Spaces to Be
Spaces to Be explores the history of bisexual community groups in Victoria from the 1970s to the 2020s. This research project identified nine significant bisexual groups in Victoria during this time, and provides rich insight into their history, purposes and focus.
The Spaces to Be report, published in 2024, highlights the importance of these community groups to bi+ Victorians. These groups have provided connection and support for thousands of bi+ people. They have affirmed of bi+ identities in the face of biphobia and bi erasure, and provided a space where shared meanings and memories can be formed. They have advocated for the rights and needs of bi+ people within queer communities as well as the mainstream.
Bi+ Pride Victoria is built on the foundations of community organising and activism from those who have come before us. We are proud to acknowledge this legacy and its influence on our work.
Bi+ Pride Victoria also recognises and respects the diversity in gender and sexuality that has been present in First Nations communities on these lands for tens of thousands of years. Spaces to Be acknowledges the erasure of Aboriginal Australian and Torres Strait Islander histories, including queer histories, through colonialism. We call for funding and opportunities for bi+ and other LGBTIQA+ Aboriginal Australian and Torres Strait Islanders to engage with, research, and report on their queer history pre-colonisation and beyond.
Spaces to Be is based on oral history interviews, questionnaire-based data collection and intensive archival research. The research was led by Dr. Hamish McIntosh, in collaboration with Bisexual Alliance Victoria, and was supported by a grant from the Victorian Government.
Citation: McIntosh, H. (2024). Spaces to be: A history of bisexual groups in Victoria. Bisexual Alliance Victoria.