Bisexual erasure
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Bisexual erasure is the tendency to ignore, remove, falsify, or reexplain evidence of bisexuality in the historical record, academic materials, the news media, and other primary sources.[1] [2]
When bisexual erasure is found in intellectually dishonest or erroneous works, it is a manifestation of biphobia.[3] In its most extreme form, bisexual erasure can include denying that bisexual people actually exist.[4]
In the gay community
Bisexual erasure may stem from a belief that bisexual people do not deserve equal status or inclusion within gay and lesbian communities.[5]
This can take the form of omitting the word bisexual in the name of an organization or event that serves the whole LGBT community. Homosexual people who engage in bisexual erasure may claim that bisexuals are actually closeted gay people who wish to appear heterosexual.[6]
It is also common for gay writers and activists to portray bisexual and gender blurring behaviors in ancient and non-Western cultures, such as ancient Greek pederasty or Native American Two Spirited people, as proof that homosexuality has been widely accepted in other times and cultures.[7]
In some cases, gay commentators in the American and British media have portrayed individuals caught in scandals involving same-sex affairs as homosexual, despite bisexual behavior and lifestyle. As do gay commentators and the gay media, the mainstream media also tends to lump anyone identified with any homosexual or same-sex partners as gay; in some cases, even those who specifically identify as bisexual or have a clear history of significant experience with both same and opposite-sex partners.
See also
References
- ^ Word Of The Gay: BisexualErasure May 16, 2008 "Queers United"
- ^ The B Word Suresha, Ron. "The B Word," Options (Rhode Island), November 2004
- ^ Bisexual erasureBi Writers Media Guide: Glossary
- ^ Hutchins, Loraine (2005). "Sexual Prejudice: The erasure of bisexuals in academia and the media". American Sexuality magazine. 3 (4). National Sexuality Resource Center.
- ^ Weiss, Jillian Todd (2004). "GL vs. BT: The Archaeology of Biphobia and Transphobia Within the U.S. Gay and Lesbian Community". Journal of Bisexuality. 3 (3/4). Haworth Press: 25–55.
- ^ Yoshino, Kenji (January 2000). "The Epistemic Contract of Bisexual Erasure" (PDF). Stanford Law Review. 52 (2). Stanford Law School: 353–461. doi:10.2307/1229482.
- ^ Hall, Donald E. Bisexual Literature glbtq: An Encyclopedia of Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender, & Queer Culture
Further reading
- Fraser, M., Identity Without Selfhood: Simone de Beauvoir and Bisexuality, Cambridge and New York: Cambridge University Press 1999. p.124-140.
External links
- Dear Fellow Non-existent Beings: countering current attempts to erase bisexuality
- Bialogue
- Bisexual Erasure in literature at glbtq.com.
- Curiouser and curiouser by Mark Simpson
- Bialogue/GLAAD Bisexuality Packet for Mental Health Professionals
- Straight, Gay or Lying? Bisexuality Revisited New York Times, July 5, 2005.
