Bisexual Awareness Week: Celebrities who have openly discussed their bisexuality

This week is Bisexual Awareness Week, a week-long celebration from September 16 to the 23 that encourages bisexual people and their allies to recognize the community and its history.

Bisexual people have faced scrutiny over their sexuality for generations. And, historically, many bisexual people have been repeatedly asked what their true sexuality is - be it gay or straight.

In the video below, David Bowie answers this very frustrating question: 

So, in honor of Bisexual Awareness Week, VT has compiled a list of famous faces who have openly celebrated their sexual orientation, and in many cases, publically dated men and women.

1. David Bowie Credit: Alamy / DPA Picture Alliance

Despite causing a sensation when he came out as a gay man in 1972 - even though he was married to a cisgender woman - Bowie later clarified to Playboy magazine in 1976 that he was bisexual.

"It's true - I am a bisexual. But I can't deny that I’ve used that fact very well. I suppose it's the best thing that ever happened to me. Fun, too," he said.

2. Megan Fox

The Transformers star came out as bisexual in 2009 to Esquire, telling the publication: "I think people are born bisexual and they make subconscious choices based on the pressures of society. I have no question in my mind about being bisexual."

Credit: Alamy / DPA Picture Alliance 3. Billie Joe Armstrong Credit: Alamy / Sipa US

The Green Day frontman has been out since the 90s, Cosmpolitan reports, and told The Advocate in 1995: "I think I've always been bisexual. I mean, it's something that I've always been interested in. I think people are born bisexual, and it's just that our parents and society kind of veer us off into this feeling of 'Oh, I can't.'

"They say it's taboo. It's ingrained in our heads that it's bad, when it's not bad at all. It's a very beautiful thing."

4. Carole Baskin Credit: Alamy / PictureLux / The Hollywood Archive

In an interview with PinkNews, she said: "It was during the '80s that I discovered that through dealing with the LGBT+ community that I [realized] I had just as equal feelings for women as I did for men."

The Tiger King star added: "I have always considered myself to be bisexual. Even though I've never had a wife, I could just as easily have a wife as a husband."

5. Kirsten Stewart Credit: Alamy / JEP Celebrity Photos

The actress who rose to fame as Bella Swan in the Twilight saga has publically dated men and women, and in 2017, she told The Guardian: "You're not confused if you're bisexual. It's not confusing at all. For me, it's quite the opposite."

6. Drew Barrymore Credit: Alamy / LMK MEDIA LTD

The 'Never Been Kissed' actress came out as bisexual almost two decades ago in an interview with Contact magazine, saying: "Do I like women sexually? Yeah, I do. Totally. I have always considered myself bisexual.

"I love a woman's body. I think a woman and a woman together are beautiful, just as a man and a woman together are beautiful."

7. Cardi B Credit: Alamy / Image Press Agency

Cardi B said opened up about her bisexuality on Twitter and said: "I personally myself had experiences with other woman… with a lot of woman [sic]."

She elaborated: "I'm married to a man but I have express soo much about my bisexuality and my experiences wit [sic] girls."

8. Angelina Jolie Credit: Alamy / Allstar Picture Library Ltd

Jolie was asked by Barbra Walters if she was bisexual, and she said: "Of course. If I fell in love with a woman tomorrow, would I feel that it's okay to want to kiss and touch her? If I fell in love with her? Absolutely! Yes!"

9. Sarah Paulson  Credit: Alamy / Steve Mack

"All I can say is, I've done both, and I don't let either experience define me," Paulson said in an interview with PrideSource. "I don't let having been with a man make me think I am heterosexual, or make me want to call myself that, because I know I have been attracted to women - and have lived with women."

10. Cynthia Nixon Credit: Alamy / Hyperstar

"While I don't often use the word, the technical precise term for my orientation is bisexual," Nixon told The Advocate. "I believe bisexuality is not a choice, it is a fact."

There you have it - 10 celebrities who have openly discussed their bisexuality. Why not join in the conversation yourself and help break the stigma around the sexuality? Simply use the hashtag #BiWeek.

And remember, Bisexual Awareness Week ends on September 23, which is also Celebrate Bisexuality Day!

If you're in any doubt as to the continued importance of this holiday, simply check out Stonewall's brilliant resource for more information.

Featured image credit: Alamy / Ink Drop