https://www.thepinknews.com/2024/03/30/mum-son-lgbt-app-bobu-safety/
"A mother and son who launched an app to guide LGBTQ+ people to safe places say
they hope the platform will become somewhere where members of the LGBTQ+
community can find “all their safety needs”.
Luciana and Nicholas Cousin launched their app ‘Back Off. Back Up.’ (BOBU) in
2021 after some of their friends were attacked.
The app, which covers Brighton, London and, most recently, Kendal in Cumbria,
provides a platform showing the nearest safe space, such as a bar or
restaurant, where members of LGBTQ+ community can seek refuge and help.
“It became apparent there was nowhere to go once you’ve been attacked,” Luciana
tells
PinkNews.
After being attacked in one venue, their friends were too scared to ask other
places for help, not knowing how they would be treated, she adds.
“We thought: what if we had a sticker that would announce [where] LGBTQ+ people
could get help?”
The app’s launch came against a backdrop of rising reports of of anti-LGBTQ+
violence – hate crimes against trans people has risen by 186 per cent in the
past five years, and by 112 per cent on the basis of sexual orientation, a
study last year showed."
Via Susan ****
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
