Editor's note: This is the fourth in a series about the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community in Athens.
Almost any bisexual will tell you they feel misunderstood.
Called fence-sitters, confused, curious and sex-obsessed, the Bs of LGBT, face scrutiny from outside and within, often accused of using bisexuality as a transition from heterosexuality to homosexuality ' or 'bi now, gay later.'
Some wonder if bisexuality exists at all.
I definitely think that people have a terrible time understanding bisexuality
said Laura Harvey, a bisexual and junior psychology major at Ohio University.
Outsiders often associate bisexuality with polygamy ' if someone can date both sexes, then they will. Couples sent Harvey messages on Facebook, asking if she would be interested in joining them.
I'm sorry but I am not some plaything for other people to experiment with she said.
Harvey is not alone.Kim Rogers, a senior psychology major, is bisexual. She said she believes sexuality is fluid, or more of a continuum than two extremes. But not everyone accepts this definition easily. She would like to say everyone is supportive of everyone, but both homosexuals and heterosexuals have difficulty understanding, she said.
We're kind of the outs of the out
Rogers said.
Rogers took part in a political art exhibition yesterday, during which she stood against the graffiti wall and could only eat or drink what people brought to her ' including hot chocolate and Frito's. Cold temperatures forced her to quit after an hour, but she said it still reached a lot of people.The exhibition symbolized the necessity of allies ' heterosexuals that support the LGBT community ' in order for lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgenders to achieve equity, said junior Erica Boehnlein, president of Empowering Women of Ohio, which sponsored the event.
Rogers, like other bisexuals, faced criticism when she came out. She said she was called a lesbian in denial and that she was simply crossing the bisexual bridge to coming out as homosexual.
Some of it comes down to people's need to categorize, said senior Liz Brown, Rogers' former girlfriend and current roommate.
I identify as bisexual because I have the capacity to be in a long-term
committed relationship with any person whom I am emotionally
spiritually
intellectually
physically and sexually attracted to
Harvey said.
Rogers and Harvey said that the Bs are rarely at the front of people's image of LGBT. A new group called Bi the Way started on campus to help students who identify as bisexuals. Students interested in finding support or learning more are encouraged to visit Bi the Way's office in Baker 354.
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