Bear (gay culture)

This article is about the LGBTQ subculture. For other uses, see Bear (disambiguation).

A bear is a person who identifies with bear culture, an LGBTQ subculture. Bears are typically gay or bisexual men with a large build and/or body hair; some are overweight, but some are muscular.

In LGBTQ slang, the term bear is also used as a neutral descriptor for a large and hairy gay man, which can be viewed as the antonym of the term twink.

Bear culture valorizes the larger, hirsute male body, and exhibits and values authentic, "down to earth" masculinity that emphasizes camaraderie over competition between gay men. Bears are an organized and well-established subculture, with dedicated social clubs, events, bars and media.

The bear movement formed in the 1980s in reaction to exclusion from mainstream gay men's spaces and normative male beauty standards, and was often characterized by the rejection of effeminate and youth-focused gay culture. Bear culture has diversified and evolved over time, with ongoing debate in bear communities about what constitutes a "bear". Some bears continue to place importance on traditional masculinity and may disdain or shun effeminacy, while others consider acceptance and inclusion to be an important value of the community, including wider acceptance of transgender men and non-binary people as bears.

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