ABSTRACT
Research indicates that many bisexual people want to come out in order to be honest, feel authentic, find support and acceptance, and become more visible as bisexual. The image of the rainbow, particularly on flags, has been widely recognised as a symbol of lesbian and gay pride. The rainbow flag offers opportunities for affiliation, solidarity, community, and pride, and is also a way in which identities can be made visible. Some bisexual people felt disconnected from the rainbow flag and wanted a universal symbol for bisexuality. The bisexual flag was first developed in 1998 with the specific intent of increasing the visibility of bisexual people, by Michael Page. While to be visible is not a straightforward route to becoming validated, nonetheless, to increase the visibility of bisexual, pansexual, asexual, and plurisexual identities is to increase the potential for these identities to become better recognised, represented, and understood by others and within the wider culture.
