BEARS
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Hyper Masculine Gay Men
Bear is LGBT slang for those in the bear communities, a subculture in the gay/bisexual male communities and an emerging subset of LGBT communities with events, codes and culture-specific identity. It can also be used more generically to describe a physical type. Bears tend to have hairy bodies and facial hair; they are burly, hefty, stocky, husky, rustic, and natural; some are heavy-set or muscular; some are chubby; some project an image of working-class masculinity in their grooming and appearance, though none of these are requirements or unique indicators. Some bears place importance on presenting a hypermasculine image and may shun interaction with, and even disdain, men who exhibit effeminacy.
The bear concept can function as an identity, an affiliation,
and an ideal to live up to, and there is ongoing debate in bear
communities about what constitutes a bear, however a consensus
exists that inclusion is an important part of the Bear
Community. Bears (also called ursines) are almost always gay or
bisexual men, although increasingly transgender men (transmen)
and those who shun labels for gender and sexuality are also
included within bear communities.
LINKS:
Wikipedia:
Bears (Gay Culture)
The Complete Bear
New York
Magazine: Grizzly Men
Resources for Bears
Monty Python:
Lumberjack Song
Bear Origins: Bikers and Lumberjacks
Bear in
LGBT communities is a metaphorical
reference to the animal of the same name with similar notable
features. These features include the animal's hairiness, its
solid proportions, and its physical power. The bear is both fat
and powerful, and the reconciliation of these two qualities is
at the heart of the Bear concept's appeal. Bears are typically
very similar in appearance to the ideal of the North American
lumberjack. A romantic conflation of the bear and the lumberjack
image provides the Bear trope its metaphorical appeal.
Lumberjacks were romanticized and fetishised in gay culture long
before the arrival of the Bear concept, and the Bear concept
retains strong traces of this older ideal. Lumberjacks appealed
to gay men at aesthetic levels but also for the fact that they
were working class, and for the fact that their isolation from
urban society (and hence from mainstream gay culture) opened up
a fantasy of both secrecy and liberation, within an idyllic,
rural, North American setting. These metaphors also lend
themselves to the idealization of natural physical appearance
and preferences over more glamorized ones despite the
convenience many bears may find living in urban settings.
The self-identification of gay men as Bears originated in San
Francisco in the 1980s as an outgrowth of gay biker clubs like
the Rainbow Motorcycle Club, and then later the leather and
"girth and mirth" communities. It was created by men who felt
that mainstream gay culture was unwelcoming to men who did not
fit a particular "twink" body norm (hairless and young). Also,
many gay men in rural America never identified with the
stereotypical urban gay lifestyle, and went searching for an
alternative that more closely resembled the idealized blue
collar American male image.
Bear Terminology
Bear - Hairy gay man
Grizzly - Heavy set and hairy gay
man (big outdoors type)
Otter - Lean and hairy gay man
Panda Bear - Hairy or heavy set Asian gay man
Black Bear - Hairy African American gay man
Brown Bear - Hairy Hispanic gay
man
Polar Bear - Silver, white or gray haired gay man
Ginger Bear - Hairy red haired gay man
Koala Bear - Hairy blonde haired gay man
Bruin - Hairy athletic gay man
Cub - Young hairy gay man
Chaser - Non hairy man who likes hairy men
Goldilocks - Heterosexual female in the company of bears (fag hag)
Woof - Greeting used by bears
History of Gay Male Sub Culture
The Bear Book : Readings in the History and Evolution of a Gay Male Subculture by Les K. Wright (Editor)
From Michelangelo's David to Calvin Klein's hunks in briefs, the cult of the beautiful male body has been at the heart of much of gay culture. But there is more to gay life than buffed pecs and rippled abs. Les Wright's The Bear Book is a surprising collection of sociological and literary essays about gay bears: hefty, bearded men who look for the same attributes in their partners. The gay bear phenomenon started more than a decade ago--in response to AIDS, some commentators note here--and has become a defining identity for many gay men. The Bear Book examines the range of bear culture--bear magazines, bear clubs, bear web sites--and in doing so explores how gay male culture evolves in response to the needs of its members and to the broader culture.
Also Available: The Bear Book II : Further Readings in the History and Evolution of a Gay Male Subculture by Les K. Wright (Editor)
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ALGBTICAL
Association for Lesbian Gay Bisexual & Transgender Issues in Counseling of Alabama