In Eric King's everyday life, he has several "hurdles" to jump over.

As a black, bisexual male, the psychology sophomore faces the possibility of being stereotyped on many different planes.

"With already being part of one minority, then taking it up another level to another minority, it's isolating yourself in a smaller group," he said.

King is part of a growing number of people who are considered to have "multiple identities." Identities such as race, class, gender, sexual orientation and disabilities sometimes can lead to multiple "oppressions."

King said that while being a black male comes with its own stereotypes and prejudices, being bisexual adds an entirely different dimension to his life.

"It just adds another monkey wrench," he said. "The way I look at it, I'm still dealing with visible attributes that I have, the things that people visually judge you on right off the bat.

"Personally, I'm still on my way over that hurdle."

But as president of SGL-SOCIAL, or Same Gender Loving Students of Color, Internationals and Allies, King knows other people who face many of the same issues. SGL-SOCIAL is a group of about 15 students who have multiple identities. The organization meets once a week to provide support and friendship while discussing current issues, such as same-sex marriage.

"You have a lot of the same instances that you can relate to," King said. "If I say something, everybody knows where I'm coming from."

An important aspect to the organization is that it provides a "safe place" for students who might not be comfortable with the activism of other campus groups, King said. While King acknowledged that activism and education is important, he said SGL-SOCIAL's main focus is providing a welcome group of people who can relate to one another.

"Our group is more of a support group, a family system," he said. "A lot of people don't realize that being part of a double minority, you're still dealing with the first visible minority.

"A lot of people are afraid to put their face out in public."

But some students with multiple identities have found that activism has helped them assert who they are.

Leah Swartz, who identifies herself as a bisexual woman with a disability, said having multiple identities is a positive aspect of her life.

"I have a lot of different peer groups to turn to for support," the social work junior said.

Swartz said she didn't "embrace" her identities until she came to college because she previously lived in a less-progressive area.

"If I was living in a more conservative place right now, I think it would be harder for me to put myself out there as a really strong woman or a bisexual or someone with an emotional disability," she said. "There's still a lot of people out there that are less than accepting."

Some people said that many of the current social issues, such as same-sex marriage or affirmative action, are helping more people with multiple identities become comfortable with asserting themselves.

"I think that it's more so now than in recent years that social-justice activists are giving voice to this," said Sean Kosofsky, director of policy for the Triangle Foundation, a statewide lesbian, bi, gay and transgender organization. "It's important to challenge oppression in any way that it manifests itself."

Kosofsky said many social issues pit people with different identities against one another instead of joining them to fight for what he called "the prize" - an oppression-free society.

"African Americans should not be saying, 'We're more a minority, and gays aren't,' and gays should not be saying, 'We're a minority, and people with disabilities aren't," he said.

"We're all dealing with the same oppressions."

Emily Bingham can be reached at binghame@msu.edu.