The Informer

On this episode of The Informer, we discuss how this week, Australia became one step closer to true marriage equality, with the news this week that Victoria has become the third state in Australia to scrap forced trans divorce for same sex married couples where one of the individuals is trans.

We find out the Rainbow Families Youth Advisory Council with Rainbow Families, and we speak to some of our JOY volunteers to find out why they do what they do, on National Volunteer Week.

This episode of The Informer aired on JOY 94.9 & was hosted by Dean Arcuri

This week is National Volunteer Week, an annual celebration to acknowledge the generous contribution of our nation’s volunteers.

Here at JOY we have over 300 volunteers both on the mics and behind the scenes helping to keep us out loud and proud, and we have been featuring some of these voiles at the beginning of each ep of The Informer this week.

We loved hearing from them, so we thought why not hear about more from some of the diverse volunteers at JOY, and why they give their time for the station and the community.

Harriot, Chris, SJ and Anastacia thank you for sharing why you volunteer with JOY with all of us, and thanks to the volunteers that also help keep the informer going every week, current affairs for you community, bringing you the stories and voices of Australia’s  LGBTI communities.

This segment of The Informer aired on 24th May 2018 on JOY 94.9.

The first meeting of the Rainbow Families Youth Advisory Council has taken place in New South Wales, what is the Rainbow Youth Advisory Council I hear you say?

Dean Arcuri chats with Vanessa, co-chair of rainbow families and while we are at it, lets hear straight from the kids themselves as well!!

This segment of The Informer aired on 24th May 2018 on JOY 94.9.

We are literally one step closer to marriage equality, with the news this week that Victoria has become the third state in Australia, with the news this week that Victoria has become the third state in Australia to scrap forced trans divorce for same sex married couples where one of the individuals is trans.

Wait, didn’t we get marriage equality last year with same sex marriage and all?

Let Dean break it down for you, both the literal and the legal with Lee Carnie from the and Sarah Adock, who shares the story of her own marriage.

This segment of The Informer aired on 24th May 2018 on JOY 94.9.

Does your organisation have the Rainbow Tick?

The Rainbow Tick supports organisations to understand and implement LGBTI inclusive service delivery and reassures LGBTI consumers and staff that Rainbow Tick organisations will be aware of, and responsive to their needs.

Standards are applicable to any organisation, regardless of industry, and supports organisations to develop and implement inclusive practices for the LGBTI community.

Carers Queensland is the first not for profit organisation in QLD to be accredited with the Rainbow Tick, joining a growing number of businesses in Australia offering a welcoming and safe workplace for people who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or intersex.

Dean Arcuri speaks to Jim Toohey, President of Carers Queensland about what was involved in getting the organisation accredited for the Rainbow Tick.

This segment of The Informer aired on JOY 94.9 on 23rdMay 2018

Does your organisation have the Rainbow Tick?

The Rainbow Tick supports organisations to understand and implement LGBTI inclusive service delivery and reassures LGBTI consumers and staff that Rainbow Tick organisations will be aware of, and responsive to their needs.

Standards are applicable to any organisation, regardless of industry, and supports organisations to develop and implement inclusive practices for the LGBTI community.

Carers Queensland is the first not for profit organisation in QLD to be accredited with the Rainbow Tick, joining a growing number of businesses in Australia offering a welcoming and safe workplace for people who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or intersex.

Dean Arcuri speaks to Jim Toohey, President of Carers Queensland about what was involved in getting the organisation accredited for the Rainbow Tick.

This segment of The Informer aired on JOY 94.9 on 23rdMay 2018

Rainbow Families is preparing a report into discrimination LGBTIQ parents face when accessing Federal Government services and they want to hear from you.

Do you have an experience with Medicare, applying for a passport, adoption and fostering, ART, surrogacy, and the census. Then you can add your voice and be a part of advocating for changes on these important issues that affect LGBTIQ parents and their families.

Dean Arcuri and Tom Morgan speak to Cathy from Rainbow Families, to find out about what it takes to add your voice to help make change for Rainbow Families.

Rainbow Families survey is a follow-up to Rainbow Families NSW consultation with our community about their experiences with state government services.

Rainbow Families are looking at the experiences of our community interacting with Federal Government services and departments and if you would like to add your voice to this, head to rainbowfamilies.com.au/advocacy

This segment of The Informer aired on JOY 94.9 on 23rdMay 2018

Now on The Informer we speak to LGBTIQ outreach lawyer at St Kilda Legal Service, Sam Elkin, Sam’s role is part of a health justice partnership with the Victorian AIDS Council.

Not only getting a need of the broadness of the law for our diverse rainbow, part of the role is providing information, advice and some casework in the areas of debts, infringements, tenancy, employment, discrimination, minor criminal law, family violence, family law, issues around changes of name, Centrelink and NDIS. But hen it comes to our community and the law, broad doesn’t even begin to cover it.

Dean Arcuri speaks to Sam Elkin, LGBTIQ Outreach Lawyer from St Kilda Legal Services.

This segment of The Informer aired on JOY 94.9 on 23rdMay 2018.

On this episode of The Informer,we look at the law when it falls outside the gender binary. As we speak to Sam Elkin, an LGBTIQ outreach lawyer at St Kilda Legal Service in Victoria. New in the role, Sam is starting to get a sense of the variety of legal needs every letter of our rainbow alphabet requires, it’s not just about the big issues, but the smaller ones as well.

We head to NSW, where we speak to Rainbow Families, who are preparing a report into discrimination LGBTIQ parents face when accessing Federal Government services. They want to hear from Rainbow parents around the country, so that theycan advocate for changes on these important issues that affect LGBTIQ parents and their families.

And we speak to Carers Queensland, the first not for profit organisation to be accredited with the Rainbow Tick in Queensland, joining a growing number of businesses in Australia offering a welcoming and safe workplace for people who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or intersex.

This episode of The Informer aired on JOY 94.9 and was hosted by Tom Morgan.

When the Victorian Liberal Party passed a motion to support the ‘Nordic Model’ of sex work regulation in Victoria, many sex workers and advocates spoke out saying that employing the Nordic model is be a step in the wrong direction.

The ‘Nordic Model’ criminalises paying for sex but doesn’t criminalise the sex worker. Which would mean that in Victoria, buying sex, pimping and keeping a brothel would all be against the law, should a law based of the ‘Nordic Model’ came into place.

Currently in Victoria, it is only illegal for clients to solicit sex in a public place. The act itself is not illegal.

Leader of the Liberal Party, Mathew Guy stated in Victorian Parliament, that the ‘Liberal Nationals have no plan to adopt the ‘Nordic Model’ for policing of sex work in Victoria’.

 

Dean Arcuri & Tom Morgan sat down with Jane Green from Victoria’s peer only sex worker organization, the Vixen Collective, about what’s next in creating better legislation for Victoria’s sex workers.

 

This segment of The Informer aired on JOY 94.9 on 22nd May 2018