Community and belonging
Community and belonging are necessary for the wellbeing of every person, but for LGBTI+ people, community can be lifesaving and reflect people’s ‘chosen families.’ LGBTI+ people are more at risk of marginalisation from mainstream services or of alienation from our biological families, so feeling a strong connection to the LGBTI+ community can be essential[10].
Bi+ people have historically felt marginalised from the wider LGBTI+ community due to persistent negative stereotypes about bi+ people, attitudes toward bi+ people who are not in same-gender relationships, and the use of language that is not bi+ inclusive[11]. However, over the decade since the previous bi+ survey, there has been a serious effort to improve bi+ people’s inclusion and as a result, there have been significant improvements in bi+ people’s feelings of community belonging.
Subsections
- Belonging to the LGBT+ community
- Belonging to a bi+ community
- Belonging to a ‘straight community’
- Summary (Community and belonging)
Footnotes
- For an in-depth look at experiences of kinship, community and belonging in the LGBTI+ community, please see Nagle, A., Crowther, R., Sanders White, E. (2023) ‘Kinship, Family, and Support Networks in Scotland’s LGBTI+ Community’. (Return to reference [10])
- For guidance on making services more bi+ inclusive see Rankin, S., Hiwatari, J., ‘Roadmap to Bisexual Inclusion’ (2018). (Return to reference [11])
