With the force of #metoo, the spotlight was on the abuse that had been hushed up the world over. At the same time, stories from the LGBTQI community were conspicuous by their absence, even though LGBTQI people often are subject to sexual abuse, not least bisexual women and transgender people.

Now is the time to break the silence. Today, RFSL launches the anthology Vi också – hbtqi-personer berättar (in Swedish). It’s time for the LGBTQI movement’s #metoo.

“Nobody should be subject to sexual abuse. I’m incredibly thankful to the people who have shared their experiences in RFSL’s anthology. We hope that it’s going to empower other LGBTQI people to share their stories,” says Deidre Palacios, president of RFSL.

In the anthology, we get to read LGBTQI people’s own stories of vulnerability, some of them anonymous. Just as in society in general, many have suffered abuse by someone that they know. We get to share stories that take place during leisure-time, on the internet, at parties, in the home, in flight and in work life.

“It’s time for us LGBTQI people to show that this happens among us too. The only way to get to the problem is by breaking the silence and starting to talk about it,” says Maria Niemi, the author and editor of the anthology.

In the book, the police and counsellors specialised in sexual offenses against LGBTQI people talk about what help and support there is for victims.

About the author and editor

Maria Niemi, born 1982 in Kiruna, a resident of Stockholm, is a free-lance editor, writer and communication strategist and owner of the business Hyvää. She has a bachelor of arts in creative writing at Linnéuniversitetet. Photo: Anna Drvnik.

Contributors by name

Sini Alhola, Lars Gårdfeldt, Md. Habibur Rahman, Samuel Ross, Shaun Walls, Kina Sjöström and Maria Tillquist from RFSL Support Service, Kickis Åhré Älgamo and Göran Stanton from the Swedish Police and Deidre Palacios from RFSL.

Links

Download the anthology here: “Vi också – hbtqi-personer berättar” (pdf).

Read more about the author here: About Maria Niemi.

Contact RFSL’s support operations here.