"I Needed to Use My Voice as a Bisexual Activist, Not Just an Activist": Bisexual College Student Activists and Their Experiences with Biphobia within LGBTQ Spaces on Campus

Abstract

The present study focused on bisexual college student activists and their understanding of how their bisexual identity fit within the LGBTQ community on campus. Using the Queered Model of Multiple Dimensions of Identity, phenomenological interviews with nine bisexual college students were conducted in order to explore: (1) how comfortable students were identifying as bisexual within LGBTQ spaces on campus, (2) in what ways students were marginalized and/or excluded within LGBTQ spaces on campus, and (3) how these experiences impacted students’ understanding of their bisexual identity, as well as their involvement and engagement within LGBTQ spaces on campus. These students’ experiences yielded powerful findings that provide a greater understanding of bisexual students’ unique challenges critical to informing academic and student affairs professionals’ ability to better serve bisexual students and promote LGBTQ spaces that are intentionally bisexual-inclusive.