Bear community
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The bear community is a subculture in the gay community. Bears are gay men with stocky or heavyset builds, and usually have hairy bodies and facial hair. Bears often exhibit an outwardly masculine appearance. Some bears place great importance on presenting a hyper-masculine image and shun interaction with men who display effeminate style and mannerisms. Bears are typically contrasted with twinks.
Pride_2004_bears.jpg
There is much debate as to the definition of a bear, with some saying that anyone who self-identifies as a bear is a bear, and others arguing that bears must have certain physical characteristics, such as a stocky build, hairy chest, and facial hair.
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Origins and behaviour
The bear community originated in San Francisco in the 1980s as an outgrowth of 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 bodily norm (thin, hairless and young). In turn, some people both in and out of the bear community criticize it as tending to exclude people who do not fit into their own standards of what a "real man" is.
Some bears dissociate themselves from the gay community at large; bears often have their own bars, and there are many social events geared towards bears where they can socialize with other members of the bear community. Some of these events, often referred to as "bear runs," may have beauty pageants where titles and sashes (made of leather) are given out to winners. (Example: "Mr. Washington, D.C. Bear, 2002.")
The bear community has spread all over the world, with bear clubs in Australia, South America, North America, and Europe. Bear events are common in those areas and lots of flux and interaction occur between members of the different communities.
Often when a bear spots another bear in public and wants to express physical attraction, he makes a growling noise ("Grrrr!") or says "Woof!"
References in pop culture
Though not generally widely known outside of the gay community, the "bear" label has begun to surface in pop culture.
- On the American television show "Queer Eye For the Straight Guy", a stocky and hairy man receiving a makeover was informed by one of the hosts that, "In our community, you would be called a cub!"
- In an episode of "the Simpsons", Homer runs into Waylon Smithers in the gay part of town; one of Smither's friends asks, "Hey Waylon, who's the bear? Woof."
- In August 2003, Weblogger Andrew Sullivan wrote an article on the bear community for Salon.com.
- In American Wedding, a character (appropriately named Bear) at a gay bar flirts with Stifler, after Stifler growls at him. The 'woof' can be heard.
Film
- Cachorro (Bear Cub), dir. Miguel Abaladejo, Spain, 2004 website (http://www.mangafilms.es/cachorro/) (Spanish) website (http://www.bearcubthemovie.com/) (English)
- A Dirty Shame, dir. John Waters, US, 2004 - film that features men from the bear scene, although there has been some debate whether this is a positive portrayal website (http://www.adirtyshamemovie.com/)
There are also many short films about Bears which can be seen in film festivals (gay/queer film festivals as well as local/international film festivals) including:
- Men on Fur on Men, dirs. Martin Borden and Clark Niklolai, Canada, 2003, miniDV, 8 mins.
- A Bears Story, dir. Vincent Mtzlpick, US, 2003, video, 21 mins Website (http://www.abearsstory.com/).
- Porn Proof, dir. Chris Street, Canada, 2003, miniDV, 3 mins.
- More Than Hair Care Products, dir. Pendra Wilson, Canada, 2003, miniDV, 5 mins.
- Hard Fat, dir. Frederic Moffet, Canada, 2001, video, 23 mins.
- Lazy Bear 2002, dir. Greg Garcia, US, 2002, DVD, 18 mins.
- Making of A Bears Story, dir. Village TV, US, 2003, video, 7 mins.
- My Heart the Cook, dirs. Jerry McCadden and Clark Nikolai, Canada, 2001, miniDV, 2 mins.
Terminology
Some terminology relating to the bear community includes:
- bear - a man with a beard or van Dyke, typically with a hairy chest and body and a stocky or heavyset build; often older (or older looking) and displaying a masculine appearance and mannerisms.
- chaser - a term that refers to someone who is not a bear, cub, or otter, but is sexually or romantically attracted to them (this term is often used in various communities to describe an outsider who has sexual attraction to people within that community).
- cub - a younger (or younger looking) version of a bear, typically but not always with a smaller frame. The term is sometimes used to imply the passive partner in a relationship.
- daddybear - is an older more husky guy sometimes looking for a daddy/son relationship or a Bearcub.
- muscle bear - a muscular bear.
- muscle cub - a muscular cub.
- otter - a man who is hairy, but is not large or stocky - typically thinner, or with lean muscle.
- papa bear - see daddybear
- polar bear - is an older guy with white or grey fur/beard.
- pocket bear - shorter bear.
- pocket protector - taller bear.
- manatee - heavyset, hairless bear
See also
External links
- BearBuzz (http://www.bearbuzz.net)Where Bears get the Buzz!
- Inside Bear Magazine (http://www.insidebear.com)
- Resources for Bears (http://www.resourcesforbears.com)
- Bear Youth (http://www.bearyouth.org)
- International Mr. Leather (http://www.imrl.com/index.asp)
- Bear Like Me - the first bear novel (http://www.bearlikeme.com)
- Bear With Me - A Bear-oriented Online Comic Strip by Bruin (http://www.bearwithme.us)
- The Northwest Bears (http://www.nwbears.com)
- Orange County Bears (California, US) (http://www.ocbears.com)
- Oregon Bears (http://www.oregonbears.org)
- Bears of San Francisco (US) (http://www.bosf.org)
- "I am bear, hear me roar," Andrew Sullivan's article (http://archive.salon.com/opinion/sullivan/2003/08/01/bears/)
- Brief Salon article by Camille Paglia on bears (http://www.salon.com/col/pagl/1999/03/17pagl2.html)
- VicBears (http://www.vicbears.org.au/) VicBears is the southernmost Bear club in the world and host to Southern HiBearnation and Mr Australasian Bear Contest in June each year
- Sacramento Valley Bears (US) (http://www.sacvalleybears.org/)zh:熊族