23rd September is Bi Visibility Day, a time for bisexual people and our allies to stand up and celebrate an identity often erased and invisible in both straight and LGBT circles.

Bisexual means a person attracted to people of more than one gender. It’s also used as an umbrella term for all polysexual identities:

Tips on How to be a Bi Ally

DON’T

• say or imply that bisexuality isn’t real, doesn’t exist, or is a just phase
• say or imply that bisexuals are greedy, promiscuous, confused, indecisive, attention-seeking straight people or closeted gay people
• ask us to ‘pick a team’
• assume that we no longer identify as bi because we are in a monogamous relationship with a person of a particular gender
• ask for ‘proof’ of our identity in our current dating behaviour or past experiences
• say or imply that monosexual (straight or gay) identities are more valid.

DO

• respect people’s identities when they share them with you
• recognise that bisexuality is a spectrum, and includes a range of identities
• know that some us identify somewhere on the Kinsey Scale, and others find it outdated, binary and not reflective of our diverse identities
• call out biphobia whenever you encounter it
• inform yourself about the higher rates of depression, anxiety, self-harm and suicide among bisexual people and the higher rates of sexual violence and domestic abuse experienced by bisexual women
• read up on bisexual inclusion research
• take the Monosexual Privilege Checklist test
• make us a nice cup of tea.

To mark Bi Visibility Day, we’ve launched our Tackling Biphobia: A Guide for Safety Services factsheet today- check it out for information on how to approach biphobia and biphobic hate crime.