Sunday 4 April 2010

Bi bi baby

No sooner had we gotten used to the earth-shattering revelation that Ricky Martin 'Shakes His Bon-Bon' for the boys, along comes another celebrity to upset the applecart with revelations about their sexuality.

This time around, it's Anna Paquin, the one-time Oscar-winning child star, who is throwing her closet doors open wide.

Anna made her announcement while filming a public service announcement for Cyndi Lauper's Give a Damn Campaign, which promotes equality for the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender community. The video was shot at the end of January and features a number of high profile stars (and Kelly Osbourne) encouraging the public to "give a damn" about discrimination.

To say that people were surprised by Anna's declaration would be something of an understatement - apparently even people present at the video shoot had no idea that Anna had something she wanted to get off her chest. But there she is, telling the world "I'm Anna Paquin. I'm bisexual and I give a damn."

Within hours of Anna's story hitting the news, the servers at wegiveadamn.org had crashed, presumably because a bunch of frustrated men thought they'd be getting something very different when they heard about 'Anna Paquin's bisexuality video'.

Although most people seem to be pretty accepting of Anna's lifestyle, the concept of bisexuality still seems to be a little troubling for some. Since Anna is engaged to her True Blood co-star Stephen Moyer, some Daily Mail readers are confused as to how that's all gonna work, making comments like "If she's bisexual why get married? Has she read the vows?"

Oftentimes, bisexuality is seen as the easier option - somehow more palatable and less extreme than fully fledged homosexuality. It's something you try in college, like braiding your hair or voting for the Green party. But bisexuals are also tarnished by a reputation for omnivorous promiscuity - as though they'll screw anything that moves, and still have a good go even if it's tied down.

The gay community isn't particularly sympathetic either - often believing that bi-people don't have the courage of their convictions. To some, bisexuality is like driving school - somewhere you go to practice before your full licence is issued.

Bisexuality is far from the easy option. There's no discernible 'identity' or culture to follow. And you'll be unfairly judged for the inability to commit to a relationship, simply because you choose not to commit to a single gender.

Woody Allen once said that "Bisexuality immediately doubles your chances for a date on Saturday night." He's right, but it also doubles your chances of getting your heart broken.

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