Sexual Discrimination & Homo/Biphobia

[DuskTillDawn]

Hey,

Do u guys find u have alot of problems with things like homo/biphobia and if so how do u deal with it?

Were any of you biphobic before u found out u were bi?

As I havent "come out" yet I havent had any sort of problems with sexual discrimination or similar so itd b good to see what its all about, so I know what to expect when I do eventually "come out".

I look forward to hearing your stories (as unpleasant as they might be).


Thx :bigrin:

[welickit]

Never been a problem for either of us. There are PRIDE groups worldwide. It isn't just gay pride it is GLBT, gay, lesbian, bisexual & transgendered. People who are accepting of each other and understanding. There is no membership required to attend a PRIDE event. You just go. It is like going to any other event, except the people attending are from a special segment of society. Others may treat you as though you are radioactive but at a PRIDE event you are treated as a special individual who is part of a lifestyle. You can make friends and learn.
If you stay in the main stream you will probably get bashed. Be prepared to make new friends, lose some of your old friends and find out that some of your old friends are just like you. Good Luck. :2cents:

[innaminka]

Is there bi-phobia and bi-phobiacs?
Of course.
Its part of the human condition that anything different is treated with suspicion.
Yes, we've (society) come a long way in the last years towards tolerance, but every now and then intolerance will rear its ugly head; often at a time and place where you would least expect it.
And it hurts!
Fortunately acceptence is ever increasing, but maybe you do need to develop a little thicker skin to ward off the odd barb - as I have and just about every GLBT person I know.
welickit pointed you in the right direction; just look at the little smilies on your right. There are groups/organisations where you can get support.
Personally I wasn't 'phobic before I came out (well, maybe spiders - very phobic) as I'd grown up with a gay couple across the road, who demonstrated just how normal a couple can be.
Have I been discriminated against - yes! But not anything earth shattering. I just grew that thick skin - crossed the perps off my Xmas card list, and kept on.
I have never been subject to discrimination within my immediate family - I do not know how I would have dealt with that situation.
Anyway - coming out is very much a personal decision - but be assured, you're exactly the same person you were before. :bipride:

[izzfan]

Biphobia? Yeah, I;ve had ppl make offhand biphobic comments about me before. I mean they're usually meant to be humerous or are only mildly offensive [although one of them did prompt me to join this forum]. Before I came out? Well, when I was like in Year 8 at school [about 12/13 years old] I was a bit homophobic but I eventually just grew out of it. Didn't realise I was bi until I was 17 or so -though it definately existed in a latent form WAY before then.

Now as for Transphobia....never experienced any probably because I have a LOT of internalised transphobia and for most of my school/college years and I kept firmly in the closet about it [I have a feminine side which occasionally emerges and I am somewhat of a TV/CD] and hated myself for it. I don't have any trans friends [When I went to university I made sure to make a few gay/bi friends as everyone I'd known before then at least seemed to be straight] and if I ever did meet a trans person I'd probably be mildly paranoid/freak out a bit. I've mentioned that I'm a TG/TV/CD to various people at university and I still find it a bit hard to believe when they say that there's nothing 'strange' or 'wrong' about it. Sometimes I go through an excessively masculine phase where I just submerge all traces of being TG out of loathing of them, but they always emerge again. I have ot admit that I'm a lot more ok about my TG side these days than when I was when I was 13-17.

Izzfan :flag3: