Justice

Evan Rachel Wood Opens up About the Hardest Part of Telling People About Her Sexuality

June 21st 2016

Actor/singer Evan Rachel Wood just got real about the difficulty of coming out as bisexual.

In a Youtube video posted in honor of Pride month, Wood said that many people still don't believe that bisexuality is a real sexual identity, which discourages people who identify as bi from coming out.

Wood opened up about her own struggle to come out.

She shared a story about facing a strong negative reaction when she kissed a female classmate while in elementary school, and went on to describe having a "secret girlfriend" when she was 12-years-old.

"I was terrified, and I ended it. [...] I was too scared of somebody finding out," Wood said.

She explained that she struggled to understand her own bisexuality.

"Because I had no way to express myself. I was also very confused, and I didn't know that bisexuality was a thing. [...] I just assumed that I was gay. Even though that I was still attracted to boys [...] I guess I thought that the gayness trumped that," Wood said.

Once Wood figured out what bisexuality was, she identified strongly with it, which left her feeling even more lonely and confused. "When you're bisexual and you start coming out to people... you get one of those looks," Wood said.

Evan Rachel Wood Pride Month videoEvan Rachel Wood/YouTube - youtube.com

Some people didn't seem to validate her bisexuality at all.

Wood said that while there was a community ready to embrace her when she came out as a gay, she was mostly met by ambivalence when she eventually revealed herself to be bisexual.

ERW biEvan Rachel Wood / YOUTUBE - youtube.com

"I felt like I had found a place, it was a community, there were people, there was an outpouring of support when I came out as gay," Wood said. "Instead of eye rolls and quickly changing the conversation when I bring up bisexuality. There’s not even a fight about it. It just doesn’t exist.”

Wood conceded in the video that bisexuality can be confusing, but said that doesn't mean bisexuals are confused.

"We're not confused about who we are, but we're confused about where we fit in the world," Wood said.

This lack of support and understanding for bisexuals is no small matter.

ERW bi vidoeEvan Rachel Wood / YOUTUBE - youtube.com

One of the primary reasons why Wood wants to share her story is because of the literal dangers bisexuals face when they feel they can't come out. An article published by The Advocate titled "Bisexuals Lack Support — and It’s Literally Killing Us" revealed a chilling statistic: "nearly half of bisexual women have considered or attempted suicide."

"I hope that by sharing one bisexual's story, we'll start to become real people, with real stories."

"Maybe people will start to take us a bit more seriously," Wood said. "I hope this gets people talking, and debating. Because even if you don't agree with what I'm saying, at least you're talking about it, like it's a real thing."

You can watch the entire video below.

[H/T Bust]

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