Twittering @nickawgomez
- This Week in X – 15/5/14 - 15 May, 2014
- FREE COMIC BOOK DAY - 3 May, 2014
- We want TRAILERS not SPOILERS! - 30 April, 2014
YouTube has become a fantastic new medium to express opinions. It is freedom of speech in more than 140 characters. Whether someone has a webcam, or more professional equipment, they can broadcast to the world. A particular type of video has quickly become a fan favourite: the reaction videos. As an added bonus, reaction videos let you see the gross in a funnier light, as you watch someone else take the plunge and endure such classics as ‘Two Girls One Cup’ – thankfully I’ve never seen it.
The ‘Bisexuals Respond To “What Lesbians Think Of Bisexuals”‘ reaction video does have an air of meta about it as we see bisexual women answers questions and give their opinions on a video where lesbians sum up some stereotypical opinions of bisexuals that many gay people have. The idea behind these videos, which also has a brother video ‘What Gay Men Think About Bisexuals’ is to highlight some of the misconceptions people have, hoping that through illumination will come understanding.
The YouTuber Arielle, who posts the lesbian and female bisexual videos, first complies a list of descriptive words and phrases that are used far too often by the gay community against the bisexual community, namely:
– greedy
– confused
– unfortunate and
– would go for someone else, because you like dick and I don’t.
Greedy and confused are two things that are hurtfully false descriptions of bisexuals in general. As is pointed out in the reactions video, just because you have more options for who you can be attracted to doesn’t mean your libido skyrockets every time a person crosses your line of vision. Of course, some people go through a stage of thinking they are bisexual, as a gateway to greeting their homosexuality with open arms, but some actually find that they really are bisexual. Homosexual people aren’t demanded to prove their sexuality on a regular basis, but bisexuals seem to be held to a different standard, as though there is is an imaginary checklist of things that would prove to another person that a bisexual is really what they say they are.
To a certain extent I can understand why some people might view bisexuals as unfortunate. In a way we are, or rather can be, because we don’t fit a clear cut category for sexuality. This means that there isn’t necessarily a place to turn when you are trying to understand your sexuality. You have to take pieces of heterosexual life and homosexual life and blend the ideas in your head. I mean, there are magazines that target men, women, straight people, gay people but I’ve yet to find one for bisexual people. The most complicated part of being bisexual is that unfortunately we’ve inherited the stigma that homosexuality had when it was being most misunderstood. I think the same can be said for trans* people as well.
As for those people who prefer not to date bisexual people because of their apparent inherent need to jump from man or woman to man to woman without a second thought, I say, DON’T BE SO RUDE! Any one of us could be interested in anyone else if we open ourselves up to the opportunity. Just because you are a homosexual woman doesn’t mean your friends are only homosexuals or only women. You choose friends based on who you get along with and bisexuals find sexual partners based on who they get along with. No-one wants to date a hateful person who feels their gender or sexual orientation is better than anyone else’s.
Myself, and I’m sure other bisexuals worldwide, hope that with time and more videos like this one, covering issues across the sexual/sex/gender spectrum, it will dispel the more ridiculous and harmful misconceptions and misunderstandings of what it means to be not gay and not straight at the same time.
For more myth busting and hilariously illuminating quips about how we all see each other, there are some more videos by YouTuber DaveyWavey about what gay men think about vaginas and what lesbians think of penises. (see also Bridesmaids for an excellent penis impression.)
