Biphobic Hate Crime

by nottmbitopia

**Trigger warning – hate crime**

The Crown Prosecution Service published new guidance last week on prosecuting hate crime. Their statement can be found here:
http://www.cps.gov.uk/news/latest_news/cps-publishes-new-public-statements/

I was particularly pleased to see that for the first time the CPS’ policy took into account that victims of biphobic hate crime will have different needs and experiences to victims of homophobic and transphobic hate crime.

The new policy doesn’t change the law on what defines hate crimes. However, it means that police and prosecutors will give hate crime additional focus, including biphobic hate crime.

All too often I feel that biphobia is simply treated as a subspecies of homophobia, when it is its own distinct issue. While bisexual people are less likely to be the victims of violent assaults, they are more likely to face constant tacit biphobia, from having their sexuality doubted to being interrogated about their sex lives and some people assuming they automatically be up for a threesome. It’s also an unfortunate fact that bisexuals sometimes face discrimination from within the LGBTQ community.

So while the proof will be whether there are any prosecutions for biphobic hate crime, I find it encouraging that the CPS has decided to take biphobia seriously.

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Nottinghamshire Police have invited me to attend their next LGBT hate crime meeting and I will do my best to represent the B in LGBT there. I would be very interested in hearing from anyone that’s experienced biphobic hate crime that would be willing for me to share their experiences at the meeting (on an anonymous basis). Please drop me (Alan) an email if you would like to discuss this:
nottinghambitopia@gmail.com.