Twenty-nine percent of bisexual employees said they had hidden their identity (Creative Commons) Bi Visibility Day has been celebrated every year since 1999, to highlight the achievements of the bi community and tackle discrimination. The day, which takes place on 23 September, also marks the start of Bisexual Awareness Week, which runs until 30 September. Bi Visibility Day was first observed at the International Lesbian and Gay Association (ILGA) conference in Johannesburg in South Africa. How does Bi Visibility Day help tackle biphobia? According to data from the Pew Research Center, 40 percent of LGBT Americans are bisexual. The Office for National Statistics suggests 0.8 percent of the British population are bisexual. However, the same research also shows gay men and lesbians are more likely than bi people to be out. Overall, only 28% of bisexual people in the US said that all or most of the important people in their lives are aware that they are LGBT. Part of the reason is that bi people face discrimination and stigma, which prevents them from coming out. A 2017 study by American University found that stressors had more of an impact because bi people face what researchers described as “double discrimination” – from both queer and non-queer community. This could partly be why bi people earn less on average, feel less happy and suffer from higher levels of anxiety than other sexualities. Medical studies have also shown Lesbian and bisexual women are at greater risk of developing diabetes at a young age due to stress. Ian Lawrence-Tourinho, president of the amBi network in the US, has helped to organise the first ever Bi Pride in the US to help tackle discrimination and promote visibility. “Bi erasure (the opposite of bi visibility) is one of our community’s biggest challenges – people erasing us from dialog, news stories, history, films/TV, and everywhere else,” he said. “Part of this is because people cannot immediately see or read our sexuality based on the gender of our partner. People see a woman with another woman, and think of us as lesbians. People see a woman with a man, they think of us as straight.” The Iranian-American filmmaker Desiree Akhavan, who recently tackled the issue of gay conversion therapy in the film The Miseducation of Cameron Post, has been outspoken about her experience as a bisexual woman – and the issues bi people face. “It’s complicated—there isn’t a face of bisexuality and it feels disingenuous,” she said at an event at London’s BFI Southbank earlier this year. She continued: “If I’m walking down the street with a woman, I’m a lesbian. “I realised recently every time I did anything people said ‘bisexual Desiree’ and I felt like it was a deeply embarrassing thing. They always said: ‘she f***s men and women.’ If they’d said lesbian I’d have been like f*** yeah but it was embarrassing. There are a lot of openly bisexual people, but you identify them with who they’re holding hands with in that moment. When you don’t see something often, it becomes hard to relate to.” Speaking to Pink News, she busted several myths bi people commonly face, including that they don’t want to be in a monogamous relationship. She said: “I’ve had a lot of straight men tell me: ‘well you can date anyone, why would you settle down? You don’t have to worry about marriage or a family because you’re incapable of monogamy.’ I mean, I’m still figuring out my own feelings about monogamy but I think that’s a bulls**t assumption.”<doc-sep>Bisexual Visibility Day (also known as Bi Visibility Day) is celebrated annually on September 23, and has aimed to celebrate the B in LGBTQ+ since the day was founded in 1999. The day was first observed at the International Lesbian and Gay Association (ILGA) conference in Johannesburg, South Africa, and celebrates the achievements of the community, as well as tackling discrimination. People have taken to social media to celebrate the day, whether it’s to dispel myths, to raise the community up, or simply to crack jokes. Here are some of the best tweets from Bisexual Visibility Day, from the educational to the downright hilarious. 1. Celebrities like singer Kehlani joined in the conversation. sexuality has never seemed black & white, itâs a spectrum, often times finding what u feel you most identify with takes patience and in the case of our society, a lot of confidence. happy bi-visibility day, i hope you feel seen today and everyday. — Kehlani (@Kehlani) September 23, 2018 2. Some hilarious jokes are being made over on Twitter! 3. Some used the day to dispel myths. #BiVisibilityDay SOME FACTS: - we're not greedy - we don't have to 'pick a side' - we aren't half gay/half straight - being in a straight relationship doesn't make us less/not bi - we aren't more likely to cheat on you - we're not pansexual - we're valid - we're real — charlotte 🍒 (@barbygates) September 23, 2018 4. Bi Visibility Day is a good excuse for some education. Bisexuality isnât a phase or an indecision to choose, bisexuality is valid and bisexual people deserve your acknowledgement and respect â¤ï¸ #BiVisibilityDay — Calum McSwiggan (@CalumMcSwiggan) September 23, 2018 5. People used the day to speak about their own stories. Oh look it is #BiVisibilityDay. It's easy to be cynical about these things but bloody hell I wish something like it had been around when I was a teenager in the 90s, trying to understand my sexuality. — Luke Turner (@LukeTurnerEsq) September 23, 2018 6. The day coincides nicely with the first day of autumn. 7. A few jokes were made about “visibility”… If you see strange people in your house today, don't panic. These are probably bisexual family members. Usually invisible except for one day per year, they are typically friendly if approached. #BiVisibilityDay — LGBT+ Lib Dems (@LGBTLD) September 23, 2018 8. Just a few! Happy #BiVisibilityDay everyone! Make sure to wear reflective clothing and maybe one of those light things that cyclists have — pinus contorta (@DstanfordHenry) September 23, 2018 9. Lastly, the most important thing to remember… happy #BiVisibilityDay we are valid and we are beautiful x — Aaron Wiseman (@awfficial) September 23, 2018 PA Media<doc-sep>Sunday marks the 20th anniversary of Bi Visibility Day, also known as International Celebrate Bisexuality Day. The day has been marked each year since 1999 to highlight biphobia and to help people find the bisexual community. According to the Pew Research Center, 40% of LGBTQ Americans identify as bisexual. Specifically, the study found that about 10 million people, or 4.1% of the U.S. adult population, identified as LGBT in 2016, according to the latest estimates from Gallup. This represents a modest but significant increase from 8.3 million people (3.5% of adults) who said they were LGBT in 2012. The same research showed that gay men and lesbians are more likely than bi people to be out in their every day lives. Overall, only 28% of bisexual people in the U.S. said that all or most of the important people in their lives are aware that they are LGBTQ. A recent study also showed that financial barriers still keep lesbian, gay, and bisexual patients from medical treatment. Bi Visibility Day highlights bisexuality and the challenges posed by biphobia and bisexual erasure, as well as celebrating the work of a growing number of local, national and international organizations around the world which champion bisexual visibility and equality. Last year there were more than 130 events marking Bi Visibility Day, from exhibitions, talks and film screenings to picnics and socials in bi-friendly bars. A host of public buildings around the world flew the pink, purple, and blue bisexual flag. Jen Yockney MBE, who has run the international listings site BiVisibilityDay.com for nearly two decades, commented, “We saw events in at least 35 countries around the world in 2017 – a new record.” She added, “I’ve been organizing events marking Bi Visibility Day since 1999 and the transformation in that time is huge. We are more talked about and more heard as bi people than ever before; yet also the challenges and particular needs of bisexuals have been thrown into sharper relief over that time.” Changes that were notable, including that “back then, bi was often seen as a kind of ‘gay lite’ with bis experiencing less impact from social homophobia, but research increasingly shows bi people have greater mental and physical health challenges than gay or straight people,” Yockney added. “We’re more likely to experience domestic violence from our partners, too.” She added, “Far from the ‘best of both worlds’ cliche, the challenge of either persistently reasserting your bisexuality or having part of your life erased proves wearing for many bi people. Where lesbians and gay men have one closet to escape, many bi people find that leaving the one closet leads to being put in another.” What is the solution? Yockney said it’s “greater bisexual visibility” and “helping more bis find a space where they are neither in the ‘straight closet’ nor the gay one.” More information about Bi Visibility Day including events listings can be found on BiVisibilityDay.com. Bi Visibility Day also marks the start of #BiWeek – Bisexual Awareness Week – which runs until September 30.<doc-sep>
September 23 marks the 20th anniversary of Bi Visibility Day. Also referred to as International Celebrate Bisexuality Day, this LGBTQ holiday was founded in 1999 to shed light on biphobia and help individuals learn more about the bisexual community. This day also kicks off Bisexual Awareness Week which runs until September 30. It was during the International Lesbian and Gay Association (ILGA) conference in Johannesburg, South Africa that the first Bisexual Visibility Day was first observed. Roughly 40 percent of Americans in the LGBTQ community identify as bisexual and 63 percent of Americans believe bisexual individuals should be accepted by society, Pew Research Center reports. According to LGBTQ Nation, Bi Visibility Day is a very special day that shines a spotlight on the unique challenges members of the bisexual community face. This is also a day where individuals of the LGBTQ community celebrate the growing number of organizations all around the world dedicated to visibility and equality for people who identify as bisexual. For many, this is also a day to turn to social media to share very personal coming out stories. Some even use this as a day to bust myths related to what it means to be bisexual. In 2017, there were over 130 events across 35 different countries that celebrated Bi Visibility. Jen Yockney, who has maintained the Bi Visibility Day website for two decades, confirmed this was a new record for the holiday. This parade of events included talks, film screenings, socials, picnics, and exhibitions all centered around bisexual equality and inclusion. "I've been organizing events marking Bi Visibility Day since 1999 and the transformation in that time is huge. We are more talked about and more heard as bi people than ever before; yet also the challenges and particular needs of bisexuals have been thrown into sharper relief over that time." Helpful reminders on #BiVisibilityDay: Dating mostly men doesn't delegitimize your queerness. Taking longer to realize you're attracted to women doesn't make you less bi, it means you grew up in a culture where heterosexuality is the default. — ella dawson (@brosandprose) September 23, 2018 Yockney added as she opened up about the challenges in the bisexual community: "Far from the 'best of both worlds' cliche, the challenge of either persistently reasserting your bisexuality or having part of your life erased proves wearing for many bi people. Where lesbians and gay men have one closet to escape, many bi people find that leaving the one closet leads to being put in another." One of the key reasons why this day is so important is because individuals who identify as bisexual face double the discrimination from both the heterosexual and homosexual community. This is why, according to the Office for National Statistics, people in the bisexual community tend to experience a lower quality of life with more stress and less happiness. Bi Visibility Day is about bringing those numbers and those stressors down by helping those individuals find a community they belong to and people they can relate to. Today is #BiVisibilityDay Break down barriers, don’t be afraid to challenge stereotypes and don’t be a bystander to biphobia. #BeYourself pic.twitter.com/Q4WqcnwwvM — Inclusive Networks (@incnetworks) September 23, 2018 #BiVisibilityDay FACTS: - they're not greedy - they don't have to pick a side - they aren't half gay/half straight - being in a straight relationship doesn't make them less/not bi - they aren't more likely to cheat - they're not pansexual - they're valid - they're real 🏳️‍🌈🌈 pic.twitter.com/Mf5kznSkvz — Cllr Joe Porter 🇬🇧🌳🦋 (@JoePorterUK) September 23, 2018 According to Pink News , medical studies also show women who identify as homosexual and bisexual have the greatest risk of developing diabetes due to the excessive amount of stress.Jen believes the solution to the challenges the bisexual community face is all about "greater bisexual visibility" and "helping more bis find a space where they are neither in the 'straight closet' nor the gay one."