Pink phone
A pink telephone is a telephone counseling service that gives lesbians , gays and bisexuals the opportunity to be anonymously advised about their inclinations and to receive any information about problems that are related to homosexuality (or bisexuality).
Pink telephones exist in all large and medium-sized cities in Germany and are partly staffed by professionals and financed by the state. The majority of pink telephones operate in the non-commercial sector and are offered by consultants who receive regular supervision from professional bodies. However, some of the pink telephones are staffed by volunteer advisors who have no special training or supervision, but who are nevertheless qualified based on their life experience.
Up to now, pink telephones can be reached nationwide under the number 19446. Since the Federal Network Agency is restructuring these nationwide numbers, it is not clear which numbers this service will receive in the different cities in the future.
In addition to the nationwide service via a uniform number, there are also local initiatives that use landline numbers that differ from this.
The main tasks of the pink telephones are:
- Help with problems that people have in connection with their lesbian or gay identity;
- Information point for dates and meeting places for homosexual people;
- Forwarding to the appropriate specialist departments.