biphobic

Biphobic is an adjective used to describe attitudes, beliefs, or actions that express prejudice, hostility, or discrimination toward bisexual people or bisexuality. The related noun biphobia refers to the phenomenon of bias against bisexual people. The term emphasizes that the prejudice targets a sexual orientation, rather than a single individual.

Common manifestations include questioning or invalidating a bisexual person's identity, portraying bisexuality as a phase or indecision, and stereotyping bisexual people as inherently promiscuous or non-monogamous. Biphobia can occur in straight and LGBTQ+ communities, and may appear as exclusion from social spaces, misrepresentation in media, or discrimination in housing, employment, or healthcare.

Impact: Bisexual people may face mental health stress, reduced access to services, and social isolation. Internalized biphobia can affect self-acceptance and relationship choices. The bias can also contribute to higher rates of violence or harassment in some contexts.

Context: Biphobia intersects with heteronormativity and monosexism, and can be expressed through jokes, stereotypes, or erasure in statistics and research. It can occur alongside other forms of discrimination and may be found within both heterosexual and LGBTQ+ spaces.

Countermeasures: education about bisexuality, inclusive policies, accurate representation in media, and supportive networks. Allyship and advocacy by bisexual and allied organizations, along with deliberate efforts to challenge stereotypes and erasure, are common approaches to reduce biphobia.