The Freedom Centre blog page recently heard from a young person who said “I haven’t been to the centre yet as I am nervous to go, but I am often on the site because it makes me feel like I’m not the only gay teen out there…Thanks guys!”

The Freedom Centre knows that young people often turn to the internet before their friends when they are trying to figure out their sexuality or gender. Queer youth forums are filled with posts from young people asking advice or looking for support at a time when they really need it but are often limited by who they can turn to in their offline lives. The internet is a place to be anonymous, ask questions, find, answers, try on identities and figure things out. The Freedom Centre has been developing online services for young people over the past year. It has been an enormous task but we are very proud with what we have achieved so far.

- Advertisement -

Providing services online is still relatively unchartered territory and requires a great deal of thought and planning when deciding which online technologies to use. Recently some members of the community have suggested that Freedom Centre is not doing all it can to reach DSG (Diverse Sexuality and Gender) young people in online environments. These comments have been based on our absence from prominent social networking sites such as Myspace or Facebook.

At the Freedom Centre, we are very serious about our duty of care regarding the safety of young people in both the offline and online environments. We are very aware of the potential for social networking sites to access young people and promote the Freedom Centre services. However the issues of online safety and accountability are really important considerations. For instance, at present we cannot verify the identity or intentions of anonymous online users in environments such as Myspace or Facebook and it would be irresponsible to facilitate circumstances which could potentially put young people at risk. Perhaps this sounds like paranoia. The Freedom Centre has always, and will continue to, consider the safety and security of vulnerable young people as paramount. Until the security settings on these sites are adequate for the purpose of providing services for young people, you will not find us there.

With the support and assistance of the WA AIDS Council we are working hard to develop our new website even further. Our site www.freedom.org.au is now in a content management system with some great new functions including an events calendar, blogspot page, Dear FC where you can ask us about whatever is on your mind, and information sections for people supporting young people. We’ve also just launched our online forum which is a space for young people to hang out and access their peers in a similar way to Freedom Centre itself. Our forum has only been online a week and is already a great success.

Freedom Centre also runs FC Chat, an online chat service using MSN, which has been in operation since 2005. This is an opportunity for young people to chat with staff and volunteers one to one. We have a team of dedicated FC Chat volunteers providing peer support and referral regularly. A large proportion of the young people we chat with are just coming out and looking information and often preparing to access Freedom Centre services in person. This is a way of linking these young people in with Freedom Centre and other services at a time when they are often very isolated and alone and may be at risk. It is also a means of providing support to young people in rural areas who have limited if any access to their peers.

We hope that our online services will continue to grow and show young people that they are not alone just as the Freedom Centre has been doing for the past 14 years.

***

Nadine Toussaint, Social Marketing & Design Officer at WAAC