Global Journal of Human Social Science, C: Sociology and Culture, Volume 23 Issue 3

who has felt some brunt of racism and who’s seen the brunt of homophobia.” iii. Understanding Others’ Marginalized Positions Another benefit was that bisexual women of color felt more understanding of others, especially those from marginalized groups. They felt their “expanded world view” made them less critical and more knowledgeable of and open to others’ experiences. For example, Cassie (Black, age 20) stated: “I’m not sure if I was straight that I would feel the same way about rights that people should have. The reason why I’m so liberal, I think, is because of these experiences I’ve had collectively that shaped my view.” Nina (Black, age 19) similarly expressed that her identities better allowed her to see the perspectives of others. She explained, I’m more aware of people’s problems because I have friends who are … struggling with their sexuality or identity and having all those friends is because I am who I am. It helps [with] understanding people, [with] empathy. [Also] seeing the world differently, having the ability to not be so blinded by privilege that I can’t see the world in both sides. Tori (Black, age 25) expressed that, “bi people of color are just so intelligent about themselves and the things that we have to know,” and in that knowledge she was better able to understand where others were coming from. She expanded, When you talk about intersectionality and respectability politics and then all of the things like that, I just feel like I have a lot of vocabulary for …being bi and for being a person of color, for being a woman… I’m just experiencing this, and this is just my life. IV. D iscussion In forming sexual identity, making decisions about how to share personal information, and acknowledging the positive consequences of identities these women were navigating the world as people with multiple minoritized identities. Their experiences around intersectionality and minority stress were characterized by ambiguity and ambivalence. The ambiguous processes they experienced related to their sexual identity formation and disclosure decisions were not easy to navigate. Many of these women struggled to gain clarity about who they were and to share information about themselves to family and friends, not knowing if their social network would remain as supportive as before they disclosed. Ambivalence, simultaneously experiencing positive and negative thoughts and feelings, was also pervasive in these women’s lives. The consequences of grappling with disconnections between what their religions taught and their bisexual identities, disclosing their sexual orientation, educating others, and being feminine in their bisexuality, have both benefits and costs. These women’s stories offer an example of what life is like for someone with multiple minoritized identities. It can be difficult to understand yourself, be yourself, and share yourself, when the identities related to that self-discovery are steeped in ambiguity. In a world that seems to prefer dichotomies (e.g., that a person can be either one thing or another, but not both), bisexuality does not easily fit. Bisexual women wonder, am I a lesbian or am I straight? The women in this study ultimately decided that they were, in a sense, both – attracted to more than one gender. Coming to this realization was often a stressful and confusing process in which they confronted both their own and others’ preconceived notions of sexual attraction, dating, and spirituality. When it came to questions about faith and religion, many wondered, am I a sinner or not, will my God still love me or not, can I experience happiness continuing in my church or not? Because of these questions, some felt ambivalence regarding their decisions around faith, experiencing and anticipating both costs and benefits. In leaving a religious organization, one may lose community but gain freedom from marginalization by that community. That sense of community, which may be even more important for an ethnic/racially minoritized individual, may have to be sacrificed to be true to oneself. However, hiding a part of oneself may be preferable to that loss. The intersection of race/ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender, and religiosity results in compounded experiences of ambiguity related to identity formation and disclosure decisions, that clearly differ from those who are straight and may differ from women who are attracted to women only. The women needed to discover their sexual orientation identities for themselves, and to position themselves in their relationships and interactions under extremely unclear contexts. For these intersectional individuals, sometimes one identity was more salient than another. The invisible identities (sexual orientation) versus visible identities (race/ethnicity and gender) influenced this saliency, but ultimately how others reacted to them and the decisions they made revolved around their having multiple minoritized identities. The power of and limitations placed on them by others influenced their decisions. It was others’ potential and actual reactions that informed much of how they navigated their worlds. Some of the challenges experienced (e.g., identity formation, disclosure decisions, encountering stereotypes) match findings from previous research and highlight the experience of minority stress related to having a minoritized sexual orientation and race/ethnicity (Calabrese et al., 2015; Brooks et al., 2008; Meyer, 2003). However, these women also experienced resiliency and positives in reflecting on uniqueness, and in contributing to and having a better understanding of one’s world (Greene, 2002; McCubbin et al., 1998). We might not have understood the extent of these experiences without incorporating a feminist © 2023 Global Journals Volume XXIII Issue III Version I 24 ( ) Global Journal of Human Social Science - Year 2023 C “The In-Between Spaces of Those Labels”: Exploring the Challenges and Positives of Being a Bisexual Woman of Color