Researchers in Toronto, Canada, published a study in 2005, reporting that bisexual males have homosexual tendencies and concludes that, "indeed, with respect to sexual arousal and attraction, it remains to be shown that male bisexuality exists." In pop culture, the gay character Blaine from "Glee" confirmed this finding in the "Blame It on the Alcohol" episode when he took a dip in the mythic pool of bisexuality and came out as gay again. Additionally, another gay character, Kurt, angrily reacting to Blaine's exploration of his sexuality, denies the very existence of bisexuality in the same episode.
This speaks directly to the erasure of bisexuality that occurs as a result of biphobia. First of all, the popular conception of sexuality excludes bisexuality as a stable identity, considering it as only a passing phase riddled with confusion on the illustrious path to queerdom. A lot of people, whether queer or not, view individuals identifying as bisexual as experimenting or most likely just not ready to fully accept their homosexuality. This creates unwarranted pressure on bisexuals to choose a sexuality within the binary parameters of homo− or heterosexual. Although people have certainly gone through "phases," that does not negate the fact that bisexuality exists.
This issue of visibility also has another factor: Bisexuality isn't legible on the body; it only comes into existence if a person actively comes out as such. But even then, the myths surrounding the identity cast doubt on an individual's self−identification as bisexual. The binary notion that plagues gender and sexuality, which allows us to assume femme guys are gay and butch women are lesbians, functions here to prevent the interpretation of someone as bisexual because no observable markers are associated with bisexuality. We assess people's appearance and behavior through a lens that conceives of only male or female and gay or straight; thus, an identity like bisexual never enters into the imagination as a potential identity.
Biphobia not only results in erasure of bisexuality but also in harmful stereotypes. The flaming diatribes against bisexuals have often revolved around accusations of greed, opportunism and inauthenticity, as Kirsten Marthe Lentz notes in her article "Chameleon, Vampire, Rich Slut." The mythic story of bisexuality characterizes them as sexual gluttons unsatisfied with just one sex and having an excessive sexual appetite.
And because of their attraction to both sexes, they are often thought of as promiscuous and hedonistic. Lastly, in relation to the erasure of the identity and its characterization as ephemeral and a phase, bisexuals have to deal with being thought of as liars, as if they are just lesbians and gays in denial.
Unlike homophobia, which is most frequent among heterosexuals, biphobia, in a similar fashion to transphobia, manifests markedly even within the LGBT crowd. A major contention among lesbians and gays against bisexuals involves the idea of passing. There is a resentment that arises because bisexuals, if they choose to be silent, appear relatively normal in gender expression, dating someone of the opposite sex and leading the critically acclaimed heterosexual lifestyle.
There is also a sense that bisexuals have it easier, and if not, they can choose to have it easier. Some queer peoples may consider the choice to engage in opposite−sex relations on the part of bisexuals as a form of treachery. And this then leads to another way bisexuality becomes invisible — through monosexist assumptions that presume same−sex couples are gay and opposite−sex couples are heterosexual.
But we need to move beyond these tired stereotypes and confront our own biphobia. The binary between homo− and heterosexuality has done so much harm already to queer peoples that we can't continue to be complicit in deploying a limited notion of sexuality and identity.
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