Photo Credit: Sarah Wallisch
September is Bisexual Visibility Month, and Bisexual Visibility Day—Sunday, Sept. 23—will soon be upon us. The fact that they exist at all is evidence of an ever-expanding awareness and acceptance of bi identity.
Also known as pansexuality, the concept of an individual’s sexual or romantic attraction to both sexes is a complex one, and it has long been subjected to misinterpretation or outright dismissal. Still, although rarely discussed as such, bisexuality is well-documented throughout history. The many diverse personalities reputed to have been bisexual include ancient Egyptian pharaoh Akhenaten, Julius Caesar, 17th-century haiku master Matsuo Bashō, Marie Antoinette and Malcolm X among dozens of others.
One of the most colorful was Baroque Era contralto Julie d’Aubigny, better known as Mademoiselle de Maupin. Her reputation as a singer was seconded only by her far more operatically dramatic escapades off-stage as a swordswoman and pansexual lover. She once became a nun to follow a female lover into a convent. Fast forward to the 1968 Stonewall Rebellion, one finds out-and-proud bisexual activist Brenda Howard. Recognized as the “Mother of Pride,” she is cited as a founder of the LGBTQ Pride movement.
Despite this history, bisexuals still find themselves isolated and victims of biphobia as well as bi-erasure—the state of being ignored, demonized or made invalid and invisible—by straights as well as lesbians, gays and transgender individuals.
Currently running at the Stackner Cabaret, Songs for Nobodies features five famous divas, most of whom are presumed to have been bisexual. Yet, that part of the story is conspicuously absent. Past productions at the same venue about jazz icons Bessie Smith and Billie Holiday underplayed their bi lives as well. In fact, it’s only relatively recently that Milwaukee’s bi community has become active. Bi-Definition, an organization founded in 1996, disbanded in 2004. A Third Ward bi-bar, BTW Lounge, opened in December 2010 but closed nine months later.
‘A Vital Part of the Community’
Then came Bi+ Pride Milwaukee, which was established in 2014 as a local on-line community. Today, with nearly 400 members and motivated by a core of dedicated activists lead by Amy Luettgen, it has ramped up its outreach. The strategy is to provide an umbrella for those who identify as bi, pan, queer, non-monosexual, or, frankly, anyone—labeled or otherwise.
“I think the community has been waiting for something to get things moving. Now we’re starting to make connections in the larger LGBTQ community, pushing the LGBT Community Center to reach out. The center’s Bi Support Group is now in the works due in part to collaboration with Bi+ Pride. We just want to be seen and accepted as a vital part of the community,” Luettgen said.
And now they are. Last June under its homemade banner, Bi+ Pride Milwaukee members marched for the first time in Milwaukee’s Pride Parade. The group holds a monthly Bi Visibility Discussion Group at different cafés throughout town and, naturally, there are Happy Hours. For bookworms, the Bi+ Book Club meets at Outwords Books (it’s currently reading James Baldwin’s Giovanni’s Room). A bi visibility video is also in the works, and a group contingent is headed to the upcoming BECAUSE 2018—a social justice conference hosted by BOP (Bisexual Organizing Project) in St. Paul, Minn. Its “Bi-BQ” Bi Visibility Day celebration takes place on Sunday, Sept. 23.
For information and event details, visit facebook.com/bipridemilwaukee.
