Photo: (MTV)
Yesterday, you got to know the philanthropic side of Cara Parrish, and in last night's new episode of "BUCKWILD," you had a chance to meet her ex-girlfriend, Sevgi. Cara was kind of nervous about coming out as bisexual to her castmates -- and (no pressure) the world! -- but she's been getting a really positive response.
We saw Shain go bug-eyed on the show, but to learn about other people's reaction, we talked to Cara herself. Yeah, she was nervous, but it's all good, especially since she's able to use this opportunity to clear up stereotypes about bisexuality and give advice on how to deal with bullies. Let love lead the way!
Photo: (MTV)
ACT: Were you nervous about coming out to your friends in Sissonville about being bisexual?
CARA: I was a little bit nervous. You never know how people are going to react. I hadn't really talked to any of them about their opinions or feelings, if they had any thoughts about bisexuality in general. I really didn't know how they were going to react. Like Shain -- [laughing] I don't even think he knew what to make of it. I was actually too nervous to even watch last night's episode. I had people live Tweet me what was happening. [laughing]
ACT: What was the reaction from them? Ashley mentioned she's bi-curious so have you talked to her about it?
CARA: Everybody was really nice to my ex-girlfriend. They were all really accepting. I think Shain was a little... it's not that he wasn't accepting about it. He just seemed so stunned. He told me he didn't know any LGBT people. He'd never had a friend who was gay or bisexual. So it was a whole new world for him.
Ashley, I guess, has had some attraction in the past to women, and I know it's something she's said multiple times that she's open to...that she just hasn't had a full-on relationship with another woman. But it's definitely something that she's open to.
ACT: Do you have any advice for people who are bisexual but are not sure how to talk about it with their friends?
CARA: My advice is to just be completely honest, and know that there will be people who try to make you feel bad and people who will bully you and don't understand or accept you. I had people bullying me yesterday on social media. People will say rude things to you, and you have to know that it's completely natural for you to fall in love with someone, and it doesn't matter what that other person's gender is. All of that is just a social construct. Love is love, lust is lust. You should never be ashamed to be yourself, and definitely never be ashamed to fall in love with somebody.
ACT: What are some stereotypes about bisexuality you'd like to clear up?
CARA: The one that bothers me the most is when people say that girls aren't actually bisexual. This is so ignorant! People think that girls aren't really bisexual or lesbian, that they do it for attention. That really bothers me a lot. Obviously my relationship with my ex-girlfriend was a long relationship. It was very emotional. For somebody to try to tell me that a relationship I spent years of my life in...I did that for attention...it's one of the worst feelings.
The only other thing I'd like to add is that there's a really cool support group I'm a big fan of called the Trevor Project. It's geared towards younger adults or teens that are in the LGBT community and are being bullied. It's a support group where you can go talk to other teens that are in the same position as you. There's even a hotline, 1-866-488-7386. If you're being bullied and you're to a point where you're not sure how to deal with it, there's a hotline you can call. I love them. I think what they're doing is absolutely awesome.
