ABSTRACT
Studies of bisexual communities mainly focus on the need for bisexual safe spaces. It is only recently that academics from the United Kingdom have started to describe the practices that constitute bisexual communities, including norms and values. On the basis of life history interviews with nine bisexual participants who were leaders of the organised bisexual community in the Netherlands between the early 1990s and 2016, I discuss historical developments in the Dutch bisexual movement and the personal experiences of these key activists. The chapter draws a picture of an open-minded movement that was based on a sometimes contested habitus, consisting of multiple smaller communities, and that was dependent on the efforts of small groups of activists who participated in organisations at the national and local levels. Because of this dependency, the Dutch bisexual movement was a vulnerable movement that relied on the priorities, energy, and passion of a few people, resulting in communities that were not long-lasting. The chapter concludes with recommendations for organisations that focus on bisexual and other plurisexual people today.
