The current U.S. administration has been loudly and aggressively attacking the trans community in ways that have taken center stage in all of our news feeds. We have been standing in solidarity with our trans, nonbinary, gender-nonconforming, and intersex siblings as politicians the world over try to erase this vibrant community from our collective history and culture. This heightened climate of transphobia endangers lives, undermines civil rights, and is an affront to humanity.
And make no mistake: those who would attack the trans community have always intended to come for every single letter of the acronym.
Alongside the explicit attacks on things like gender-affirming care and the right to transition, we’re now experiencing a quiet and methodical erasure of bisexual history by the Trump administration as well.
Journalist Erin Reed has brought attention to the fact that, without much fanfare, the National Park Service has removed all references to bisexuals from its Stonewall National Monument webpages. Originally reading “lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, or queer (LGBTQ+),” the website was first altered to remove all uses of “transgender” and strike the ‘TQ+’ from “LGBTQ+”.
It now reads: “Stonewall was a milestone for gay and lesbian civil rights that provided momentum for a movement.” All references to “bisexual” have been excluded.
As an organization dedicated to helping build up a thriving bi+ community, we have a lot to say about bisexual erasure. We are no strangers to attempts to exclude us from the broader queer community, and we are not going anywhere quietly. Bi+ people have always been here, and we will always be here. Those who took the digital whiteout to the national Stonewall website should be ashamed of what they’ve done, but they should also know that there’s no victory for them on the other side of such actions. We’re not going anywhere, and we will make sure that future generations know where we have been.
To every bisexual, pansexual, polysexual, and queer person out there: you are far too valuable to ever be erased or forgotten. Bi+ history is LGBTQ+ history. We will never stop telling our stories and recognizing each other. No administration or government will keep us from fighting for our collective future and appreciating the unique place we occupy in our societal rainbow.
And to all our lesbian, gay, trans, ace, and other queer families: we are here for you and we hope you will be here for us in turn. We need each other. We have nothing to lose and everything to gain from standing hand-in-hand with our fellow LGBTQ+ community members, facing every threat in solidarity. Our stories have always been intertwined, and so are our hopes for a better, safer, and more rightfully inclusive future.
In Solidarity,
The Bisexual Resource Center