Celebrating Bisexual Awareness Week: Fostering Bi-Inclusion

It's that time of year, the one that bi people (myself included) stereotypically forget about until someone reminds them. It’s not the largest LGBTQIA+ celebration around, but it’s ours and we want to spread as much awareness as possible.

Bi representation is lacking, even within LGBTQIA+ spaces. Changes need to be made to ensure that bi people can feel safe both inside and outside of LGBTQIA+ safe spaces, as often they are subject to biphobia and bi-erasure. This change needs to be driven by organisations, and in this article I’m going to make some recommendations as to how you can make bi people feel included in your fitness and wellness spaces, whether that’s through the content you produce, the affinity groups/employee networks you have, or LGBTQIA+ events you run. 

1) Use Inclusive Language

I think it is really positive that the LGBTQIA+ community are choosing to reclaim words that were previously used as slurs, whether it be “queer”, “homo”, or anything else. But, I have noticed that people are starting to address entire groups of people as ‘homos’ and ‘homosexuals’, no matter the size. This is problematic as it's exclusionary. It's likely that not everyone there is a ‘homo’ and that there are some bi people present (especially given recent statistics). By addressing an entire crowd as ‘homos’ you are automatically creating a group that bi people are excluded from. This also excludes other people from the LGBTQIA+ spectrum, as if only lesbian and gay people are accepted in that group.

Action Points:

• Adjust your language, don't make assumptions when addressing a room full of people

• Don’t use phrases like ‘homosexuals’ or ‘gays’ when addressing entire rooms/groups of people

• When writing event descriptions be sure to stress that everyone from across the LGBTQIA+ spectrum is included

England and Wales Census information on sexual orientation.

2) Dispel myths about bi people

Particularly for wellness organisations, if you create content focused on LGBTQIA+ people then it is worth creating content focused on bi people. Bisexuals face a lot of stigma and are going through a complex journey of self-identity just like other LGBTQIA+ people. However, the bisexual identity is often frowned on by those inside and outside the community, and even in LGBTQIA+ spaces bi people may not feel the same sense of comfort others do. 

Take the time to dispel myths and reassure your clients and staff that their identity is valid and something that they should feel comfortable in. Promote the experiences of bi people in your organisation if they’re comfortable with this.

Action Points:

• Stamp out biphobia - Biphobia is often seen as unserious, but ultimately it’s the exclusion of someone from a safe space. Show your clients and staff that you care by tackling biphobia promptly and empathetically through effective grievance processes where needed.

• Make content on bi-people - This is especially good if you can forefront the experiences of bi people, however don’t force bi people to talk through experiences and make content if they are not comfortable doing so.

3) Understand how bi-people fit within your space(s)

If you're engineering a safe space for LGBTQIA+ people it is important to take the time to speak to people across the spectrum about what makes them feel comfortable in different spaces. You need to figure out if bi-people are actually comfortable in the spaces you create and feel catered for by the service you provide. If not, ask what you can do to improve; including bi people in the conversation is the best way to understand.

Action points:

• Chat to your bi staff members and customers, ask them what has made them feel comfortable or uncomfortable and engineer solutions to make them feel at home.

• Provide opportunities for anonymous feedback on how your spaces can be made to feel safe for bi people

• Write and implement a code of conduct to prevent issues raised by bi-people from happening again

4) Run Bi events! 

This sounds straightforward and to be honest it is! I can’t remember the last time I saw an organisation running a bi event. Of course, everyone is welcome, but even by simply titling the event as being centred around bi people they will automatically feel more welcome. 

Concluding Remarks

I hope that this article has helped to increase your awareness of bi people, not just as a business owner, but also as a person. Like all LGBTQIA+ people all we want is to be accepted, and in a time where there is so much backlash against LGBTQIA+ rights the last thing we want is to face exclusion.

It is so important that we all support each other as LGBTQIA+ people and allies, and as a business owner you have the opportunity to create change by fostering inclusion in your spaces. Please reach out if you like to find out more about how we can help you achieve this.