QMt ▼ Nowmfef 1990 ▼ 7
ing to Weiss, “The typical complaint we
hear is that of a woman-identified woman
who has been in the gay community for
years, and becomes attracted to a guy—and
lets the girls know about it. She’s out of the
club. We also hear from married men who
are finding out they’re bisexual and have to
come out to their wives. Often divorce is in
volved.”
Groups like the BCF worked to integrate
bisexuals into the gay community at first,
one organizer said. “Years ago, maybe, back
in the ’60s—there’s certainly no attempt to
do it nowadays,” he added. Why? “It’s the
constant rebuffing we get,” he said.
Now, according to Weiss, “The group
Defection?
Rejection!
Reflection.
Continued from page 1
But their response confused me
Robyn was branded a tramp by many
bian friends as well as the straight commu
nity because of her own recent “defection
back to heterosexuality. She had been les
bian-identified for 10 years.
When it came to bisexuality, all the gay
and straight people I loved so much for their
radical politics seemed to have the same
attitude as their parents! “It’s just not natu
ral,” they would say indignantly.
i(We live in a society permeated
in every way by homophobia. I
think the gay community resents
the fact that bisexual people have
*the heterosexual out.*”
—Donna Cooper
“We are indefinable. We*re
proud o f that. It*s something that
always comes out in our dis
cussions—almost everybody is un
comfortable with labels.”
—Lori Weiss
Bisexual Community Forum
Now, a few years later, the topic isn’t
any less of a taboo— even among people
who pride themselves on their understand
ing and acceptance of people of color, dif
fering abilities and sexual orientations. Just
defining the term “bisexual” is a contro
versy in itself.
“There is no such thing,” according to
Linda Shirley, a gay and lesbian community
activist for more than 20 years. “Whoever
you’re sleeping with now, that’s what you
“We are indefinable,” says Lori Weiss,
organizer of the Bisexual Community Fo
rum for the past ten years. “We’re proud of
that It’s something that always comes out in
our discussions—almost everybody is un
comfortable with labels.”
But with the pride comes the realization
that a lot of bisexuals are essentially in the
closet. One organizer with the BCF, who
requested anonymity, said, “We are forever
trying to eke out any sense of community at
all. Although it’s funny— I feel there are
thousands of people who are so identified,
especially among men in the Portland area,
but no one who’s willing to organize.”
It’s no surprise that these sexual bounda
ries defy common definition, but it’s a
shock to observe the genuine hostility that
erupts during discussions of bisexuality.
And no matter what side people may take,
many agree on one thing: the battle lines cut
right into the heart of our own sense of com
munity. Are we just as guilty of sexual dis
crimination as the rest of society is?
Carla Jean Looney, a former Just Out
staff member, describes the kind of dis
crimination directed at people attracted to
both men and women. “We get it from both
sides—we’re discriminated against by gays
and by straights,” she said.
“There’s homophobia,” explains Weiss.
“There’s also such a thing as heterophobia,
which gay people won’t even recognize in
themselves—it’s just as powerful.”
The divisiveness bisexuality sparks has
two sources, according to Weiss. “First, bi
sexuality implies loving more than one per
son—so there’s monogamy out the window!
“We get it from both sides —
we*re discriminated against by
gays and by straights.”
—Carla Jean Looney
Theoretically, anyway. But the image is that
bisexual people ‘will sleep with anybody.’
“Second, it implies choice - that you can
do whatever you want to do, that you can be
anybody. Most people who call themselves
gay are really bisexual, but they feel like
they have to make a political stand." She
said gay isn't an adjective any more; it's a
noun. ”It’s something you are, not some
thing you do.”
Yet somehow, discrimination and resent
ment by members of the gay community
against open bisexuality are seldom dis
cussed—although they are also taken for
granted.
“We live in a society permeated in every
way by homophobia,” says Donna Cooper,
a community activist who has been lesbian-
identified since her teen years. “I think the
gay community resents the fact that bisexual
people have ‘the heterosexual out.’”
She continues, “If we lived in a free
world where everybody could act in the
ways they think best, then maybe we could
see our way clear to love both men and
women in an emotional and sexual way. But
that’s not the society we live in.”
Cooper said, “I just wouldn’t trust a
woman who was sexually active with a man
at the same time as me. You know, the bot
tom line is that when it comes to sex—the
grunt level of fucking—the fear is that I’m
going to somehow have to compete with a
man in bed. That doesn’t seem real to me.”
Cooper’s attitude is not unique. Accord
tends to be a drop-in forum or crisis group.
W e’ve even had a number of people who
met in the group and ended up living to
gether.” The number of active members
fluctuates.
Weiss defines the current status of BCF
as “sketchy, bumbling, unsupported by even
its friends.” The turnout at weekly meetings
is down, money to publish the group’s
newsletter is scarce. “Some people would
say BCF is a state of mind rather than an
organization,” Weiss jokes. “Like Earth
First!”
On the other hand, bisexual community
groups in other states, such as the Seattle
Bisexual Women’s Network, have a more
steady and active membership. In fact,
500 people attended the first National Bi
sexual Conference June 20-24 in San
Francisco. The event was sponsored by
the Bisexual Political Caucus (BIPOL),
which defines itself as a progressive/
feminist/bisexual/ lesbian/gay political
action group founded in 1983 to support
bisexual identity and rights.
While the Lesbian Community Project
has in past advertising campaigns defines
itself as open to bisexual representation, in
Portland there is still a big blank spot where
bisexuality should be discussed. In all the
talk about the need to recognize and under
stand sexual diversity, is “heterophobia”
defeating our own efforts to organize and
recognize ourselves within this homophobic
society?
Looking back at my lust for Robyn, I
can’t help remembering the disagreements
that were touched off when I shared my
feelings with other friends—and that I gave
up on any ideas I had about a relationship
with her.
Next time, I plan to dump the boy, throw
myself at the girl’s feet, and have the cour
age to talk about it all in the open.
Ed. Note: Just Out hopes that this article
will touch off community-wide discussion o f
the issues presented and others related to
bisexuality. We welcome articles, commen
taries and letters for publication in future
issues, i f there is sufficient interest, Just Out
will devote space fo r a monthly column.
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