March 1987 saw the formation of ACT UP. A campaign started by a group of queer people in New York determined to change the way in which society viewed HIV/AIDS and the victims who contracted the virus, by challenging the oppressive politics with protests that couldn’t be ignored. A good example of their blunt and to-the-point activism was in response to Jesse Helms, a politician responsible for funding cuts to education surrounding the promotion of safe sex and spreading general misinformation about the gay community and HIV/AIDS. A giant, 15-foot condom was inflated over the politician’s home with the statement “A condom to stop unsafe politics, Helms is deadlier than a virus” printed on it was enough media coverage to overcome the censorship that HIV/AIDS awareness was experiencing at the time.

Here in the UK, we had our own branch of ACT UP, founded by long-time activist Peter Tatchell a little later in 1989. As many may remember from the scene in Russel T. Davis’ It’s a Sin, ACT UP London lay on the ground, known as a mass ‘die-in,’ in protest against The Sunday Telegraph for spreading misinformation that caused an increase in discrimination toward queer people and stigma around HIV and AIDS. ACT UPs message was simple: Silence = Death. Conversation, activism and awareness surrounding HIV will not stop until all marginalised groups have access to advanced healthcare. The little support for migrants, drug users and trans people living with HIV means many infections go undiagnosed – and this is all down to identity politics.

There are still are many misconceptions about HIV. The biggest being that it is a ‘gay disease’ – which is simply untrue. There are near enough the same number of heterosexual people who contract the virus as cis gay men. HIV is not only contracted sexually, but also through mixing of blood. This includes the sharing of intravenous needles, dialysis, or the mixing of blood between a mother and their unborn child.

Undetectable = Untransmittable. It is often wrongly assumed that people living with HIV can’t have healthy sexual relationships with other people. So long as their HIV viral load (amount of HIV virus in their blood) is undetectable, there is no way of transmitting the virus to someone else.

Nowadays there are various prevention medicines when it comes to HIV, two of those being PrEP and PEP. And despite there being no true cure, there are life-prolonging treatments that improve the quality of life of people living with HIV to a standard where they can live normal, healthy lives. This treatment, known as ART (anti-retroviral therapy) is an umbrella term. Varying on an individual basis, a healthcare professional will decide which of the 6 main classes of anti-retroviral drugs should be administered. These are normally combined and taken orally to drastically reduce someone living with HIV’s viral load.

A combination of misinformation, fear, intolerance, and hate led to the loss of an entire generation of marginalised people – it is only fair to honour them in remembrance on World AIDS day. And while there is still somewhat of a stigma surrounding HIV, the bravery of queer people has allowed us to move toward an improved society, where to be HIV+ can mean a full, happy and healthy life.

Word provided by Lewis Hadfield.

It’s hard to overstate the importance of pronouns to trans and non-binary people. A big part of what it even means to be a man or a woman is how others perceive us, what social roles we get to play and what language others use to describe us. When someone refers to us with the wrong pronouns, we instinctually understand it as an admission that the speaker does not see us as the gender that we are, and that can be quite a painful thing to realise. The level of discomfort this evokes varies, but for many trans people it is a sadly common source of dysphoria.

For non-binary people, the subject can become even more complex. Many non-binary people are uncomfortable with ‘he’ or ‘she’ pronouns being used to describe them, and prefer the singular ‘they’ and ‘them’, while others prefer neo-pronouns, such as ‘xe’ and ‘xem’. Because these pronouns are sparsely, if ever, used in regular speech, it can be harder for our friends and loved ones to adapt. Which is unfortunate, since the use of correct pronouns can be even more important for the non-binary community.

‘Passing’ – presenting as cis – is often not an option for us, since there isn’t a cis non-binary gender for us to pass as, at least not in the public consciousness. While many non-binary people present their gender as ambiguous or androgynous, this is not an option available for all bodies, nor is it even something every non-binary person wants. This leaves the use of correct pronouns as one of the few ways for us to assert our gender identity in public.

That being said, ‘non-binary’ is an umbrella term for a diverse range of gender identities, and different members of the community have different attitudes towards pronouns. Many non-binary people, for various reasons, are comfortable with ‘he’ or ‘she’, as well as ‘they’ and ‘them’, whether for simplicity, or because they want to acknowledge the gender assigned to them at birth as remaining a part of their identity. Many are indifferent to gendered language, comfortable with all and any pronouns being used for them.

An interesting side-note is that this phenomenon is not exclusive to English. Trans and non-binary people who are multilingual may have a different experiences with gender pronouns in different languages.

While I personally prefer ‘they’ and ‘them’ pronouns, I am largely indifferent to English gendered language, because I am not a native English speaker. Since I did not grow up with the language and it did not form the basis of my gender identity, it simply does not cut too deep when the wrong words are being used to describe me. This is only true of English, however. In Russian, my first language, masculine terms being applied to me evoke a strong feeling of disgust, dread and dysphoria. Now bear in mind that, similar to French, every single word in Russian is assigned a gender, and there is no true singular ‘they’. This means that honouring my gender identity in Russian would be tricky at best.

Because the use of correct pronouns requires concentrated effort, it can be a difficult subject even with LGBTQ+ allies, let alone our detractors. Best advice I can give to an ally is to do your best, and to conceal your effort if you can. Don’t take being corrected as a slight, rather take it on-board and try again next time. If you make a mistake, correct yourself quickly, do not acknowledge your mistake, and carry on as if nothing happened. Remember that it’s okay to make these mistakes, and it’s okay if it takes time.

While I am non-binary myself, I also grew up in the same cis-normative environment as everyone else, so I am not exempt from misgendering others. As long as you give it your honest best, your trans and non-binary friends will appreciate it.

Words and thoughts written by Rowan Fox.

Bisexuals are people who are attracted to more than one gender. It’s an umbrella term that encompasses other identities that are attracted to one or more genders, such as pansexual and queer, and includes attraction to those beyond the gender binary. Bisexuality has a rich and varied history, community and people, but is an often misunderstood and maligned identity.

Bisexuality is commonly erased in both the straight and LGBT communities, despite bisexuals and those who identify under the bi umbrella making up nearly half of those who identify as LGBT. It’s mistaken for a transient identity before someone “picks a side”, and while this is true for some people, it’s deeply damaging for bisexuals to be told their identity is less permanent and less legitimate than other identities.

Bisexual people often have their bisexuality overlooked and re-labelled as “gay” or “straight” depending on their current partner, rendering their bi identity invisible in society.

Alongside and as a consequence of this ongoing discrimination and erasure, bisexual people are more likely to experience mental health problems than the gay, lesbian and straight populations. and find it harder to access support that recognises the specific issues bisexuals face. Bisexual people are less likely to be open about their sexuality at work compared to their lesbian and gay counterparts and are at a higher risk of domestic or sexual abuse than the straight population.

On top of this, there’s a pervasive sense of biphobia in the media, publishing articles with headers like “would you date a bisexual?” and reeling off stereotypes of indecisiveness, greed, or sexual promiscuity.

The loudest way to combat such negative stereotypes is through vocal support of bi identities, providing a welcoming and visible community for bisexuals and those questioning their sexuality to express their true selves.

This is why Bi Visuality Week is so important! It helps open up a more informed conversation about bisexuality, combating harmful myths and enabling bisexuals to take pride in their identity. There have been great steps in LGBTQ+ equality in recent years but there is still more work to be done. Bi Visibility Day aims to support and raise the bi community, as well as to encourage the rest of the world to join together to celebrate and respect bi identities.

We here at LGBT Foundation want all Bi+ people that you are valid and we are here to support you! We run our Bi Programme in which we aim to create a safe, social place for all Bi people where they can meet, make friends, and improve their own wellbeing. If you would be interested go please go to https://lgbt.foundation/bi.