Bisexual woman opens up about rape by straight couple
Sali spoke out about her assault in a BBC Radio 1 documentary (BBC/screengrab)
A bisexual woman has spoken out about being sexually assaulted by a straight couple.
Speaking to the BBC, Sali said she believes her sexuality was part of the reason she was targeted.
“There’s a lot of it I don’t remember but I remember the pain,” she said. “They were just giving me loads to drink and I was drinking water because I’d had enough. But I kept finding vodka in front of me, not water.”
Sali said the couple had previously asked her about her sexuality, but she hadn’t found it unusual because of her work as a bisexual rights activist.
“When I stood up to go to bed they stood up as well and they grabbed me and that’s when it started,” she said.
“I remember bits of it, like being smacked so hard around the head that everything went white and I couldn’t see.”
The bisexual pride flag (David McNew/Getty)
She said the assault lasted for around six hours before the couple let her go because they had work to do.
“So I went home, then passed out for a bit, and when I woke up I went to A&E,” she added.
Despite the violence, Sali said it took her some time to realise the incident was rape.
She did not report it to the police because she thought she would never get justice.
Sali’s story is featured in BBC Radio 1 Newsbeat’s documentary Battling To Be Bi, which explores the struggles bisexual people face.
Bisexual women ‘especially at risk’ of violence
Last year, a United Nations report looking at global LGBT+ issues found that bisexual women are “especially at risk” of sexual violence.
The report said that LGBT+ people are already at a heightened risk of physical and sexual violence, and that in most cases, sexual orientation or gender identity played a key role in abuse suffered.
However, it went on to state that bisexual women are more likely than lesbian or gay people to experience violence from a partner.
The report added the level of sexual violence faced by bisexual women is “shocking”, highlighting a survey which found that 61% of bisexual women and 37% of bisexual men had been raped, endured physical violence or been stalked by a partner.
