S4E2: Bi+ Activism and the Long Haul with Robyn Ochs

Welcome back to Bisexual Killjoy! This week, we’re exploring what it means to be a Bi+ activist who’s in it for the long haul with the one and only Robyn Ochs as our guest. This Bi+ visibility month we’re focused on sustaining our efforts by honoring their inherent fluidity. We discuss how Bi Women Quarterly began and its transformation throughout the years, the importance of crafting intentional legacy, and what happens when Bi+ voices are centered as a collective. From the lives recorded in Getting Bi to those in RECOGNIZE, we know that history is remembered when we’re together. Robyn Ochs is an educator, speaker, grassroots activist, and editor of Bi Women Quarterly and two anthologies: the 42-country collection Getting Bi: Voices of Bisexuals Around the World and RECOGNIZE: The Voices of Bisexual Men. Her writings have been published in numerous bi, women’s studies, multicultural, and LGBTQ+ anthologies, and she has taught courses on LGBTQ+ history & politics at Tufts University, MIT, and Northern Vermont University. Among other things, she crafted the definition of bisexuality that is used by many bi+ activists around the world: “I call myself bisexual because I acknowledge in myself the potential to be attracted — romantically and/or sexually — to people of more than one gender, not necessarily at the same time, in the same way, or to the same degree.” Robyn is deeply committed to intersectional and sustainable activism, to working with others to build coalitions across identities and across social movements, to supporting emerging leaders, and to learning and growing. She is particularly interested in bi+ health, the experiences of bi+ people in the workplace, the global bi+ movement, bi+ elders, and bi and LGBTQIA+ youth. An activist for 50 years (so far), she is in it for the long haul. In 2024, she was named an LGBT History Icon.  Hosted by bi+ academics, writers, and advocates Bailey Merlin and Jace Rios Rivera, Bisexual Killjoy talks all things bisexual (pansexual, omnisexual, plurisexual, and overall bi+ness) because bisexuality isn’t a phase; it’s a phenomenon. Get even more Bisexual Killjoy content by subscribing to our Substack, joining our Patreon, and following us on Instagram.  As always, we want to hear from you! You can chat with us on our Discord Server, send us a message, or email us at [email protected]   Buy us a Coffee or leave us a tip here. Resources Bi All Accounts: An Anthology of Bi+ Voices, Volume 1. Edited by Bailey Merlin, Bi+ Book Gang. 2025. Order your copy today! Getting Bi: The Voices of Bisexuals from Around the World, Second Edition 2009. Edited by Robyn Ochs and Sarah E. Rowley. RECOGNIZE: The Voices of Bisexual Men, 2014. Edited by Robyn Ochs and H. Sharif Williams. Bisexural Resource Center: https://biresource.org/  Bi Women Quarterly: http://www.biwomenboston.org/  Where to Find Robyn Ochs Website: https://www.robynochs.com/  Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pixel.ochs/  Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/robynochs  Threads: https://www.threads.net/@robynochs  Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/robynochs.bsky.social  Sound engineer: Richie Smith