Safe Place for GLBT community shuts its doors

After six months of operation, Oxford Street’s Safe Place ‘ a shop front used to report homophobic violence ‘ has closed its doors.
It was an initiative led by the Aids Council of NSW (ACON) in a bid to help members of the gay, lesbian, bixsexual and transgender community feel comfortable in reporting criminal activity.
But an evaluation of the centre found that while the community valued the space, it was not being used enough by people reporting crime to sustain it long-term.
This was despite the fact that the state recorded a jump in the reportage of homophobic violence during the six months that the centre was open. A total of 90 incidents were reported to police, compared with just 24 in the same period last year.
ACON’s Anti-Violence Project co-ordinator, Nancy De Castro, said it was unclear from the results whether the level of crime was up, or that more people had been comfortable reporting it. Either way, she said, “the issue is no longer being ignored.”
According to Surry Hills Local Area Commander, Superintendent Donna Adney, the results have a lot to do with state-wide police initiatives, raising awareness about the sensitivities surrounding homophobic crime.
Superintendent Adney ‘ who is also the NSW Police spokesperson on Gay, Lesbian and Transgender Issues ‘ said police officers, particularly within her Command, are being offered greater support in understanding why members of the GLBT would feel uncomfortable in reporting crime.
“Our Gay and Lesbian Liaison Officers (GLLOs) are now building a knowledge within the Command about the community,” she said. “They establish good interaction between the Commander, the customer service duty officer and the community.”
Superintendent Adney said that while GLLOs are not the point of contact for lesbians or gay men to report crime, all police officers have been taught to be sensitive to gay-hate crime.
“If you’re a victim, you must report that crime to any police officer immediately because the sooner we find out about it, the sooner we can do something.”
Meanwhile, a leading GLBT magazine has reported that ACON is already preparing to submit an application to the City of Sydney proposing a permanent community centre on Oxford Street since the closure of the Safe Place.
ACON’s chief executive officer, Stevie Clayton, said that during the evaluation of the now-defunct Safe Place, a community space along the popular strip was needed to help create a sense of community among members of the GLBT. Such a centre would also be used as a one-stop shop for information and events.
Ms Clayton said that in ACON’s submission they’ve said the centre would need operate closer to Taylor Square and was open to the possibility of co-ordinating the space with other organisations.