Da Bears

I’ve always found Andrew Sullivan interesting. I used to read his blog on a daily basis, largely because he devoted time to talking about gay politics. Although, he did introduce me to The Christmas Tree, and for that I am forever grateful.

I recently read his article, I am bear, hear me roar! in Salon about one of the fastest growing subcultures in the gay community, Bears. Sullivan, a snuggly one himself, describes bears as men who do not stereotypically come off as gay: they are hairy with big round pot bellies, wear flannel, have facial hair (sometimes lots of it), and are friendly and warm in demeanor. Sullivan says "Bears at their most typical look like regular, beer-drinking, unkempt men in their 30s, 40s and 50s. They have guts. They have furry backs. They don't know what cologne is and they tend not to wear deodorant." Strangely, this sounds like all my friend's dads. And it’s not just how the look, bears are bears because of the way they carry themselves.

So this article got me thinking, what are the subcultures within the lesbian community? Beyond the butch and femme dichotomy, are we carving out new ways of being? Maybe the L Word proposed an East v. West coast lesbian…but I’m not sure what that looks like exactly. Will we create subcultures based on class? Education level? In any case, I'll keep my eyes open to the possibilities. Although, I do have a hunch that we are going to be seeing some lesbian mommy groups pop up REAL soon...betcha.