do you think dean is bi?

*sigh*

I’ve always dreaded the thought of getting this type of question in my inbox and now that it’s happened, I don’t really know how to go about it.

To put it as simply as I can: No, I do not think Dean is bi.  To put it bluntly: No, I do not think Dean is bi because I know Dean isn’t bi, he’s straight.  

As a person that identifies as bisexual and as someone minoring in LGBTQ+ studies, I find the idea of Dean being bi to be insulting, to be frank.  Do I want representation in the media?  Absolutely.  Bi-erasure is real and it sucks and we need representation of the entire LGBTQ+ spectrum, not just gay guys.  But to have Dean as my representation is not something I want; I don’t want a character that is straight to suddenly, after 11 years of having no representation from him, to be that representation.  If I am going to be represented in the media, I want it to be a character that is an established bi-person, one that acknowledges the confusion, the discrimination, the struggle, and everything else bisexual people experience.  Do they have to know that they are bisexual when the show/movie/book starts?  No, bisexual people struggle with the acceptance of their identity as much as anyone.  But I want the authorial intent to be that this character is bi.    

I also find it really insulting to say that Dean is bi because he, within the show on multiple occasions, has stated he is straight.  Some people say, “It’s because he’s confused” or “He doesn’t know how to admit it, he’s so deep in the closet” and that is super insulting.  If a person says they are something, they are what they say and you have no right to step in and say that they are anything different.  I don’t care if you “see them that way.”

Beyond Dean saying what he is stands Eric Kripke and Jensen Ackles.  Eric is the creator of Dean.  He thought him up, formed a personality, a way of speaking, a set of mannerisms, a backstory, and he has said that Dean is straight.  There is the authorial intent.  Then there’s Jensen who is Dean.  He’s been Dean for all 11 seasons, every single episode.  If anyone knows this character, it’s him.  And he says Dean is straight.    

Interpretation does not equal canon.  It doesn’t.  I know there’s the whole “opinions can’t be wrong” thing, but when “opinions” (and they’re usually not opinions, they are, as I said, interpretations) ignore canonical fact, they can be proven incorrect.  Headcanon Dean being bi all day, especially if it makes you happy.  That’s fantastic, do your thing, write your thing, draw your thing, think about your thing, but accept canonical facts, too.  

Personally, I think Dean is much more progressive as a straight character because he defies gender norms and is confident about doing so.  Dean is a nester, he cooks and cleans and goes out of his way to make something feel like home.  Dean is a little high-maintenance.  For a guy that lived out of a car and crappy motels, he sure has a need for things needing to be clean and gets offended when they aren’t.  Dean fanboys, and does so un-apologetically.  Dean likes wearing panties for sexual pleasure.  Dean hugs guys and doesn’t scream “no homo” afterwards (because guys can hug one another and not be gay, amazing).  Dean is exceedingly loyal to his family and is insanely parental around people he feels a need to be parental around.  Dean, despite being one of the best hunters and fighters in the world, defies gender stereotypes with these things, proving that a masculine man can still be masculine and do all of the things listed above.

So yeah, just to restate what I’ve already said, Dean is straight.  And not that anyone would, but don’t let that stop you from writing Dean as bi.  You can headcanon whatever, nothing can stop you from that and nothing should, but accept facts as facts and don’t push for something that isn’t there just because you want it to be.