00:00On April 22nd, a male teacher was robbed and beaten in East Port of Spain, after meeting
00:06up with a man he had been in contact with on popular gay dating app Grindr.
00:11On May 28th, another man was beaten and robbed, after arranging to meet with someone from
00:16the same social media app.
00:19And on Saturday night, a 50-year-old man was robbed of his current cash, after meeting
00:24a man he had been speaking to on Grindr, at a popular guesthouse in Arangüez.
00:29These are just the recent reports that have made it into the public domain.
00:34But LGBTI advocacy group KAISO says, the actual figure is such that they would not want to
00:40share for fear of causing panic.
00:59And while there has been much condemnation in the public domain following the incidents,
01:29KAISO notes the main issue is the stigma and discrimination that is attached to members
01:34of the community, which then forces them to seek discrete ways of forming relationships.
01:41We want folks to understand that too often we're shamed into not, you know, oh, don't
01:48do this or don't do that.
01:49We're actually saying the opposite.
01:51We want us to be safe in however we engage, whether it's online dating or meeting someone
01:57in public space.
01:59And we want members of the community to be able to, if something happens, to be able
02:03to safely report that to the police and to be able to seek protection.
02:08KAISO is urging members of the LGBTQI plus community to put their safety first.
02:15Verify information when you're on these sites.
02:18Please meet in a space where you're comfortable.
02:20Find a space that you know is queer or LGBT or trans-friendly.
02:27Even bring a friend with you so that they can see who you're meeting.
02:31Thinking about a shared space, but we're also mindful that not all public spaces can feel
02:35safe.
02:36So doing what you can to be safe in that moment, to verify information and the validity of
02:42the person who they say they are.
02:46Also thinking about sharing your details.
02:47Send your location to a friend.
02:50However, if all else fails, victims are urged to make a formal report.
02:56Take these reports to the police, whether you use the online system, if you are not
03:00able to make the report yourself because you are fearful that the police won't take you
03:04seriously.
03:05And we know that happens.
03:07To reach out to KAISO's Wholeness and Justice Program, you can reach out and find information
03:14about us at kaisottt.org, easily on our website.
03:17That's kaiso with a c.
03:19And you can reach out to us for that kind of support.
03:22Renessa Cutting, TV6 News.
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