So what else am I to think?
Sydney author Brooke Hemphill has written a book about her “year of living as a lesbian,” according to an article on the Daily Mail site.
You see, apparently she identified as heterosexual until she found herself indulging in sexual activities with a woman, and then another . . .
Now she is saying that if she had to apply a label to herself, it would be bisexual.
Yup, that sounds about right, speaking as one bisexual person to another.
But the title of her book is Lesbian for a Year, which may be making some lesbians for life somewhat uncomfortable, along with other members of the LGBT community, who “have been offended by the book’s title, suggesting it simplifies the often complex issue of sexuality by implying it’s a choice,” the Daily Mail article says.
Brooke says the book is about her sexual experiences and its aim ” is to open up a dialogue about tolerance and acceptance of different sexualities,” the article says.
She also says “it was not her intention to upset and did not want to detract from other’s sexual experiences, but instead hoped it would open up the discussion about the fluidity of sexuality,” according to the Daily Mail.
So, why isn’t the book called, say, Bisexual for a Year (and for Life)?
Because Lesbian for a Year is “a pretty catchy title,” she is quoted as saying.
So, I guess this just reinforces the incorrect stereotype: if a bisexual woman has a relationship with a woman, it’s a lesbian relationship. If she has a relationship with a man, it’s a heterosexual relationship.
So, when exactly is she a bisexual — when she has a threesome with a man and a woman?
But I digress. Regular readers know what I am saying: Once again, it seems that bisexual orientation is given short shrift for the sake of sexy click-bait (and book-selling) headlines.
Because real lesbians generally aren’t bisexuals, ya know . . .
Or maybe I got it all wrong. Maybe Brooke and I are hetero lesbian bisexuals.
– Jillian
I’ve always maintained that no one is exclusively hetero or homosexual, but that we all fall somewhere in-between.
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ALOHA JILLIAN…. it appears that for one year, she WAS a lesbian…enjoying the companionship of a female lover and perhaps another…. having enjoyed men previously, she has arrived at a place where she realized she enjoys sex and relationship with various humans; whether male or female…. here on maui, a male friend had been MARRIED for years with his male lover and ALWAYZ considered himself exclusively “gay”; at some point, they split and he eventually fell in love with a female and THEY are engaged and he now does NOT consider himself “gay”!….. for myself, it has been VERY rare to have sexual contact with another man UNLESS i am with a couple or another woman…. though i enjoy bisexual sex, i consider myself “straight”…. i just do not feel a strong sexual pull to another male exclusively… thus though i would like to consider myself “bisexual”, it does not fit…. ALL of these labels get in the way….. whateva someone does is fine… if people are upset with her, that is THEIR PROBLEM…… enough with the labels….
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I read an interesting book, Sexual Fluidity: Understanding Women’s Love and Desire by Lisa M. Diamond, Harvard University Press, 2008. I would recommend it. Male fluidity has been far less studied. Many of the women I have known are attracted to both male and female genders; the attraction is to a person, not a gender. Some identify themselves as bisexual…but I’ve also known both males and females who ignore the labels and simply say that they’re sexual creatures. Period. I agree with a previous comment…enough with the labels.
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Yes, I agree: enough with the labels. Thanks, Fred . . .
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My son defined himself as a lesbian trapped in a males body…enough labels already!
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