Cantú Bisexual Visibility Zine 2018

Bisexual Flag

The B In LGBTQ+ Does Not Stand For Babadook Omnisexual Flag

Pansexual Flag

Hey, Y'all I'm Mars, I'm a second-year undergraduate student attending the University of California Santa Cruz. I am a declared sociology major that is focused on sex, sexuality, and gender with an emphasis on the bisexual identity. I am an animal lover, experience gather, poetry & ceramics creator, nature admirer and so much more. I identify as a multiracial, bisexual, first generation, agnostic, male human person. I'm currently working at the Lionel Cantú Queer Center as an Advocacy and Outreach intern.

The reason I am creating this zine on bisexuality is to provide more information on the community and bring more representation to bisexuals for everyone interested in the identity. The reality is that this zine is a general overview of the bisexual identity and the community which can always be worked upon. There is so much content on bisexuality that there is in no possible way for me to provide all the information I want without creating a small novel. One day maybe I will be able to write a full book on the depth of the identity but until then please enjoy this general zine on the identity

Bisexuality A Fluid Definition I call myself bisexual because I acknowledge that I have in myself the potential to be attracted- romantically and/or sexually - to people of more than one sex and/or gender, not necessarily at the same time, not necessarily in the same way,and not necessarily to the same degree.

(Robyn,Ochs; Bisexual Activist)

Bisexual- A person whose enduring physical, romantic and/or emotional attraction is of other people of various sexes and/or gender identities. Individuals may experience this attraction in differing ways and degrees over their lifetime. ( BiNet USA) The BRC uses bisexual as an umbrella term for people who recognize and honor their potential for sexual and emotional attraction to more than one gender. We celebrate and affirm the diversity of identity and expression regardless of labels (Bisexual Resource Center: USA)

Bisexuality A Fluid Definition This is how we define it: A bisexual is someone who is attracted to more than one gender. You might care about the gender of your partner a lot, a little, or not at all but their gender doesn’t prevent you from being attracted to them. (Bisexual Index UK)

Bisexuality is the potential to feel attracted to and engage in sexual and/or romantic relationships with people of any gender. (Toronto Bisexual Network)

Its Cannon that Harley Quinn is bisexual

Bisexuality A General Definition ...

As seen from the multiple definitions of various bisexual organizations and a bisexual activist; bisexuality has a fluid definition that is different for each bisexual identified individual. Yet, there is a common theme from all these definitions that can be constructed into a general breakdown of bisexuality.

Bisexuality is an umbrella term for individuals who have the capacity to be attracted- sexually, romantically, emotionally, and/or physically- to various gender identities, or even regardless of gender; which is never at the same degree or at the same time, there's always a flux of attraction amongst these intersectionalities.

Bisexuality A Umbrella Term As stated before bisexuality is an umbrella term that can be used for a wide range of attractions to various gender identities. Also with claiming that bisexuality is an "umbrella term" that as an umbrella term it can erase identities within the umbrella and sometimes those who use the terms within the umbrella wouldn't want to be associated with bisexuality for their own reasons. Here is a list of some identities that may fall within the umbrella:

Pansexual

Questioning Polysexual

Fluid Panromantic

Queer

Ambisexual Omnisexual

More Definitions The general definition of bisexual can be used as an umbrella term for other sexualities but it can also erase those identities. In saying that here are a few definitions of those identities that fall within the umbrella.

Pansexual- A person who has the ability to be physically, emotionally and/or romantically be attracted to any person regardless of gender identity or biological sex. They don’t exactly recognize gender as a choice in finding partners.

Omnisexual- A person who has the ability to be physically, emotionally and/or romantically attracted to any person regardless of gender identity or biological sex. They recognize gender which can have an effect on their selection of a partner.

Polysexual- A person who has the ability to be physically, emotionally and/or romantically attracted to multiple genders.

Mixing I pour flour into a measuring cup the particles rise in a violent escape that coats my hands and counter, Having given in to gravity. next - water, olive oil, eggs, milk, more. wet ingredients.

I measure them in inches and meters it's easier to ask how long than what's what or how much

Submitted by: Amanda Leiserowitz

Bisexuality In Nature Sexual orientation and gender are both social constructs that are created by humans that are deeply rooted into belief systems and cultures.

These systems form human's beliefs of what is considered to be normal and what is considered to be different within society. Yet since these systems of beliefs are created and do not occur naturally in nature they should constantly be challenged and given a second thought.

The reality is that sexual orientation and gender are fluid throughout nature and can be seen through a variety of species of animals.

Bisexuality In Nature Researchers have seen bisexuality in over 1,500 different species of animals such as whales, bonobos, dogs, dolphins and penguins. They believe animals perform homosexual activities for multiple reasons such as diffuse social tensions, to better protect their young, maintain fecundity and for fun.

The article uses "homosexual activities" to describe animals of the same sex interacting. I don't like the term use but thats how they describe it.

A great example of bisexuality seen in animals would be the case of Roy and Silo the bisexual male penguins at Central Park Zoo. The penguins would mate, intertwined their necks and build a nest together. Eventually, the zoo found an egg for the two to hatch which later was born as Tango their daughter. But one day the zoo implanted a new penguin into the exhibit Scrappy, a female penguin, who of which Silo abruptly left Roy for after being together with Roy for 6 years. Later Tango found herself a mate name Tazuni another female penguin.

Take Out Gender is a fluid as sexuality Humor my humeral head My sexuality categorized as depravity I did not mean to objectify I do not choose between the other or the Your objective eyes it Can’t think of my hand In truth, I wish I could have all of it Without the image of your thighs Some say I’m greedy Body parts as broad as shoulders The rest utter confusion A History major with too much history Let’s settle this debate with some wine Can’t afford tuition so and gin Bagging groceries Slip into slurred words That’s enough baggage to last eternity To make us feel comfortable Biology majors experimenting I’ll show you why I gotta catch them all. Solving the hypothesis of the heart Ashy knees The riddle of the body Catching them with my catching hands Acting as if sexuality isn’t actuality Banging of drums But chemicals that instill confusion Know how to dance?

They say: Tango with me until our bodies reach Pick one gender and do not stray solidarity.

But why have a salad My stomach turns when you tell When you can have an all you can eat Them to stay on course buffet.

Walk one path Never look back Cut them some slack Only wanted a snack Or a full course meal Made out of me --Or she and he And they and them Truth is I don’t mind As long as you’re not a bad human.

By: Farrah Safari

Biphobia What is biphobia?

Biphobia is the hatred, prejudice, fear, discrimination, and aversion towards bisexuality whether its aversion towards the sexuality, bisexual individuals or the bisexual community.

How can you detect biphobia or how is biphobia seen?

Biphobia can be seen through bi-stereotyping and bierasure. both of which are detrimental to both an individual and the community.

Where can biphobia be found?

Biphobia cant be found anywhere because apparently, bisexuality doesn't exist. (That's salty sarcasm) Who can be bi-phobic?

Biphobia is in the straight community, LGBTQ+ community and the bisexual community (internalized biphobia).

Biphobia can be formed for a variety of reasons.

There is no one reason as to why biphobia exists.

Biphobia can exist due to religious background, cultural beliefs, the social beliefs of that time, region, family beliefs and so on.

Biphobia Continued Biphobia in the straight community: Biphobia can be seen within the straight community just like homophobia.

Bisexuality can be threatening to those that identify as straight because bisexuality is a fluid identity that reminds people that sexuality isn't black and white (straight/gay) so those who are straight can begin to question their own identity which can make them uncomfortable. This fear in questioning their own identity can be seen in the creation of the sexual identity of being heteroflexible. Heteroflexible being that you identify as straight but will occasionally interact with the same sex.

Biphobia in the LGBTQ+ community: Biphobia can be seen in the LGBTQ+ community for a variety of different reasons. Biphobia can exist in the community because those in the community can feel as if bisexuals are traitors since bisexuals are able to be in straight relationships. LGBTQ+ individuals can also feel that bisexuals have heteronormative privileges since they are able to blend into the straight culture through straight relationships. Also many believe that bisexuals are really just gay or lesbian but are too scared to come out or are just going through a phase.

Internalized Biphobia: Internalized biphobia is the belief that bisexuality is an identity that's lesser than other sexual orientations. This belief creates feelings of shame, fear, and hatred towards oneself for identifying as bisexual or the probability of being bisexual.

Internalized biphobia can form from bi-stereotypes. An example is; the stereotype says that bisexuality is just a phase or bisexuals are confused. A person who begins their process of discovering their bisexuality can begin to doubt themselves and question their bisexuality. They might start thinking that they are just bi-curious or that they will eventually stop being attracted to multiple genders but in reality, they don't. They begin to question themselves and wonder why they can't just be attracted to one gender. Some people do realize that they aren't bisexual but the process of self-discovery is different for everyone

Bierasure What is bi-erasure?

Bi-erasure is the denial, removal and questioning of the legitimacy of the bisexual identity.

The best example of bi-erasure is the sexual orientation binary of being either straight, gay or lesbian. This binary creates the belief that people can only identify within it. This is further ingrained into society's culture through the media. The only time bisexuality is shown in the media is when women are used as sexual objects to please the male viewer through scenes such as women making out for men or threesomes between two women and a man. This representation of bisexual women is a misrepresentation and causes the creation of negative bisexual stereotypes such as bisexuals are promiscuous, bisexuality isn't real, bisexuals are going through a phase, etc.

Where can bi-erasure be seen?

The Media (if bisexuality is seen its usually misrepresented or attached to a mentally unstable individual, a cheater, a drug abuser, or other negative character traits)

Bi-erasure Continued Who can perform bi-erasure?

Anybody can erase the bisexual identity whether they know it or not.

For example: assuming someone's sexuality based on their relationship, asking a person how do they know they're bisexual. Telling an individual they aren't bisexual because they haven't been with multiple genders.

How can/is bi-erasure affect(ing) the community or an individual?

Bi-erasure can cause an individual to feel like they aren't being seen, obviously. It can cause folks to feel isolated and have a lack of community. The erasure can make it hard to find role models or even peers who are also bisexual or peers who will accept you. It affects the community because it makes it harder to find those who share the same identity as you so it's hard to build a community. It also creates ignorance of those who don't know what bisexuality is which can lead to the formation of negative stereotypes, external and internal biphobia, lack of resources for the community, lack of awareness of issues bisexuals face, and the list can go on.

Bi-stereotyping What is bi-stereotyping?

Bi-stereotyping is when a stereotype either good or bad is attached to the bisexual identity. The stereotypes attached to the bisexual identity are usually negative. These stereotypes may be true for some individuals but IS NOT true for the entire community.

Where can you see bi-stereotyping?

It can be found anywhere because anyone can be conditioned to have bi-stereotypes in mind. It can mainly be seen in different forms of media: movies, t.v. shows, shows online, porn, art, etc.

Who can intentionally or unintentionally promote bi-stereotypes?

Anybody and everybody can promote bistereotypes whether it's through internalizing stereotypes or pushing stereotypes on others.

Bi-stereotyping Examples Mentally unstable Bisexuals have to experience Promiscuous both genders to know Greedy Bisexuals aren’t as oppressed Carriers of STDs/STIs as gays or lesbians Really just gay but too scared to come out Really in the closet but wants to reap heteronormative privileges Bisexuality isn’t real Cheaters Going through a phase Only women can be bisexual Scared of commitment Will have sex with anything with a pulse Many of these stereotypes not Liars only promote a bad image of Are always down for a threesome bisexuals but also can erase Aren't trustworthy the identity.

Bisexuals don't exist bi-erasure doesn't exist Also stereotypes may be true There is a small bisexual for some individuals but does community not ring true for the entire community. Either way please just avoid these stereotypes

How to Avoid Biphobia, Bierasure, and Bi-stereotyping There are multiple ways to avoid biphobia. Here are a few ways to avoid erasing an individuals identity or even putting them in a stereotypical box.

Become informed on the bisexual identity. Once people become informed on something they don't know it becomes less scary and unfamiliar which usually makes people uncomfortable.

Don't make assumptions about someone who is bisexual. Assumptions such as those listed in the bistereotyping page.

If someone identifies as bisexual then they are bisexual regardless if they are in a straight, gay or diamoric relationship. (diamoric is a loose term to mean an identity or relationship that is neither gay or straight due to the presence of two or more nonbinary folks.)

If you are bisexual be more vocal and open about your sexuality (if you're comfortable and if its safe for you to do so)

Safe Place Once I was looking for a safe. My mom and I were staying in a hotel with one pool that was only 4 feet deep when you stood in the very middle and the rooms had green walls. I have never fallen asleep in a green room before, but isn’t that the excitement of hotels? New, fast places where you can live for short days and pretend the cleaning crew and the kitchen staff and the concierge all work for you. The last hotel I was in had a safe in the closet where you could set your own code and then hack your own code and steal your own valuables. I didn’t have any valuables but I had a journal that i imagined the answers to all the government conspiracies into. I had never had a safe before and when I saw the one in the hotel room I figured that all hotels must have safes. Like when I discovered a bible in the drawer or a hairdryer in a cabinet.

But this hotel with green walls and the shallow pool had no safe. I searched everywhere and I already had my four digit passcode worked out and I already had a secret. A real secret. A big secret. Probably the biggest secret a 12 year old in modern america could have. And this secret deserved a safe with a four digit code. But there was no safe in this stale green room. There was, however, a microwave.

I’m not sure how my 12 year old brain so seamlessly connected safes and microwaves but to me they were practically the same thing. Rectangle and silver and black with a place to punch in four digit code. So, here my secret will rest. I tore a piece of white paper that was covered halfway with the logo of the hotel and write a small note. In the script of a 12 year old brain

trying to become herself it read: “I like boys and also girls”.

For a while I stared at the paper. I had never seen it written out so plainly like that before. I had only whispered it to myself under beds and to the stars in the trees. I stared for a while at the pen I used. How unapologetic the ballpoint pen is. I stared at my hands and the way they knew which way to curve to form lines that form letters that form words that form this secret that rivals government conspiracies.

Then I folded it up. Put it in my micro-safe and punched in my four digit code. When I left the room that night I felt panicked. Like I forgot something and if I didn’t go back to get it I wouldn’t be able to walk or move my jaw that was locked up on itself. I felt like people were looking at me harder when I passed locked up on itself. I felt like people were looking at me harder when I passed them in the halls and when I swam in the pool the kids would throw their pink pool noodles at me and I wanted to yell. NOTHINGS CHANGED. When I left the room I thought about my mom. And how she wears soft grey pants when she sleep and straightens her hair and talks a lot about the maiden the mother and the crone. How I would be sleeping next to her and she would be sleeping next to a microwave and I knew that that note was microwave safe and that the four letter digit was unguessable and that who even uses a microwave during a one night stay in a hotel with green walls. What would she even microwave?

I went to the pool in the evening and my mom stayed in the room to read. I swam like an otter in backwards circles and laughed at pink pool noodles and a chunk of a pink pool noodle that someone had bit off and I forgot about the secret and the micro-safe and if someone asked me then to think of four digits. I don't think I would be able to come up with a single one.

When I reached the room I walked in and I smiled at my mom on the bed who was not reading. She was watching tv and the room...smelled. Not like green walls or shallow water chlorine or suitcases or bleach but it smelled like the stain of Popcorn. Butterand-salt microwaved popcorn. I couldn't breathe anymore. The part of me I left in the microwave was filled up with the smell of popcorn.

My mom smiled at me and she didn’t say anything. She said “How was the pool” but she didn’t SAY anything. I asked her “where did you get popcorn?” like it was really casual and normal because I’m a good liar.

As I lay down for bed that night I looked at the microwave which had no note in it. And the trashcan had no note in it.

She didn’t say anything that night. Or on the long drive home or the days and weeks after that. We lived our lives and she walked normally. She stole from me that night, and she’s here pretending she got away with it. Today she tells me that she didn’t want to say anything because she was waiting for me to talk to her when I was ready. But I was so afraid that somewhere in her she never wanted to talk about it. I feared she wanted to keep it a secret that no one else knew. And somewhere in me I think I knew she would open that microwave and I knew I didn’t want that secret in me anymore.

But it stayed in me. It stayed in me rotting until it burst and by then she had readied herself and she said it's okay to cry and she said that's a normal way to be.

By: Olivia Loorz

Folks Identifying under the umbrella These folks have identified within the Bisexual Umbrella at one point or another.

List of the people from top to bottom: Nina Simone Keiynan Lonsdale J Mase III Amalda Stenberg Charles M. Blow Thnadie Newton Roxane Gay Frank Ocean Zoe Saldana

The Queer Brown Man The Queer brown man has choices to make and plans to set. Life has split his world into a multitude of realities as if his intersectionalities were never apparent. His future, present, and his past mesh into a cosmic orgy that cannot be undone with release. The release that will give the man not only a piece of mind but an internal piece of oneness. These different parts moving in and out of spaces that don't belong yet spaces that need to be filled. These moving pieces made decisions for the man that he had no control over just like his life. Leaving behind uncertainties and discord. Having to rely on his family to help put together these pieces in the spaces they belong, he rests daily to try to get his wholeness. But with this rest time drifts away with his past through the passage of time and space. His need for outside love and the internal can't be found with drugs like they used to. They can only be found with self care that he's not used to.

By: Marcuz Bolden

Reference Page Art: Babadook tweet: Twitter: @babadookgay Bisexual colored babadook: PrussianDragon Party Babadook: Tumblr: Muffinpines Bi alien: myartishaunted bi lips: FaeOfStars BiNet USA Logo: binetusa.org Bisexual Resource Center Logo: biresource.org Bisexual Triangle image with interlocking gender signs: retrieved from algbtical.org Toronto Bisexual Network Logo: torontobinet.org Harley Quinn with Joker: DC animated Series Harley Quinn: art by Amanda Conner Harley Quinn with Poison Ivy: Harley Quinn issue #1 Umbrella: canstockphoto.com bisexual rain (background photo): Found on pintrest Colorful cupcakes and spatula: by mycutelobsterdesigns Bisexual flowers: by partialpickle pansexual cat: imakeadoptables pansexual plants: SpectacledPeach pansexual dog: mabel Bardot bisexual flower: April Ludgate pansexual Fist: Thealien

Photos: Robyn Och: taken by Marilyn Humphries Nina Simone: taken by Vernon Merritt III Keiynan Lonsdale: taken by Storm Santos J Mase III: obtained from binetusa.blogspot.com Amalda Stenberg: taken by Eddie Bauer Charles M. Blow: obtained from article "New York Times Columnist Charles M. Blow to speak at Tulane Jan 16" by Kat Stromquist Thandie Newton: taken by Albert L. Ortega Roxane Gay: taken by Eva Blue Frank Ocean: taken by Terry Richardson Zoe Saldana: taken by Stuart Wilson