Hello, I am bisexual. The same way I am a Leo, and the same exact way I love chocolate.
"Oh, but it's just a phase!"
"Do you not like labels?"
"Ew, you've been touched by men."
"Ew, you've been touched by women."
Perhaps, the worst of all is that they claim to know me better than I know myself. They say I am confused. I swear if one more person tells me that, I am going to scream. If one more person says that by the sex of my partner, I am inherently straight or lesbian, I am going to leave. Or maybe that because I like both genders, I am polyamorous. Let me make it clear for everyone, bisexuality does not mean a threesome. That's just a gross fetish perpetuated by heterosexual males, and it needs to stop.
Yes, I was once a boy-obsessed girl. I was that girl for a long-time, and it was not faked. I wasn't hiding some gay version of myself -- I was straight like any other typical 7th grader obsessed with Theo James and any other hottie that was an icon during those times. However, I am bisexual now, and that doesn't erase any of my past moments of self-discovery (including the stereotypical straight girl ranting about boys) because it matters to me, and the way I came to terms with my sexuality.
I am not saying being queer is a choice, but that our sexualities are all valid regardless of how we came to them. No one should explain themselves to acquire legitimacy in the LGBT+ community because we are already oppressed, and we are just making ourselves even more oppressed? How does that make sense? We are just hurting each other.
Finally, we should have more characters that are openly bisexual! Yes, they use that label. Not stupid vague terms that are used in many movies and TV shows, two of them were:
- Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Willow, one of the main characters in BtVS, is clearly attracted to men. Her relationship with the werewolf Oz is one of the biggest romances of the show. But then when she gets into a relationship with Tara, she calls herself gay. The word bisexual isn't even mentioned, but "kinda gay" is used instead.
- Glee: "Bisexual is a term gay guys use in high school when they want to hold hands with girls and feel normal for a change." Ok, first of all, no. Second of all, no. NO. Kurt, an openly gay guy (but undoubtedly stereotypical), states this gross double-standard on the bisexual community when his then boyfriend starts questioning his sexuality. But don't worry! Kurt's boyfriend (Blaine) was gay after all... and all because the creator of the show felt the need to make Blaine feel like one of the "gay guys", as if bisexual men don't need representation?
In the LGBT+ community, we have to accept there is tiers of representation, one of the strongest is the white gay/lesbian... which is we have to prioritize other sexualities like aromantic, asexual, bisexual, pansexual, etc.. Especially for people of color who are in the queer community. People like me.
