming together to share resources, insights, and expertise, and to carry forward this invaluable legacy.”

Extracts from https://uk.news.yahoo.com/dublin-lesbian-line-switchboard-relaunch-145352527.html

It goes on to talk about recruiting new volunteers, the implication being that it is too difficult to recruit lesbians volunteers for a true Lesbian Line (althought they were able to do so in the past) so it is positive to include "female aligned and non binary".

But no indication if they had tried to recruit lesbians for a Lesbian Line.

Of course it could just be nothing to do with not enough lesbian volunteers, but just an opportunity to colonise another women only service.

:'(

Why would lesbians want to volunteer for a service that 1) includes men who pretend they're women
2) uses the slur 'queer'
Answers on a postcard please

Female aligned? WTF.

So not a lesbian anything! Just a telephone line manned by anyone for anyone.

And quite possibly manned by males who identify as lesbians who’d love to talk to lesbians. Nice

I just dont understand when they are happy to boast about how popular the Dublin Lesbian Line was and how much it was appreciated, that somehow (because of Covid??!!) lesbians no longer wanted a lesbian line, but a support line for those who identify as lesbian.

Did they consult with the community, did they ask for lesbian volunteers for a lesbian line, or is this yet another example of queer evangalists weaseling their way into decision making positions, to get an outcome to fulfil their political agenda.

Obviously there may be more to this story, and as I am not in Dublin, there may be other factors.

But from what this report says it is just totally depressing and another loss of services for biological females attracted to other biological females.

Samaritans had to start monitoring calls after volunteers met callers for sex.
https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-58057031.amp

Just a reminder what can happen.

This!

But from what this report says it is just totally depressing and another loss of services for biological females attracted to other biological females
What’s depressing is that thanks to this lesbophobic, homophobic, misogynistic movement people feel the need to say ‘biological females attracted to other biological females’ rather than ‘lesbian’.

What in the name of ARSE is female aligned? When will this madness end?!

So, a helpline for anyone. Very helpful.

Hearing the word ‘folk’ 20 years ago: yeah, cool, I like Roy Harper and Vashti Bunyan I guess
Hearing the word ‘folk’ now: tense and alert like a guard dog listening for burglars

Exactly this.

Female aligned, another in a long line of shit that means women and men that want to elbow their way in. 🙄

people feel the need to say ‘biological females attracted to other biological females’ rather than ‘lesbian’

Sorry - felt an idiot typing that - but just felt I needed to spell it out.

Just in case someone want to argue of behalf of lesbain penis.

Not sure why this is particularly newsworthy?

The DLL has not suddenly become open to trans women. For about 10 years (at least) they have been open to trans women as volunteers, and as callers. This is not new.

All that is new is them reopening the service after it closed during Covid, in partnership with Switchboard.

As far as I know, though, the board has been and continues to be made up of lesbians. I'm not aware of any trans women on the board - and certainly when the change was made, there were none that I know of. So it's a bit much to claim that the DLL has been got at by people who are 'weaseling in'.

Not sure why this is particularly newsworthy?

Not sure why you didn't take my point up thread that I am not from Dublin and there may be other issues.

So if as you say DLL has been trans inclusive for a number of years, the news story certainly didn't indicate this.

It made it sound like it was a new innitiative.

So for anyone reading the news story it was news worthy as it implied yet another Lesbian service had been colonised by trans.

However, according to you this in fact happened 10 years ago, which must be very depressing for lesbians, and young women beginning to realise they are lesbian that there is no safe women only service for them.

After all the article said:

DLL later went on to establish itself as an independent volunteer collective in 1979, providing a dedicated service for lesbian and bisexual women.

Perhaps you should contact the newspaper and say they have got their facts wrong?

I didn't see anything incorrect in the reporting. It was the thread that seems to draw (incorrectly) the conclusion that any of this is new.

Nothing in the article linked claims that the DLL's service being open to trans women or non-binary people is new, and as I say, it has been that way for (at least) the best part of a decade.

All that is new is that the service is relaunching in partnership with the Switchboard after being forced to close during Covid.

It means not a female, so a bloke

Ok so not news. Lesbians were actually fucked over many years ago. So that's good.

Yeah! it makes it sooooo much better discovering they were in fact screwed over, over a decade ago! Did the lesbians using the service know that for the last decade I wonder?

Fucked over by who though?

As far as I know the DLL board were all lesbians or bi women. Was it lesbians ‘fucking over’ the lesbians?

The DLL website was pretty clear about it so I imagine so.

The DLL has not suddenly become open to trans women. For about 10 years (at least) they have been open to trans women as volunteers, and as callers. This is not new.

Their website is clearly LGBTQ+ today. When did this change and who was consulted?

Other than going on a website like that to get a phone number etc and see what services they provide I bet most people didn't read the stuff about staff etc. And given that ten years ago a lesbian to most people was still only a human female it probably wouldn't even occur to women to check that some of the lesbians involved in the service could well be men.

So actual lesbians lose a specifically lesbian service and your view is 'nothing to see here '.

You are a wonderful human being.

Sorry, I lied. Lesbians lost a valuable service and you said 'I don't give a fuck'.

You’re right. You did lie.