Being bisexual is not the same as being gay or being transgender: they are completely different experiences. We could even say that bisexuality can become much more confusing because we are taught that we cannot like everything, so we have to choose which team we are on. Thus, women tend to see themselves as heterosexual trying to attract the opposite sex with merely performative acts, while men tend to see themselves as a homosexual in transition. What about this? That in addition to being completely false beliefs, when they are heard over and over again they can cause enormous confusion in the listener. This creates an acceptance problem, sometimes perpetuated by the LGBT community itself.
Question of biphobia
This confusion leads us to biphobia, that is, a phobia of bisexuality, based on an orientation that we cannot understand because it is not polarized. As a consequence, we pigeonhole the bisexual person in the erroneous clichés above, or else, we ignore the general orientation. How many times have you seen a bisexual personified in movies? Surely very few, or even never. Biphobia It is not marked by hatred, but by invisibility.
The situation is transferred to the family nucleus. According to a study carried out by Stonewall a few years ago, 46% of men and 26% of women of bisexual orientation are not open with their families about their preferences, while the gay community is only ten percent of men and five percent of women.
What can be done to make bisexuality visible?
We all have an important role in making things change. On the one hand we have to listen and learn about the challenges facing the bisexual community and denounce the stereotypes that are hurting so many people. Let’s stop assuming that sexual orientation is what makes us choose someone as a partner. For those who work in creative media, let’s give a voice to bisexual people, characters, stories and spaces. If this is not your case, by remembering that bisexuality exists and proposing not to fall into stereotypes when thinking about it, you are helping a lot to forge a greater path of empathy and acceptance.