Bi Sexual Pride Flag
Writer
On the 3rd of December, the Equality Network will be hosting the one-day workshop BiTastic! in the Drumchapel Community Centre.
Equality Network is a charity dedicated to supporting the rights of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Intersex individuals living in Scotland.
Sam Rankin, Intersectional Equalities Coordinator at the Equality Network, emphasised the importance of socialisation, which the event will facilitate, including such activities as Speed Friending and a Clothes Swap. Rankin told The Glasgow Guardian: “Many LGBT and equality organisations are partners on this event because it is important to us all that bisexual people of all kinds feel included in equality work and services in Scotland. The workshops will cover a wide variety of topics including being disabled and bisexual, minority ethnic and bisexual, trans and bisexual, exploring different relationship models and safe sex.
“It’s going to be great fun. But it’s also going to be an important and rare opportunity for bisexual people and equality organisations to be part of an event that focuses specifically on celebrating and exploring bisexuality.”
Recent years have seen the LGBT+ community make great strides in pursuit of equality, and yet bisexuality remains a source of debate. This November, the Daily Mail cast a suspicious gaze over the rising numbers of young people identifying as bisexual, citing the “ambiguous” sexualities of female celebrities as the inspiration for this apparent fashion trend. The Equality Network is one of several organisations standing in defence of bisexuality as a valid identity.
A spokesperson for GULGBTQ+ said: “[We] are very excited for BiTastic. Events like this are vitally important for encouraging pride within the bi and pan community. We always vehemently support pride and visibility for all the identities represented by the LGBTQ+ acronym and value people of all identities’ contributions to our community.
“We praise the Equality Network for recognising the need for bi and pan specific events and visibility, and for keeping the specific needs of bi and pan people in mind at all of their events as a whole.
“Many members of our society will be attending this event [and] if anybody is considering going, we would strongly encourage it! As part of our buddy system you can contact our Bi and Pan officer Iona at [email protected] if you have any questions or want to meet up before the event.”
