JoJo Siwa Talks Lesbian Identity Pressure: Opinion
When JoJo first came out in 2021, she generally used the term "gay" as more of a synonym for queer. "I don't know, bisexual, pansexual, queer, lesbian, gay, straight. I always just say gay because it just kind of covers it or queer because I think the keyword is cool, she told People. "Technically I would say that I am pansexual because that's how I have always been my whole life is just like, my human is my human." She even made headlines for not liking the word "lesbian."
In the years that followed, JoJo did occasionally use the term "lesbian" and was publicly in relationships with women and nonbinary people. During her stint on Big Brother earlier this year, she ultimately concluded, 'I feel, like, so queer, do you know what I mean? I think that's the thing, I've always told myself I'm a lesbian, and I think being here I've realized: 'Oh, I'm not a lesbian, I'm queer,' and I think that's really cool.' She is currently dating co-star Chris Hughes.
JoJo is currently set to be on the cover of the Daily Mail's YOU Magazine this weekend. Ahead of the full interview, the tabloid ran an excerpt with a headline beginning, "I was pressured into calling myself a lesbian."
In the interview, she said, "When I came out at 17, I said: 'I'm pansexual, because I don't care [about gender].' But then I kind of boxed myself in and I said: 'I'm a lesbian.' And I think I did that because of pressure."
'In a weird way, I think it came a little bit from inside the [LGBTQ] community at times,' she continued. 'From people I know, from partners I've had. You just get put in this world where you feel like, because you now have said, 'Oh, I'm a lesbian,' you have to be a lesbian. And the truth is, sexuality is fluid.'
Now, I know that weird straight people will jump on the headline as evidence of some gay conspiracy. But all this does is ignore the evident biphobia that underpins JoJo's story. And yes, this can come from people who are queer themselves! In fact, I am almost certain that any bisexual person you ask will say they've experienced some form of biphobia in LGBTQ spaces — there's even a term for it, "double discrimination." When someone so young is being told by both straight and gay people that their sexuality isn't legitimate, can you blame them for going with what feels more right to them in the moment?
I'm using "biphobia" here as a blanket term for "anti-fludity."
It's a problem that's been around for eons. Years ago, I asked a leader at a company I worked at about the prevalence of bi-erasure. In response, he, a man in his 60s, said that he likely would have identified as bisexual if he were coming out now, but instead went with "gay" because he felt that people wouldn't have believed him. Such is the double-edged sword with biphobia: Whether you're a man or a woman, it's assumed that you're simply into men.
Plus, as JoJo says, sexuality is fluid. I can't help but wonder if the people making the biggest deal over this have an internal abhorrence over someone, well, expressing that fluidity. I'm just an idiot with a keyboard, but it really bothers me 0% if someone updates their preferred terms. It's all very "backlash at Demi Lovato for using she/her pronouns again," even though they are still nonbinary and their point was completely missed in that discourse.
There's also the frustration from people who say things like, "Well, why did JoJo have to make being a lesbian such a big part of her brand?" For one, JoJo said that she "basically got blackballed" by Nickelodeon after she came out (Nickelodeon has denied this). It's possible that the decision to pivot so hard into the queerness of it all may not have been driven just by her.
This is 2025: I have to write a defense piece about JoJo Siwa. In short, don't aim your hate at JoJo. Aim it at the biphobic system, and, instead, let us unite about the 11-year age gap between her and Chris.
Looking for more LGBTQ+ or Pride content? Then check out all of BuzzFeed's posts celebrating Pride 2025.
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