coyotedude
Feb 1, 2010, 3:21 AM
So I had quite the weekend.
Several months ago, I became a volunteer for a local non-profit that serves queer youth in our area. It has been an eye-opening experience for me. Although I've had gay and lesbian friends over the years, this is the first time, I've been actively involved with the queer community.
This weekend, I was invited to take part in a two-day training session in Portland for queer youth organizations. The training was wonderful and I was able to network with volunteers and staff from other organizations throughout Washington and Oregon. But as you might expect, it was also a little awkward being the married bisexual guy in the very gay and lesbian crowd.
During the training, people new to the group were invited to share their personal stories with the rest of the group. This was not an idea that I was comfortable with. I am well aware that biphobia is alive and well in the queer community as much as it is in the straight world. But finally I managed to gather up enough courage to get up and speak.
It felt odd coming out as bisexual to a room full of queer folk. Normally I am very shy about sharing my sexual orientation with others. My wife knows, as well as some of my family and some close friends. But I don't make a habit of announcing my bisexuality in public. Generally I figure that it's nobody's business who I may be attracted to (except for my wife, of course).
Luckily, the people there were very supportive and welcoming. And later on, a woman who I had thought was lesbian came up to me and admitted that she was in fact bi. She too had shared her story with the group, but she had not disclosed her bisexuality for fear of a biphobic reaction from the group. That really struck me as a sad thing.
I think it was important to make the point to the group that some of the youth that their organizations serve are not just gay or lesbian but also bi. I know of bisexual teens in my community who committed suicide because they had problems adjusting to the truth of their sexual orientation. That's a crying shame, and if there's something I can do to prevent it from happening again, then how can I not try?
Just thought I'd share...
Peace
Several months ago, I became a volunteer for a local non-profit that serves queer youth in our area. It has been an eye-opening experience for me. Although I've had gay and lesbian friends over the years, this is the first time, I've been actively involved with the queer community.
This weekend, I was invited to take part in a two-day training session in Portland for queer youth organizations. The training was wonderful and I was able to network with volunteers and staff from other organizations throughout Washington and Oregon. But as you might expect, it was also a little awkward being the married bisexual guy in the very gay and lesbian crowd.
During the training, people new to the group were invited to share their personal stories with the rest of the group. This was not an idea that I was comfortable with. I am well aware that biphobia is alive and well in the queer community as much as it is in the straight world. But finally I managed to gather up enough courage to get up and speak.
It felt odd coming out as bisexual to a room full of queer folk. Normally I am very shy about sharing my sexual orientation with others. My wife knows, as well as some of my family and some close friends. But I don't make a habit of announcing my bisexuality in public. Generally I figure that it's nobody's business who I may be attracted to (except for my wife, of course).
Luckily, the people there were very supportive and welcoming. And later on, a woman who I had thought was lesbian came up to me and admitted that she was in fact bi. She too had shared her story with the group, but she had not disclosed her bisexuality for fear of a biphobic reaction from the group. That really struck me as a sad thing.
I think it was important to make the point to the group that some of the youth that their organizations serve are not just gay or lesbian but also bi. I know of bisexual teens in my community who committed suicide because they had problems adjusting to the truth of their sexual orientation. That's a crying shame, and if there's something I can do to prevent it from happening again, then how can I not try?
Just thought I'd share...
Peace