September universally marks the end of the summer and the much-anticipated beginning of autumn. However, many might be unaware that September is also Bi Visibility Month.
It holds, in fact, a special significance for the B in the LGBTI community. The festivities, culminating on 23 September (Bi Visibility Day), aim to celebrate those identifying as bisexuals with talks and parties. All events will also provide bi people with a safe space to meet up and network.
Several countries have organized events for Bi Visibility Month ever since 1999, the very first year of Bi Visibility.
If you can’t get your head around the many options, just take a look at our calendar. Here are the best international events of this 2018.
Bi Visibility in Africa
- South Africa
South Africa is where it all started nineteen years ago. Bi Visibility Day was first observed at the International Lesbian and Gay Association Conference in Johannesburg in 1999.
The country will celebrate Bi Visibility Month again in 2018 with Gay SA Radio in Pretoria, kicking off on 16 September.
There will also be a bi meetup in Johannesburg, organized by Johannesburg’s Bi Social Community on 28 September.
Bisexuality Visibility in South and Central America
Rio de Janeiro will invite all bisexuals and allies to the special PicNic + Gravaçao De Video Pela Visibilidade Bissexual (PicNic + Video Recording for Bisexual Visibility) scheduled for 9 September. The location is Parque Quinta Da Boa Vista, 250 Avenida Pedro II.
Belo Horizonte will have the first Bisexual Visibility party in the city, organized by Bi Frente, called #querobis on 22 September.
On the same day, São Paulo will host a bi party at Centro Cultural Zapata.
Two interesting talks in Mexico City, The History of Bisexuality and Sexual orientation to determine or discover, respectively on 16 and 21 September.
Canada will also host a Bi Arts Festival
Toronto will host one of the biggest bisexual festivals of bi culture. Kicking off on 18 September, Bi Arts Festival spans over six days of artsy events and special guests to celebrate the bisexuals in the many artistic fields.
Furthermore, there will be a Bi Visibility Parade in Montreal on 23 September. Thousands of bi visibility flags will take to the streets in the Village.
The bi events in the US
There will be so many bi events in the US, it’ll be hard to choose.
If you want to stay classy, the iconic Stonewall Inn will also celebrate bisexuality with Bisexuality in 2018: Pain Points & Milestones. The talk will start at 3pm on 23 September at the upstairs event space on Christopher Street. There won’t be an entry fee to the panel discussion, but a suggested $20 door donation.
The will also be other events on the day:
- Columbus, OH. Visibility Rally & Community Social. Hosted by BiLocal. Come together for fellowship and visibility! 12-4 pm Goodale Park. 120 West Goodale Street. 1-2 pm Rally and Speakers at the Gazebo, 2-4 pm Reception at the Shelterhouse.
- Duluth, MN. Bi Visibility Day Picket. 5:30-6:30pm at The People’s Power Plaza, the tiny park at the corner of Lake Avenue.
- Knoxville, TN. Bi Pride/Bi Visibility Day meetup: just hanging out and eating pizza. 4-8pm, ET Permaculture Research Institute, 201 Ogle Avenue.
- New York. Event at The Loft LGBT Center, Bryant Ave, White Plains
- New York. Bi+ Open Mic : Celebrate Bi+ with your Voice! 8pm, Club Cumming, 505 E 6th Street, East Village.
- Philadelphia, PA. 3rd Annual Philly Bi Visibility Day. Raising of the Bi Pride flag and Bi community members speech. 6pm, William Way LGBT Community Center, 1315 Spruce St.
- Pittsburg. Bi Visibility Day Community Conference. Workshops, art show, networking. 12pm-5pm, Persad Center, 5301 Butler St, Ste 100.
- Portland, OR. AmBi social meetup.
- San Francisco. Bi/Trans Brunch, 1-4pm at Streamline, 3560 Taraval Street, organized by Bay Area Bi Network.
- Seattle. Bi social meetup 2-6pm Optimism Brewing Co, 1158 Broadway.
No events confirmed in Asia yet
While there aren’t any confirmed events yet, Vietnam, Taiwan, and South Korea are likely to organize some celebrations as they did last year. Singapore and India might also commemorate the day.
Oceania
There will be a Bi+ Picnic in Perth on 23 September. The location for the event is Hyde Park, Vincent Street.
Bi Visibility in Europe
Inspired by bisexual activist Robyn Ochs, there will be a Beyond Binaries workshop in Hasselt on 22 September.
Moreover, Leuven will celebrate the bisexual community on 30 September with B Curious, a series of workshops, performances, and debates.
The capital will organize a BiBerlin Camp 2018 on 22 September. The one-day festival will provide attendees with workshops, discussions, food, and drinks.
After the event, there will be a Bi Party kicking off at 10pm at Café Bar Marienhof in Marienburger Str. 7.
On September 23, Berlin will also host a Bi Brunch at Sonntags-Club, Greifenhagener Straße 28.
All bisexuals in Vilnius can head to this year’s Bi-Matomumo diena LT / Bi-Visibility day LT: Bicnic on 23 September.
Color the capital in purple, blue and pink at the Bi T-shirts printing & Bi Banner making workshop in Warsaw on 23 September.
Furthermore, there will be a presentation of new novel W powietrzu (In The Air) by Inga Iwasiów. Notably, the novel has a bi woman as the main character.
The event is on 25 September and starts at 6pm at Lambda Warszawa, Żurawia 24a lok. 4, 00-515 Śródmieście.
Gothenburg will host a Scandi coffee break, also known as fika, but with a bi twist. Bi Visibility Day coffee break will take place at Condeco, Västra Hamngatan 16 on 23 September.
- Switzerland
Celebrate being bi or an ally the Swiss way. Expect a cozy weekend in an inn in Basel. On Saturday 15 September, join the main bi groups in Switzerland and celebrate Bi Visibility Day by cooking together. You will also be swimming in the Rhine if the weather is nice.
The United Kingdom will also host bi events
The UK will also celebrate the bi community with a plethora of parties, picnics, and panels.
On Bi Visibility Day there will be the following events:
- Birmingham. Brum Bi Group Coffee Meet. 12:00, Damascena, Temple Row. Depending on the weather they’ll take their food and drinks outside to Pigeon Park.
- Bolton. Bis at Bolton Pride with the usual Sunday stall.
- Bristol. Bisexual Bike Ride 2018. Grab your bikes, invite your friends and join for a friendly, slow Bi Visibility bike ride. The gathering point by the bandstand in Castle Park.
- Liverpool. Edge Hill University main building will be illuminated in pink, purple and blue, also known as the bisexuality colors.
- London. Kicking off at 11am, the Bi Visibility Day Picnic will turn Green Park into Purple, Pink and Blue Park.
- London will also have a special CaBiRet bi performance night at The Cavendish Arms.
- Southampton. Head south for a Bi Visibility Day At The London! The location is, in fact, the London Hotel on the Terminus Terrace.
We’ll update the list with more events as we get closer to Bi Visibility Day.
Read more about the locations and times for the listed events here.
You might also like:
London BiFest: this is why we need to celebrate the bisexual community
We need to talk about bi erasure in media: ever heard of the Unicorn Scale?
Matilda star Mara Wilson opens up on her ‘bisexual impostor syndrome’
