The concept of a bisexual community is complex and slightly controversial.
Bisexuals are in the peculiar situation of receiving hatred, distrust, or denial, called biphobia, from elements of both the heterosexual and homosexual populations. There is of course some element of general anti-LGBT feeling, but some people insist that bisexual people are unsure of their true feelings, that they are experimenting or going through a "phase," and that they eventually will or should "decide" or "discover" which (singular) gender they are sexually attracted to.
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Defining the community
There are certainly sexual minority cultures which are shared by a substantial fraction of the given minority population. But there are also people in the population who do not share in the culture.
The social networks of some bisexual people, sometimes called gay- or lesbian-identified bisexuals, are heavily concentrated inside the LGBT communities. But others, sometimes called straight-identified bisexuals, may rarely participate in LGBT culture. And still others choose to maintain their primary social contacts mainly with other bisexual people.
But other people are entirely geographically or socially isolated from other bisexual people, or do not feel their social connections to their bisexual friends are different from those they have with their heterosexual and homosexual friends.
Thus it is possible to conceive of a worldwide or a local bisexual culture or social network, but which does not necessarily include all bisexual people in the area. There is also a potential distinction to be made between one's social network and one's sexual network (or universe of possible sexual partners).
Some question the notion of sharing a "community" with people one has never actually met (whether in person or remotely). But other advocates insist that all bisexual people (and perhaps their allies) are part of a global community in one way or another.
This common culture generally celebrates pride, diversity, individuality, and sexuality. Many participants find it a refreshing antidote to hatred, discrimination, biphobia, bisexual erasure, sex-negative attitudes and conformist pressures they sometimes encounter in the other societies in which bisexual people live and interact.
Political activism is also common, especially on bisexual, LGBT, liberal, and libertarian issues (but there are, of course, bisexual people of every political stripe, including Log Cabin Republicans).
Heterosexual and homosexual people can often be included in the bisexual community, and are typically termed as bi-friendly or bi-inclusive as they often support political rights and social dignity for bisexual people.
As a new wave of bicurious males and females come up in the world the term "AKALesbian" is considered to this new generation of bisexual individuals more friendly than the stale term "bisexual".
See also
References
- Bi Any Other Name : Bisexual People Speak Out by Loraine Hutchins, Editor & Lani Ka'ahumanu, Editor ISBN 1-55583-174-5
- Getting Bi : Voices of Bisexuals Around the World by Robyn Ochs, Editor & Sarah Rowley, Editor ISBN 0-9653881-4-X
- The Bisexual Option by Fritz Klein, MD ISBN 1-56023-033-9
- Bi America : Myths, Truths, And Struggles Of An Invisible Community by William E. Burleson ISBN 978-1-56023-478-4
- Bisexuality in the United States : A Social Science Reader by Paula C. Rodriguez Rust, Editor ISBN 0-231-10226-7
- Bisexuality : The Psychology and Politics of an Invisible Minority by Beth A. Firestein, Editor ISBN 0-8039-7274-1
- Current Research on Bisexuality by Ronald C. Fox PhD, Editor ISBN 978-1-56023-288-5
External links
- bi.org Web Hub for all bisexual sites and resources
- BiMagazine (English Language)
- Bi Community News (UK)
- The Bisexual Index (UK)
- Bi-Nieuws Magazine (Nederlanden)
- The Fence for/by bisexual women (Canada)
- Message Forum, Articles,chatroom and more for the bisexual community
Canada
- BiNetCanada
- Toronto Bisexual Network (TBN) (Toronto)
Mexico
- OpcionBi (Mexico)
The Netherlands
- LNBi (Nederlanden)
United States
- BiNet USA (American Civil Rights Organization)
- American Institute of Bisexuality (research foundation)
- Bisexual Resource Center (BRC)
- Bialogue = Bisexual + Dialogue (political activist group)
Local groups in the US
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- Bay Area Bisexual Network (BABN) (San Francisco area) (site no longer exists)
- AMBI (A Meeting of Bi Individuals) LA (Los Angeles)
- BiNet Austin (Austin)
- BiNet Dallas Fort Worth (DFW)
- Bi Net Houston (greater Houston)
- MN Bisexual Gals Club (Twin Cities Minneapolis/St.Paul)
- Just Coffee Social Club (Bi Women) (Kansas City Missouri)
- New York Area Bisexual Network (NYABN) (greater New York City area)
- BiUnity (Philadelphia area)
- Conn-Bi-Nation (Connecticut)
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