1/15/2017

By all accounts, Roger the Alien from American Dad! should offend the bi activist in me. He's blatantly sociopathic, narcissistic, greedy, and does not care about anyone beside himself. He's the type to steal ice cream from a baby because he can. He does what he wants when he wants, and nothing can stop him. However, Roger doesn't upset me in the slightest. Despite being an offensive, over-the-top loud-mouth bi alien, I love him. In fact, I think of him as a bi and genderqueer icon and here's why.

1. He is unabashedly himself without an ounce of shame or remorse.

Even now, after three years of being out, I still feel pressured to pull up my resume of all the men, women, and genderqueer folk I've dated, slept with, or had crushes on to prove that I'm bi. Of course, I know that you don't have to date or sleep with people of various genders in order to be bi. Bi folks in monogamous relationships are still bi. I also always try to say something along the lines of It doesn't matter with whom I'm currently intimate, I'm still bi, when people skeptically ask, Who's the last girl you've slept with? Roger blatantly does not give a damn. He has never tried to justify his bisexuality. He's also never tried to hide his sexual kinks (of which he has plenty). He's not ashamed to like what he likes and be who he is. As a bi individual, I can say that's something I really do admire.

2. He can laugh at himself.

Often, when engaging in bisexual activism, I get too caught up in some of the more serious aspects of bisexuality, like looking at ways to decrease some of the severe health disparities bi people face. I'm always ready to jump on someone who says gay marriage instead of "same-sex marriage." Gay marriage erases bi people (and shouldn't we be calling it just marriage now, anyway?) And don't even get me started when people start gay-or straight-washing prominent bi figures. Nevertheless, bisexuality, in itself, doesn't need to be serious all the time. We can and should be able to poke fun at ourselves. Roger does just that. It's one joke after the next with him.

3. His bisexuality doesn't define him, nor is it a personality trait.

Oftentimes, bisexuality is depicted as a personality trait rather than an orientation. TV producers often depict bi people as villainous , where sexual fluidity equates to moral fluidity. Bisexuality is just another characteristic to illustrate that a character is untrustworthy or unethical in these sadly common mischaracterizations. That's not the case for Roger. His sexuality does play a role in his behavior and is crucial to his story. But at the same time, it's not his whole identity. His whole character isn't all about being bisexual. Just like our lives aren't all about being bi. Our bisexuality is part of our identity, along with many other things.

4. His family still loves him.