Kit Connor, star of Netflix’s Heartstopper, has come out as bisexual on Twitter after being harassed and accused of ‘queerbaiting’ by ‘trolls’ on the internet when seen out with his female co-star holding hands.
“Congrats for forcing an 18-year-old to out himself”, Connor tweeted out Monday.
Support flooded in for the up-and-coming young star, with Netflix changing their header to “We love you, Kit Connor”. Many people took to Twitter and consoled Connor for how he had been treated.
One Twitter user says that people accused Kit Connor of queerbaiting due to biphobia and bi-erasure.
Alice Oseman, the author of Heartstopper, raised her concerns that people didn’t understand the show’s meaning and that speculating about other people’s sexuality should never be a thing.
@DavidOpie points out that coming out should be empowering. But instead, Kit Connor was forced to come out before he was ready.
Rising East spoke to a consultant from Bethnal Green, who identifies as a woman, and wishes to remain anonymous. She said: “As a bisexual woman who partook in predominantly homosexual relationships during my formative teen years, I have experienced this phenomenon and the anxiety around one’s sexuality. Due to my anxieties and fear surrounding judgment from others, I kept my sexuality secret from my family and those not close to me for many years. “
A decade later, she said she realised that her fear and anxiety were irrational as no family members or friends were ever being outwardly homophobic towards her.
“However, many share this common feeling and reflective thought. Many people still face outward homophobia. My father came into my room during my first relationship with a girl at 15. A friend’s mother, who was “concerned” after she saw me kissing a girl, approached him. Though he did say he didn’t mind whatever sexuality I was, this still sent me into an anxious spiral.
“For many, this could cause violent and abusive reactions. I was lucky.
“Today we can watch anyone, anywhere, at any time. With that, people tend to believe it’s their right to project their image of whatever they want celebrities to be because people can’t see they’re real beings. When it turns out that there is an actual human underneath the celebrity status, it can make us realise how toxic fan culture is.”
Her story echoes many people in the LGBTQ+ community.
Kit Connor’s story of harassing celebrities into opening up about their sexuality is nothing new. Harry Styles, Taylor Swift and Billie Eilish are just a few names that have had constant online debates dictating their presumed sexual identity.
Kit Connor’s forced outing is a classic case of Bi-erasure, the idea that one cannot be bisexual. They’re either heterosexual or homosexual, and it can be argued it’s because we live in a patriarchal society that revolves around the male gaze.