It appears that bears are an endangered species. In the age of GLP-1s, the notorious archetype is getting more difficult to find.
That’s even the case during Provincetown Bear Week, an annual celebration of gays who are bigger and hairier. New York Times writer Joseph Bernstein recently traveled to the tip of the Cape for the well-known bacchanal and reported on his findings.
Instead of burly bears, he found lean cubs.
“It’s a completely different kind of Bear Week,” said a partygoer from San Francisco.
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Embracing body positivity
Now 25 years in existence, Bear Week is a body-positive, weeklong jamboree filled with fun and frolic. The vibe is fanciful, and self-deprecation is in high supply. The Times article highlights a couple dressed as park rangers, who crisscross the deck of the Boatslip Resort looking for “problem bears” at a tea dance.
Like most gay subgroups, bears have a murky origin story. The first written mention of the term occurred in 1966 in the minutes of Los Angeles-based dance club, which referred to a “bear cub” within its ranks.
But if “bear” was used sparingly in the late ’60s and ’70s, it gained prominence in 1987 with the publication of Bear Magazine. The still-active pub featured photos of hot, larger guys, and info about bear-specific parties and gatherings.
A queer historian told Bear World Magazine that bears became a favored type during HIV/AIDS, when “heavier bodies became eroticized.”
While that’s remained the case–as the throngs of bear events indicate–the physical pendulum did swing back towards slender, and for a long time hairless, guys. And over the last 20 years, gay body standards have only gotten tougher.
A viral photo of pre-fame Lady Gaga performing at Fire Island’s underwear party in 2008 shows a much more diverse crowd in terms of body type.
That’s a reason why Bear Week has always been special: it is a time when all feel celebrated. Yet, when 11% of Americans are on GLP-1s, can the bears be blamed for slimming down, too?
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Health matters
There’s an old joke in Ptown that Bear Week is the hardest time of the year to land restaurant reservations. Bernstein speaks with the owner of a cupcake shop on Commercial Street who says the bears “put him on the map.”
Now, he’s leery of talking about how his favorite clientele is arriving into town with smaller appetites. He tells the story of one customer who came into his shop and declared he’s “lost 65 pounds” and his “doctor is so happy.”
The man proceeded to order a mini.
Out state senator Julian Cyr, who reps Ptown, sees the positives in emphasizing healthier habits. Still, he points out that Bear Week’s rejection of traditional body standards was crucial to his self-confidence, and doesn’t want to see that change.
“I couldn’t be gay and be heavy,” he said. “Having Bear Week really became a space of affirmation and validation, a rejection of body standards that didn’t work for me.”
Fortunately, it’s possible to do both. Cyr correctly points out that all sorts of subgroups have always shown up at Bear Week. They are not homogenous creatures.
Conflicted feelings
A content creator named Charlie Nuttall–or the “studlycub” on Insta–laid out his dilemma. Over the last few years, he’s lost 215 pounds, and is down to 240.
Though he feels better, he’s also adrift. “I feel like I lost my tribe,” he said.
For those concerned about losing bears, the article offers a statistical glimmer of hope. Sales at the cupcake shop were flat compared to last year… just like a slim bear’s stomach.
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Bears always make us woof!
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