What is #droptheb and why should you care?
The anti-bi campaign #droptheb (4chan)
Members of the LGBT+ community have responded to the ‘biphobic’ calls to drop the B from the LGBT acronym.
The movement, which started out on right-wing forum 4Chan, claimed that the B that represents bisexuality in the acronym excluded people who did not identify in the gender binary.
The hashtag, #droptheb, implores the queer community to reject bisexuality in the LGBT+ acronym.
A series of campaigning memes have circulated in a bid to remove the letter from the widely used group of letters that represents the breadth of the queer community.
“More than 2 genders! #dropTheB,” tweeted @kbjwes77.
“Times have changed and so should the terms we use. #Droptheb,” shared @SharonMarmalaid.
“We need a change. There are WAY more than 2 genders. #droptheB #lgbt,” added @natelewis1987.
Bisexuality does not just mean an attraction to two genders, but an attraction to people of any gendered or non-gendered persuasion – which has been noted by several members of the community.
“It took me a while to come to terms with who I am as a person and my attraction to women as well as men. Don’t fucking take that from me. Don’t take it from anyone. Let us have the few things we choose to define ourselves with for fucks sake guys. #DropTheB,” tweeted @solarbri97.
“I refuse to be invalidated If youre for #DropTheB you dont belong in the lgbt community. end of story,” commented another user.
“Bisexuals face a large amount of prejudice even within LGBT circles. To deny people a right to celebrate or even feel safe in their sexuality is NOT OK. Bisexuals are a valid part of the community and deserve the same love & respect as anyone else. So FUCK #dropTheB,” summarised another.
Thousands of people in the UK may identify as bisexual, but the sexuality still faces a great deal of stigma in gay and straight communities alike.
Whether bi people are left to navigate bi-erasure, more prevalent health threats or an increased risk of sexual violence, the unique stakes for bisexual people are still little understood.
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