Robyn Ochs Literally Defines Bisexuality
Explicit content warning
10/11/21 • 71 min
Donate to Bi Women Quarterly! https://www.biwomenquarterly.com/donate/
Robyn's Etsy Shop, "Bi-Products" (proceeds support Bi Women Quarterly): https://www.etsy.com/shop/biproducts/
Buy "Recognize: The Voices of Bisexual Men": https://www.etsy.com/listing/709911434/recognize-the-voices-of-bisexual-men?ref=shop_home_active_9&frs=1
Robyn's website: https://robynochs.com/
Follow Robyn on Twitter: https://twitter.com/robynochs
Follow Robyn on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/robynochs/
We're so excited to sit down with another Bi-con: Robyn Ochs! Most of us have come across Robyn's popular definition of bisexuality (especially if you've listened to this podcast), and many of us use it as our own go-to definition. There's a reason for that -- it's been honed over time and is the result of four decades of Robyn's Bi+ activism.
In this special episode, Rob chats with Robyn about when and how she realized she was bisexual, the liberation of finding a likeminded community and coming out, what Bi+ organizing was like B.G. ("before Google"), what we can and can't learn about people based on the labels they choose, Robyn's understanding of the gender spectrum and her own gender fluidity, how breaking out of the sexuality binary can help us see other false binaries in society, and why Robyn believes "questioning" is a feature, not a flaw, of identity.
We also discussed Robyn's recent and current work, including Bi+ Women Quarterly, a grassroots publication that Robyn edits; "Recognize: The Voices of Bisexual Men", an anthology that Robyn edited and published along with Dr. Herukhuti; and Robyn's interactive workshop called "Beyond Binaries" which she has been developing and performing for over two decades.
Two Bi Guys is produced and edited by Rob Cohen
Created by Rob Cohen and Alex Boyd
Logo art by Kaitlin Weinman
Music by Ross Mintzer
We are supported by The Gotham (formerly IFP)
Donate to Bi Women Quarterly! https://www.biwomenquarterly.com/donate/
Robyn's Etsy Shop, "Bi-Products" (proceeds support Bi Women Quarterly): https://www.etsy.com/shop/biproducts/
Buy "Recognize: The Voices of Bisexual Men": https://www.etsy.com/listing/709911434/recognize-the-voices-of-bisexual-men?ref=shop_home_active_9&frs=1
Robyn's website: https://robynochs.com/
Follow Robyn on Twitter: https://twitter.com/robynochs
Follow Robyn on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/robynochs/
We're so excited to sit down with another Bi-con: Robyn Ochs! Most of us have come across Robyn's popular definition of bisexuality (especially if you've listened to this podcast), and many of us use it as our own go-to definition. There's a reason for that -- it's been honed over time and is the result of four decades of Robyn's Bi+ activism.
In this special episode, Rob chats with Robyn about when and how she realized she was bisexual, the liberation of finding a likeminded community and coming out, what Bi+ organizing was like B.G. ("before Google"), what we can and can't learn about people based on the labels they choose, Robyn's understanding of the gender spectrum and her own gender fluidity, how breaking out of the sexuality binary can help us see other false binaries in society, and why Robyn believes "questioning" is a feature, not a flaw, of identity.
We also discussed Robyn's recent and current work, including Bi+ Women Quarterly, a grassroots publication that Robyn edits; "Recognize: The Voices of Bisexual Men", an anthology that Robyn edited and published along with Dr. Herukhuti; and Robyn's interactive workshop called "Beyond Binaries" which she has been developing and performing for over two decades.
Two Bi Guys is produced and edited by Rob Cohen
Created by Rob Cohen and Alex Boyd
Logo art by Kaitlin Weinman
Music by Ross Mintzer
We are supported by The Gotham (formerly IFP)
Previous Episode
Jen Winston is Greedy, Confused, & Proud of It
Buy Jen's book and subscribe to their Bi+ newsletter: https://www.greedy-bisexual.com/
Follow Jen on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jenerous/
Follow Jen on Twitter: https://twitter.com/jenerous
We've all dealt with the stereotype that bisexual people are confused. But what's so bad about confusion?? The world is complicated!
We're back with Jen Winston (she/they), aka @Jenerous, talking about greed, confusion, and all the other "negative" stereotypes about Bi+ people that we love to play into. We discussed Jen's new book GREEDY: NOTES FROM A BISEXUAL WHO WANTS TO MUCH (out Oct 5!), in which they go beyond bi-myth-busting, question the very nature of stereotypes and why we often consider them bi-phobic, and present their authentic, messy, personal bi narrative in a funny, relatable, and honest memoir.
We also talked about the gender spectrum (a lot...), non-binary and transgender identities (and their intersection with bisexuality), Jen's non-binary identity and experience using both "she" and "they" pronouns, their slightly-later-in-life coming out process, their thoughts on male bisexuality and their relationships with bisexual men, that time they had a threesome (!!), the importance and lack of specifically-bi spaces (and how we might create them ourselves), bi men's unique ability to smash the patriarchy from within, how queer people blur the lines between types of relationships (and tend to stay friends with their exes), internalized bi-phobia and how it contributes to a cycle of invisibility, queer dating advice, bisexuality on TV, and much more! (Yeah, we covered a lot in this one.)
Two Bi Guys is produced and edited by Rob Cohen
Created by Rob Cohen and Alex Boyd
Logo art by Kaitlin Weinman
Music by Ross Mintzer
We are supported by The Gotham (formerly IFP)
Next Episode
How to Internalize Validation with Vaneet Mehta
Follow Vaneet on Twitter: https://twitter.com/nintendomad888
Follow Vaneet on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nintendomad888/
Ever scoffed at the idea of telling yourself you look hot in the mirror? What if it actually works? We chatted with Bi+ activist and soon-to-be-author Vaneet Mehta about how to accept external validation and then repeat it and internalize it until it becomes a closed loop of confidence.
Like many Bi+ people, Vaneet struggled for years to identify and accept his bisexuality, and on top of that struggled within the strict confines of masculinity in the predominantly Indian/South-Asian community of Southall, West London. We talked about how Vaneet gained confidence in his identity and came out in that environment, how it affected his mental health (TRIGGER WARNING: talk of suicide and suicidal ideation), finding a queer community with common interests outside of queerness to "bridge the gap" (like "Gaymers"), the book he's writing on bisexual men, why he created the hashtag #BisexualMenExist, and the journey from self-discovery to paying it forward by helping others.
Two Bi Guys is produced and edited by Rob Cohen
Created by Rob Cohen and Alex Boyd
Logo art by Kaitlin Weinman
Music by Ross Mintzer
We are supported by The Gotham (formerly IFP)
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