By JT
Bisexuality in women isn’t hip or new; it existed long before high profile celebrities came out of the closet and the gossip mags started noticing.
Lindsay Lohan’s relationship with Samantha Ronson, Portia de Rossi’s history of dating men before her marriage to Ellen Degeneres and Megan Fox’s confession of her own bisexual tendencies to Maxim are far from fascinating and new developments in our sexual history.
Bisexuality is (roughly) defined as “being attracted to both sexes”, and it’s always existed. However, though in the past the topic was taboo, bisexuality is now enjoying a new ‘acceptance vogue’.
Gay marriages are now legal in some of the most conservative and religious of states in the US – though, unfortunately, not in some of the most liberal. Myspace and MTV are raging with girls kissing other girls (often, unfortunately, for the attention of boys). The bisexual Pandora’s box has been opened.
At the same time, tacky tabloid headlines referring to Lindsay Lohan as “Now straight!”, “Now gay!” and “Is Lindsay confused?” give us the feeling it’s not smooth sailing just yet.
Ignorance about bisexuality, alongside accusations that couples are together for attention or due to deep psychological issues, follow bisexuals around like a bad smell. So why not try this, even if you consider yourself to be 100 percent heterosexual: the Kinsey Scale of sexual attraction may reveal that you’re slightly more bisexual than you’d like to think.
Lack of acceptance and ignorance is unfortunately common in the heterosexual community, but the occasional lack of acceptance of bisexuality among homosexuals – those who seem to be in the same boat – can be puzzling.
Here’s the thing: coming to the realisation that you’re homosexual is often a journey rather than an epiphany, and sometimes along the way there’s experimentation with both genders. People who’ve reached the end of that journey can, and often do, have doubts about people who proclaim their bisexuality. My bisexual friends have been rejected by lesbians who don’t want to be their experiments, or are afraid of being rejected when bisexuality becomes unfashionable again.
The hardest part for bisexuals coming out of the closet has to be telling the folks, if you choose to. After all, you’re not totally same-sex oriented, but you may have to explain to them what being a bisexual means.
As a parting note, the decision to adopt a sexuality label is entirely individual. If you or someone close to you views attraction to others as something which is based entirely on the connection and chemistry shared with another human being, regardless of gender, or they are simply open to the idea of a same-sex relationship, there is no pressure to fit into the ‘bisexual box’.
Sexuality isn’t something which can be controlled or chosen, and it’s also entirely an individual’s business and prerogative to explore.
