More Americans identify as bisexual in a trend led by young women of color, new study shows.
According to the latest biannual General Social Survey (GSS), more than 3% of people in the US identify as bisexual. Significantly, those attracted to and/or dating both genders in 2008 were just 1%.
Sociologists D’Lane Compton and Tristan Bridges have commented on the survey, pointing out that the number of bisexuals seems to increase every year. On the other hand, the number of those identifying as gay or lesbian is stationary.B
They also highlighted that the rise in bisexuals is almost entirely due to women. As more and more young women identify as bi, men dating both genders haven’t increased in number.
More specifically, the upswing has been concentrated among young women of color — black women, especially.
The two sociologists further noted that the data collected by GSS mirrored those by a Gallup survey.
‘Gallup reported that much of the change in LGBT identification between 2012 and 2016 could be accounted for by young people, women, college-educated people, people of color, and those who are not religious,’ the two wrote.
The GSS survey also shows that the number of those identifying as gay or lesbian has decreased between 2016 and 2018.
Homosexuals were nearly 2.5% in 2016, whereas this percentage dropped to slightly more than 1.5% in 2018.
Student activists, Michael Gutierrez and Kaelin Walker, have been the integral voices for the fight against the appointment of Dr. Wilson and ensuring equality for LGBTQ+ students at UTEP.
“The fight isn’t over. This isn’t a done deal,” Kaelin tells GLAAD. “I find it sad that people are looking at it as if it is a done deal. It’s not. We’re not done.”
Michael and Kaelin will continue their optimism after the appointment of Dr. Wilson. Wilson’s appointment does not mean that they lost, it means that the fight for equality and acceptance continues.
GLAAD spoke to Michael and Kaelin last week to talk about the union amongst students, the future of UTEP, and the continuous battle with faculty and staff.
How do you feel about the nomination of Dr. Heather Wilson?
Michael: Oh I’m very I’m very concerned. We just met with her — I met with her personally twice. I had time to ask her questions and she dodged every single one of them. Meeting her twice — it was not what I hoped for. It was very disappointing and to say the least. I’m not looking forward to whatever is going to happen.
Kaelin: As for myself, as a member of the LGBTQ+ community, as an immigrant, and as a person of color — I am extremely concerned. I only got to see her once and I didn’t get to ask any questions because we ran out of time. I actually thought that she was going to be better at sweet talking us and saying the stuff we wanted to hear but she actually wasn’t, which kind of to my dismay but also to my to my pleasure.
What do you plan to do moving forward to keep the pressure on Dr. Wilson?
Michael: I heard the news live this morning it didn’t come as a surprise to me — I personally do not accept Wilson as president, but the reality is she’s president. Moving forward I am going to get involved more within UTEP. I will also be getting those who oppose Wilson to run for positions within UTEP. (Student Government Association, Alumni Association, etc.) For those who are in fear Wilson will be held accountable we the student body will look out for one another. The fight is not over, and our voice is stronger than ever.
Kaelin: I am currently running for Vice President of External Affairs for the UTEP’s SGA. If I win the position, I will make sure to stand for Diane Natalicio’s mission of access and excellency when I represent UTEP on a regional level. I also want to develop a communication between myself and Wilson and work on turning her into an involved ally to LGBTQ+ people and the Hispanic community of UTEP. If she cannot rise to the challenge, then she doesn’t belong here and I will keep protesting her.
What steps are student activists at UTEP taking and how are you all collaborating on campus?
Michael: We are all coordinating with each other — we are making our voice heard. We’ve been flooding everybody’s phones, we have been flooding everybody’s e-mails. We recently created We the Students Coalition, which is a group of student students and student organizations within campus. And we are doing things that activists do: We are protesting, we are doing phone banks, we are just trying to make our voices heard. And the community has been with us. The community has backed us 100 percent the way through. The only ones that haven’t been behind our back, I feel, is our university. And I think that’s because they just want us to be silenced… They just want us to accept Dr. Heather Wilson and we’re not going to.
Kaelin: What we’re doing is our best to convince them. And that’s that’s all we can do. I think we’re doing a pretty good job of making our voice heard.
During a press conference at UTEP, Dr. Wilson said her “general approach with respect to LGBTQ issues is to treat everyone with dignity and respect.” How do you feel about that statement?
Kaelin: She has demonstrated that she does not respect LGBTQ+ people. How can you vote against the basic civil rights of these people and then say that you plan on treating them in the future with dignity and respect? You know that’s like I don’t want you to have all the rights that I do. She doesn’t respect LGBTQ+ people — even her anti-LGBTQ+ actions took place as recently as last year in 2018. During her time as Secretary of the U.S. Air Force, where she enforced the trans military ban, that’s not treating people with dignity and respect. I don’t see her changing anytime soon without a big push.
UTEP students protesting in March, 2019. Image credit: Isaac Uribe.
What can this mean for the future of UTEP and the future of LGBTQ+ students?
Michael: I like thinking the best set of things, but this time I’m not too sure when it comes to the future of LGBTQ+ people in UTEP. I don’t know. To be completely honest, the second time I met with her, I asked her a question — I asked her — will you work with me to ensure transgender non-binary individuals receive the dignity and safety they deserve and expecting an in-depth response. Dr. Wilson just simply replied “yes” and just moved on quickly. So I think I deserved more than a “yes.” I think my community deserves more than a “yes.” It just shows me that I don’t know the future for my community but I’m going to try my hardest to make sure that we are protected and nothing happens to us.
Kaelin: As for the future of UTEP, the current standing president right now, Diana Natalicio, has encouraged us by saying, she gave a speech the other day and I was I was lucky enough to be there. She said it’s up to the students, it’s up to the faculty, it’s up to the community to fight for our mission to make sure that we never compromise our community and our beliefs no matter who’s presiding over us and I wholeheartedly, I’m going to take that and run like hell with it. As for the future of LGBTQ+ students I hope, at UTEP, just from what I what I’m feeling right now from amongst the community is that we are not going to stop being heard and we’re not going to hide into the woodwork now that she’s here and if she gets appointed, we’re not hiding. We’re not being silenced or being made invisible.
These replies have been edited and shortened for clarity.
Harold Daniel is a GLAAD Campus Ambassador and senior at Florida International University studying broadcast journalism. He currently serves as an intern for Good Morning America on ABC.
Doctors should ditch the requirement for a mental health assessment of transgender teens and adults before prescribing them hormone treatment, argues an activist and bioethicist, drawing on their own personal experience in the Journal of Medical Ethics, MedicalXPress reports.
The practice is dehumanizing, unjustified and turns the process of transformation into the treatment of a mental illness, says Florence Ashley of McGill University, Montreal, Canada.
It should instead be replaced with informed consent, which respects a patient’s lived experience and autonomy, they insist, MedicalXPress reports.
The informed consent approach is becoming more common, they acknowledge. But many doctors still require an assessment and referral letter from a mental health professional in compliance with the World Professional Association of Transgender Health (WPATH) Standards of Care, MedicalXPress reports.
The author says that their decision to take hormones was not made in haste, and they had socially transitioned months before opting for hormone treatment. Their university health clinic had adopted informed consent for transgender care, which allowed them to get a prescription for hormones without a referral letter, MedicalXPress reports.
But “many others are not so lucky,” they point out, adding that their own luck ran out when they had to get two referral letters for genital surgery.
The assessment of gender dysphoria — discomfort or distress caused by the mismatch between a person’s gender identity and his/her sex assigned at birth — left them “feeling exposed, naked and dehumanized,” because it was viewed as a mental flaw that needed fixing, MedicalXPress reports.
“Referral requirements for [hormone treatment] treat self-reports of gender dysphoria not as one would treat reports of normal mental experiences, but as one would treat reports of mental illnesses,” they write.
By requiring a mental health assessment instead of taking the transgender person’s word, doctors “deny the authority trans people have over their own mental health experiences,” they say.
“As being transgender is not a mental illness, treating gender dysphoria in this way is pathologizing and, because it pathologizes normal human variance, dehumanizing.”
A European study of nearly 1,000 gay male couples who had sex without condoms — where one partner had HIV and was taking antiretroviral drugs to suppress it — has found the treatment can prevent sexual transmission of the virus.
After eight years of follow-up of the so-called serodifferent couples, the study found no cases at all of HIV transmission within couples.
The study proves, the researchers said, that using antiretroviral therapy to suppress the AIDS virus to undetectable levels also means it cannot be passed on via sex, the researchers said.
“Our findings provide conclusive evidence for gay men that the risk of HIV transmission with suppressive ART is zero,” said Alison Rodger, a professor at University College London who co-led the research.
She said this “powerful message” could help end the HIV pandemic by preventing the virus’ transmission in high-risk populations. In this study alone, for example, the researchers estimate that the suppressive antiretrovial treatment prevented around 472 HIV transmissions during the eight years.
The study, published in the Lancet medical journal on Thursday, assessed the risk of HIV transmission between serodifferent gay male couples – where one partner is HIV-positive and one is HIV-negative – who do not use condoms.
Its findings add to an earlier phase of the study which looked at HIV transmission risk for serodifferent heterosexual couples in the same circumstances. It also found zero risk.
While 15 of the men among the 972 gay couples in this phase did become infected with HIV during the eight years of follow-up, genetic testing showed their infections were with strains of HIV acquired from another sexual partner.
Since the start of the AIDS epidemic in the 1980s, more than 77 million people have become infected with HIV. Almost half of them – 35.4 million – have died of AIDS.
Global health experts say the fight against HIV is at a precarious point, with the annual number of AIDS deaths falling and the number of people getting antiretroviral treatment rising, but the number of new infections is stubbornly high at around 1.8 million new cases a year worldwide.
Rachel Baggaley, the World Health Organization’s coordinator for HIV prevention and testing, said this latest study “adds to the clear and consistent evidence” that HIV transmission to sexual partners does not occur when someone with HIV is on antiretroviral therapy (ART) and their virus is suppressed.
“Increasing access to HIV testing (and) ART … remains critical for individuals and is central to the HIV public health response,” she said.
FIlmmaker CHRISTIAAN OLWAGEN’S enchanting coming-of-age musical dramedy set in his homeland of South Africa takes a trope of extreme obstacles facing gay men in the 1980’s with such an inspired touch that makes this such a sheer joy of a movie.
It’s the tale of teenage Johan Niemand (SCHALK BEZUIDENHOUT) who although he lives in a remote one-horse country town where he is bullied by the local youth for his effeminacy, he is also encouraged by his gal pals to dress up in drag and dance to the music of his beloved Boy George.
When he gets drafted to do his compulsory two years Military Service, to avoid having to take part in the War he manages to get accepted into the Canaries which is an Army Church Choir (something of an oxymoron). Clutching his precious collection on New Wave records he boards the train to the camp and his horrified that the first other recruit he meets is the very flamboyant and very gay Ludolf (GERMANDT GELDENHUYS). His initial reaction is one of horror fueled by the thought that any association with Ludolf would also out him too.
They do become good friends as they bond over the bullying tactics by their sadistic Platoon corporal who believes that they have too easy a ride as a choir. A lot of the other members of the his Unit seem to have their own self image issues which manifests in considerable vitriol and hatred amongst them . Partly spurred on by them all being away from home for the first time, and their own personal securities and the sheer pressure of being part of an ultra-conservative racist society.
Jonah soon develops a friendship with another choir member named Wolfgang (HANNES OTTO) as they have identical tastes in music. They spend a lot of time together and grow closer and eventually fall for each other. Rather than this be an exhilarating moment for Johan, it actually fills him with panic and guilt as his deeply religious background makes him feel so wretched about his sexuality which he really cannot deny now.
As well as struggling with his own thoughts about the situation, Johan is also petrified about the Army’s rampant homophobia and the drastic consequences that could ruin his future if he was discovered.
This all plays out against a background of a country that is fighting to retain its white supremacy, in which the Choir’s Reverend leader preaches from the pulpit is a war that God wants them to win.
Olwagen’s movie is however far from doom and gloom as he imbues his script with a real sense of humor, and thanks to his very talented three leading actors, develops characters that are not only extremely likable but ones that we really get engaged in. Bezuidenhout excels as the deeply introspective Johan but in real life is one of South Africa’s most famous stand up comics.
Kudos too for the soundtrack from the Boy George hits that allowed Johan to come out of his shell to the beautiful choral singing that the Canaries toured with whether the troops wanted to hear them or not.
The film is remarkable insight into how gay men struggled with their sexuality in a country that was desperately clinging on to its immoral past. Olwagen’s wonderfully entertaining tale however fills us with hope that love will in the very end conquer all.
Zeta Phi Beta, a historically black sorority founded at Howard University, says transgender women are not eligible for membership.
A “diversity statement” adopted by the Zeta Phi Beta International Executive Board on Jan. 12 states “an individual must be a cisgender woman” to join the organization. The statement at the same time says the sorority “values all people, regardless of race, age, gender, gender expression, ability, disability, creed, religion, or walk of life.”
A source earlier this month sent the Washington Blade a copy of the statement. Zeta Phi Beta has not responded to multiple requests for comment.
Five women founded the sorority in 1920 to “directly affect positive change, chart a course of action for the 1920s and beyond, raise consciousness of their people, encourage the highest standards of scholastic achievement, and foster a greater sense of unity among its members,” according the sorority’s website.
The organization says it prioritizes social work and has “given untotaled hours of voluntary service to educate the public, assist youth, provide scholarships, support organized charities, and promote legislation for social and civic change.”
It has more than 100,000 members and more than 800 chapters in the U.S., Africa, Europe, Asia and the Caribbean.
Zeta Phi Beta has drawn media attention before, but largely for hazing issues rather than gender discrimination.
Discrimination based on gender identity in Greek life is common.
Few sororities have policies that are explicitly inclusive of trans women. And nationally trans women of color face higher levels of discrimination than other LGBT people.
We are living in interesting times. We have a disgusting pig in the White House who constantly denigrates women as well as just about everyone else except white men. Then from all I am reading the press is currently swooning over a 37-year-old gay white mayor from South Bend, Ind., suggesting he could be elected president possibly before the many qualified women running. So you have to wonder: Do misogyny and sexism still rule the media and the Democratic political establishment? Are we mired in the past? It seems we just might be.
I want to be clear for the first time in decades I have no favorite candidate as we head into the Democratic primaries. I either was with the incumbent or in 1980 wanted Ted Kennedy to win. In 1984, Walter Mondale; in 1988, Gary Hart. In 1992, after Mario Cuomo decided not to run, and in 1996 it was Bill Clinton; in 2000, Al Gore and in 2004 Wesley Clark. Then in 2008, it was Hillary Clinton; in 2012 Barack Obama was the incumbent and in 2016 Hillary Clinton. Clearly my past choices show I am not always good at picking a winner.
Other women besides Hillary Clinton have run for the nomination including Shirley Chisholm and Pat Schroeder. None achieved what Hillary did becoming the candidate of the party and actually getting 66 million votes; nearly three million more than Trump but losing the Electoral College vote. One important question was answered — yes a woman can win the popular vote.
I grew up in a time when white men were running everything and it seems we have not moved all that far from those times. While polls at this time don’t mean much they show three white men leading for the Democratic nomination: Joe Biden, Bernie Sanders and Beto O’Rourke. Two tired old men and one who is interesting but has a long way to go to show the nation he has what it takes to be president.
I worked for a leader in the women’s movement, Bella S. Abzug. I marched with her and fought for the ideas of feminism along with Gloria Steinem and Bella in the ‘70s. I fought to pass the Equal Rights Amendment and nearly 50 years later we still can’t pass this simple amendment to the Constitution that reads: Section 1: Equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any state on account of sex. Section 2: The Congress shall have the power to enforce, by appropriate legislation, the provisions of this article. Section 3: This amendment shall take effect two years after the date of ratification.
Since we still can’t pass the ERA we are forced to look around and ask how far we have really come. The reaction to and the press coverage of Hillary Clinton’s campaign was a prime example of the misogyny and sexism that still exists in our country. I write this as an acknowledged cisgender gay white male of privilege and can only wonder what women must be thinking. I am dumbstruck when some don’t seem to care. How can they not care we elected an African-American man as president and are now talking about a gay white man as president and still no woman. Women are the majority in our country. For years they made up the volunteer forces that elected all the men. Don’t get me wrong, I have the greatest respect for Barack Obama and think he made a really good president. As a gay man my respect for Pete Buttigieg and his intelligence and drive is boundless. He represents my community well. Yet I have to question why the women in the race who are smart, with longer, more impressive careers, aren’t gaining the fawning press he is.
I haven’t endorsed a candidate and my only criteria is no one over 70 should be on the ticket. We must take the time to look at all the candidates over the next year. We are 10 months out from the first primary in Iowa. Much can happen between now and then and it seems we don’t even have the full field announced yet. But there are women like Kamala Harris and Amy Klobuchar who deserve real consideration.
Will misogyny and sexism rule like in 2016? Will we choose a candidate because in some people’s minds a woman has been ruled out as the head of the ticket? Will the comment, “I want a woman, just not this one” rule the day once again? We can only hope the answer to that is a resounding no.
57% of LGBTI people lose a friend or family member after coming out, Gay Star News has found.
This heartbreaking statistic adds to previous research about isolation and loneliness in the LGBTI community.
Also, three-quarters (72%) of GSN readers said they ‘always’ or ‘sometimes’ felt lonely.
In contrast, only 20% said they rarely or didn’t ever feel lonely.
GSN readers were polled before and during Digital Pride, the global online movement that takes place on 29 April to 5 May.
Unlike any other Pride event in the world, you can take part in Digital Pride whoever and wherever you are.
Even if you are from a country where being LGBTI is criminalized or leaves you in danger – it’s a Pride festival you can be a part of.H
Loneliness and isolation are serious issues in the LGBTI community | Photo: Flickr/Alachua County
Thousands of people voted in the straw poll available on social media and the website.
Many said they felt it was difficult to make LGBTI friends.
We also asked whether GSN readers have ever felt lonely in a relationship.
We also asked about their friendships.
Loneliness affects us all
Tris Reid-Smith, editor-in-chief of GSN, said: ‘You can be lonely if you live in an isolated place, where you are the only LGBTI person you know. But equally you can live in the world’s biggest city and still feel isolated as an LGBTI person.
‘Loneliness affects us all at some point in our lives.
‘That’s particularly important in a community like ours where people are also more likely to suffer from poor mental health.
‘But there is also something we can do about it.
‘We hope Digital Pride will spark a conversation about how to tackle loneliness and isolation in our community. And we hope it will inspire people to reach out to a friend or acquaintance they think may be lonely or isolated. Digital Pride is a Pride designed to inspire change and that change is something you can start to make happen today.’
These findings add to what we already know about LGBTI loneliness.
The need for support has remained the same across decades
Natasha Walker, the co-chair of Switchboard, said: ‘These statistics solidify a lot of what we already know working within the LGBTI support sector – that loneliness is a pressing issue for people who identify as LGBTI.
‘Looking back throughout our 45 years as a helpline, despite the changes in legislation, the changes in societal and cultural attitudes, the changes within the LGBTQ+ communities…the phone calls for support have remained constant.
‘Whether it was 1975, 1988 or 2003 we received calls from people questioning their identity, with themes of shame, confusion and loneliness. Themes which remain constant in the calls we take today in 2019.’
A Stonewall spokesperson also commented on the findings.
‘Simply being lesbian, gay, bi or trans, shouldn’t mean you’re more likely to experience poor mental health and loneliness,’ they said.
‘Unfortunately, these findings and our own research show this is the case for many in the community.
We know that half of LGBTI people (52%) have experienced depression. Three in five (61%) reported having episodes of anxiety in the last year.
‘The discrimination and rejection LGBTI people can experience from friends and family can lead to disproportionate feelings of loneliness and isolation. Across Britain and worldwide, we want to help create a world where every LGBTI person is supported to lead a happy, healthy life.’
Something has to change
Ian Howley, Chief Executive of LGBT HERO, the parent organisation of GMFA and OutLife, reacted to the findings.
He said: ‘These findings prove again and again that not enough is being done to tackle the high numbers of LGBTI people who are experiencing these issues.
‘Tackling isolation and loneliness is important. It can lead to people making unhealthy choices such as drinking alcohol more, using hard drugs, engaging in chemsex and partaking in riskier sex.
‘But it can also lead to extreme cases of anxiety, depression, self-harm and even suicide. All the statistics also prove the longer someone feels isolated or lonely, the higher the rate they will experience mental illness issues or even consider taking their own life.
‘To me it’s unacceptable that just because we are LGBTI that this is something we have to experience.
‘We as a community need to come together and figure out what realistically can be done to challenge the issues raised here.
‘Nobody should feel isolated in the LGBTI community and there’s more we can all do to stop this.
‘But right now we need to find a way to support those who are currently feeling isolated or lonely while laying down the foundations to eradicate this for future generations.’
In a bid to reduce the number of younger viewers on porn sites, all internet users will have to prove that they are over 18 to prevent themselves being blocked from seeing adult content from July 15.
The new regulations will mean that porn websites will have to enforce a strict age verification process, which may include users entering their personal details onto the site.
“We want the UK to be the safest place in the world to be online.”
—Minister for Digital Margot James
If adult websites do not adhere to the new rules they may become completely inaccessible to UK users.
“Adult content is currently far too easy for children to access online,” Minister for Digital Margot James said in a statement on the issue.
“We’ve taken the time to balance privacy concerns with the need to protect children from inappropriate content,” she added.
“We want the UK to be the safest place in the world to be online, and these new laws will help us achieve this.”
Access to pornography “corroding childhood”
Relaxed verification procedures for online adult content is an issue politicians have been fighting against for many years.
“I want to talk about the internet,” he said. “The impact it is having on the innocence of our children. How online pornography is corroding childhood. And how, in the darkest corners of the internet, there are things going on that are a direct danger to our children, and that must be stamped out.”
“Introducing age verification is a world-leading step forward to protect children,” a spokesperson for the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) told PinkNews in March.
“Adult content is currently too easy to access on the internet, we’re making sure the protections that exist for children offline are provided online too.”
When the ban finally comes into full force, Britain will become the first country in the world to have an age verification for online porn.
Gay and bisexual men experience erectile dysfunction at a higher rate than their heterosexual counterparts.
New UK research found that 56% of gay or bi men experience erectile dysfunction, whereas only 46% of straight men do.
For one in four gay or bi men, it’s an issue most or every time they’re with a partner. Of those men, 21% have given up on sex altogether.
The research conducted by Intrinsic Insight also found that psychological factors often cause erectile dysfunction. The study surveyed 2,000 men in the UK, 150 of whom identified as gay or bisexual.
Gay and bi men feel that pressure to perform is the leading cause of it. So much so, they ranked it higher as a cause than drinking too much or side effects from medication.
Some men said ‘insecurities about my body’, work stress and mental health issues as other reasons causing erectile dysfunction.
The study also found that erectile dysfunction lead to the relationship breakdown of 14% of gay or bi men. That could be because those men are keeping their problems to themselves. Only 20% of men with erectile dysfunction told their partners, instead giving other excuses to avoid having sex such as, being tired from work.
Getting help
A third of men don’t tell anyone about it because they “don’t think there’s a solution”. Only one in five men actually seek help from a healthcare professional.
Dr Kathryn Basford a General Practitioner at Zava who commissioned the study, encouraged men to speak to a medical professional about their problems.
‘ED is traditionally seen as an older man’s condition but in reality men of any age can be affected and our recent study proves this,’ she said.
‘Men today are under rising pressure to “perform”.
‘Worry about living up to male stereotypes, insecurity about their bodies, and wider stresses can all play a part when it comes to sex. Whatever the potential causes, it’s always worth having a conversation with a healthcare professional, be that online or in person.’
