(In Order) Bisexual Femme, Butch, And Futch Flags

as a bi person, the bisexual flag brings me infinite joy and always puts a smile on my face, however as a person who has a Passion for Graphic Design, that undersaturated shade of purple infuriates me when it's used digitally

like, on an actual flag - which was its original purpose - it looks great!

those look fine! lovely, even! with the semi-transparent fabric, the way it catches the sunlight, it looks beautiful!

but now look at how it looks digitally

the pink and blue are so vibrant compared to the sad, lonely lavender!

and let's look at this statement from Michael Page, the creator of the bi flag:

(sidenote: he created this flag in 1998, so if his takes on bisexuality is different from yours, it's okay to notice that! a lot has changed since the 90s when it comes to lived experiences and the way we describe them. but, it's also important to respect his thoughts about this and the way he presented them, even if today, we'd probably not say that bi people "blend unnoticeably into both the gay/lesbian and straight communities.")

so in pantone colors, the pink is 226 C, the blue is 286 C, and the purple of the flag is 258 C.

but...here's the deal

Michael talks here about how the key to understanding the symbolism is to know that the purple blends into both the pink and blue. and on a physical flag, I think you can see that!

but digitally, it absolutely does not blend. it clashes badly, and looks oddly separate from the other two colors.

which got me wondering...what purple do you get if you actually blend 226 C and 286 C?

oh! oh, my god.

look at that! look at how nicely it fits between those colors!

look at it next to the original color scheme! look at how much more vibrant the purple is!

and friends. this is just blending through rgb! you get even more purple variations when you use other color spaces!

let's compare all of them:

(top: original, lab. middle: lrgb, lch. bottom: rgb, hsl)

look at all of the different purple options you can get just by combining these two colors!

if you want almost too-vibrant saturation, you can go hsl, if you want something more relaxed that's closer to the original, you can go lab or lrgb. and if you want to split the difference, lch is bright and violet, while rgb is there with its saturated but darker purple.

anyway, I guess I don't really have a point here? this isn't so much an informational post as it is Me Getting Weird About Colors, but I think it is a useful lesson about how colors look very different on screens compared to how they look on objects in real life.

and sometimes, I think it's okay to compensate for that.

out of all of these, this is my favorite bi flag:

it's the one where the colors were blended in lab color space. for me, the lighter, softer purple is close enough to the original bi flag purple, while also feeling like a smoother blend of the blue and pink

but that's just me! and it might not even look the same to you, since every screen is different, because technology is a nightmare!

anyway, thank you for coming with me on this colorful journey! I will now retreat back to inkscape and make pained sounds about inkstitch gradients until something tangible pulls me back into reality

Happy bisexual visibility month 💙💜💖

As a nonbinary bisexual in a long term relationship with another nonbinary bisexual this is important and I’m v tired of the biphobia and transphobia coming from the “bisexual people are only attracted to (cis) men and women” take I’m sure we’ve all seen too often

Etsy | Patreon

gotta highlight the ones that infuriate me the most from what i’ve seen:

remaining ignorant about bi discourse

only speaking on biphobia when bi people use terms or speak in ways you don’t like

if you are unaware of bi discourse you are biphobic

if you are unaware of the major ways the media and certain prominent gay creators and activists are biphobic you are biphobic

biphobia isn’t just really overt stereotypes and hatred like “bis need to pick a side” ‘bisexuality isn’t real" “bi women are disgusting because they’ve slept with men” “i’d never date a bi person”

it’s also remaining silent about bi issues

remaining ignorant about bi discourse

remaining silent when biphobia happens

speaking in ways that indirectly erase bi people

speaking in ways that imply bi people are more privileged or powerful than gay people

remaining silent when bi erasure and biphobia happens in the media

only speaking on biphobia when bi people use terms or speak in ways you don’t like

speaking with authority on biphobia when you are not bi

denying the importance of bi spaces and bi community

remaining silent on the higher levels of substance abuse, unemployment, mental disability, abuse and sexual assault of bi people, esp bi women

ignoring the unique aspects of the bi experience

etc

if you have never blogged/reblogged about biphobia except to call out bi people you are biphobic

if you have never spoken about biphobia other than to critique bi people’s discourse you are biphobic

if you are unaware of bi discourse you are biphobic

if you think bi people’s experiences are not unique or important you are biphobic

if you are unaware of the major ways the media and certain prominent gay creators and activists are biphobic you are biphobic

if you ignore the ways in which gay people have shut bi people out of their communities and erased bi people and undermined bi solidarity you are biphobic

and even if you are multisexual and you do these things;  it can be internalized: you still are biphobic 

it’s not always about what you do, it’s also about what you don’t do

bi people have suffered and died due to biphobia in the gay community and you don’t care

that makes you biphobic

a list of some bi books

(that you can read for free)

Bisexual Politics: theories, queries, and visions, Naomi Tucker, (1995)

Bisexuality: a reader and sourcebook, Thomas Geller, (1990)  

Women and bisexuality, Sue George, (1993)

View From Another Closet: Exploring Bisexuality in Women, Janet Bode (1976)

Bisexuality: The Psychology and Politics of an Invisible Minority, Beth Firestein, (1996)

Closer to Home: Bisexuality & Feminism, Elizabeth Reba Weise, (1992)

Bi Any Other Name: Bisexuals Speak Out, Loraine Hutchins & Lani Ka'ahumanu, (1991)

The Very Inside: An Anthology of Writings By Asian and Pacific Islander Lesbian and Bisexual Women, Sharon Lim-Hing, (1994)

If a bisexual woman disagrees with me I will immediately change my views. I have no principles

I read Bi: The Hidden Culture, History, and Science of Bisexuality by Julia Shaw and I was shocked at how much more severe the issue of biphobia and bimisogyny is than most people, even within the bisexual community, even realize. I’ve posted links to the relevant quotes from this book and organized them under these broad points:

bi men are targeted by both homophobia and biphobia; biphobia bi men experience is a materially distinct oppression than homophobia;

bi women are targeted by both lesbophobia and biphobia; bimisogyny, the intersection of misogyny and biphobia, is a materially distinct oppression from lesbophobia;

bisexuals of color, disabled bisexuals, and trans/nb bisexuals experience profound erasure from bi representation and scholarship, and access to necessary resources;

bi people experience "double discrimination"/biphobia from the straight and gay communities; bi ppl are at risk of discrimination for bisexuality specifically;

This biphobic discrimination in the gay community goes back decades;

the terminology used to describe gay rights is often exclusive of us to a damaging degree. this means in addition to specific biphobic struggles, bisexuals often must face generalized homophobia without the "buffer" of acceptance in the larger LGBT+ community and with some enhanced difficulties acquiring LGBT+ resources; and finally,

positive aspects of bisexuality and bi identity/nuance corner.

The most important information I found is that bi+ people have a higher rate of mental health issues, suicidal and self-harm issues, addiction, isolation, rape, IPV, stalking, abuse, and are less likely to be out as bisexual or to have strong connections to the larger LGBT+ community to act as a buffer against discrimination, as opposed to lesbians and gay men. They are also erased and denied access to LGBT+ spaces, resources, and legal protections. As opposed to gay men and lesbians, the particularities of the bisexual experience includes 1) experiencing double discrimination, 2) less likely to be out, resulting in mental health issues 3) bisexuals are more isolated on average than LG people, and 4) bisexuals struggle with internalized biphobia. I've broken down these arguments and sourced further information on the material affects of biphobia here on my Wordpress blog, since Tumblr won't let me post the full quote all at once, but you can find the quotes with the specific research and studies I'm basing these claims on in my tag for this book or under my general book quotes link, #education multiplies power

Data from a recent report, which shows which types of relationships bisexual people are in. So you all can stop with your biphobic ‘bisexuals are always in M/F relationships’ nonsense.

(Note: binary trans people are included in the first graphic. The last two graphics are just created to be exclusively about them.)

Graphics by @isthisbicuIture on Twitter

Study: https://www.ilga-europe.org/report/intersections-the-lgbti-ii-survey-bisexuals-analysis/

One of my posts about last year's Poison Ivy bi erasure debacle got a like again, and man...

You cannot convince me that fandoms don't have a problem with bisexual people, when the response to a prominent bisexual character seemingly having their bisexuality erased by a new writer calling her a lesbian was calls for celebration, and telling upset bisexual fans to get over it, or trying to gaslight them with claims that "Ivy was never bisexual in the main continuity" despite evidence to the contrary.

Like, fandom has had a biphobia problem for a long time, but I think that incident was probably the most blatant example of it I've ever seen.

Violet/Vintage Lesbian & Bisexual Woman

For lesbians and bisexual women who have an interest in older/classic (until around late 20th century) WLW culture, labels, lexicon and development. Based off flowers symbolising sapphic love.

Violet: speaks for itself Off-white: lilies Dark purple and yellow: two kinds of crocus flower (which Sappho described draping a beautiful woman), specifically the breeds that grow on Lesbos. Deep orange: saffron, which is harvested from crocus (see above.)