1 00:00:01,720 --> 00:00:04,200 Speaker 1: Cool Zone Media. 2 00:00:04,320 --> 00:00:06,400 Speaker 2: Hello and welcome to Cool People Who Did Cool Stuff, 3 00:00:06,440 --> 00:00:10,160 Speaker 2: your weekly reminder that billions of us make the world 4 00:00:10,200 --> 00:00:14,840 Speaker 2: better every day by trying really fucking hard to make 5 00:00:14,880 --> 00:00:17,480 Speaker 2: the world better in ways big and small. By I'm 6 00:00:17,480 --> 00:00:19,160 Speaker 2: your host, Margare Kiljoy. This is a show about cool 7 00:00:19,160 --> 00:00:21,880 Speaker 2: people who did cool stuff in history, and we always 8 00:00:21,920 --> 00:00:24,520 Speaker 2: talk about these like big actions, you know, this huge 9 00:00:24,560 --> 00:00:28,280 Speaker 2: movement that had a revolution, or this individual who accomplished 10 00:00:28,280 --> 00:00:30,159 Speaker 2: all of these things. You know, we talked about like 11 00:00:30,240 --> 00:00:34,519 Speaker 2: the man who started suicide crisis hotlines, right, but like 12 00:00:35,400 --> 00:00:38,519 Speaker 2: there's so many, so many, so many people more involved 13 00:00:38,520 --> 00:00:40,720 Speaker 2: in that project. But even more than that, there's so 14 00:00:40,800 --> 00:00:44,240 Speaker 2: many more people involved in the basic project of hearing 15 00:00:44,280 --> 00:00:47,519 Speaker 2: your friends talk about how they're feeling without prejudice and 16 00:00:47,600 --> 00:00:50,000 Speaker 2: without calling the cops on them. You know, Like that 17 00:00:50,159 --> 00:00:51,880 Speaker 2: is a thing that we can give to each other 18 00:00:52,000 --> 00:00:56,400 Speaker 2: every single day and happens every single day all around 19 00:00:56,440 --> 00:00:59,080 Speaker 2: the world, is that we help each other. Because one 20 00:00:59,120 --> 00:01:04,080 Speaker 2: of the things that I've learned by researching history is that, look, 21 00:01:04,120 --> 00:01:06,400 Speaker 2: I know that this sounds bad, but I mean in 22 00:01:06,480 --> 00:01:09,160 Speaker 2: a positive way. There's no bottom to the amount of 23 00:01:09,160 --> 00:01:12,440 Speaker 2: suffering that could be happening, right now, right, Like you 24 00:01:12,520 --> 00:01:15,080 Speaker 2: just you read about times in history where like things 25 00:01:15,080 --> 00:01:16,840 Speaker 2: happened and that were really bad, and then you read 26 00:01:16,880 --> 00:01:18,800 Speaker 2: about other times in history where things happened they were 27 00:01:18,800 --> 00:01:21,480 Speaker 2: even worse, and you're like, there's just like actually no bottom, 28 00:01:21,520 --> 00:01:24,959 Speaker 2: there is no floor, and so it feels like we're 29 00:01:25,000 --> 00:01:27,679 Speaker 2: not winning, when in fact we are. It feels like 30 00:01:27,720 --> 00:01:31,039 Speaker 2: we're not winning because we haven't achieved our whatever your 31 00:01:31,160 --> 00:01:37,760 Speaker 2: utopian dream is, right, but we instead stopped an infinite 32 00:01:37,800 --> 00:01:40,240 Speaker 2: amount of suffering. Even though we haven't stopped all the suffering, 33 00:01:40,600 --> 00:01:45,680 Speaker 2: we have to keep working. We'll never fully win, right, 34 00:01:46,280 --> 00:01:49,800 Speaker 2: But instead we prove that we can have worthwhile and 35 00:01:49,880 --> 00:01:53,600 Speaker 2: meaningful lives by the big and small ways that we 36 00:01:53,720 --> 00:01:58,080 Speaker 2: work to help each other. That's my grand standing. Hopefully 37 00:01:58,120 --> 00:02:00,280 Speaker 2: you're up for some grand standing, because this is an 38 00:02:00,320 --> 00:02:06,760 Speaker 2: episode about suicide prevention and specifically the crisis hotlines that 39 00:02:06,840 --> 00:02:09,679 Speaker 2: are staffed by so many people who do so much 40 00:02:09,680 --> 00:02:13,079 Speaker 2: work to try to help people every single day. And 41 00:02:13,880 --> 00:02:17,360 Speaker 2: you know, so hopefully you knew that getting into it 42 00:02:17,400 --> 00:02:20,520 Speaker 2: that I was gonna be pretty fucking earnest and talking 43 00:02:20,560 --> 00:02:27,000 Speaker 2: about some sad shit like suicide on this particular episode. Anyway, 44 00:02:27,160 --> 00:02:30,440 Speaker 2: there's no guest. It's just me and you, just a 45 00:02:30,440 --> 00:02:35,639 Speaker 2: little private conversation between the two of us, just two 46 00:02:35,680 --> 00:02:39,400 Speaker 2: of us. You're the only listener, which just kind of wild. Actually, 47 00:02:39,400 --> 00:02:40,720 Speaker 2: if you think about it, you should really tell your 48 00:02:40,720 --> 00:02:42,600 Speaker 2: friends about the show, because it's kind of weird that 49 00:02:42,600 --> 00:02:45,240 Speaker 2: I only have one listener and it's you, dear listener. 50 00:02:46,000 --> 00:02:47,440 Speaker 2: You think I would know your name since you're the 51 00:02:47,440 --> 00:02:54,200 Speaker 2: only listener, but I don't. Last time on Monday, we 52 00:02:54,240 --> 00:02:57,600 Speaker 2: talked about Bernard Mays, who set up the first suicide 53 00:02:57,639 --> 00:03:01,000 Speaker 2: prevention hotline in the United States in either nineteen sixty 54 00:03:01,000 --> 00:03:04,160 Speaker 2: one or nineteen sixty two, and the sources disagree, and 55 00:03:05,440 --> 00:03:08,280 Speaker 2: we talked about how it became nine to eight eight, 56 00:03:08,720 --> 00:03:11,800 Speaker 2: the current crisis hotline that is available to anyone in 57 00:03:11,800 --> 00:03:16,240 Speaker 2: the United States that unfortunately does call the cops. And 58 00:03:16,320 --> 00:03:19,960 Speaker 2: where we left our cliffhanger was that trans Lifeline, who 59 00:03:20,000 --> 00:03:24,280 Speaker 2: does not do non consensual intervention, had put out a report. 60 00:03:25,080 --> 00:03:27,160 Speaker 2: There's a lot of names on this report. They put 61 00:03:27,160 --> 00:03:28,799 Speaker 2: a lot of work into it over the course of years. 62 00:03:28,800 --> 00:03:31,040 Speaker 2: The report came out in twenty twenty four. You'd read 63 00:03:31,040 --> 00:03:33,120 Speaker 2: it on their website linked to it. Among the many 64 00:03:33,200 --> 00:03:36,480 Speaker 2: sources in the show, notes even more sources than usual 65 00:03:37,080 --> 00:03:40,320 Speaker 2: this particular week. Actually want to talk about that for 66 00:03:40,320 --> 00:03:41,760 Speaker 2: a second. I swear I'm going to get into my 67 00:03:41,800 --> 00:03:45,600 Speaker 2: own script and end the cliffhanger you're on, But I 68 00:03:45,640 --> 00:03:48,240 Speaker 2: want to talk about like my own nervousness around this episode, 69 00:03:48,280 --> 00:03:50,520 Speaker 2: because this is a topic I take very seriously, but 70 00:03:50,560 --> 00:03:53,560 Speaker 2: I'm not an expert in and the ways that we 71 00:03:53,600 --> 00:03:56,280 Speaker 2: talk about this kind of stuff does matter. I read 72 00:03:56,280 --> 00:03:59,440 Speaker 2: a decent number of stuff about like guidelines for journalists 73 00:03:59,440 --> 00:04:03,280 Speaker 2: when talking about suicide, you know, and how to try 74 00:04:03,320 --> 00:04:06,960 Speaker 2: to handle this kind of thing responsibly, and it's very hard. 75 00:04:07,640 --> 00:04:09,200 Speaker 2: The reason I want to talk about this part of 76 00:04:09,240 --> 00:04:12,560 Speaker 2: it is because I'm going to be critical of nine 77 00:04:12,560 --> 00:04:16,080 Speaker 2: eight eight as an infrastructure right now, while I'm also 78 00:04:16,160 --> 00:04:20,400 Speaker 2: incredibly grateful for the work that it does right and 79 00:04:20,440 --> 00:04:22,120 Speaker 2: I'm not going to tell people not to call it 80 00:04:22,480 --> 00:04:25,039 Speaker 2: because a lot of the alternatives are too underfunded and 81 00:04:25,040 --> 00:04:27,719 Speaker 2: they're not as successful in certain ways, like don't have 82 00:04:27,800 --> 00:04:31,320 Speaker 2: enough people to answer the phone, you know. And it's 83 00:04:31,440 --> 00:04:33,479 Speaker 2: good that we try to do this thing. It's just 84 00:04:33,560 --> 00:04:37,360 Speaker 2: the framework it's embedded within is very dangerous and there's 85 00:04:37,360 --> 00:04:39,480 Speaker 2: a lot of problems with it, and so I mean 86 00:04:39,520 --> 00:04:42,200 Speaker 2: this as a loving critique, and it's not even necessarily 87 00:04:42,200 --> 00:04:44,480 Speaker 2: my critique. A lot of it's coming from trans Lifeline, 88 00:04:45,240 --> 00:04:47,039 Speaker 2: who also mean it as a loving critique. And I 89 00:04:47,080 --> 00:04:49,479 Speaker 2: was really impressed with the language that they constantly use 90 00:04:49,839 --> 00:04:53,520 Speaker 2: when they're critical of nine eight eight. They're not saying like, oh, 91 00:04:53,560 --> 00:04:56,520 Speaker 2: those people love cops in or boot liquors and we're 92 00:04:56,520 --> 00:05:00,640 Speaker 2: the best, you know. Instead they're like, hey, we gotta try, 93 00:05:01,240 --> 00:05:02,919 Speaker 2: We got to try to be better. We got to 94 00:05:02,960 --> 00:05:05,440 Speaker 2: try to get the police out of our communities to 95 00:05:05,520 --> 00:05:09,120 Speaker 2: keep ourselves safe, and we've got to you know, care 96 00:05:09,120 --> 00:05:11,599 Speaker 2: for each other. But I don't know, I was just 97 00:05:11,680 --> 00:05:15,320 Speaker 2: I was pretty impressed with how they talk about it anyway. 98 00:05:16,480 --> 00:05:20,840 Speaker 2: Trans Lifelines report, based on years of research, puts their 99 00:05:20,960 --> 00:05:25,880 Speaker 2: best guess that on average, cops are dispatched for three 100 00:05:25,920 --> 00:05:29,360 Speaker 2: point six percent of nine eight eight calls, which is 101 00:05:29,440 --> 00:05:32,120 Speaker 2: higher than the one point nine percent of calls that 102 00:05:32,320 --> 00:05:36,960 Speaker 2: lead to emergency medical services being called, which means you're 103 00:05:37,000 --> 00:05:39,080 Speaker 2: almost twice as likely to have the cops called on 104 00:05:39,120 --> 00:05:44,160 Speaker 2: you as an ambulance. The same report says that callers 105 00:05:44,160 --> 00:05:47,479 Speaker 2: who had non voluntary services dispatched on them included reports 106 00:05:47,480 --> 00:05:53,920 Speaker 2: of quote, police violence, discrimination, involuntary hospitalization, forced medication, and 107 00:05:53,960 --> 00:06:00,359 Speaker 2: physical and sexual assault. And at first glance, you might think, well, 108 00:06:00,400 --> 00:06:02,320 Speaker 2: what sort of makes sense to call an ambulance on 109 00:06:02,360 --> 00:06:05,920 Speaker 2: someone who's dying, whether they ask for it or not. Right, Like, 110 00:06:05,960 --> 00:06:08,159 Speaker 2: if I'm god, this happened once. I was like walking 111 00:06:08,160 --> 00:06:09,800 Speaker 2: down the street and like a bicyclist got hit by 112 00:06:09,800 --> 00:06:12,720 Speaker 2: a car in front of me. I just called the 113 00:06:12,880 --> 00:06:16,000 Speaker 2: fucking ambulance. I didn't be like, hey, buddy, you want 114 00:06:16,000 --> 00:06:18,920 Speaker 2: an ambulance, Yay, nay, how you feel about that? I 115 00:06:18,960 --> 00:06:22,200 Speaker 2: was just like, fuck, I'm calling an ambulance. That man 116 00:06:22,279 --> 00:06:24,640 Speaker 2: just got hit by a car, you know, And that 117 00:06:25,000 --> 00:06:27,520 Speaker 2: makes sense to me, right. I don't want to get 118 00:06:27,520 --> 00:06:30,120 Speaker 2: into the ethics of intervening in suicide because it's an 119 00:06:30,160 --> 00:06:34,240 Speaker 2: incredibly charged debate that people's personal, moral, philosophical, and theological 120 00:06:34,320 --> 00:06:38,640 Speaker 2: positions are deeply intertwined with. But there's obviously a reason 121 00:06:38,720 --> 00:06:41,080 Speaker 2: many people might want to call the ambulance if someone 122 00:06:41,160 --> 00:06:45,080 Speaker 2: is dying for whatever reason. But the thing is a 123 00:06:45,160 --> 00:06:47,680 Speaker 2: lifeline that can call the cops on you based on 124 00:06:47,720 --> 00:06:52,080 Speaker 2: what you say is just a fundamentally different thing than 125 00:06:52,120 --> 00:06:55,640 Speaker 2: a crisis line where you can be honest everyone. I 126 00:06:55,720 --> 00:06:58,359 Speaker 2: know is used to lying to doctors and therapists in 127 00:06:58,480 --> 00:07:03,920 Speaker 2: order to navigate the strange beer biocracy that permeates our world. Right, Like, 128 00:07:04,400 --> 00:07:09,480 Speaker 2: I know people who don't go to therapy because therapists 129 00:07:09,520 --> 00:07:11,880 Speaker 2: are mandated reporters, and they're like, what's the point of 130 00:07:11,880 --> 00:07:14,600 Speaker 2: going to a therapist? I can't be honest to You 131 00:07:14,640 --> 00:07:17,880 Speaker 2: shouldn't have to do that when you're calling a lifeline. 132 00:07:17,920 --> 00:07:20,720 Speaker 2: You shouldn't have to play games around how you want 133 00:07:20,760 --> 00:07:24,000 Speaker 2: to answer specific questions based on what you're hoping the 134 00:07:24,040 --> 00:07:26,760 Speaker 2: outcome will be. I actually think that there's a way 135 00:07:26,800 --> 00:07:29,800 Speaker 2: from this to understand the fundamental problem with like law 136 00:07:30,120 --> 00:07:32,760 Speaker 2: as a framework with which to try to build a 137 00:07:32,800 --> 00:07:38,000 Speaker 2: positive society. But knowing that the police might be called 138 00:07:38,240 --> 00:07:40,880 Speaker 2: means that people who call, if they choose to call 139 00:07:40,920 --> 00:07:44,360 Speaker 2: it all can't be honest. It's a fucking suicide hotline, 140 00:07:44,400 --> 00:07:46,800 Speaker 2: and if you call, they ask have you had any 141 00:07:46,840 --> 00:07:49,560 Speaker 2: suicidal thoughts in the past few days? And if you 142 00:07:49,600 --> 00:07:52,520 Speaker 2: say yes, they have to run through the script to 143 00:07:52,560 --> 00:07:55,600 Speaker 2: figure out if you're an immediate threat, and if you are, 144 00:07:56,480 --> 00:08:02,160 Speaker 2: they call emergency services, usually the cops. Isn't this defeating 145 00:08:02,200 --> 00:08:05,280 Speaker 2: the whole point of a hotline? Right, Like not everyone 146 00:08:05,320 --> 00:08:07,160 Speaker 2: who calls this as having suicidal thoughts, but that's like 147 00:08:07,200 --> 00:08:11,200 Speaker 2: it's purpose. You know. You also get asked have you 148 00:08:11,240 --> 00:08:14,800 Speaker 2: taken any action to harm yourself today? And this conflates 149 00:08:14,880 --> 00:08:18,800 Speaker 2: self harm with suicide, which is I think a fundamental 150 00:08:18,800 --> 00:08:23,640 Speaker 2: misunderstanding of the ways in which people hurt themselves. This 151 00:08:23,760 --> 00:08:26,120 Speaker 2: study that was put together by trans Lifeline has a 152 00:08:26,120 --> 00:08:29,400 Speaker 2: lot of interviews with people who have had these experiences. 153 00:08:30,600 --> 00:08:33,720 Speaker 2: One participant in the study about nine eight eight said quote, 154 00:08:35,120 --> 00:08:37,680 Speaker 2: of course I felt like hurting myself. Of course I 155 00:08:37,720 --> 00:08:39,600 Speaker 2: want to be honest and to be able to talk 156 00:08:39,600 --> 00:08:42,520 Speaker 2: about those feelings. I think it would be really helpful 157 00:08:42,520 --> 00:08:44,840 Speaker 2: for me to have acknowledged how I was actually feeling 158 00:08:44,880 --> 00:08:47,200 Speaker 2: in those moments. But I just know that if you 159 00:08:47,240 --> 00:08:50,680 Speaker 2: say yes to those questions about self harm, those questions 160 00:08:51,160 --> 00:08:54,520 Speaker 2: aren't to have a supportive conversation. It's like those questions 161 00:08:54,559 --> 00:08:58,120 Speaker 2: are to involuntarily hospitalize you, or call the police on you, 162 00:08:58,440 --> 00:09:01,480 Speaker 2: or do something that isn't helpful and is really traumatizing 163 00:09:01,640 --> 00:09:07,760 Speaker 2: and harmful. Another participant wrote, it becomes about managing the 164 00:09:07,800 --> 00:09:12,760 Speaker 2: operators emotions and their concerns. It also becomes about are 165 00:09:12,760 --> 00:09:15,160 Speaker 2: they going to flag me up the line to their supervisor. 166 00:09:15,400 --> 00:09:17,800 Speaker 2: Do I have to worry about someone coming to my location? 167 00:09:18,240 --> 00:09:20,360 Speaker 2: Do I have to worry about the cops being called? 168 00:09:20,600 --> 00:09:22,120 Speaker 2: Am I going to be able to stay in my 169 00:09:22,200 --> 00:09:28,280 Speaker 2: own home and keep my liberty? Also, between twenty nineteen 170 00:09:28,320 --> 00:09:30,760 Speaker 2: and twenty twenty one, the police killed at least one 171 00:09:30,840 --> 00:09:33,160 Speaker 2: hundred and seventy eight people in the United States during 172 00:09:33,320 --> 00:09:36,880 Speaker 2: wellness checks. These are not nine eight eight specific numbers. 173 00:09:36,880 --> 00:09:40,920 Speaker 2: That's just the number of people killed by police in 174 00:09:40,960 --> 00:09:45,040 Speaker 2: between twenty nineteen and twenty twenty one, and wellness checks specifically. 175 00:09:45,760 --> 00:09:48,600 Speaker 2: It's good that there is an alternative to calling the cops. 176 00:09:49,040 --> 00:09:51,400 Speaker 2: I'm certain that separating out nine eight eight from nine 177 00:09:51,400 --> 00:09:53,679 Speaker 2: to one to one will overall reduce the number of 178 00:09:53,720 --> 00:09:57,200 Speaker 2: people killed by police during wellness checks. And I'm not 179 00:09:57,240 --> 00:09:59,520 Speaker 2: trying to say no one should ever call hotlines associated 180 00:09:59,520 --> 00:10:03,280 Speaker 2: with nine eight eight. It's just it's trickier than it 181 00:10:03,320 --> 00:10:06,120 Speaker 2: needs to be. Unfortunately, a lot of the alternatives are 182 00:10:06,240 --> 00:10:10,320 Speaker 2: underfunded and overwhelmed, and frankly, their staff is sometimes less 183 00:10:10,400 --> 00:10:13,679 Speaker 2: likely to be as consistently trained. It's just that nine 184 00:10:13,760 --> 00:10:16,079 Speaker 2: eight eight is not so detached from the police as 185 00:10:16,080 --> 00:10:20,200 Speaker 2: it presumably should be. This is a long way from 186 00:10:20,200 --> 00:10:22,920 Speaker 2: calling a nice BBC broadcaster who will listen to you 187 00:10:22,960 --> 00:10:25,400 Speaker 2: without judgment. But do you know what, it's not a 188 00:10:25,440 --> 00:10:27,199 Speaker 2: long way from, Actually, it is a really long way 189 00:10:27,240 --> 00:10:29,720 Speaker 2: from This is really a stretch. I'm just really stretching 190 00:10:29,760 --> 00:10:32,320 Speaker 2: here to try and try and find a glimmer of 191 00:10:32,400 --> 00:10:36,880 Speaker 2: connection between the script that I'm reading these advertisers, and 192 00:10:36,920 --> 00:10:39,320 Speaker 2: I really appreciate you all coming along with me on 193 00:10:39,360 --> 00:10:51,040 Speaker 2: that glorious big stretch. Here's ads and Rebecca, I don't 194 00:10:51,080 --> 00:10:53,840 Speaker 2: work in suicide prevention. I am not a social worker. 195 00:10:54,440 --> 00:10:57,160 Speaker 2: To me, I can see the value in both evidence 196 00:10:57,200 --> 00:11:00,120 Speaker 2: based attempts to reduce the number of deaths by suicide 197 00:11:00,480 --> 00:11:03,720 Speaker 2: and also just creating platforms so that people who are 198 00:11:03,720 --> 00:11:08,000 Speaker 2: suffering can talk to people and be heard, not even 199 00:11:08,000 --> 00:11:14,080 Speaker 2: necessarily seen stopping them as the sole purpose, right, but 200 00:11:14,160 --> 00:11:18,079 Speaker 2: maybe listening to them. And I think that because I 201 00:11:18,080 --> 00:11:20,880 Speaker 2: think it'll reduce the number of suicides. I'm not a whatever. 202 00:11:20,880 --> 00:11:22,480 Speaker 2: I'm going to tranking my own opinions out of this 203 00:11:22,559 --> 00:11:25,040 Speaker 2: as much as possible. Obviously I have strong opinions about 204 00:11:25,160 --> 00:11:29,000 Speaker 2: the way all this interacts with police. But yeah, nine 205 00:11:29,000 --> 00:11:30,920 Speaker 2: eight eight seems to me like a perfect example of 206 00:11:31,000 --> 00:11:33,480 Speaker 2: taking a really good idea and by relying on the 207 00:11:33,480 --> 00:11:37,880 Speaker 2: work of really good people doing something kind of sketchy 208 00:11:37,920 --> 00:11:41,240 Speaker 2: by tying it into the government. The trans Lifelines report 209 00:11:41,440 --> 00:11:45,440 Speaker 2: says that nine eight eight quote represents an expansion of 210 00:11:45,480 --> 00:11:50,640 Speaker 2: location tracking capabilities and non consensual practices in social support services, 211 00:11:51,120 --> 00:11:56,400 Speaker 2: disregarding the voices of hotline users, psychiatric survivors, human rights organizations, 212 00:11:56,720 --> 00:11:59,719 Speaker 2: and crisis care experts who condemned the practice of non 213 00:11:59,760 --> 00:12:03,840 Speaker 2: can central intervention. So these days, if you go to 214 00:12:03,840 --> 00:12:07,040 Speaker 2: San Francisco's Suicide Prevention's website and go to their fact 215 00:12:07,080 --> 00:12:11,280 Speaker 2: and click on anonymity, they say, quote, the only times 216 00:12:11,280 --> 00:12:14,520 Speaker 2: we lift confidentiality are in times of immediate physical danger, 217 00:12:14,920 --> 00:12:19,800 Speaker 2: in which case we will only contact emergency services. And 218 00:12:21,080 --> 00:12:27,440 Speaker 2: that's not anonymity. I don't want to say that no 219 00:12:27,640 --> 00:12:30,160 Speaker 2: organization should work with the government, because if there's one 220 00:12:30,160 --> 00:12:33,360 Speaker 2: thing that this administration has reminded us, it's that there 221 00:12:33,360 --> 00:12:35,640 Speaker 2: are good things that the government is the one doing. 222 00:12:36,200 --> 00:12:40,800 Speaker 2: We remember this because the government is currently systematically stripping 223 00:12:40,880 --> 00:12:44,760 Speaker 2: all of its own good qualities away. And so in 224 00:12:44,840 --> 00:12:48,360 Speaker 2: July twenty twenty five, the nine eight eight Suicide and 225 00:12:48,440 --> 00:12:54,360 Speaker 2: Crisis Hotline dismantled its LGBTQ plus services. They explain this 226 00:12:54,440 --> 00:12:57,800 Speaker 2: with perhaps the single most cursed sentence I have ever read, 227 00:12:58,120 --> 00:12:59,680 Speaker 2: and I'm so sorry I'm going to say it to 228 00:12:59,720 --> 00:13:05,000 Speaker 2: you now. Quote the nine eight eight Suicide and Crisis 229 00:13:05,040 --> 00:13:10,800 Speaker 2: Lifeline will no longer silo LGB plus Youth Services also 230 00:13:10,960 --> 00:13:14,199 Speaker 2: known as the Press three option, to focus on serving 231 00:13:14,880 --> 00:13:18,880 Speaker 2: all help seekers, including those previously served through the Press 232 00:13:18,960 --> 00:13:22,880 Speaker 2: three option. Where do I begin, Well, it will no 233 00:13:22,960 --> 00:13:25,240 Speaker 2: longer silo US, as if we should be grateful that 234 00:13:25,280 --> 00:13:27,720 Speaker 2: we're no longer being kept away from everyone else, even 235 00:13:27,720 --> 00:13:29,600 Speaker 2: though obviously the purpose of that is so that we 236 00:13:29,640 --> 00:13:32,240 Speaker 2: can reach people who are specifically trained and or have 237 00:13:32,320 --> 00:13:37,040 Speaker 2: the similar experiences us. And no one literally no one 238 00:13:37,160 --> 00:13:43,320 Speaker 2: good says LGB or LGB plus, the T and the 239 00:13:43,400 --> 00:13:47,520 Speaker 2: Q have been purposefully removed because we literally don't exist 240 00:13:47,559 --> 00:13:53,840 Speaker 2: in this government's view. Now, of course, this language doesn't 241 00:13:53,840 --> 00:13:56,320 Speaker 2: filter down to members of nine eight eight. The fact 242 00:13:56,360 --> 00:13:59,560 Speaker 2: that nine eight eight is saying this doesn't mean that 243 00:14:00,200 --> 00:14:04,680 Speaker 2: its members share these opinions or will act in that way. 244 00:14:05,720 --> 00:14:09,320 Speaker 2: Individual lifelines continue to describe themselves as they wish, but 245 00:14:09,360 --> 00:14:13,640 Speaker 2: they do all have to commit to nonconsensual intervention after 246 00:14:13,760 --> 00:14:16,959 Speaker 2: nine eight eight cut Queer specific care out of its services. 247 00:14:17,120 --> 00:14:19,440 Speaker 2: Trans Lifeline, who are the people who wrote that critical 248 00:14:19,480 --> 00:14:23,880 Speaker 2: report of nine eight eight said quote Through our advocacy efforts, 249 00:14:24,120 --> 00:14:26,680 Speaker 2: we have recognized that the well meaning folks at nine 250 00:14:26,760 --> 00:14:29,440 Speaker 2: eight eight have made improvements to their work and become 251 00:14:29,480 --> 00:14:32,240 Speaker 2: more sensitive to the needs of our community. We are 252 00:14:32,280 --> 00:14:35,120 Speaker 2: deeply disappointed that they no longer have the opportunity to 253 00:14:35,120 --> 00:14:39,960 Speaker 2: continue growing their understanding and service to our community. I 254 00:14:40,000 --> 00:14:42,000 Speaker 2: wish I knew what nine eight eight was doing to 255 00:14:42,040 --> 00:14:46,080 Speaker 2: improve themselves after that report, but of course any hard 256 00:14:46,080 --> 00:14:49,160 Speaker 2: work they'd done was destroyed by the new administration, who, 257 00:14:49,240 --> 00:14:53,200 Speaker 2: in their reverse Midas way, turn everything they touch into shit. 258 00:14:54,760 --> 00:14:57,480 Speaker 2: But importantly, there are lifelines that are not part of 259 00:14:57,480 --> 00:14:59,800 Speaker 2: the nine eight eight project that specifically do not call 260 00:14:59,840 --> 00:15:02,600 Speaker 2: them police. I'm going to focus on trans Lifeline, but 261 00:15:02,720 --> 00:15:05,360 Speaker 2: just to shout out some of the other ones. There's 262 00:15:05,440 --> 00:15:08,640 Speaker 2: Black Line at one eight hundred six oh four five 263 00:15:08,720 --> 00:15:13,160 Speaker 2: eight four one, which prioritizes BIPOC and LGBTQ plus folks. 264 00:15:13,840 --> 00:15:17,880 Speaker 2: There's the Wildflower Alliance Peter Support Line at one eight 265 00:15:18,040 --> 00:15:22,480 Speaker 2: eight eight four oh seven four five one five, which 266 00:15:22,520 --> 00:15:25,680 Speaker 2: is a warm line for not as much crisis. There's 267 00:15:25,680 --> 00:15:29,600 Speaker 2: the Fireside Project at one six two three two five 268 00:15:29,720 --> 00:15:32,960 Speaker 2: zero seven three nine three, which is for people dealing 269 00:15:32,960 --> 00:15:37,600 Speaker 2: with mental health during and after psychedelic experiences. There's strong 270 00:15:37,640 --> 00:15:41,440 Speaker 2: Heart's Native Helpline at one eight four four seven six 271 00:15:41,600 --> 00:15:44,760 Speaker 2: two eight four eight three, which is for Indigenous folks 272 00:15:44,800 --> 00:15:50,400 Speaker 2: dealing with intimate partner or sexual violence. And there's trans Lifeline, 273 00:15:50,440 --> 00:15:53,520 Speaker 2: which grew out of the Transgender Day of Remembrance. More 274 00:15:53,640 --> 00:15:56,720 Speaker 2: like this, transgender remembers that she has to pivot to 275 00:15:56,840 --> 00:16:03,800 Speaker 2: ads and Rebecca and I feel as though I have 276 00:16:03,880 --> 00:16:08,960 Speaker 2: cursed myself with these ad transitions, because the Trends Day 277 00:16:08,960 --> 00:16:12,000 Speaker 2: of Remembrance is not about remembering ads. It is about 278 00:16:12,040 --> 00:16:14,640 Speaker 2: remembering a thirty four year old black trans woman named 279 00:16:14,720 --> 00:16:17,680 Speaker 2: Rita Hester and all of the other trans people who've 280 00:16:17,840 --> 00:16:21,120 Speaker 2: had their lives ended by violence. Rita Hester died in 281 00:16:21,280 --> 00:16:25,520 Speaker 2: nineteen ninety eight. She was born in nineteen sixty three 282 00:16:25,840 --> 00:16:29,160 Speaker 2: in Hartford, Connecticut, and she was a girl from the jump. 283 00:16:29,640 --> 00:16:32,240 Speaker 2: She knew she was Rita pretty much right away, according 284 00:16:32,240 --> 00:16:35,000 Speaker 2: to her sister. Her family supported her, even if they 285 00:16:35,000 --> 00:16:37,840 Speaker 2: didn't always get her pronouns right, which is an experience 286 00:16:37,960 --> 00:16:42,880 Speaker 2: familiar to plenty of trans people. Rita moved to Boston 287 00:16:42,920 --> 00:16:45,360 Speaker 2: in her twenties and started hanging out in the rock scene, 288 00:16:45,360 --> 00:16:49,040 Speaker 2: going to drag bars, living life to the fullest. She 289 00:16:49,120 --> 00:16:51,480 Speaker 2: was also a sex worker, which is left out of 290 00:16:51,720 --> 00:16:55,520 Speaker 2: every almost every account of her life. A shout out 291 00:16:55,560 --> 00:16:58,680 Speaker 2: to Them magazine, who was actually willing to say what 292 00:16:58,760 --> 00:17:02,360 Speaker 2: Rita did for work, because violence against trans people is ignored, 293 00:17:02,440 --> 00:17:05,600 Speaker 2: violence against black trans people is ignored, violence against sex workers, 294 00:17:05,640 --> 00:17:10,600 Speaker 2: and especially black trans sex workers is ignored. Someone could 295 00:17:10,640 --> 00:17:13,479 Speaker 2: not handle Rita living her life to the fullest and 296 00:17:13,600 --> 00:17:17,480 Speaker 2: stabbed her to death. She was dead, named and misgendered 297 00:17:17,480 --> 00:17:20,879 Speaker 2: an article after article after she died. Her killer was 298 00:17:20,920 --> 00:17:23,560 Speaker 2: never found, though two white men were seen leaving the 299 00:17:23,560 --> 00:17:27,080 Speaker 2: building that night, and her white boyfriend simply disappeared after 300 00:17:27,119 --> 00:17:31,399 Speaker 2: she died. No one heard from him ever. Again, the 301 00:17:31,480 --> 00:17:34,240 Speaker 2: most likely thing is that she took home a white 302 00:17:34,320 --> 00:17:36,760 Speaker 2: man or two from the bar and they killed her. 303 00:17:38,840 --> 00:17:40,960 Speaker 2: None of this, of course, none of this sort of 304 00:17:41,040 --> 00:17:43,800 Speaker 2: violence is new. I don't expect to I have to 305 00:17:43,800 --> 00:17:47,560 Speaker 2: explain to my listeners, but trans people, especially trans women 306 00:17:47,600 --> 00:17:50,240 Speaker 2: of color, especially trans women of color who are sex workers, 307 00:17:50,240 --> 00:17:54,720 Speaker 2: are murdered at a terrifyingly disproportionate rate. People have refused 308 00:17:54,760 --> 00:17:58,880 Speaker 2: to let Rita Hester's name disappear from history. Her mother, Kathleen, 309 00:17:58,920 --> 00:18:01,960 Speaker 2: never stopped fighting, and a trans woman named Gwendolen Smith 310 00:18:02,000 --> 00:18:05,080 Speaker 2: soon put up a website called Remembering Are Dead that 311 00:18:05,160 --> 00:18:08,840 Speaker 2: within a year became the Transgender Day of Remembrance, which 312 00:18:08,840 --> 00:18:14,280 Speaker 2: is November twentieth every year. Murderers with knives aren't the 313 00:18:14,320 --> 00:18:19,280 Speaker 2: only folks who kill trans people. Sometimes, systemic poverty, discrimination, 314 00:18:19,520 --> 00:18:22,560 Speaker 2: lack of access to medical care, and all those compounding 315 00:18:22,600 --> 00:18:27,800 Speaker 2: factors work together to kill trans people through suicide. So 316 00:18:27,880 --> 00:18:30,840 Speaker 2: after the trans Day of Remembrance in twenty fourteen, some 317 00:18:30,920 --> 00:18:34,720 Speaker 2: folks got together to start the trans Lifeline, a suicide 318 00:18:34,720 --> 00:18:39,639 Speaker 2: hotline for trans people staffed by trans people. They started 319 00:18:39,640 --> 00:18:44,200 Speaker 2: it based on three principles. One all operators must be trans. 320 00:18:44,440 --> 00:18:48,800 Speaker 2: Two peer support from shared lived experiences as vital. And 321 00:18:48,920 --> 00:18:55,000 Speaker 2: three they don't call emergency services without the caller requesting that. Now, 322 00:18:56,119 --> 00:18:58,640 Speaker 2: to be very clear or to be very specific, there 323 00:18:58,680 --> 00:19:01,120 Speaker 2: actually are because I like being like ah, these other 324 00:19:01,119 --> 00:19:05,080 Speaker 2: people will call the emergency services. Trans Lifeline can also 325 00:19:05,119 --> 00:19:09,280 Speaker 2: call emergency services depending There are three reasons why trans 326 00:19:09,320 --> 00:19:14,800 Speaker 2: Lifeline might call someone first is if you ask. Second, 327 00:19:14,960 --> 00:19:17,720 Speaker 2: if there's a credible threat to a third party, so 328 00:19:17,840 --> 00:19:19,439 Speaker 2: not like I'm going to kill myself, but I'm going 329 00:19:19,480 --> 00:19:22,840 Speaker 2: to kill this other guy, or as laws require, if 330 00:19:22,840 --> 00:19:26,120 Speaker 2: there's proof of child abuse. They've written a lot about 331 00:19:26,119 --> 00:19:31,080 Speaker 2: why they don't do non consensual intervention to quote them quote. 332 00:19:31,560 --> 00:19:35,560 Speaker 2: In October twenty fifteen, trans Lifeline surveyed about eight hundred 333 00:19:35,600 --> 00:19:38,720 Speaker 2: trans people across the United States about their experiences with 334 00:19:38,760 --> 00:19:43,679 Speaker 2: suicide hotline use. Approximately seventy percent of the respondents specified 335 00:19:43,680 --> 00:19:46,680 Speaker 2: that they felt unsafe calling a hotline while in crisis. 336 00:19:47,520 --> 00:19:50,760 Speaker 2: Approximately a quarter of respondents stated that they had interacted 337 00:19:50,760 --> 00:19:54,160 Speaker 2: with law enforcement or emergency personnel due to a crisis call. 338 00:19:55,040 --> 00:19:59,040 Speaker 2: One in five had been placed in an involuntary psychiatric hold. 339 00:20:00,160 --> 00:20:05,640 Speaker 2: Because lifelines don't work if people are afraid to call them. 340 00:20:06,040 --> 00:20:09,400 Speaker 2: They don't work if people don't trust the people they're 341 00:20:09,440 --> 00:20:14,600 Speaker 2: talking to. Trans people, in particular distrust the police, but 342 00:20:14,840 --> 00:20:18,159 Speaker 2: also all of the other various services that might be called. 343 00:20:18,480 --> 00:20:22,159 Speaker 2: Because we are routinely denied care or mistreated, like just 344 00:20:22,320 --> 00:20:26,960 Speaker 2: on a really really regular basis, interacting with legal frameworks 345 00:20:27,720 --> 00:20:31,119 Speaker 2: is often really complicated for us because we don't know 346 00:20:31,160 --> 00:20:34,440 Speaker 2: who's a bigot. Our paperwork doesn't always match our names 347 00:20:34,440 --> 00:20:37,440 Speaker 2: and presentations. And it's not just like, oh it hurts 348 00:20:37,440 --> 00:20:41,680 Speaker 2: our feelings to be misgendered. No, they do violence to you. 349 00:20:41,760 --> 00:20:47,440 Speaker 2: Sometimes they deny you basic human shit. If you're listening 350 00:20:47,480 --> 00:20:49,960 Speaker 2: to the show, you probably kind of know these things. 351 00:20:50,040 --> 00:20:53,440 Speaker 2: And I don't need a grandstand. But also, we are 352 00:20:53,480 --> 00:20:56,760 Speaker 2: twice as likely to live below the poverty line as 353 00:20:56,760 --> 00:21:01,000 Speaker 2: the cispopulation, and people sure don't want to pay any 354 00:21:01,040 --> 00:21:07,600 Speaker 2: ambulance bills. And finally, to quote trans Lifeline again, quote 355 00:21:07,640 --> 00:21:11,359 Speaker 2: for many in our community, chronic suicidal ideation is a 356 00:21:11,400 --> 00:21:15,200 Speaker 2: response to trauma and can be managed. So we want 357 00:21:15,240 --> 00:21:19,760 Speaker 2: to talk to people who understand that, right, which includes 358 00:21:19,920 --> 00:21:22,560 Speaker 2: theoretically plenty of people who are SIS who also have 359 00:21:22,600 --> 00:21:25,399 Speaker 2: a as a response to trauma. Like, you know, certain 360 00:21:25,440 --> 00:21:28,639 Speaker 2: thoughts are just like ever all that far away from them, 361 00:21:29,000 --> 00:21:33,040 Speaker 2: And when we can't talk about that, I don't want 362 00:21:33,040 --> 00:21:35,280 Speaker 2: to wee this actually because this is not my experience 363 00:21:35,280 --> 00:21:39,040 Speaker 2: as a transperson, but it is the experience of so 364 00:21:39,119 --> 00:21:43,399 Speaker 2: many people. I love. When people can't talk about the 365 00:21:43,440 --> 00:21:47,040 Speaker 2: fact that those thoughts are just kind of never that 366 00:21:47,240 --> 00:21:50,080 Speaker 2: far away, it makes it harder for them to like 367 00:21:51,320 --> 00:21:55,960 Speaker 2: process them in functional and useful ways, and it I 368 00:21:55,960 --> 00:21:58,000 Speaker 2: don't know. I don't have numbers of this, but it 369 00:21:58,200 --> 00:22:02,040 Speaker 2: sure seems like it puts them in more danger, you know. 370 00:22:02,960 --> 00:22:06,680 Speaker 2: And so trans Lifeline they set up and they start 371 00:22:06,720 --> 00:22:09,400 Speaker 2: doing their work and they're still around. They also, within 372 00:22:09,440 --> 00:22:11,680 Speaker 2: a couple of years, set up a micro grant project 373 00:22:12,000 --> 00:22:14,600 Speaker 2: which provides small grants for trans people to cover the 374 00:22:14,640 --> 00:22:17,720 Speaker 2: cost of name and ID paperwork, which is cool as hell. 375 00:22:18,480 --> 00:22:21,879 Speaker 2: It's very complicated, like whether or not it's a complicated 376 00:22:21,920 --> 00:22:24,960 Speaker 2: threat analysis, but people whether they should change their name 377 00:22:24,960 --> 00:22:28,040 Speaker 2: and ID. Some of it has to do with dysphoria 378 00:22:28,080 --> 00:22:31,919 Speaker 2: and euphoria, round gender and presentation, and some of it 379 00:22:31,920 --> 00:22:33,760 Speaker 2: has to do just with safety. So some of it 380 00:22:33,840 --> 00:22:36,720 Speaker 2: has to do with like it sure would be nice 381 00:22:36,720 --> 00:22:41,479 Speaker 2: if my passport looked like me, right, I don't know. 382 00:22:41,920 --> 00:22:42,080 Speaker 1: Now. 383 00:22:42,119 --> 00:22:47,919 Speaker 2: The trans Lifeline isn't perfect either, But the things that 384 00:22:47,920 --> 00:22:52,000 Speaker 2: are messy about it are so messy to research. Oh 385 00:22:52,040 --> 00:22:57,560 Speaker 2: my lord, I like researching history. That's like history happened 386 00:22:57,600 --> 00:23:02,680 Speaker 2: in historical times. Ideally the number should start with a one, 387 00:23:03,359 --> 00:23:05,880 Speaker 2: or there should be before the twenty first century. That's 388 00:23:05,880 --> 00:23:08,840 Speaker 2: what I like. Current events are messier they have more 389 00:23:08,880 --> 00:23:13,160 Speaker 2: moving parts. More raw data is usually available. But I'm 390 00:23:13,160 --> 00:23:15,639 Speaker 2: not a historian. I'm a pop historian. I don't do 391 00:23:15,920 --> 00:23:19,359 Speaker 2: the more than I have to the raw processing of 392 00:23:19,440 --> 00:23:22,480 Speaker 2: stuff to find out what the story is. If you 393 00:23:22,600 --> 00:23:26,080 Speaker 2: research trans Lifeline like I spent so much of this 394 00:23:26,160 --> 00:23:28,680 Speaker 2: week trying to do, you're going to see a lot 395 00:23:28,720 --> 00:23:31,560 Speaker 2: of people talking shit about it on the internet. Some 396 00:23:31,640 --> 00:23:36,200 Speaker 2: of this stuff is undoubtedly true. The two founders of 397 00:23:36,240 --> 00:23:39,840 Speaker 2: the trans Lifeline, I'm not naming because I just their 398 00:23:39,920 --> 00:23:42,600 Speaker 2: names are dragged enough and I don't know if we'll 399 00:23:42,600 --> 00:23:45,200 Speaker 2: get to it. The two founders of the trans Lifeline 400 00:23:45,200 --> 00:23:48,280 Speaker 2: were asked to leave the project in twenty seventeen after 401 00:23:48,320 --> 00:23:51,439 Speaker 2: more than three hundred thousand dollars in funds was found 402 00:23:51,440 --> 00:23:57,280 Speaker 2: to be misappropriated. Translfeline wrote quote, there had been significant 403 00:23:57,320 --> 00:24:00,600 Speaker 2: spending of trans Lifeline funds outside the scope of our 404 00:24:00,640 --> 00:24:05,639 Speaker 2: current budget. Since that time, the project has put a 405 00:24:05,720 --> 00:24:08,880 Speaker 2: large amount of effort into financial transparency. All of their 406 00:24:08,920 --> 00:24:11,400 Speaker 2: numbers and reports, their impact reports, all of these things 407 00:24:11,440 --> 00:24:14,440 Speaker 2: are publicly available. They're also five to one C three, 408 00:24:14,520 --> 00:24:17,040 Speaker 2: so a lot of things are publicly available no matter what. 409 00:24:18,640 --> 00:24:21,840 Speaker 2: I am not certain, however, what happened to that three 410 00:24:21,920 --> 00:24:25,119 Speaker 2: hundred thousand dollars. There are several accounts of what it 411 00:24:25,240 --> 00:24:29,280 Speaker 2: was online the Okham's raiser. The most likely thing is 412 00:24:29,280 --> 00:24:33,520 Speaker 2: they probably just fucking spent it. I don't know, but 413 00:24:33,680 --> 00:24:36,440 Speaker 2: most discussions about it say it was spent on projects 414 00:24:36,440 --> 00:24:38,880 Speaker 2: that just wouldn't qualify as five to one C three 415 00:24:39,920 --> 00:24:43,280 Speaker 2: projects that were not approved by the board, possibly on 416 00:24:43,359 --> 00:24:46,440 Speaker 2: bail and legal protections for various trans people who are incarcerated. 417 00:24:46,480 --> 00:24:49,360 Speaker 2: That's like the thing I found hints of more information 418 00:24:49,440 --> 00:24:51,760 Speaker 2: might be available, but I tried. This is what I 419 00:24:51,800 --> 00:24:54,840 Speaker 2: came up with, and if they did that, I don't know. Man, 420 00:24:54,960 --> 00:25:01,080 Speaker 2: good trans prisoners need support. But then again, an early 421 00:25:01,160 --> 00:25:04,200 Speaker 2: major funder of the project of trans Lifeline said explicitly 422 00:25:04,240 --> 00:25:08,000 Speaker 2: that she was defrauded, So maybe they just spent it. 423 00:25:08,440 --> 00:25:08,879 Speaker 1: I don't know. 424 00:25:10,040 --> 00:25:11,919 Speaker 2: Again, these are people who haven't been involved in the 425 00:25:11,920 --> 00:25:16,520 Speaker 2: project for eight years. The other thing is the way 426 00:25:16,560 --> 00:25:21,640 Speaker 2: that this misappropriation was discovered, Well, fucking Kiwi Farms takes 427 00:25:21,680 --> 00:25:24,680 Speaker 2: credit for it. This is probably the first time I've 428 00:25:24,680 --> 00:25:27,119 Speaker 2: said Kiwi Farms on this show, and I'm sad I 429 00:25:27,200 --> 00:25:29,560 Speaker 2: have to do it. If you don't know what Kiwi 430 00:25:29,560 --> 00:25:33,879 Speaker 2: Farms is I am glad and I am sorry to 431 00:25:33,960 --> 00:25:37,080 Speaker 2: do this too you. Kiwi Farms is a troll community 432 00:25:37,200 --> 00:25:40,920 Speaker 2: that seeks to drive trans people to suicide that brags 433 00:25:40,960 --> 00:25:43,760 Speaker 2: of their kill count. They specifically weaponize the Internet and 434 00:25:43,800 --> 00:25:46,879 Speaker 2: trolling and all of these things to try to kill us. 435 00:25:47,520 --> 00:25:55,360 Speaker 2: Kiwi Farms is bad, and they are the ones who 436 00:25:55,400 --> 00:26:00,480 Speaker 2: take credit for discovering the misappropriation of funds. Doesn't mean 437 00:26:00,480 --> 00:26:03,600 Speaker 2: that the funds weren't misappropriated. It just means that was 438 00:26:03,640 --> 00:26:06,919 Speaker 2: brought to people's attention by people who want to destroy 439 00:26:07,000 --> 00:26:09,680 Speaker 2: trans Lifeline because they want us to not have help, 440 00:26:09,800 --> 00:26:14,080 Speaker 2: because they want us to die. When I tried to 441 00:26:14,119 --> 00:26:17,040 Speaker 2: research the current state of trans Lifeline, I found a 442 00:26:17,040 --> 00:26:19,919 Speaker 2: lot of people talking about it on various forums like Reddit, 443 00:26:20,680 --> 00:26:23,159 Speaker 2: and a lot of those people didn't seem to be 444 00:26:23,240 --> 00:26:27,160 Speaker 2: totally on the level. In fact, a lot of them 445 00:26:27,480 --> 00:26:30,880 Speaker 2: are saying phrases the same as each other. They were 446 00:26:30,880 --> 00:26:35,400 Speaker 2: saying these phrases basically saying like trans Lifeline is a scam, 447 00:26:36,760 --> 00:26:40,119 Speaker 2: and a lot of the specific phrasing I also found 448 00:26:40,280 --> 00:26:43,840 Speaker 2: in various reports from Kiwi Farms about how it is 449 00:26:43,880 --> 00:26:47,560 Speaker 2: successfully exposed the embezzlement of the funds. So there's sure 450 00:26:47,640 --> 00:26:52,119 Speaker 2: is an implication that at least some of the people 451 00:26:52,240 --> 00:26:55,320 Speaker 2: who are talking shit about trans Lifeline on the internet 452 00:26:55,440 --> 00:27:00,960 Speaker 2: in forums are terminally online murderers who are trying to 453 00:27:01,000 --> 00:27:06,600 Speaker 2: kill us by destroying trans Lifeline. But just because people 454 00:27:06,600 --> 00:27:09,040 Speaker 2: are against it, God, it's just the waters are muddy 455 00:27:09,040 --> 00:27:11,960 Speaker 2: as hell. There do seem to be a lot of 456 00:27:12,000 --> 00:27:14,720 Speaker 2: people saying that they're having trouble getting through to trans Lifeline. 457 00:27:15,320 --> 00:27:18,840 Speaker 2: Other people say, yeah, when I did get through, I 458 00:27:19,000 --> 00:27:21,040 Speaker 2: spent two and a half hours talking to a counselor 459 00:27:21,240 --> 00:27:24,840 Speaker 2: about our shared experiences and it turned everything around for me, 460 00:27:25,720 --> 00:27:29,159 Speaker 2: and I suspect the most likely situation is this trans 461 00:27:29,200 --> 00:27:32,560 Speaker 2: Lifeline does not have a large budget. Now they get 462 00:27:32,560 --> 00:27:36,560 Speaker 2: these like fairly big name donations and like, you know, oh, 463 00:27:36,600 --> 00:27:39,920 Speaker 2: twenty thousand dollars was raised by this, like you know, 464 00:27:40,160 --> 00:27:43,919 Speaker 2: a Twitch streamer or those protect the Dolls shirts that 465 00:27:44,000 --> 00:27:46,879 Speaker 2: people were wearing, including like Pedro Pascal and stuff, or 466 00:27:46,920 --> 00:27:52,119 Speaker 2: like fundraisers for trans Lifeline, and that rules, and that money, 467 00:27:52,280 --> 00:27:54,320 Speaker 2: when it's raised, it goes a long way with like 468 00:27:54,320 --> 00:27:58,440 Speaker 2: a scrappy thing. But twenty thousand dollars here and there 469 00:27:58,760 --> 00:28:02,640 Speaker 2: has nothing on the one point, five billion dollars available 470 00:28:02,640 --> 00:28:06,360 Speaker 2: to nine eight eight services. There are only so many volunteers, 471 00:28:06,400 --> 00:28:09,600 Speaker 2: and of course they only hire trans counselors, which limits 472 00:28:09,640 --> 00:28:16,719 Speaker 2: their pool further and unfortunately, demand for services trans counseling 473 00:28:18,080 --> 00:28:21,560 Speaker 2: it's skyrocketing, and it just keeps skyrocketing. People are like, oh, 474 00:28:21,560 --> 00:28:24,520 Speaker 2: it's skyrocketed in twenty eighteen after this or that anti 475 00:28:24,520 --> 00:28:27,280 Speaker 2: trans law, well like man twenty eighteen sounds like a 476 00:28:27,320 --> 00:28:31,200 Speaker 2: little dream fairy land compared to twenty twenty five in America, 477 00:28:32,320 --> 00:28:35,960 Speaker 2: And there are studies that show causality between anti trans 478 00:28:36,080 --> 00:28:40,920 Speaker 2: legislation and trans suicidality. Everyone I know is struggling one 479 00:28:40,960 --> 00:28:45,240 Speaker 2: way or another right now. And what's more, the anti 480 00:28:45,240 --> 00:28:48,800 Speaker 2: trans and more broadly anti LGBTQ plus language that nine 481 00:28:48,800 --> 00:28:52,360 Speaker 2: eight eight has adopted is likely pushing more people towards 482 00:28:52,400 --> 00:28:56,880 Speaker 2: an already overwhelmed system. The state has never been much 483 00:28:56,880 --> 00:28:59,360 Speaker 2: of an ally to trans people, but with the states 484 00:28:59,360 --> 00:29:02,560 Speaker 2: captured by fascism, it's never been more important for us 485 00:29:02,600 --> 00:29:07,440 Speaker 2: to have resources that are independent, even if it's messy. Again, 486 00:29:07,480 --> 00:29:11,440 Speaker 2: though nine eight eight is also still around and trans 487 00:29:11,480 --> 00:29:14,280 Speaker 2: people can use it. It is complicated, but the people 488 00:29:14,280 --> 00:29:18,000 Speaker 2: who work it do good things. I am not a 489 00:29:18,040 --> 00:29:21,160 Speaker 2: social worker. I'm a fiction writer and a pop historian. 490 00:29:21,200 --> 00:29:23,400 Speaker 2: I'm going to disclaim that over and over and over 491 00:29:23,440 --> 00:29:26,280 Speaker 2: again throughout this episode. I don't know what to tell 492 00:29:26,320 --> 00:29:29,400 Speaker 2: you if you're struggling. I can tell you that you 493 00:29:29,440 --> 00:29:32,280 Speaker 2: should reach out for help, though, and that it's available. 494 00:29:33,480 --> 00:29:36,480 Speaker 2: The trans Lifeline number in the US is eight seven 495 00:29:36,600 --> 00:29:41,000 Speaker 2: seven five six five eight eight six zero. In Canada 496 00:29:41,320 --> 00:29:45,640 Speaker 2: it's eight seven seven three three zero six three six 497 00:29:45,840 --> 00:29:48,720 Speaker 2: six and their hours are every day from one pm 498 00:29:48,760 --> 00:29:53,480 Speaker 2: to nine pm Eastern. Talk to your friends and don't 499 00:29:53,560 --> 00:29:57,959 Speaker 2: judge your friends. You talk to you and I don't know. 500 00:29:58,160 --> 00:30:00,920 Speaker 2: Remember that everything changes. The way you're feeling right now 501 00:30:00,960 --> 00:30:04,320 Speaker 2: is not how you always feel, and it's not how 502 00:30:04,320 --> 00:30:07,040 Speaker 2: you've always felt, even if it's really hard to remember 503 00:30:07,040 --> 00:30:09,960 Speaker 2: that in the moment. I want all of us to win. 504 00:30:10,680 --> 00:30:14,400 Speaker 2: I want all of us to get to stand side 505 00:30:14,440 --> 00:30:21,320 Speaker 2: by side together against this nightmare. And yeah, good luck, 506 00:30:22,080 --> 00:30:22,880 Speaker 2: take care of each other. 507 00:30:25,800 --> 00:30:28,280 Speaker 1: Cool People Who Did Cool Stuff is a production of 508 00:30:28,320 --> 00:30:31,440 Speaker 1: cool Zone Media. A more podcasts in cool Zone Media, 509 00:30:31,600 --> 00:30:34,840 Speaker 1: visit our website goozonemedia dot com, or check us out 510 00:30:34,960 --> 00:30:37,960 Speaker 1: on the iHeartRadio app. I'm a podcast or wherever you 511 00:30:38,120 --> 00:30:39,920 Speaker 1: get your podcasts,