About CHARLEE
This hub has been developed on the lands of the Yaluk-ut Weelam clan of the Boon Wurrung peoples. We pay our deepest respects to all Elders of yesterday and today and extend those respects to all First Nations peoples across this country we know as Australia.
We wish to specifically acknowledge the strength and resilience of all LGBTIQASB+ First Nations peoples. We recognise that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures have always had rich and diverse understandings and practices of sexuality and gender and that the harmful and ongoing effects of colonisation have introduced homophobia, transphobia, and heightened levels of suicide experiences in First Nations communities.
We acknowledge that sovereignty across this land we call Australia has never been ceded and our work continues to take place locally and nationally on what always was and always will be Aboriginal land.
About this hub
Suicide is a complex subject. Finding support can feel incredibly isolating, overwhelming and intimidating for anyone in this space. For LGBTIQA+ individuals, our feelings are often amplified by experiences of discrimination, barriers to accessing support and a lack of suitable resources that center our unique experiences of LGBTIQA+ communities.
CHARLEE brings together Connection, Hope, Action, Resources and Lived Experience Education.
CHARLEE takes a no wrong door approach and seeks to create a safer space designed by LGBTIQA+ people with lived experiences of suicide. Our hope is to connect any LGBTIQA+ people with resources and supports that better reflect and address the experiences we face.
CHARLEE has been created through guidance by our LGBTIQA+ Lived Experience Network and Rainbow Door staff at every stage from the hub’s initiation. We have sought to capture a diverse range of expert knowledge, held by those who have close connections to suicide – LGBTIQA+ people who have past or ongoing experiences with thinking about suicide, suicidal behaviour, supporters of others through suicidal distress, and the bereaved. The knowledge you will find weaved throughout each resource exists to offer you a LGBTIQA+ lens on suicide prevention and grief.
CHARLEE is a continuing project. If there is a resource you can’t find online just yet, we would love to hear from you.
If you are seeking support, please contact our Rainbow Door line:
Rainbow Door (every day, 10am-5pm)
Ph: 1800 729 367
Txt: 0480 017 246
We would like to acknowledge and extend our deepest gratitude to every individual who has generously contributed their time and lived experience toward the development of this work. Your collective wisdom, courage, and compassion form the heart of this hub which, without you, could not exist.
CHARLEE is a project of Switchboard Victoria and is supported by the Victorian Government.
Charlee takes a no wrong door approach and seeks to create a safer space designed by LGBTIQA+ peers, to connect other peers and supporters to resources that better reflect and address the experiences often faced by our communities.
Diversity Acknowledgement
We acknowledge that the content within this hub may reach people from a wide range of experiences and backgrounds and that each is likely to hold a unique set of beliefs, attitudes, and values toward suicide grief and prevention.
We also recognise that responses to suicide and suicide grief are often framed within a narrow cultural context. While we have sought to be inclusive of LGBTIQA+ communities and cover a broad range of topics, we acknowledge there may be language, definitions, or practices that may be different from how you identify, or your personal approach toward suicide prevention. We remind you that while our hope for this hub is to provide comfort and guide you on your journey, there are also many ways to approach suicide grief and prevention. We encourage you to take from this site what feels helpful and leave behind what doesn’t serve you in your personal journey of this complex topic.
Please know that this hub is not static but will continue to develop and expand with time. If you have feedback on the hub or would like to contribute to any content, we warmly welcome this.