By Robyn Ochs
IT ISN’T JUST A GOOD IDEA, IT’S THE LAW!
There is much U.S. news of relevance to bi and LGT folks: In 2013 alone, California, Delaware, Illinois, Minnesota, New Jersey, Rhode Island and Delaware achieved marriage equality and, as I write this, Hawaii is poised to become the 16th U.S. state (plus Washington, DC) with marriage equality. Federally, part of the so-called “Defense of Marriage Act” was struck down by the U.S. Supreme Court, allowing for same-sex recognition of legally married same-sex couples, regardless of their current state of residence. Also on the legislative front: the U.S. Senate passed a transgender-inclusive Employment Non-Discrimination Act by a two-to-one margin: 64-32. Now, sadly, it’s up to the Republican-controlled House of Representatives, which has not passed a single significant piece of legislation in this year’s session. Sigh…
In other countries: New Zealand, Brazil, France, England & Wales now have marriage equality.
TWO NEW BI THINGS TO CHECK OUT:
The Bi Inspired Project (Bi-inspired.com) is a new website organized by Lawrence Brewer (UK) and Apphia Kumar (India) that aims to “create a visible support system of bisexual individuals across the globe, contributing to bisexual visibility across varied forums. You can currently find stories from folks in Australia, Bulgaria, Fiji, Canada, India, Israel, Kenya, the Netherlands, Spain, Uganda, the U.K., the U.S. and Zimbabwe.
521 is a new non-profit organization dedicated to creating a state-wide response to issues facing non-monosexual individuals in Wisconsin. The current goals of 521 are to challenge bisexual erasure through education, visibility and the creation of safe spaces. 521 takes its name from a playful reference to the range in the Kinsey Scale that potentially could refer to bisexuality or non-monosexuality. Organizing to form 521 started in May 2013, when Victor Raymond, Cabell Gathman, and Jess Becker began a discussion about the need for a statewide organization advocating for bisexuals and non-monosexuals. This is possibly the first U.S. bi organization to organize at the state level, to fill the gap between local and national level service providers and advocates. You can find 521 online at wi521.org, and on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/groups/wi521/), Google+ (https://plus.google.com/u/0/communities/114658911566809094390), and Twitter (wi521). Thanks to Victor Raymond (badger2305@gmail.com) for spearheading this project.