Understanding biphobia and bi erasure

Biphobia

Biphobia is prejudice, discrimination, or hostility directed towards bi+ people (or towards people who are perceived to be bi+). It includes negative attitudes and behaviours that marginalise, stigmatise, or invalidate bi+ / multi-gender attracted people and their experiences.

Biphobia can appear in various ways. Examples include repeating stereotypes and misconceptions about bi+ people (e.g. myths that bi+ people are promiscuous, untrustworthy or dangerous), rejecting bi+ people (e.g. excluding bi+ people from family relationships, discriminating against bi+ people in dating), refusing services to bi+ people, seeking to convert bi+ people to other sexual orientations, or perpetrating acts of violence or harassment toward bi+ people.

Biphobia results in harm to bi+ people’s health, mental health,rights and safety. Recognising and reducing biphobia is key to improving outcomes for bi+ people. It is also vital in promoting inclusivity, visibility, and acceptance of diverse sexual orientations and identities within society and LGBTIQA+ communities.

Monosexism

Monosexism is part of the foundation of biphobia. It is a system of social attitudes and structures that privileges monosexual people (e.g. straight, gay or lesbian people) over multi-gender attracted people. Like patriarchy, racism, ableism and other social power systems, it is woven into the narratives, relationships, policies and institutions that shape our society.

Monosexism can be seen in individual attitudes (e.g. that monosexuality is superior to or more valid than multi-gender attraction) and individual discriminatory behaviours (e.g. seeking to exclude bi+ people from straight and queer spaces). It is also visible in systematic patterns of harm and disadvantage to bi+ people as a group. For example, monosexism results in bi+ people in Australia and elsewhere having higher rates of homelessness, poverty and mental illness than people of other sexual orientations.

Bi erasure

Bi erasure or bi invisibility is the pattern of ignoring or dismissing evidence of bisexuality and of not acknowledging bi+ experience. This reinforces the assumption that monosexism is normal and that multi-gender attraction is invalid or does not exist.

Bi erasure is often present in everyday language and attitudes (e.g. saying that a bi+ person is “just going through a phase” or is “just confused”; or using the term “gay marriage” instead of “marriage equality”, as many bi+ people will not feel included within the term “gay”). It can often result in false and harmful assumptions about people (e.g. assuming that a person is heterosexual because they are dating someone of a different gender, or assuming that they are homosexual because they are dating someone of the same gender - in both cases, the person may be multi-gender attracted).

Bi erasure can also involve overlooking, removing, falsifying, or re-explaining evidence of bisexuality in history, academia, the media, and other primary sources. This sometimes involves re-interpreting bi+ experiences or people as either heterosexual or homosexual. In an extreme form, bi erasure can include writing or research seeking to establish that bisexuality does not exist.

Bi+ visibility

Bi+ visibility is the antidote to bi erasure. Bi+ visibility involves increasing public awareness, understanding and acceptance of bi+ people, and of the validity and value of multi-gender attraction. Bi+ visibility can occur organically through positive representations of bi+ people in arenas such as the media, sports, literature and the arts. It can also be strengthened through strategic work to highlight and celebrate bisexuality, undertaken by bi+ individuals, bi+ organisations, and allies.